All Stories
Elvis Costello’s debut still hits hard — and this box set proves it
When it comes to box sets, Elvis Costello’s 49th-anniversary edition of his debut album “My Aim Is True” is a dream compilation for completists. The original 12-song LP clocked in at a swift 33 minutes, while the special edition features…
Shane Gillis and the danger of laughing at unfunny men on “SNL”
Watching Shane Gillis tickle himself to the point of being red in the face during his third “Saturday Night Live” hosting gig this past weekend, I’d wager that no one thinks Shane Gillis is funnier than Shane Gillis. But while…
James Talarico isn’t vegan. So why is the GOP so fixated?
President Donald Trump has lately been telling a story about James Talarico that comes with its own setting, action and reliable third-act catastrophe. The Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas, Trump says, goes to barbecues, forces down meat and…
To become the mother I wanted to be, I had to let my parents go
To camp with kids makes me question my sanity. I crush tasks. Setting up the tent, laying out the bedding, stacking coolers on a bench. The picnic tables are skeined with leaves after a season of rain. I peel and…
Actress Selma Blair accused of biting flight crew
Actress Selma Blair was arrested Sunday night after allegedly attempting to open an airplane door midflight and assaulting two flight attendants aboard a Delta flight from Los Angeles to New York, according to multiple reports. Blair, 54, allegedly punched one…
The centerpiece scene of “Babygirl” cleverly redefines how we see sex and pleasure onscreen
There’s nothing subtle about a movie where Nicole Kidman crawls on her knees to lick milk out of a saucer. And yet, Halina Reijn’s “Babygirl” is perhaps the most thematically complex and provocative film of the year, kitty-play and all…
“The Debut” finds joy and fear in starting over
It’s audition day at New Jersey’s Brook Arts Center, and everyone is a bundle of nerves. Actors dot the lobby, doing vocal warm-ups between mini panic attacks and greeting old friends from past shows. This year’s production is “Nosy Neighbors,”…
Your soup needs a little drama
When I was a kid, I absolutely adored Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes, those sprawling soup-and-salad buffets where, for a certain kind of child (me), the prospect of choosing from several enormous vats of soup constituted a genuinely thrilling night out.…
Trump gets richer while gas prices soar
In mid-September, Chinese scientists announced a breakthrough in extracting hydrogen and fresh water from the ocean with about 15% better energy efficiency than older techniques. Their research, published in Nature Energy on Sept. 15, underscores that China continues to dominate…
“The Social Reckoning” is the journalism thriller’s last stand
Though writer-director Aaron Sorkin’s “The Social Reckoning” fancies itself a journalism thriller, the film offers only a handful of real thrills. Fans of the subgenre, known and loved for its depiction of journalism’s slow yet effective behind-the-scenes processes, might see…