AltWeeklies Wire
A Jailhouse Mysterynew
As Nashville attorney Gus Puryear wages the fight of his life for a federal judgeship, he's struggled to explain how his company handled the death of one of its female inmates.
Nashville Scene |
Matt Pulle |
03-28-2008 |
Politics
How To Be a (Gold-Diggger) Patronage Seekernew
The lovely art of getting something for nothing as a companion in Vegas.
Las Vegas Weekly |
Shannon Stevens |
03-28-2008 |
Culture
Against the War? Shun the Democrats & Push Peace Dealnew
Many of the most prominent antiwar voices say that if activists want to end the war, they should simply pick a candidate who is not John McCain and help them win. They can sort out the details after the Republicans are evicted from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. This is a serious strategic mistake.
NOW Magazine |
Naomi Klein and Jeremy Scahill |
03-28-2008 |
War
'Married Life' is Familiar but Rewardingnew
The pleasures of the film Married Life could be compared to the midpoint of a happy marriage; while some films elicit the ecstatic rush one might feel with a new lover, Ira Sachs' sleek, smart tale comforts us with its familiarity, routine and trust.
Tags: Ira Sachs, Married Life
Oso Optimo Understands the Weight of its Influencesnew
The Raleigh trio spends much of this debut working through its earliest identity crisis, vacillating between crunchy power-pop and gritty alt-rock.
Violet Vector is More Than its Lovely Loveliesnew
EP I proclaims one thing that suggests another: Violet Vector is more than its lovely lovelies or sartorial gentlepeople. The songs pass muster, and the performances -- an appropriate blend of simple melodies and Spector sound -- are admirable.
Brett Harris' Debut Crisply Deliverednew
In a better world, we'd know more about Brett Harris than we do, and it'd be because he writes fine classic pop and plays all the instruments and not because he's got a funny haircut or an effete manner.
Tags: Brett Harris, Yesterday's News EP
Rey Norteno Sings One for the Roadnew
With their clean-cut sex appeal and yes ma'am manners, the members of Rey Norteno have become role models for an all-ages fan base, especially young Latinos who wait in long lines to get posters, hats and T-shirts signed.
INDY Week |
Sylvia Pfeiffenberger |
03-27-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Rey Norteño
For Eels, There's Life After Memoirnew
Customarily, a career retrospective and personal memoir come at the tail end of an artist's career. And despite Mark Oliver Everett's claims to the contrary, the book serves as a fitting bookend to his tumultuous career.
New York Press |
Doug Black |
03-27-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Eels
'Meet the Browns' is a Woeful Setbacknew
Tyler Perry's primitive film style is no less arrogant than Michael Mann's slickness, but the addition of earnestness and gospel-gangster homilies makes the lack of technique especially offensive. The appalling thing about Meet the Browns is that Perry writes and directs as if his audience had never seen a movie.
New York Press |
Armond White |
03-27-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Meet the Browns, Tyler Perry
'Stop-Loss' Is Merely a Respectable Effortnew
Stop-Loss judges its Texas veterans in terms taken from Vietnam-era dissent. The director doesn't exactly rise to the occasion for national unity, but at least her final image of Brandon/Phillippe doesn't sink into fashionable cynicism.
New York Press |
Armond White |
03-27-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Kimberly Peirce, Stop-Loss
Edward Docx Could Take a Load Off, Chillaxnew
Pravda (or Self Help, as it is known in the UK) was long-listed for the 2007 Man Booker Prize, and I suppose it's understandable -- it's certainly not the sort of book I like reading, but it's enjoyable enough once you get past its wordy temper tantrums.
The Portland Mercury |
Courtney Ferguson |
03-27-2008 |
Fiction
It's Easy to Read Because It's Badnew
Even the most distracted bus rider won't fail to notice that The English American isn't easy to read because it's frivolous; it's easy to read because it's bad. Larkin's sentences unfold with such hackneyed predictability that reading each one in its entirety hardly seems necessary.
The Portland Mercury |
Alison Hallett |
03-27-2008 |
Fiction
'Stop-Loss' Is Frustrating Failurenew
Stop-Loss relies on stereotypes and cartoonish oversimplification to critique the US military. It's a frustrating failure, both ideologically and creatively.
The Portland Mercury |
Alison Hallett |
03-27-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Kimberly Peirce, Stop-Loss
Wii Should Celebrate 'Super Smash Bros. Brawl'new
By the time you read these words, Super Smash Bros. Brawl will have become Nintendo's fastest-selling game of all time, with over 1.4 million copies sold in the first week it was available in the States.
The Portland Mercury |
Earnest 'Nex' Cavalli |
03-27-2008 |
Video Games
Tags: video games
