Criticism-in-finity!
Posted in Reviews on Aug 30th, 2010
In a country that is never dry, the air condenses on your always-curly hair. In alternating seasons of monsoons and stickiness, you have learned to hang laundry because dryers are luxurious and electricity is iffy. Locals hang because it has only ever been the final act of washing. Everything clings. The sheets, too, are sweating. [...]
Posted in Reviews on Aug 26th, 2010
The video for Cee-Lo Green’s new single, “Fuck You,” (I’ll pause here so that you can go watch it. You’re back? Good.) makes me seriously lament that the last time I saw the girl I Ioved driving ‘round town with somebody else, I was only like, “My heart is broken, but I am sure my [...]
Posted in Reviews on Aug 24th, 2010
To begin, two mysteries: who is she? What is her secret? Do you need any help? the women ask, knowing their question will be answered with a tentative yes. The clerks recognize men in over their heads, overwhelmed by the seven foot tall Mirandas and Alessandras. The men are there to create their dream women, [...]
Posted in Reviews on Aug 19th, 2010
Because a ring and a vow are apparently no longer sufficient, today’s bride must undergo yet another test: if you love him, destroy your dress. And take photographs. Some photos are playful: brides and grooms splashing through waves with the insouciance of a couple that’s never signed a mortgage and didn’t pay for the $1500[1] [...]
Posted in Reviews on Aug 17th, 2010
For those who feel comfortable in one of two available boxes, the gender binary makes life easier. If you know who you are and who lights your fire, then you always know whether the person you’re interacting with at any given moment has firelighting potential. Each role is prescribed, waiting to be enacted again as [...]
Posted in Reviews on Aug 13th, 2010
I like you. No, I really like you. Here’s how much: I rearrange my strenuous schedule as a part-time summer enrichment teacher so I can spend my entire afternoon, five days a week, logged into an instant messenger application; I want to be able to flirt with you while you’re at work using Revit to [...]
Posted in Reviews on Aug 11th, 2010
Book IV, like the other chapters of Jenna Jameson’s autobiography, references a Shakespearean sonnet: “An Imperfect Actor on the Stage”. The admission of Jameson’s own shortcomings as an actress seems odd: there is a belief that porn is meant to be the unfurling of a fantasy—a ludicrous situation presenting itself, the fiction trope of a [...]
Posted in Reviews on Aug 6th, 2010
The problem with the emergence of the 21st century hipster is how to decide what a “hipster” is. The characteristic schisms – my post-punk won’t date your jazz-age – tell us the qualities of hipster, not what makes a hipster. This has led to articles demanding the “death of the hipster” and for good reason, [...]