That’s grim, not Grimm. Well, both, actually. As some Americans — and all Germans — know, the Grimm fairytales can be quite grim. Some of us have gained a particular perspective on this point from Stephen Sondheim’s wonderful musical, Into the… Read More ›
It seems that everyone in my generation was at Woodstock in 1969. Or so they claim. Except me. I wasn’t there. Apparently 400,000 attendees really were there, although well over a million people say they were there. But that’s not what I’m writing… Read More ›
How do you pronounce “Seán Mac an tSíthigh”? Don’t ask me. I’ve been attempting to learn something about the Irish language, but the spelling and pronunciation are daunting, as I suggested in a post I wrote a couple of months… Read More ›
If you haven’t seen it — or even if you have — this is the time to watch Steven Soderbergh’s 2011 movie, Contagion. (Or maybe it’s the time not to watch it, if you worry that it’s going to trigger you.) As you may… Read More ›
A priest and a rabbi walk into a bar on St. Patrick’s Day…. Yes, it sounds like the beginning of too many jokes. But in this case it’s the opening scene of a movie, Keeping the Faith. As a romcom, it’s not… Read More ›
Who remembers Buffy? Hands up so I can see them! OK. You can put them down now. If you remember Buffy, you probably also remember some of the quirky language used in that show. Or maybe it was too long… Read More ›
Why hadn’t I ever seen this movie before? I’m referring to the 1956 version of High Society, with a cast that includes Louis Armstrong, Bing Crosby, Celeste Holm, Grace Kelly, and Frank Sinatra. Most importantly, it has lyrics and music by… Read More ›
What a terrific movie! You don‘t have to be a Springsteen fan to find it inspirational and completely engaging. You also don‘t have to be South Asian or British, even though your point of view would inevitably be affected if… Read More ›
Anyone who has been to Weston High School or a similar suburban school — whether as a student, a teacher, or a parent — will appreciate the new movie Booksmart. If you’ve been to a suburban school in southern California, so… Read More ›
The new biopic, Tolkien, was clearly written for me. But you’ll enjoy it too. What, you may wonder, do I mean by claiming that it was written for me? Of course that is not literally true: the film-makers don’t know… Read More ›
