As a 90s kid, there has always been a special place in my heart for punk rock.  I grew up listening to a walkman that often spun Green Day, Red Hot Chili Peppers, AFI, and Jimmy Eat World.  Yet, somehow this is the first time I have heard of Acceptance.  Colliding By Design displays the evolution of punk rock.  To conform to modern listeners, punk rock seems to have driven itself away from the emo scene and more into the pop scene.  Catchy choruses replace the blaring vocals of early punk music.  There is still a touch of angst in the music, but it is a bit more subtle and less rebellious.  Colliding By Design may not be considered as punk rock to many, but if you listen to more popular 90s musicians you will notice some similarities.  Acceptance's newest album reminds us that punk rock is still alive, but has seemingly come-of-age with its main listeners.  For these reasons, I cannot help but bang my head to this new album!

Notable Tracks: "Diagram of a Simple Man", "We Can Escape", "Haunted"

Similar Artists to Acceptance: Jimmy Eat World, AFI, The Starting Line

When Across the Universe was first pitched, I am sure there was backlash to the project.  Creating a film about a highly critiqued war effort is one thing, but using the Beatles's discography to progress the story is a whole other monster.  As a Beatles fanboy I can appreciate the covers throughout the film, even if the film falls short of being a masterpiece.  Jim Sturgess (21, Cloud Atlas) shows off his talent in singing and acting as the main star in the film.  Kudos to Evan Rachel Wood (The Wrestler) as well, who has now proven that she is a major star in Westworld.  Awesome cameos from Bono (Click, Batman Forever), Joe Cocker (Iron Man 2, The Pursuit of Happyness, Flight​), and Eddie Izzard (Valkyrie) round out the film's soundtrack.

The one area where the film falls flat is the storyline.  The storyline occurs over a long period of time as Jude (played by Jim Sturgess) grows up.  The film parallels his life with current events of the time period.  At times, the metaphors seem to push too hard towards a very heavy anti-war message.  I like the message, but it's a bit too heavy a lot of the time.  Odd interactions seem out of place along the way as well.  At points, I wish that a lot of the film was cut out because it is irrelevant to the storyline.  It was really cool that the filmmakers tried to use as many Beatles songs as possible, but sometimes they distract the flow of the film.

Coming out in 2007, Across the Universe used innovative tools to create a visually striking piece of art.  Kaleidoscope images cross the screen during Bono's performance of "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds", portraying the psychedelic style of the late Beatles music.  My favorite part of the movie occurs during a scene about the army draft.  The scene starts off with a horrifying image of Uncle Sam reaching out of a poster to grab a conscripted soldier.  The choreography is grand and the song fits perfectly with the scene, displaying the political messages embedded in a lot of the music by the Beatles. 

The Bottom Line: Even with a flat storyline, Across the Universe is a spectacle based around an anti-war message embedded in iconic Beatles songs.

Score: 6/10

February 20th
Vitaly Churkin (b. 1952) - Serdtse materi
Antony Mitradas 

February 21st
Brunella Bovo (b. 1932) - The White Sheik
Joy Hruby (b. 1927) - The Love Letters From Teralba Road

February 22nd
Nikos Koundouros (b. 1926) - 1922
Aleksei Petrenko (b. 1938) - The Barber of Siberia
Alfred Wiggins 

February 24th
Gustaw Lutkiewicz (b. 1924) - With Fire and Sword

February 25th
Hassan Al-Jundi
Neil Fingleton (b. 1981) - X-Men: First Class, Avengers: Age of Ultron
Bill Paxton (b. 1955) - Titanic, Edge of Tomorrow

February 26th
Katalin Berek (b. 1930) - Adoption

Image credit: ​By Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56641017

1. The LEGO Batman Movie - $32.6M

2. Fifty Shades Darker - $20.2M

3. The Great Wall - $18.4M

4. John Wick: Chapter Two - $16.2M

5. Fist Fight - $12.2M

6. Hidden Figures - $7.2M

7. Split - $7.1M

8. A Dog's Purpose - $5.7M

9. La La Land - $4.5M
​
10. A Cure for Wellness - $4.3M

Image credit: ​By Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America - Will Arnett, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56227979

As my first Jim Jarmusch (Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai) film viewing, I am quite impressed.  Jarmusch brings out great performances in his layered characters, while subtly dropping heavy symbolism throughout Paterson.  The film is a deep look at a single person's daily routine as he gets up, drives his bus for work, and ends up at the bar each night.  Rather than being repetitive like Groundhog Day, this film is a closed circle of commentary.  Yes, the story loops and certain elements are kept constant.  However, we do not have to drudge through the same thing happening over and over on a smaller scale.  

The shining element that keeps this film rolling is the character development.  One might argue that there is not a lot of development in the characters, but I would argue that each day there is a different perspective for each character.  Adam Driver (Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Inside Llewyn Davis) fits perfectly into the role of Paterson, a bus driver by day and a poet by night.  Everything around Paterson is constantly changing, yet his routine remains the same.  Driver plays a passive and yet productive character, which is a hard concept to understand.  Alongside Driver, Golshifteh Farahani (Exodus: Gods and Kings​) plays a great supporting actress as Laura.  As Paterson's partner, Laura can get into his mind and yet never fully understand him.

This film would be fun to view and then discuss in a group because of its deep metaphors and symbolism.  No matter how many times I watch this one, I will always have different thoughts about what Jarmusch was getting at.  Right now, I am contemplating a theme that relates to twins.  I am not sure what Jarmusch was trying to say with the theme, but clearly there is something there.  If I ponder this one for a while, maybe I will have an answer in the near future.  Yet, if I rewatch the film I might change my mind.  That is the beauty of this film!

