California Literary Review

Sherlock Recap: ‘The Reichenbach Fall’

Jem Bloomfield — Mon, 21 May 2012 12:53:01 +0000

Now, this is the premise of the episode. What it asks us to accept in order for the story to get going. So it seems unreasonable to carp. But am I the only one who feels that if you can use a mobile phone to break into three of the most secure places in Britain in the first five minutes, then we should probably all pack up and go home?

The Killing Recap: Sayonara, Hiawatha (Season 2, Episode 9)

Brett Harrison Davinger — Mon, 21 May 2012 07:49:59 +0000

A recap/review of The Killing Sayonara, Hiawatha (Season 2, Episode 9)

Album Review: Iggy Pop’s Après

Michelle Lopes — Fri, 18 May 2012 08:58:04 +0000

To those unacquainted with Iggy Pop's vocals let it be known that they are not merely idiosyncratic, they are bewitching – a feast of aural mesmerism that groans, quavers, and wavers with bass-driven emotion.

The 2012-2013 Television Season: An Overall Look

Brett Harrison Davinger — Thu, 17 May 2012 21:19:28 +0000

My final thoughts on the 2012-2013 fall season.

CW: The 2012-2013 Television Season

Brett Harrison Davinger — Thu, 17 May 2012 20:35:48 +0000

A look at CW's 2012-2013 schedule.

Movie Review: The Dictator

Brett Harrison Davinger — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:30:35 +0000

What differentiates Sacha Baron Cohen from the vast majority of his contemporaries is his willingness to take on taboo subjects. Despite the rise of R-rated comedies over the past decade or so, it’s difficult to say that many of them tackle the issues that most people are uncomfortable talking about. Their sexual content and foul language might be funny, but they lack the edge that only comes when you parody something that our “open” society prefers to leave alone.

100 Greatest Gangster Films: Al Capone, #76

George Anastasia, Glen Macnow — Thu, 17 May 2012 04:05:43 +0000

Rod Steiger offers one of the best portrayals of the legendary “Scarface” in this straightforward account of the life of perhaps the most fascinating underworld figure in American history.

Book Review: Naples Declared: A Walk Around The Bay by Benjamin Taylor

Julia Braun Kessler — Thu, 17 May 2012 01:36:36 +0000

Considering how “casual” the work is in its approach, you could, I suppose, call it a mere glimpse into the turmoil and tragedies that overcame Naples. Yet, in some ways, this technique proves far more vibrant than the traditional presentations of historical events which most of us have experienced in the course of our schooling. Not to say Taylor hasn’t studied his subject or done his extensive research.

CBS: The 2012-2013 Television Season

Brett Harrison Davinger — Wed, 16 May 2012 23:23:40 +0000

A Look at the CBS 2012-2013 Television Season

Overachievers: In Pursuit Of 1000G

Laura Buttrick — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:35:35 +0000

In a moment of madness I cared too much about finding everything, about doing everything, and it was to the detriment of my gaming experience. It’s in moments like these that achievement-oriented gamers need to be reminded that their Gamerscore doesn’t mean anything and that they run the risk of turning a fun experience into a chore – and turning one’s hobby into work is a risky business indeed.

A Throne of Games – Volume 2 – A Crash of Kings

Adam Robert Thomas — Wed, 16 May 2012 04:37:55 +0000

When last we left the historie of the consoleflict, two houses arose in the land of gaming. One, house Magnavox, entering into the untamed wilderness with their host of Odysseys, the other, house Atari, had stolen the fire of tennis and ignited the imagination with Pong, the progenitor of gaming nobility. The first battles over [...]

ABC: The 2012-2013 Television Season

Brett Harrison Davinger — Wed, 16 May 2012 01:02:52 +0000

A look at the ABC 2012-2013 fall season

House Recap: ‘Holding On’ (Season 8, Episode 21)

Holly Hunt — Tue, 15 May 2012 13:32:18 +0000

Sometimes the worst thing about being a pessimist is how often you’re right. I would have been much happier if the hopeful commenters on last week’s recap who said House’s reaction to Wilson’s scan could mean any number of things were right. But they’re not. Wilson is dying; without chemotherapy, he’s got about five months, and he’s refusing chemotherapy.

FOX: The 2012-2013 Television Season

Brett Harrison Davinger — Tue, 15 May 2012 01:36:03 +0000

A look at the 2012-2013 schedule for FOX.

A Throne of Games – Volume 1 – A Historie of Consoleflict

Adam Robert Thomas — Mon, 14 May 2012 23:13:05 +0000

Tell me, O muse, of that time long ago when there were no video games. When the people did not gather in the halls of the arcade where a round of happiness was bought a quarter at a time, but the pool hall where a beer cost the same if it was cheap, or so [...]

Sherlock Recap: ‘The Hounds of Baskerville’

Jem Bloomfield — Mon, 14 May 2012 21:27:13 +0000

The whole episode seemed to revolve around questions of perception and memory, and the way recognising something as impossible can’t stop it hurting you. Could that be the real terror at the centre of this version of Gothic: knowing it’s all a nightmare without that knowledge giving you any power to stop it?

