Clockwise from top left: The Equalizer (Sony), Palm Springs (Hulu), Triangle Of Sadness (Neon), Parasite (Neon)Graphic: AVClub
Hulu, like all streaming services, adds and loses titles every month. If you see something that you want to stream, don’t assume that it will still be there two weeks or...
Hulu, like all streaming services, adds and loses titles every month. If you see something that you want to stream, don’t assume that it will still be there two weeks or...
- 2/24/2024
- by The A.V. Club
- avclub.com
Denzel Washington, Anna Kendrick, Tom Cruise, Jeremy RennerScreenshot: Sony, Photo: Lionsgate, Paramount
Every streaming service offers a wide range of film genres, but Amazon Prime Video seems to be particularly focused on the action-adventure sector. If you’re looking for pulse-pounding, edge-of-your-seat thrills, the streamer makes for a solid starting point.
Every streaming service offers a wide range of film genres, but Amazon Prime Video seems to be particularly focused on the action-adventure sector. If you’re looking for pulse-pounding, edge-of-your-seat thrills, the streamer makes for a solid starting point.
- 1/31/2024
- by The A.V. Club
- avclub.com
Clockwise from bottom left: Beetlejuice (Warner Bros.), Palm Springs (Hulu), The Guilt Trip (Paramount), Frank (Magnolia) Graphic: AVClub
Hulu is a great resource for viewers seeking laughs, as this round-up of the platform’s best available comedy movies can attest. The A.V. Club’s list particularly proves that Hulu...
Hulu is a great resource for viewers seeking laughs, as this round-up of the platform’s best available comedy movies can attest. The A.V. Club’s list particularly proves that Hulu...
- 1/20/2024
- by The A.V. Club
- avclub.com
(Clockwise from bottom left:) The Nightmare Before Christmas (screenshot), Miracle On 34th Street (screenshot), Home Alone (screenshot), The Muppet Christmas Carol (screenshot)Graphic: The A.V. Club
Hearts need warming this time of year, and there’s no better streaming source for heartwarming, family-friendly entertainment than Disney+. In terms of holiday films merry and bright,...
Hearts need warming this time of year, and there’s no better streaming source for heartwarming, family-friendly entertainment than Disney+. In terms of holiday films merry and bright,...
- 12/16/2023
- by The A.V. Club
- avclub.com
They say that on quiet nights you can hear the chants coming from small Norwegian villages, "More 'Troll,' more 'Troll,' More 'Troll!'" Indeed, fans of the Norwegian straight-to-Netflix creature feature "Troll" have been famished for more troll-on-human violence since the film's release in 2022.
Directed by Roar Uthaug, the accomplished filmmaker behind high-intensity spectacles such as "The Wave" and 2018's "Tomb Raider" reboot, "Troll" was something of a surprise hit on the streaming platform. Back in December of 2022, "Troll" scored the second spot on Netflix's coveted Top 10 Most Watched list, right behind the smash hit series "Wednesday." For a foreign film dropped on the platform with little to no marketing, that's majorly impressive. Even moreso: "Troll" went on to become Netflix's most-watched non-English film of all time.
The critical reception of "Troll" was mixed, but fairly positive. The Los Angeles Times' Noel Murray wrote that "it's no...
Directed by Roar Uthaug, the accomplished filmmaker behind high-intensity spectacles such as "The Wave" and 2018's "Tomb Raider" reboot, "Troll" was something of a surprise hit on the streaming platform. Back in December of 2022, "Troll" scored the second spot on Netflix's coveted Top 10 Most Watched list, right behind the smash hit series "Wednesday." For a foreign film dropped on the platform with little to no marketing, that's majorly impressive. Even moreso: "Troll" went on to become Netflix's most-watched non-English film of all time.
The critical reception of "Troll" was mixed, but fairly positive. The Los Angeles Times' Noel Murray wrote that "it's no...
