The COVID-19 Pandemic has been some of the most challenging months of my life. Many people have lost their jobs, and many have also lost their lives. It has challenged us as a nation, and it has challenged me as a person. In March, I began looking for anything that would distract me and give […]
Category: Arts & Culture
‘The Plot Against America’ Review: A Terrific Adaptation
The Plot Against America, one of HBO’s newest miniseries, is a terrific adaptation of Philp Roth’s ingenious alternate-history. The show, adapted by David Simon and Ed Burns, brings a new dread and urgency to Philip Roth’s brilliant 2006 novel. Simon and Burns, the creative minds behind the HBO series The Wire (more commonly known as […]
COVID-19 Recommendations
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us are now at home looking for something to pass the time. We thought it would be a good idea to give our readers some recommendations. These recommendations include books, movies, television shows, and new hobbies like seeking out the best free android solitaire app to try and […]
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Review
While seeing The Rise of Skywalker, I could not help but think of The Last Jedi. When I reviewed The Last Jedi back in 2017, I was incredibly positive about the movie. The Last Jedi was easily the smartest and most innovative movie in the franchise since The Empire Strikes Back. Rian Johnson subverted expectations […]
Inherent Vice: Adam McKay’s Vice struggles to find a message in muddling Biopic
In February of last year, I attended the AEI Eastern Policy Summit at the University of Virginia, which was a weekend filled with great speakers and fascinating discussion and debates. On the first night, Dick and Lynne Cheney came and talked about Lynne’s book on James Madison. I was shocked at their charm and camaraderie, […]
The Debasement of Political Satire
Monty Python was a popular—and brilliant—mid-1900s British sketch comedy troupe. Recently, I’ve been watching clips of their eponymous TV series, Monty Python’s Flying Circus, which satirizes British culture. Their political sketches, such as Party Political Broadcast and The Ministry of Silly Walks, critique politicians and excessive bureaucracy, respectively, and are pretty funny. More importantly, they […]
Bending Realities: ‘Westworld’ and Our Conception of Free Will
“Have you ever questioned the nature of your reality?” Oh many times, Jeffrey Wright, many times—perhaps more now than ever before. I never thought a show could bring out this feeling in me, but it turns out that a TV addiction has its perks. ‘Westworld’, a show I was unfamiliar with a mere month ago, […]
Oscars Grandstanding: Since When are Celebs our Moral Compass?
For an awards ceremony that hosted its first political speaker back in 1973, when The Godfather star Marlon Brando sent Sacheen Littlefeather in his stead, the Oscars have certainly found their (left-wing) voice. This past Sunday, 2018 Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel offered the ceremony’s signature statue as a model for the well-liked male: he “keeps […]
No Safety Net: They, Themselves, and Schmerm
This is the third installment of the Michigan Review’s coverage of No Safety Net — a series of provocative theatre performances hosted by the University Musical Society drawing diverse communities together to discuss and re-examine social issues. As part of their “No Safety Net” series, which aims to “create a community platform for important dialogue,” […]
No Safety Net: Us/Them
This is the second installment of the Michigan Review’s coverage of No Safety Net — a series of provocative theatre performances hosted by the University Musical Society drawing diverse communities together to discuss and re-examine social issues. Us/Them is the kind of theatre that you will never see in America—at least not in its original […]