Arts

Arts

Zach Drucker and Chris Poldoian | Bad Samaritans

February 23

We don't want to beat a dead horse here — well, maybe we do, but we don't want buckets of blood poured on us by PETA — but we have to reemphasize the importance of novelty in Hollywood one more time. Movie execs are in a constant struggle to provide viewers with new and exciting plots, settings and cinematography. At the same time, each year brings its fair share of remakes. The art of the remake is difficult to master, but the idea behind it is quite simple: If a movie did well before, who is to say it won't do well again?

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Arts

Adam Green breaks up and makes up

February 23

Adam Green is an artist known for quirky and eccentric lyrics that paint life as humorous slapdash. He is perhaps more famous as one half of the Moldy Peaches, but as a solo artist he continues to wave his freak flag proudly. On his sixth solo album, "Minor Love," Green remains as kooky as ever, but this time he is singing the blues. As Green's break−up album, "Minor Love" feels like a private journal entry about a dark time and the aftermath that leaves him alone with his thoughts and guitar.

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Arts

Legacy of Light' will be a dark smear on theater company's record

February 22

Take a low−budget sitcom about a childless couple. Subtract the canned laughter. Splice in segments of a Lifetime original movie set in Enlightenment−era Europe, and watch for two hours.

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Arts

George Clinton band brings the funk

February 22

Every kind of music translates to live performance in its own way. Classical music fosters introspection; the best performers lure each listener into him− or herself as the emotions become increasingly subject to the nuances of the piece. Rock and roll, on the other hand, thrives on the unity of the audience as it rises and falls to the whims of the band.

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Arts

Caryn Horowitz | The Cultural Culinarian

February 22

I promised myself when I started writing this column two years ago that I would limit how much I talk about the Food Network. I decided that this would not be a forum for me to ramble on about my likes (Ina Garten) and dislikes (Rachael freaking Ray) on a regular basis. When I wrote a column two weeks ago about my devastation over the Food Network not airing on Cablevision in January, I told myself that I had reached my quota for the semester.

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Arts

Exhibition explores Buddhist, Shinto religious beliefs

February 22

Japan's Shinto belief system is not an organized religion, but rather a collection of beliefs and practices centered around the natural world and ancestry. Though it was originally not an image−based religion, the Shinto system appropriated Buddhist imagery when this newer belief system first came to Japan in the sixth century and started to communicate visually to its followers. Over time, Shinto and Buddhist beliefs became intertwined; Shinto deities were believed to be manifestations of Buddhist gods. Most Shinto shrines had a sister Buddhist temple, and though the two religions stayed separate, they started to form a symbiotic relationship.

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Arts

Mitchell Geller | Slings and Arrows

February 21

Valentine's Day is a tough holiday.

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Arts

British TV offers bolder, grittier shows with less fluff

February 21

Due to not wanting to step on NBC's sports coverage of the Winter Olympics, American TV has more or less shut down for the past two weeks. But for viewers hungering for new and different scripted TV, there's another place to look: across the pond.

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Arts

Tufts gains increased publicity from recent media exposure

February 21

Numerous Tufts students have likely had to deal with the following conversation:

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Arts

Dangerous Man' enthralls audiences

February 21

A wartime nation is much less a body of emotional, interested and varied individuals than it is a well−greased and intricate machine. Within this jingoistic device, each human being satisfies a particular role, subjugating personal needs and values for the good of the unit. Yet what happens when one cog sickens of the operation and springs free? Judith Erlich and Rick Goldsmith address this in "The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers," a documentary about the government insider who exposed to the public the ugly realities of the Vietnam War.

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Arts

Stellar cast powers creepy 'Shutter Island'

February 21

Many consider Leonardo DiCaprio to be the best actor of his generation. For some this statement is not speculation or hyperbole — it is fact.

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Arts

The responsibility of reporters and celebrities

February 21

This past Friday, Tiger Woods joined the ranks of the many politicians and celebrities who have had to face the media with an official recognition of and apology for their personal transgressions. In his long-awaited press conference, Woods addressed his automobile accident on Thanksgiving night of 2009 and the reports of his infidelity that later emerged. While he expressed his deep apologies to his family, fans and those involved in his foundation, he also admonished the media for its intrusion into his private life and the lives of his family members.

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Arts

Women's issues of the 1920s come to life in 'Not Enough Air'

February 18

The psychological aspects of a seemingly content housewife who snaps and suddenly murders her husband are studied in the Nora Theatre Company's production "Not Enough Air" by local playwright Masha Obolensky.

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Arts

Silverman Program' repulses viewers to point of laughter

February 18

In the previous two seasons of Comedy Central's "The Sarah Silverman Program," viewers have seen the show's protagonist Sarah Silverman, played by the comedic actress of the same name, have a one−night stand with God, accidentally molest her dog and start a social revolution by wearing blackface. Thus, one might wonder, what is left for this two−times silly (and three−times offensive) character to do?