- 10/30/2023
- by Ryan Coleman
- Slash Film
Clockwise from top left: Polite Society (Focus Features), Totally Killer (Amazon), The Burial (Amazon), Surrounded (MGM)Image: The A.V. Club
Amazon Prime Video has a diverse selection of originals, indies, and recent theatrical releases this October. Tommy Lee Jones plays a funeral home owner and Jamie Foxx is his attorney in The Burial,...
Amazon Prime Video has a diverse selection of originals, indies, and recent theatrical releases this October. Tommy Lee Jones plays a funeral home owner and Jamie Foxx is his attorney in The Burial,...
- 9/28/2023
- by Robert DeSalvo
- avclub.com
It goes without saying that movie music has come a mighty long way in the last 100 years or so, but the first two decades of the 21st century have nevertheless been an extraordinarily active and evolutionary stretch of time for film scores. Without discounting the bold and formative achievements of old masters like Bernard Hermann and Toru Takemitsu, it’s fair to say that the rise of independent cinema and the challenge of the digital age have provoked a true paradigm shift in how we think about musical accompaniment.
Rock and avant-garde musicians like Jonny Greenwood and Mica Levi have used narrative projects as inspiration to explore new facets of their genius, while more traditional composers such as Alexandre Desplat and Carter Burwell have risen to the challenge by delivering the most beautiful work of their careers. Indeed, some of the very best movie scores in recent memory (including the...
Rock and avant-garde musicians like Jonny Greenwood and Mica Levi have used narrative projects as inspiration to explore new facets of their genius, while more traditional composers such as Alexandre Desplat and Carter Burwell have risen to the challenge by delivering the most beautiful work of their careers. Indeed, some of the very best movie scores in recent memory (including the...
- 8/10/2023
- by Wilson Chapman, David Ehrlich, Kate Erbland and Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
In this time of geekery and craft reigning supreme, film critics and academics no longer reject horror movies with the knee-jerk certainty some once did. But even now the specter of “elevated horror” (see that concept’s lambasting in Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s “Scream 5”) looms over discussions of artier explorations of dread and terror — Ari Aster’s “Midsommar,” Luca Guadagnino’s “Suspiria,” Rose Glass’ “Saint Maud” — that are clearly distinguished from, well, non-elevated horror. The general gist is that these exceptions to the “horror is bad” rule engage your brain more than just showing brains: eaten by zombies or splattered against the wall.
How can films that fire your adrenal glands, send shivers down your spine, raise goosebumps, and quicken your breath — that inspire such an intense physical reaction — also be cerebral experiences? The answer is obvious enough. Viewers forget all the time that, as Anna Karina...
How can films that fire your adrenal glands, send shivers down your spine, raise goosebumps, and quicken your breath — that inspire such an intense physical reaction — also be cerebral experiences? The answer is obvious enough. Viewers forget all the time that, as Anna Karina...
- 8/10/2023
- by Alison Foreman
- Indiewire
It’s the shock of seeing Norman Bates, knife in hand, clad in his mother’s clothes, grinning maniacally in the swinging lamplight. It’s a supposedly dead husband rising from a bathtub with terrifying saucer contact-lenses. It’s finally connecting “I see dead people” with Bruce Willis being shot at the beginning of “The Sixth Sense.” When movies pull the rug out from under us, it’s one of the greatest thrills that cinema can provide.
As Hollywood continues to reboot countless old properties, it’s easy to think that the days of original and surprising storytelling are long behind us. But these films prove that Hollywood still has a few tricks up its sleeve, ones that have kept us talking for years, and have cemented their place in film history.
Beware of spoilers! Here are the best plot twists of the 21st century.
Samantha Bergeson, Christian Blauvelt, Jude Dry,...
As Hollywood continues to reboot countless old properties, it’s easy to think that the days of original and surprising storytelling are long behind us. But these films prove that Hollywood still has a few tricks up its sleeve, ones that have kept us talking for years, and have cemented their place in film history.
Beware of spoilers! Here are the best plot twists of the 21st century.
