Some Earnthis writers don’t quite have the time to devote to lengthy reviews that we used to, but I’d like to offer some brief thoughts (and not-so-brief thoughts, in Moneyball‘s case) on recent flicks that have been in theaters and may get Oscar play. A couple thoughts on 2011: it feels like a weak year; and who…
Suck It and See: 4 stars (out of 5) One of these days, Alex Turner and the Arctic Monkeys will release a bad album. At least, that’s what history and convention would tell us. One might have predicted that the mediocrity would have come with Favourite Worst Nightmare, the follow-up to their debut monster Whatever…
Alright, we’re back for Round 2 of wondering What The Hell Jay Mathews is trying to say. New readers are highly encouraged, should they have a hankering for snarky criticism of poor logic exhibited in published newspaper columns, to check out this. When I saw that Mr. Mathews, of the Washington Post, had delivered his devoted…
Rating: 4 stars (out of 4) The Social Network’s top comparison among critics has been the beloved Citizen Kane, as both chronicle the rise and fall of a young, ambitious individual who shapes a new technological medium to his advantage. After 4 viewings of the former (plus many more of certain scenes), endless reading of…
Grant chose ten of his favorite articles from the Earn This archives, presented here in no particular order with a choice quote from each article: Jay Mathews writes, logic cries “I very much believe that intelligent discussion of one of the country’s most prominent high schools is warranted. This is not that.” Shutter Island: Live…
Brace yourself, all 4 of our readers (oh hai)…my post today will either be an Earnthis vanguard—or an epic failure. It addresses neither movies/TV nor music, but if you make me, I’ll defend its popular culture relevance, and that’s listed in our tagline too. Our source material today is a column from Washington Post writer…
Today, The Social Network—aka “The Facebook Movie”—comes out to widespread anticipation and Oscar buzz. Upon first glance, I was barely interested in this project, but then I learned that Aaron Sorkin wrote it. And yes, the trailer was promising, the subject matter naturally relevant, and the hype and advance buzz have been so deafening that…
Part 3 of our Aaron Sorkin exploration… Rating: 3 and a half stars (out of 4) The opening sequence of The American President is so good, it would be enough to carry the rest of a mediocre film into watchable status. Thankfully, though, it doesn’t represent the extent of the pleasures here, in the film…
Our next Aaron Sorkin exploration… Rating: 2 stars (out of 4) The trailer for Charlie Wilson’s War and its IMDB page promise two very different movies. The latter will remind you of the tremendous amount of talent that has been gathered in front of and behind the camera, but the former promises only a breezy,…
With the much-anticipated The Social Network dropping in theaters this Friday, I thought it appropriate to look back on the career of the inimitable writer Aaron Sorkin. A comprehensive piece will be arriving later this week, but for now, let’s review a few of his most prominent films. Rating: 3 stars (out of 4) A…