Opinion

REVIEW: ‘Tick, tick ... BOOM!’: Andrew Garfield explodes in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s latest project

  “Tick, tick … BOOM!” the feature-length film directorial debut of Lin-Manuel Miranda released on Netflix mid-November, owes its greatness to two factors: Andrew Garfield and Jonathan Larson’s ingenious eponymous play. “Tick, tick … BOOM!” is an adaptation of a semi-autobiographical musical created by playwright Larson, creator of Broadway smash hit “Rent.” Garfield stars as Jonathan, an aspiring, struggling playwright trying desperately to get his foot in the door of show business with a futuristic rock opera. While the character may teeter on the edge of the tortured artist archetype, Garfield’s sincerity shines through, preventing too many cliches.  Going into the film, I wasn’t optimistic. 

REVIEW: ‘House of Gucci’: Ridley Scott’s latest is anything but chic

  This review contains spoilers Upon the release of the first photos of Adam Driver and Lady Gaga as Maurizio Gucci and Patrizia Reggiani, to say expectations for “House of Gucci” were high would be an understatement. With a cast like that and legendary director Ridley Scott at the helm, it seemed like a Hollywood dream come true.  That is, of course, until you watch it and you slowly realize that an all-star cast, a big budget and a beloved director will not save you from creating something that is utterly lifeless and entirely boring.  The film mainly follows Patrizia and Maurizio as they ascend the ranks of the Gucci empire, ultimately culminating in their separation and Maurizio’s inevitable assassination at the hands of a hit man hired by Patrizia. 

OPINION: UNM lacks necessary mental health support

 Despite prolific reports of poor mental health amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of New Mexico maintains a limited position on the issue. Considering the generational emphasis on mental health advocacy, the question remains as to why students suffering with poor mental health continue to struggle alone. UNM claims to offer support via Student Health and Counseling and, while in theory that provision is helpful, if you can manage even to have your phone call picked up, the likelihood that you’ll get an appointment scheduled by season’s end is slim to none. Amid a pandemic, these resources are needed more than ever. The support systems that SHAC provides wouldn’t be enough, though, even if fully functional. 

Comics November 22, 2021

OPINION: UNM mental health resources

  At this point in the semester, extreme stress and burnout are incredibly common, and it’s more than okay to ask for help. Here’s a list of my favorite campus resources at the University of New Mexico that you should look into if you’re in need of assistance. Agora Crisis Center Payment: Free The Agora Crisis Center offers several free services including but not limited to helpline, online emotional support chat and information on how to help yourself and others. After meeting a few of the volunteers at Agora, I can confidently say that they are committed to helping others in every way they can. The center itself is small but it’s so clearly full of people who care about people.

REVIEW: ‘Eternals’ marks needed change for Marvel Studios

  “Eternals,” the third film installment in Marvel’s phase four, recently came to theaters and marked a nice change in the studio’s traditional releases. Going into “Eternals,” I was feeling apprehensive due to the poor critic ratings, but the film’s diverse cast and engaging plot signaled a new and better era for Marvel. The film follows a group of eight extraterrestrial beings known as the Eternals, lead by Gemma Chan as Sersi. Each has their own unique powers, who have sworn to protect the Earth from the Deviants (alien monsters who are trying to eat all of human life).

OPINION: ‘Red (Taylor’s Version)’ exceeds soaring expectations

  Taylor Swift has been teasing the release of her second re-recorded album, “Red (Taylor’s Version)” for months. On Nov. 12, the 30-song collection finally arrived, and it’s everything that I could’ve hoped for. What makes the album unique from the original are the exquisite “From the Vault” tracks — songs Swift had written for the first version of “Red” but ultimately had to chop when piecing together the final cut. Swift’s first rerecording venture was April 2021’s “Fearless (Taylor’s Version),” and there were really only two vault tracks that I continue to listen to. However, “Red (Taylor’s Version)” has several vault tracks worthy of repeat button notoriety, including the ten minute version of fan favorite “All Too Well.”

Nov. 15, 2021

REVIEW: ‘The Harder They Fall’ stumbles on gold

  “The Harder They Fall” is a striking western drama featuring a vast and talented cast that was filmed in Santa Fe. This extravagant tale of the Wild West is well worth a watch. While the film is classic in structure, it’s expertly executed with exciting new twists. Co-written and solely directed by Jeymes Samuel, “The Harder They Fall” packs a punch. At first it seems to revel in its own melodrama, but over the course of 139 minutes, it blossoms into an original tragic story of the cyclical nature of violence and vengeance. 

Comics November 8, 2021

REVIEW: ‘Antlers’ is no fawn

  If you’re looking for a 100-minute long disappointment, a ticket to see “Antlers” is the way to go. From the underwhelming acting of Keri Russell (Julia Weaver) and Jesse Plemons (Paul Weaver) to the excessive gore and misguided use of Native stories, this movie is a bust if there ever was one. Directed by Scott Cooper and produced by Guillermo del Toro, “Antlers” is a horror-drama about drug use and the Native legend of the Wendigo from the perspectives of a child and his teacher. This film attempts to draw parallels between addicts and monsters, but fails miserably in every way. 