Samantha Bergeson, Christian Blauvelt, Jude Dry,...
- 7/28/2023
- by Wilson Chapman and Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
What makes a sex scene sexy? More to the point, what makes a sex scene good? That’s become an especially thorny question in recent years, with detailed accounts of what goes on behind the scenes of movies we love complicating our relationship with their most memorable moments. And though we’re ever so slowly moving away from the male gaze serving as the default perspective on love, sex, and everything between, there’s still a long way to go.
That is, if sex scenes still appear in movies at all. They do, but with greater infrequency, certainly in Hollywood studio productions. Though many think-pieces have been written about “the death of the sex scene” there’s still been a lot to celebrate over the last 23 years. A number of sex-positive, LGBTQ-friendly, and otherwise forward-thinking filmmakers have directed scenes that are as steamy as they are moving. There’s nothing...
That is, if sex scenes still appear in movies at all. They do, but with greater infrequency, certainly in Hollywood studio productions. Though many think-pieces have been written about “the death of the sex scene” there’s still been a lot to celebrate over the last 23 years. A number of sex-positive, LGBTQ-friendly, and otherwise forward-thinking filmmakers have directed scenes that are as steamy as they are moving. There’s nothing...
- 7/20/2023
- by Ryan Lattanzio, Christian Zilko and Wilson Chapman
- Indiewire
Adam McKay’s latest television series is upon us in the form of HBO series “Winning Time: THe Rise of the Lakers Dynasty” from co-creators Max Borenstein (“Worth,” “Godzilla vs. Kong”) and Jim Hecht. As he did previously with “Succession,” McKay directed the show’s pilot episode and enlisted some of his frequent collaborators for help, including current “Don’t Look Up” Oscar nominees editor Hank Corwin and composer Nicholas Brittell.
Based on “Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s” by Jeff Pearlman, the series focuses on the Los Angeles Lakers during the early days of the team’s 1980s dynasty, which saw the team win five NBA championships. The show features an ensemble cast including the likes of John C. Reilly (“Chicago”), Jason Clarke (“Mudbound”), Gaby Hoffmann (“Transparent”), Molly Gordon (“Shiva Baby”), Adrien Brody (“The Pianist”), Sally Field (“Lincoln”), Rob Morgan (“Don’t Look Up...
Based on “Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s” by Jeff Pearlman, the series focuses on the Los Angeles Lakers during the early days of the team’s 1980s dynasty, which saw the team win five NBA championships. The show features an ensemble cast including the likes of John C. Reilly (“Chicago”), Jason Clarke (“Mudbound”), Gaby Hoffmann (“Transparent”), Molly Gordon (“Shiva Baby”), Adrien Brody (“The Pianist”), Sally Field (“Lincoln”), Rob Morgan (“Don’t Look Up...
- 3/4/2022
- by Caillou Pettis
- Gold Derby
As part of Deadline x Rolling Stone, a special issue of our AwardsLine print magazine dedicated to music in cinema, Noel Murray runs through the 20 Best Oscar music moments.
For most of the history of the Academy Awards, the musical numbers have been at once glitzy and sappy, featuring fresh-scrubbed young dancers in spangled costumes, spinning and kicking behind a couple of old Hollywood stars. But every now and then, amid all the schmaltz, the producers of the Oscars telecasts have set aside some airtime to showcase some of the best singers and the snappiest songs of their eras.
Beginning in the 1970s especially, the Academy began opening up more to rock ’n’ roll and R&b, around the same time that the producers started asking the Best Original Song nominees’ original artists to perform. Ever since, the show has featured some the music industry’s biggest stars, alongside a...
For most of the history of the Academy Awards, the musical numbers have been at once glitzy and sappy, featuring fresh-scrubbed young dancers in spangled costumes, spinning and kicking behind a couple of old Hollywood stars. But every now and then, amid all the schmaltz, the producers of the Oscars telecasts have set aside some airtime to showcase some of the best singers and the snappiest songs of their eras.
