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From familiar folk-rock instrumentals spring songs of the self. Bob Dylan’s 39th studio album Rough and Rowdy Ways was released on June 19th, to high praise from critics and fans alike. Listeners have found in these songs a window to escape lockdown through — and yet, like all of Dylan’s greatest albums, this one refuses to turn away from reality. Continue reading Review: Rough and Rowdy Ways by Bob Dylan
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When it comes to the Eurovision Song Contest, I would not class myself as the ‘average viewer’. If anything, I am a huge fan of the wonderfully wacky contest. So I, along with tens of thousands of people from all over Europe and around the world, was ready to head to Rotterdam this May to enjoy its week of spectacular weirdness. However, COVID-19 has put these plans on hold. I do not want to in any way diminish the awful effects the current crisis has had on every aspect of life. I just find that it is unfortunate, but understandable, that the contest had to be postponed. Continue reading Review: Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
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In search of meaning, The 1975 reach a cul-de-sac on this record, but maybe that’s the point? Continue reading Review: Notes on a Conditional Form by The 1975
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Hazel Hayes’ dazzling debut novel, Out of Love, is a romance told in reverse. As a young woman packs up her ex-boyfriend’s belongings, she reminisces on their love story and wonders how everything fell apart. Continue reading Reading Corner: Out of Love by Hazel Hayes
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365 Days has had a lot of hype and controversy since its release on Netflix. Some love it for its erotic scenes, some hate it for its glamorization of abuse. But how problematic is the film and is it worth it for its steamier moments? Continue reading Review: 365 Days
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I think we all have that one film which we gravitate towards in times of anxiety and stress. As a film student, I am burdened with a sense of shame when it comes to enjoying “bad” films. 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) is in no way a bad film, but it’s definitely no Citizen Kane (1941). Today, I reject shame. Whenever I feel … Continue reading My Culture Comforts: 10 Things I Hate About You
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I remember the first time I listened to Melodrama; in the dark of my bedroom on release night, with the volume up full. When Lorde told us she was about to “make em’ all dance to it”, she wasn’t lying. Three years on, this is still an album I revisit regularly. With her vocals, song writing, and production melting together to construct a soundtrack of adolescent loneliness, Melodrama deserves all the critical acclaim it receives. Continue reading Melodrama and Me
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You can watch Bridesmaids for free on BoB. Bridesmaids has taken on a special cultural significance since its release in 2011. Hailed as “terrifically funny, smart and tender”, the film, under Paul Feig’s directing and Judd Apatow’s producing, remains a frank display of women behaving badly. Yet it is precisely this ‘behaving badly’ that remains a sticky topic. Though the film has remained a critical … Continue reading Why Do Women Have to *Literally* Spill Their Guts to Be Funny?
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You can watch Bridesmaids for free on BoB. Bridesmaids (2011) was well received by critics and audiences alike, lauded for its ability to prove that women could “be funny”. However, the credit that the film received was mostly focused around female portrayal of traditionally masculine humour: vulgar sexual innuendo, the famous diarrhoea scene, and drunken mishaps. While these aspects of Bridesmaids should be applauded, the … Continue reading “You’re your problem… and also your solution”: How Bridesmaids Remodels Female Friendship
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The sexual awakening is a key facet of the contemporary coming of age genre, and the emotional exploration surrounding the first hints of desire has proven a rich resource for filmmakers; this is evidenced in works such as Lady Bird(2018) and Booksmart (2019). However, the affect of the relationship between power and desire on a teenager’s sexual awakening is a discussion which could be explored further in the genre . Even in indie-darling Call Me by Your Name (2017), featuring a relationship between a teenage boy and an intern in his mid-twenties, there is little interrogation of the power dynamics at play and how they affect the characters. With all of this in mind, The Diary of a Teenage Girl (2015), adapted from Phoebe Gloeckner’s 2002 book of the same name, feels radical in the way in which it portrays the relationship between 15-year-old Minnie (Bel Powley) and 34-year-old Monroe (Alexander Skarsgård). Continue reading ‘Is this what it feels like for someone to love you?’: How The Diary of a Teenage Girl Complicates the Sexual Awakening