REVIEW: ‘Spencer’ beautifully tells a story we already know

  This review contains spoilers The problems that I had with Pablo Larraín’s “Spencer,” the new Princess Diana biopic that was released today, walked into the theater with me. I suppose I was expecting a new vision of Diana Spencer or perhaps something that would comment more on the society that made her so beloved and so controversial. While I may have been disappointed by what Larraín chose not to do, what he does choose to do does fabulously well. This movie is the type of biopic that presents a short, highly consequential moment in the life of its subject, much like Larraín’s 2016 film “Jackie,” which chronicled a pivotal moment in Jackie Kennedy’s life.

REVIEW: Last Night in So-so: Edgar Wright’s new film proves underwhelming

  Edgar Wright’s latest film, “Last Night in Soho,'' has all of the glamorous edges of the 1960s London cultural scene it seeks to explore the underbelly of, but explores a hollow plot with half-baked themes slathered with Wright’s admittedly skillful knack for dazzling visual effects. The film follows the vintage London-obsessed Eloise “Ellie” Turner (Thomasin McKenzie) as her romanticization of the 1960s is tested. Feeling isolated from her peers at her new university, she moves into a boarding room where she is dragged from the modern day into ’60s London while she sleeps, forced to passively observe the downward spiral of struggling actress Alexandra “Sandie” Collins (Anya Taylor-Joy).

Comics November 1, 2021

‘Mass’ seeks to find grace amid tragedy

  “Mass” (2021) is the directorial debut of Fran Kranz, who also wrote it, and the film is one of the most effective feats of drama that I have ever experienced. Its reflections on the tragic outcomes of a school shooting left me feeling bare, and yet, remarkably, not for one second did it feel exploitative. The movie boasts four of the best performances I’ve ever seen and its screenplay makes its characters feel devastatingly real. This isn’t a movie to go to in order to learn something, but if you feel open to an honest rumination on grief, guilt and grace, “Mass” is worth a watch.

REVIEW: ‘The French Dispatch’ is the quintessential Wes Anderson film

  This review contains spoilers Immediately from the initial casting announcements of Wes Anderson’s latest feature, “The French Dispatch,” public expectations were high. With Anderson regulars like Owen Wilson and Bill Murray poised to go toe-to-toe with newcomers like Timothée Chalamet and Frances McDormand, the film was bound to be a success, which it mostly was. And while “The French Dispatch,” is, for the most part, a success, it still has its shortcomings. It’s Anderson’s most Anderson-like film to date, for better and for worse. The film follows the newspaper the French Dispatch and the publication of its final issue following the untimely death of its Editor-in-Chief Arthur Howitzer Jr., played by an exquisitely deadpan Murray. 

REVIEW: Denis Villeneuve’s ‘Dune’ is a grand but dull sci-fi epic

When it was announced that a third version of “Dune” was in the works, it’s safe to say most moviegoers were skeptical to say the least, and while Denis Villeneuve’s take on “Dune” is still far from perfect, it’s probably the closest we’ve gotten to truly seeing Frank Herbert’s original vision fully realized for the big screen. Herbert’s 1965 novel “Dune” has widely been regarded as unfilmable. David Lynch’s 1984 film adaptation received mixed reactions from critics and fans alike, and cult filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky’s 14-hour-long version, which would’ve starred Salvador Dalí and Mick Jagger, ultimately never saw the light of day due to budgetary reasons. 

October 25, 2021 Comic

REVIEW: ‘You’ season 3 somehow got crazier

This review contains spoilers for seasons two and three of “You” October brought us the third season of “You,” an insane series following sociopathic serial killer Joe Goldberg (played by Penn Badgley). This season was filled with twists and turns, lust and jealousy, and a litany of murders that would make Michael Myers squirm — it was fantastic.  The show has been heavily reliant on the perspective of unreliable narrator Joe in the past, but season three showed his wife Love Quinn-Goldberg’s (played by Victoria Pedretti) perspective more in-depth. Love is a killer too, and while I still maintain Love and Joe deserve one another, Joe’s infatuation with Love came to a halt when he found out about her murderous tendencies. At the end of the last season, we learned Love was pregnant just as Joe was about to kill her, and the pair left city life behind to raise their son in the sleepy California suburb of Madre Linda.

LETTER: Bring back sudoku

My Monday mornings used to be very consistent and relaxing. An easy way to start my week. I would get off the bus, walk past Castetter, grab a Daily Lobo and spend an hour doing the sudoku before Calculus 3, gradually working on it through the rest of my Monday. The past two weeks have left me in shambles. Arriving early to campus has been met with disappointment and tragedy. For the past two weeks, my intelligence has been mocked by being forced to go through the crossword and not be able to answer 90% of the prompts. I am simply too dumb for trivia; my little engineering brain requires number puzzles.