Beginning in the 1970s especially, the Academy began opening up more to rock ’n’ roll and R&b, around the same time that the producers started asking the Best Original Song nominees’ original artists to perform. Ever since, the show has featured some the music industry’s biggest stars, alongside a...
- 2/25/2021
- by Noel Murray
- Deadline Film + TV
The Devil All The Time hit Netflix on Wednesday (September 16), with Antonio Campos (2016’s Christine) directing a cast crammed with stars like Tom Holland, Bill Skarsgård, Riley Keough, Jason Clarke, Sebastian Stan, Haley Bennett, Eliza Scanlen, Mia Wasikowska and Robert Pattinson.
Based on a novel by Donald Ray Pollock, The Devil All The Time is a Southern Gothic, a mix of murder mystery and psychological thriller — with a touch of horror — that focuses on the inhabitants of a town called Knockemstiff, Ohio and their intertwined post-World War II history of murder, adultery, madness, depravity and religious fanaticism.
The 2011 novel was praised by outlets such as the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and Publishers Weekly, with French literary journal Lire even naming it the best novel of the year. That made it a natural to be turned into the kind of adult-oriented melodrama that the major studios have largely abandoned,...
Based on a novel by Donald Ray Pollock, The Devil All The Time is a Southern Gothic, a mix of murder mystery and psychological thriller — with a touch of horror — that focuses on the inhabitants of a town called Knockemstiff, Ohio and their intertwined post-World War II history of murder, adultery, madness, depravity and religious fanaticism.
The 2011 novel was praised by outlets such as the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and Publishers Weekly, with French literary journal Lire even naming it the best novel of the year. That made it a natural to be turned into the kind of adult-oriented melodrama that the major studios have largely abandoned,...
- 9/17/2020
- by Don Kaye
- Den of Geek
The screenplay was written by Conor Ryan and the project is in receipt of development support from Screen Ireland.
Irish production company Mixed Bag Media has partnered with Us outfit The Kennedy/Marshall Company to develop a film based on the true story of two Irish boys who stowed away on a flight to New York in a bid to meet The A-Team star Mr T.
Ten-year-old Keith Byrne and his 13 year-old friend Noel Murray took a train to the ferry port of Dun Laoghaire, near Dublin, and travelled to London via Holyhead in 1985. They managed to evade security to...
Irish production company Mixed Bag Media has partnered with Us outfit The Kennedy/Marshall Company to develop a film based on the true story of two Irish boys who stowed away on a flight to New York in a bid to meet The A-Team star Mr T.
Ten-year-old Keith Byrne and his 13 year-old friend Noel Murray took a train to the ferry port of Dun Laoghaire, near Dublin, and travelled to London via Holyhead in 1985. They managed to evade security to...
- 5/21/2020
- by 1100995¦Esther McCarthy¦0¦
- ScreenDaily
‘Angel of Mine.’
Kim Farrant’s psychological thriller Angel of Mine began its theatrical journey in the Us last weekend, opening in 12 key cities and on demand.
The distributor Lionsgate did not share any Bo figures for the movie starring Noomi Rapace, Yvonne Strahovski and Annika Whiteley, which are typically modest for a multi-platform release.
The upside will come from the October 22 release on Blu-Ray, DVD and digital followed in February by the premiere on Hulu, Disney’s streaming platform which has 28 million subscribers in the Us.
Produced by Brian Etting, Josh Etting and Su Armstrong, the movie adapted by Lion’s Luke Davies and David Regal from the 2008 French film L’Empreinte de L’Ange had its world premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival. It will open here this Thursday on 41 screens via Robert Slaviero and Richard Becker’s R & R Films.
Rapace plays Lizzie, a grieving...
Kim Farrant’s psychological thriller Angel of Mine began its theatrical journey in the Us last weekend, opening in 12 key cities and on demand.
