Category: Books / Movies / Music
Music festivals are hot, crowded, sweaty, exhausting…and utterly transformative. I spent July 17 and 18 hanging out with a few close friends (and 22,000 new ones) in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, at the inaugral Eaux Claires music festival. Organized by Justin Vernon (the genius behind Bon Iver), the event brought...
Blockbuster season can be tough on us ladies. The big studios are still lightyears behind in gender equality, both in front of the camera and behind. A quick look at the current box office scores shows only one film in the top ten with female top billing (Trainwreck‘s Amy Schumer)....
It’s Fourth of July weekend, friends: we’ve hit full blockbuster saturation. I love this time of the year. You can both lose yourself in mindless CG spectacle and you can find a bunch of interesting alternatives at both the multiplex and art houses. Here are six festival favorites coming...
We’ve finally hit true summer temps in Kansas City, after suffering through a grey and rainy June. When the heat rises, I start to crave cooler beats. I want something that will make sway…but nothing that will make me sweat more than I already am. My criteria for this July...
I know I’m not the only person who gets a bad case of wanderlust the minute the calendar flips to Summer. There’s something about the longer days, warmer weather and childhood memories of three free months that make me want to leave everything behind for open windows and open...
I’ve got nothing against blockbuster movies. When done well, blockbusters can bring people together, capture a cultural moment and provide much-needed entertainment. I’ve got a few on my Favorite Movies of All Time list, including Jaws. Of course. But it’s easy to get stuck in the shade of all...
May is the beginning of summer blockbuster season, and it’s starting off big with Avengers: Age of Ultron. Which I will be seeing, of course. May also brings a big Reese Witherspoon comedy, Hot Pursuit; the Mad Max reboot, Fury Road; the highly anticipated a cappella comeback Pitch Perfect 2; Disney’s Bird-helmed, Lindelof-written and Clooney-starring Tomorrowland; and Cameron Crowe’s star-studded Aloha...
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about rest. I’m not naturally a restful person. I’m a dreamer, schemer, planner, creator, do-er. Even in my baby pictures, I’ve got my eyes wide open and my fists clenched while my twin sis, Megan, is all carefree smiles. I’ve always been wound...
I’ve spent the first quarter of the year watching a lot of movies. A lot. I went to Sundance in Park City; True/False in Columbia, Missouri; and SXSW in Austin. I don’t have an official count yet, but I think I’ve seen 85+ films since the beginning of 2015....
It’s spring! I’m working in a coffeehouse this morning, and the doors are all open. The sun is streaming in. The grass is getting green. Daffodils are everywhere. And all of a sudden, I’m out of winter hibernation mode and up for anything—including staying out late to see live music...
Gimme Some readers, sometimes it takes a great movie a long time to make its way to us. I saw Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter in January 2014, at Sundance, and it is finally—finally—coming to art houses this month. Kumiko the Treasure Hunter is a small film (small budget, small cast, small...
I’m sitting here on the last day of February, watching the snow come down. It’s supposed to fall well into the day tomorrow, the first of the new month. I am not a fan of cold, winter and greyness, so I am holding tight to the old adage about...