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Arts

Saint John' disappoints

February 18

"Saint John of Las Vegas" is a new comedic drama that suffers from the fact that it is neither funny nor dramatic in the slightest. Although writer and director Hue Rhodes tries to mimic classic Coen Brothers films of this genre with his attempt at dry black humor, the film's lack of plot and character development ultimately leads to its demise.

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Arts

Starry Night' installation brightens dull season, dingy street

February 18

Cars are parked along the slushy sides of Summer Street, surrounding an overpass with graffiti bordering its edges. As darkness envelops this corner of Boston, partially hiding the grime of the metal support system and the broken glass scattered on the sidewalk, the streetlights flicker on. So does another set of lights — 4,800 of them.

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Arts

A Closer Look: Boston's Theater Scene

February 17

View Boston Theater Map in a larger map

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Arts

Silverman previews season three of her hit show

February 17

Sarah Silverman is an actress, comedian, writer and singer who produces and stars in "The Sarah Silverman Program" on Comedy Central, Thursdays at 10:30 p.m. Known for her outrageous humor that satirizes various aspects of American society, Silverman combines silliness with perversity and keeps viewers in a constant state of amusement. The Daily got the chance to talk with this eccentric comedienne. Question: Would you say your show has any risky or possibly offensive humor? Sarah Silverman: Well that's really not for me to say. We're not looking to offend anybody, but we want to put stuff out there that makes us laugh. Once we put something out there, and it's in the air, that's for the audience to decide what it means. It doesn't make sense in comedy to try to not offend somebody, because you never know what will offend people.

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Arts

Top 10 Songs We'd Do Our Figure Skating Routine To

February 17

We at the Daily Arts Department are totally excited about the Winter Olympics. Even though we don't cover anything athletically related, we've been tuning in every night to watch the many varied events currently being held in Vancouver, especially our favorites: the men's and women's figure skating short programs. There's nothing we like more than sequins, skates, ice and fussy judges. But, frankly, we've been disappointed by the musical choices so far, and we'd like to humbly submit our top ten suggestions for songs for short programs. 10) "I Try:" So this song may be slow and awkward, but we mostly like it because its lyrics "try to walk away and I stumble" would be so appropriate for that skater who gets unintentionally up close and personal with the ice during a routine. We're not saying that a fall would be pretty, but at least with the lyrics of this song, it wouldn't be completely out of the blue. 9) "Enter Sandman:" This song's loud heavy metal would give every figure skater the chance to head bang during a routine, which, we all know, they've been dying to try. It's been pent up in there somewhere. 8) "Cotton-Eyed Joe:" We all did this one during every middle school dance we attended. Bring it to the rink, add sequined overalls and you'll send ice a-flying. Yee-haw! 7) "Here I Go Again:" This one starts slow, cheesy and synthy, like all good short forms, but it gets headbangingly awesome pretty quickly. Plus, who doesn't want to pretend to be Tawny Kitaen on the hood of that car ... on ice? 6) "MmmBop:" Don't pretend you hate this song. You love this song. This is your favorite song. You've danced to it in your room every day since 1997. We're going to take that infectious energy all the way to the Olympics. 5) "You Make My Dreams:" With feathered locks of silky hair, scrumptious falsettos and intense sexual tension, Hall & Oates was one of the greatest duos of all time. So why not channel their essence on the ice with a skating partner and make your Olympic dreams come true? 4) "Jump On It:" First, find the "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" (1990-1996) version of this dance on YouTube.com (if you haven't seen it already). Then, imagine that instead of being tossed off the stage, Carlton does a triple lutz followed by a lunge. Now that's jumping on it. 3) "Eye of the Tiger:" Imagine Sylvester Stallone. Now imagine ice skates. This song is all about the new Rocky, figure skating style. 2) "Bad Romance:" "Rah-rah-ah-ah-ahh." Honestly, the costume alone for this routine would win you a gold. What could be hotter than a triple axel to Lady Gaga? 1) "Party in the USA:" For starters, Miley's song is just overflowing with ideas for a killer routine: "So I put my hands up … noddin' my head like yeah/ Movin' my hips like yeah." And if an American figure skater were to win a gold, it really would be a "Party in the USA." How appropriate.  

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Arts

Massive Attack's trademark dark sound prevalent in new album

February 17

At what point does a band's sound become more of a trap than a trademark? Bristol's Massive Attack has been in the business of making dark albums since "Mezzanine" (1998), and their latest "Heligoland" is no exception. Some critics have accused Massive Attack of redundancy since "Mezzanine," but these accusations hardly acknowledge how adeptly this group conjures the varying shades of gloom and brooding that have come to typify their music. Even though Massive Attack's latest LP does little to shift this critical perception, it affirms the band's keen atmospheric sensibilities and reinforces its reputation as a challenging, if not sonically limited, outfit.

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