The distributor Lionsgate did not share any Bo figures for the movie starring Noomi Rapace, Yvonne Strahovski and Annika Whiteley, which are typically modest for a multi-platform release.
The upside will come from the October 22 release on Blu-Ray, DVD and digital followed in February by the premiere on Hulu, Disney’s streaming platform which has 28 million subscribers in the Us.
Produced by Brian Etting, Josh Etting and Su Armstrong, the movie adapted by Lion’s Luke Davies and David Regal from the 2008 French film L’Empreinte de L’Ange had its world premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival. It will open here this Thursday on 41 screens via Robert Slaviero and Richard Becker’s R & R Films.
Rapace plays Lizzie, a grieving...
- 9/1/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
From the mind of Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst comes “The Fanatic,” a movie starring John Travolta that reviewers are having a whale of a time eviscerating. In terms of Rotten Tomatoes scores, it is just about on par with Travolta’s last starring vehicle, “Gotti.” Which obviously makes this yet another can’t-miss car crash from the Scientologist who recently shaved his head at the behest of Pitbull and mistook drag artist Jade Jolie for Taylor Swift at the MTV Video Music Awards.
In a zero-star review from RogerEbert.com, Brian Tallerico writes, “‘The Fanatic’ hates fans. It hates actors. It hates tourists, shop owners, and servants. It really, really hates autistic people. And it hates you. It’s a movie that thinks you’re an idiot, someone who won’t see through its shallow provocations, illogical behavior, and vile misanthropy.”
The movie stars Travolta as an autistic man named Moose,...
In a zero-star review from RogerEbert.com, Brian Tallerico writes, “‘The Fanatic’ hates fans. It hates actors. It hates tourists, shop owners, and servants. It really, really hates autistic people. And it hates you. It’s a movie that thinks you’re an idiot, someone who won’t see through its shallow provocations, illogical behavior, and vile misanthropy.”
The movie stars Travolta as an autistic man named Moose,...
- 8/31/2019
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
It turns out that it’s not just fans who John Travolta has a problem with; critics have been pretty hard on him and his latest film “The Fanatic” too.
Travolta is getting panned once again for starring in a horror-thriller from Limp Bizkit singer Fred Durst, which is an update on films like “The Fan” and “Misery.” Critics have called Durst’s character development “shallow” and Travolta’s performance as a man who may be borderline autistic everything from over-the-top to “cringe-worthy.”
“Fred Durst’s ‘The Fanatic’ hates fans. It hates actors. It hates tourists, shop owners, and servants. It really, really hates autistic people. And it hates you. It’s a movie that thinks you’re an idiot, someone who won’t see through its shallow provocations, illogical behavior, and vile misanthropy,” Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com wrote. “There’s nothing wrong with making a film about troubled people,...
Travolta is getting panned once again for starring in a horror-thriller from Limp Bizkit singer Fred Durst, which is an update on films like “The Fan” and “Misery.” Critics have called Durst’s character development “shallow” and Travolta’s performance as a man who may be borderline autistic everything from over-the-top to “cringe-worthy.”
“Fred Durst’s ‘The Fanatic’ hates fans. It hates actors. It hates tourists, shop owners, and servants. It really, really hates autistic people. And it hates you. It’s a movie that thinks you’re an idiot, someone who won’t see through its shallow provocations, illogical behavior, and vile misanthropy,” Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com wrote. “There’s nothing wrong with making a film about troubled people,...
- 8/30/2019
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
The 2019 Oscars did not have a host, but they did have Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga singing opposite one another for the first time on live television. The Oscar nominees shared the stage to perform “Shallow,” their Oscar-nominated Best Original Song from “A Star Is Born.” As Cooper had warned earlier this month, he took the stage not in character as Jackson Maine to perform the song. Gaga had previously performed the song live at the 2019 Grammy Awards.
The Oscar performance of “Shallow” stared with a bare stage with just a piano and a microphone. Cooper and Gaga were sitting in the audience and stood up and walked up to the stage. Captured in a single take, the camera framed the two from behind looking out at the audience, similar to how Cooper directed “A Star Is Born.” Both Cooper and Gaga’s vocals were on point and the performance...
