I LOVE comic books. I LOVE movies. But comic−book movies? Here's the way I look at 'em: They are like scratch tickets. You throw down some money, do a bit of gambling, and you are either slightly surprised or you just feel swindled. "Iron Man" (2008)? AWESOME. "X−Men: The Last Stand" (2006)? I had to take a shower to wipe off the grime.
A couple of weeks ago, I was sitting around with a pair of UNC fans watching the Tar Heels take on Duke. Unsurprisingly, the conversation shifted to Carolina's last title game in 2008−09.
If Flo Rida's 2010 hit from the "Step Up 3D" (2010) soundtrack, "Club Can't Handle Me," is in any way autobiographical, he is, according to the definitions and classifications found in the DSM-IV-TR, the bearer of many, many mental health scars. The lyrics read like the diary of a psych ward inhabitant: delusions, grandiose thoughts, paranoid ramblings — it's all there, each line more incriminating and worrisome than the one before it.
Ah, the Champions League — that glorious, thrilling UEFA competition that awaits every soccer fan coming out of the winter doldrums. It pits the best of each nation against each other, giving great teams from small leagues and the traditional giants alike a chance to showcase their skills on the biggest stage.
The last time I checked the Office of Undergraduate Admissions' statistics regarding literacy at Tufts, it seemed to me that the vast majority of students attending Tufts could read and speak English at a satisfactory level. It occurred to me that literacy happens to be a prerequisite for most institutions of higher education, and that makes sense I guess. Of the people I have met, befriended and loved at Tufts, all have been well−read, well−spoken and knowledgeable in the English language, if only as a result of the hours of reading homework they have each night.
Look, I've been saying it for years, and apparently Hollywood just isn't listening: We need more Chris Tucker in movies. Some of you might be asking, "Who is Chris Tucker?" or "Why do we need to inject him into feature films?" Let me tell you: He is that loud−mouthed, sassy and wildly incompetent sidekick. He's been featured alongside Bruce Willis in "The Fifth Element" (1997), Ice Cube in "Friday" (1995), Charlie Sheen in "Money Talks" (1997) and, most famously, Jackie Chan in the "Rush Hour" trilogy (1998, 2001, 2007).
The "instant replay" conversation is the hottest camera-based debate in sports that doesn't involve Rex Ryan and his wife's feet. To many, the idea that baseball and soccer still have minimal use of instant replay is as mind-boggling as America's love for Ke$ha's music, if that can be called music. While tennis creates full 3-D renderings of its court to see where the ball hit (does anyone know how this is done, by the way?), soccer still can't just look at a TV monitor.
A couple of months ago, my good older brother turned me on to a new Internet meme, a little something called Groupon. Maybe you've heard of it. While it originally sounded to me like a disease suffered by Civil War vets, my brother sold me on the idea of dropping ten bones on a $20 return. Since signing up I've discovered that it wasn't so much my best interests he was looking out for, but the $10 referral credit he was after. Ain't older siblings great? But this piece isn't a rant about youngest−child syndrome; I save those for the occasional Cuervo−induced blackout heart−to−hearts. No, this is a rant about online coupons.
Westerns are awesome. I know I'm late to jump on the bandwagon, but "True Grit" was an excellent movie; it's up for 10 Academy Awards, after all.
So, if you are blind, lack the ability to sense heat, haven't had an offhand conversation with someone in line in the Rez and have somehow found a Braille copy of the Daily and are feeling your fingers across this column (honest question: Is that still called reading?), well, I have a little news flash for you. In words I imagine screamed out by Chris Farley in "Tommy Boy" (1995), there is a S--- TON OF SNOW! Yes, breaking news. IT'S EVERYWHERE! And, like the Persians in "300" (2006) or that lead guy in "Grandma's Boy" (2006), it just keeps coming!
I am the first to admit that I enjoy a well-placed metaphor or simile.
It's happened. It's finally here. The thing you've been dreading, and thus the column you've all been waiting for. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, winter has arrived. Brace yourselves.
Since 1996, Shawn Carter has been releasing solo albums as Jay−Z. The way he tells the story in his new book, "Decoded," he was in the recording booth one day when a friend commented that listening to him flow was akin to a religious experience: Jehova to Jay−Z/Hova.
What do you call it when hundreds of drunken students get together to partake in a grueling athletic endeavor while their similarly drunken friends cheer them on? Furthermore, let's say it's sort of a Tufts ritual, and it happens in early December as everyone is stressing about finals. Nope, it's not NQR. It's T-D-C!!!
The essence of the Joker lies in his inability to feel pain. Sympathy cannot emerge when pure hatred and masochism block the gates to the brain's emotional center.
There are nine members of the Wu−Tang Clan, in case you were wondering.
So I went to the new Harry Potter movie last week, and — I'm about to lose a bunch of friends saying this — it was terrible.
In the throes of elementary school torture and ridicule, weaker creatures derogatorily named nerds often took refuge in reading books for hours upon hours. This shouldn't come as much of a surprise; with the exception of some self−isolating bullies — you know who you are, line pushers — the vast majority of Tufts students have vestiges of nerdness stored up within their hearts. Many at Tufts even admit to this quality openly and honestly; I have had multiple friends suggest that this dweeb tendency is what unites the greater population, knowingly or not.
A week ago today, the world woke up to a gift from a Pittsburgh−based former biomedical engineer. Gregg Gillis, better known as Girl Talk, unleashed his fifth LP, "All Day," free of charge on his label's — Illegal Art — website, and further cemented his importance in the modern musical landscape.