The Bottom Line:  It's not full of action, but it is full of dense character writing and a deeply symbolic screenplay.

Score: 9.4/10 

​Image credit: By Georges Biard, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=49203449

During my first listen-through, this album reminded me of the soundtrack for Pulp Fiction.  With smooth and clear vocals, Molly Burch brings the vocal era back to our minds.  The twangy guitar instrumentals add nostalgia for a time when music was heard in restaurants everywhere.  Listening to this album takes me far away from home, to sandy beaches and underground jazz clubs.  While her voice is clear, Burch's vocals bring haze into the atmosphere.  Most of the pieces are very slow, with a deep focus on the vocals.  Yet, the album constantly progresses forward with unique tracks.  The tracks are relatable, but they certainly do not all sound the same!

Notable Tracks: "Downhearted", "Torn to Pieces", "Not Today"

Similar Artists to Molly Burch: Angel Olsen, Maria McKee

I am 22 years old and have just now had the privilege of investing my time in a viewing of Animal House.  This film was a base for its genre, opening new doors for coming-of-age/college movies.  John Hughes reigned over high-school coming-of-age with Ferris Bueller's Day Off, but John Landis (The Blues Brothers) reigned over college coming-of-age with this one.  Animal House is quirky, wild, and of course raunchy.  While the story is too rushed and poorly scripted, it seems like the creators knew exactly what they were going for with this one.

That begs the question: with a dull story and odd happenings, how has this film continued to attract audiences?  Well, maybe it's the cast.  Tom Hulce (Amadeus, The Hunchback of Notre Dame), Stephen Furst (Babylon 5), Kevin Bacon (Footloose), and many others keep the film enjoyable and zany.  But the real star is the neanderthal-like John Belushi (The Blues Brothers​).  As John Blutarsky, Belushi keeps the audience guessing what he will do whenever he is on the screen.  Belushi was cast in a heck of a lot of fun films, but there is a reason why this one sits towards the top of his whole filmography.  

Okay, so the cast is fun to watch.  There has to be more to this film than just a fun cast.  After all, Batman v. Superman had a fun cast, but still was very unenjoyable.  Animal House has become a sort of initiation into the comedy genre for cinephiles.  Why is that?  I think it has to do with the initial release of the film.  In 1978, this was surely a huge shock for film audiences.  Beer and topless women constantly pop on-screen as Landis decides to bring out fraternity life to the world.  Sure, not all fraternities are well-represented by this film.  Yet, there are definitely college students and fraternity brothers that are relatable to the characters in the film.  The scattered story doesn't matter, so long as viewers can reminisce on their college memories.  Even though most of us did not go through college like this, we probably know someone who did.  

The Bottom Line: Don't expect a grandiose and well-rounded story, but rather a beer-cladden romp through a stereotypical fraternity.

Score: 6/10

Image credit: ​By Visitor7 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29127671

February 13th
Herminio Bautista
Gerald Hirschfeld (b. 1921) - Young Frankenstein
Bruce Lansbury (b. 1930) - Murder, She Wrote

February 15th
Bonipus Fernando 
Jose Sole

February 16th
George Steele (b. 1937) - Ed Wood

February 17th
Nicole Bass (b. 1964) - Private Parts
Warren Frost (b. 1925) - Psycho IV: The Beginning
Kim Ji-young 

February 18th
Witold Adamek (b. 1945) - A Short Film About Love
Pasquale Squitieri (b. 1938) - Act of Sorrow

February 19th
Danuta Szaflarska (b. 1915) - Time to Die

Image credit: ​By swiftwj - Flickr: Animal in B& W, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12454023

When superhero movies start to grow stale, there is one thing that Hollywood can do to revive the genre... more LEGO movies!  After The Lego Movie, I craved more LEGO Batman.  After a few years, I was still excited for this film and it did not disappoint.  The Lego Movie introduced us to the crazy world of the LEGO cinematic universe, unknowingly opening a whole new children's film sub genre.  Yet, this film is a fun time for adults along with children.  Subtle jabs at political figures (President Trump himself) and self-centered characters push the film's subtle adult humor.  However, an inspiring message for the kids is still revealed towards the end of the film.  That way, we don't feel guilty about the film's education value.

Throughout The LEGO Batman Movie, I was constantly trying to figure out who was voicing each character.  Of course, Will Arnett (Despicable Me, Ratatouille) returns as one of the best cinematic Batman characters ever along with Michael Cera's (Juno, Superbad, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) addition of an oddly flamboyant Robin.  Other familiar names round out the cast of villains and heroes.  Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)) might not be your typical Joker, but I will admit that I enjoyed his rendition more than Jared Leto's (Requiem for a Dream, Dallas Buyers Club).  

Whenever a film as innovative as this one comes out, I have to take the time to admire the effects.  As a LEGO action movie, this film has some super cool effects that had me wondering how hard it is to create such a film.  Warner Bros. seems to have struck gold, but I am sure they put in a lot of gold in the creation of this piece of art.  The cast is probably expensive enough, but the LEGO effects must have taken a lot of workers and time as well.  I should be able to maintain my interest in this genre for at least the next half-decade.  I know nothing about the NINJAGO universe, but the trailer for that next franchise installment already has me hyped!

The Bottom Line:  This is truly a family film that LEGO and Batman fanatics can enjoy in the same theater.

Score: 7/10

Image credit: ​By Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America - Chris McKay & Will Arnett, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56228004