The Oscar performance of “Shallow” stared with a bare stage with just a piano and a microphone. Cooper and Gaga were sitting in the audience and stood up and walked up to the stage. Captured in a single take, the camera framed the two from behind looking out at the audience, similar to how Cooper directed “A Star Is Born.” Both Cooper and Gaga’s vocals were on point and the performance...
- 2/25/2019
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
The once-wide aesthetic gap between film and television has functionally ceased to exist, and this year we saw a number of TV series shot to look like films, as our own Noel Murray noted last month. But while Hollywood’s obsession with tentpole filmmaking has sent a number of big-name auteurs to TV, it’s still rare to…...
- 12/12/2018
- by Katie Rife on Film, shared by Katie Rife to The A.V. Club
- avclub.com
Every Friday, we’re recommending an older movie that’s available to stream or download and worth seeing again through the lens of our current moment. We’re calling the series “Revisiting Hours” — consider this Rolling Stone’s unofficial film club. This week, a.k.a. the Halloween edition: Noel Murray on one of the greatest, most unnerving B movies of the Seventies, God Told Me To.
What if you stared straight into the face of evil, and it looked just like your next-door neighbor?
In writer-director Larry Cohen’s...
What if you stared straight into the face of evil, and it looked just like your next-door neighbor?
In writer-director Larry Cohen’s...
- 10/26/2018
- by Noel Murray
- Rollingstone.com
“The give-and-take between the brilliant but bumbling hero … and his dim sidekick …
is consistently charming and funny, at once parodying and paying homage to the classic Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson dynamic.” ~ Noel Murray, Los Angeles Time
“Detective K: Secret of The Living Dead”, the third film in the popular action-mystery franchise, debuts on digital September 25 from Well Go USA Entertainment. Kim Myung-min and Oh dal-su reprise their roles as bumbling sleuths investigating a string of strange murders that suggest the work of vampires. This hilarious outing follows the hugely popular Detective K: Secret of the Virtuous Widow (2011) and Detective K: Secret of the Lost Island (2015) and also stars Kim Ji-won (Horror Stories), Lee Min-ki (Tidal Wave) and Kim Bum (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon).
Synopsis:
When a series of unusual murders occurs, Detective K (Kim Myung-min) and his partner (Oh Dal-soo) are once again called upon to solve the case.
is consistently charming and funny, at once parodying and paying homage to the classic Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson dynamic.” ~ Noel Murray, Los Angeles Time
“Detective K: Secret of The Living Dead”, the third film in the popular action-mystery franchise, debuts on digital September 25 from Well Go USA Entertainment. Kim Myung-min and Oh dal-su reprise their roles as bumbling sleuths investigating a string of strange murders that suggest the work of vampires. This hilarious outing follows the hugely popular Detective K: Secret of the Virtuous Widow (2011) and Detective K: Secret of the Lost Island (2015) and also stars Kim Ji-won (Horror Stories), Lee Min-ki (Tidal Wave) and Kim Bum (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon).
Synopsis:
When a series of unusual murders occurs, Detective K (Kim Myung-min) and his partner (Oh Dal-soo) are once again called upon to solve the case.
- 9/12/2018
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
In 2013, writer Noel Murray presented a fine article in the Av/TV Club web site that examined the origins and enduring appeal of the classic 1960s spy series "The Avengers", which was actually inspired by a previous TV series, "Police Surgeon". Murray tracked the sensational reaction to the show in the UK and its subsequent appearance on American television. He also outlined the interesting casting with star Patrick Macnee benefiting from two strong female leads- Honor Blackman and her successor Diana Rigg. Most intriguingly, Murray pointed out that the overall quirky appeal of the show is best illustrated by the 1965 episode "Death at Bargain Prices" (telecast in 1966 in the USA). Click here to read.
