The intimate selections of poetry read by Alice Notley and Simona Schneider at UC Berkeley’s Holloway Reading Series on Thursday made for a night of contradictions; the poets’ performances were lovely yet severe, and their content felt personal yet universal, both descriptive and emotive. Before the event’s slightly delayed start, Read More…
After following its splash at Sundance Film Festival and Ebertfest (Roger Ebert’s Film Festival) this spring, I eagerly await the public release of the film “Escape From Tomorrow,” this Friday, October 11th. Its trailer is both enticing and riveting; while little information on the plot of the film is enclosed, Read More…
It would be difficult to watch such a performance without applying such strong feelings of pride, comfort, loss and guilt to one’s own life and relationships. Berkeley’s Aurora Theatre presents Amy Herzog’s “After the Revolution” as a piece of intimacy and availability, history and relevance — a two-hour investigation of the vulnerability and strength of familial relationships. Read More…
From Oct. 5-13, Litquake 2012 shook San Francisco with literary events. “Two Guys from Chicago: Daniel Clowes, Dave Eggers” Despite the formal feel of two red velvet chairs spotlighted on stage, “Two Guys from Chicago: An Evening with Daniel Clowes and Dave Eggers” began casually. The two compiled a humorous Read More…
How could one little man cause such universal grief and anguish? More importantly, why would he?” These stimulating questions blossomed into the 1990 musical “Assassins,” a spectacle that lures its audience into a world suspended in time and space, alternating between fiction and history to create a “dreamlike vaudeville” in Read More…
Yesterday, for me, was a day of self-reflection. After getting the WarnMe alert from the chancellor about a threat on campus, I found myself — like many others I presume — in a state of quick panic as I fought the urge to bolt out the door in the middle of my Read More…
While entering my “Drugs and the Brain,” class today, the last thing I expected was to leave Wheeler auditorium battling through a heated inner dialogue about film ratings and evolution in censorship. Leave it to Professor Presti to connect my academic nemesis —science — with my passion for film analysis. Read More…
Considering the group’s erratic success in the past, Sixpence None the Richer’s 2012 album Lost in Transition seemed like the perfect opportunity for a strong comeback, but falters in producing a directed effort at gaining widespread popularity. After mild success in the early 1990’s with full Christian pop albums, Fatherless Read More…
In a summer filled with CGI special effects, the annual San Francisco Silent Film Festival reminds audiences of the beauty of film’s early days. Live music accompanies every film as festival attendees take advantage of one of the few chances to see such films as von Sternberg’s “Docks of New Read More…
At first sight, previews for “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” spurred the only thought that could overshadow the blatant absurdity of its title: “Do we really need more vampire movies?” The answer to that question, of course, is no. Interestingly enough this film succeeds in not only separating itself from much of today’s vampire rage. Read More…