(Thanks to Nick Sheffo or Fulvuedrivein.com for the heads up on this article.)...
(Thanks to Nick Sheffo or Fulvuedrivein.com for the heads up on this article.)...
- 3/22/2018
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
This year, we've asked 10 writers to pick some of their favorite TV episodes from 2017 and weigh in on why they were great stand-alone eps and the highlights of our viewing year. Today: Noel Murray on Better Call Saul's "Chicanery."
Who do you think did more for American jurisprudence: Oliver Wendell Holmes or Perry Mason? Sure, the Supreme Court Justice vigorously defended the rights of free expression through the application of his influential "clear and present danger" test. But thanks to Raymond Burr shouting out "Objection!" and "Immaterial!" every week on television for 10 years,...
Who do you think did more for American jurisprudence: Oliver Wendell Holmes or Perry Mason? Sure, the Supreme Court Justice vigorously defended the rights of free expression through the application of his influential "clear and present danger" test. But thanks to Raymond Burr shouting out "Objection!" and "Immaterial!" every week on television for 10 years,...
- 12/18/2017
- Rollingstone.com
After 17 years of professional music-reviewing, Noel Murray is taking time off from all new music, and is revisiting his record collection in alphabetical order, to take stock of what he's amassed, and consider what he still needs. Here's a big question that most writers (myself included) really don't want to know the answer to: Do people read us because they're interested in what we have to say, or because they're interested in the subjects we're writing about? Speaking as someone who's every bit as much of a consumer of the media soup as I am a contributor to it, I find that I lean both ways on the matter. If I opened up a magazine and discovered that one of my favorite contemporary critics or essayists had devoted a couple of thousands words to a subject I'd ordinarily find dull or even...
- 6/30/2008
- by Noel Murray
- avclub.com
After 17 years of professional music-reviewing, Noel Murray is taking time off from all new music, and is revisiting his record collection in alphabetical order, to take stock of what he's amassed, and consider what he still needs. Here's a big question that most writers (myself included) really don't want to know the answer to: Do people read us because they're interested in what we have to say, or because they're interested in the subjects we're writing about? Speaking as someone who's every bit as much of a consumer of the media soup as I am a contributor to it, I find that I lean both ways on the matter. If I opened up a magazine and discovered that one of my favorite contemporary critics or essayists had devoted a couple of thousands words to a subject I'd ordinarily find dull or even...
- 6/30/2008
- by Noel Murray
- avclub.com
After 17 years of professional music-reviewing, Noel Murray is taking time off from all new music, and is revisiting his record collection in alphabetical order, to take stock of what he's amassed, and consider what he still needs. Is it possible to find terms like "chick flick," "chick lit" and "chick rock"—as well as more kindly phrased equivalents like "femme-friendly" and "gynocentric"—at once mildly offensive and somewhat useful? Yes, everyone's an individual, irreducible to their gender, et cetera et cetera. But it's hardly unenlightened to say that there are generalized differences between the way women feel, perceive and behave, and the way men feel, perceive and behave, even if only some of those differences are related to chemistry and biology, while others are merely social (and therefore vary from culture to culture). Whatever the reasons behind the gender gap, if an artist writes...
- 6/9/2008
- by Noel Murray
- avclub.com
After 17 years of professional music-reviewing, Noel Murray is taking time off from all new music, and is revisiting his record collection in alphabetical order, to take stock of what he's amassed, and consider what he still needs. There's a reason why people talk about "sex and dugs and rock 'n' roll" and not, say, "sex and candy and rock 'n' roll." It's not just that the right drugs in the right amounts can help unlock some musicians' creativity; it's also that those compelled to play rock music in public often crave outside-the-mainstream communal experiences. Even those who don't use drugs can certainly understand the appeal of being let into a network of suppliers and fellow users, with whom you can share common jokes and common experiences. Becoming a drug user is a lot like becoming a musician, in that you enter a...
- 6/2/2008
- by Noel Murray
- avclub.com
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.