Mad Men Recap: “Dark Shadows” (Season 5, Episode 9)

Julia Rhodes — Mon, 14 May 2012 19:34:43 +0000

This week marks the return of Betty Francis, the wounded whale. Betty, struggling to lose weight, bookended last night’s episode with her strategic consumption. Weiner continued to poke at the plight of the Jews in 1966, and Don’s secret, shameful past is bubbling to the surface without any disturbing effects. There are only four episodes [...]

The Killing Recap: Off The Reservation (Season 2, Episode 8)

Brett Harrison Davinger — Mon, 14 May 2012 06:24:46 +0000

A recap/review of The Killing: Off the Reservation (Season 2, Episode 8)

NBC: The 2012-2013 Television Season

Brett Harrison Davinger — Mon, 14 May 2012 00:37:53 +0000

A look at NBC's Fall and Midseason Schedule

Video Game Review: Pandora’s Tower

Laura Buttrick — Sun, 13 May 2012 13:35:32 +0000

What was once iconic – big hair, slender waists and massive...uh...assets – has become a laughable stereotype as developers refuse to push forward and innovate with their designs. Japan used to be a trendsetter in terms of game design, and it’s a shame to see things descend into mere mimicry of what has already been. In terms of aesthetics, Pandora’s Tower suffers deeply from this refusal to move on.

Movie Review: Dark Shadows

Julia Rhodes — Sat, 12 May 2012 17:50:44 +0000

As Ichabod Crane, as Willy Wonka, Ed Wood, the Mad Hatter, or Sweeney Todd, Depp’s persona is quirky and stiff, wide-eyed and full of suspicion/mischief/barely hidden insanity. The characters into whose skins he slips under Burton’s direction are all beginning to feel suspiciously familiar – and Barnabas Collins isn’t an exception.

The Office Recap: Free Family Portrait Studio (Season 8, Episode 24)

Brett Harrison Davinger — Fri, 11 May 2012 05:00:34 +0000

A recap/review of The Office: Family Free Portrait Studio (Season 8, Episode 24)

The Finale Solution – Three of Them, Actually.

Adam Robert Thomas — Fri, 11 May 2012 01:49:09 +0000

End Errors: Game, Postscript For the last month or so, I’ve been talking about how terrible endings are in video games. Over the course of two articles, one focusing on a decent variety of problems, the other exploring a single issue in depth, I think I managed to at least identify what the five biggest [...]

Smuin Ballet and Diablo Ballet: Two Praiseworthy Bay Area Dance Companies

Toba Singer — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:15:33 +0000

There are a few privileges that come with the role of dance critic. One that is not so obvious, but very gratifying, is watching companies start, develop, and come into their own. If you remain in one locale long enough, you see large companies grow more magisterial, and small ones pop up on the horizon, fall away, or survive and aggregate dancers, repertoire, audiences, endowment, and heft.

100 Greatest Gangster Films: King of New York, #77

George Anastasia, Glen Macnow — Thu, 10 May 2012 04:05:05 +0000

Christopher Walken plays—as only Walken can—Frank White, a drug dealer whose release from prison sets the film and the violence in motion. It would be a stretch to say that White has returned from prison a changed man, but he has returned as a man with a mission.

Book Review: The Poems of Jesus Christ Translated by Willis Barnstone

Ed Voves — Wed, 09 May 2012 15:50:43 +0000

As Barnstone notes in his introduction, Aramaic has verse forms that are difficult to render in Western languages like Greek, Latin and eventually English. The Gospels, the “Good News” of Jesus, were written down and shared with the rest of the world in prose, not poetry. A vital link to the actual words of Jesus was lost.

Album Review: Nick Waterhouse’s Time’s All Gone

Michelle Lopes — Tue, 08 May 2012 19:25:54 +0000

There is the distinctly unnerving sensation of both familiarity and newness; the sound of another era that growls, glows, and swings all at once while creating something fresh that was never there before.

House Recap: ‘Post Mortem’ (Season 8, Episode 20)

Holly Hunt — Tue, 08 May 2012 13:38:56 +0000

So is House achieving emotional balance, just in time to lose his best (only) friend? Is leaving the only way for Chase to become his own man? Why is it so hard to watch them leave when they’ll be disappearing from our screens anyway?

Mad Men Recap: “Lady Lazarus” (Season 5, Episode 8)

Julia Rhodes — Mon, 07 May 2012 19:57:03 +0000

Can you believe we’re already two-thirds through season five? As Pete’s high school crush said a few episodes ago, “Time feels like it’s speeding up.” In last night’s “Lady Lazarus,” Mad Men‘s cast of characters was forced to visit some unappetizing truths. Pete Campbell developed an unfortunate obsession with a pretty, discontented housewife. Peggy snarked [...]

Album Review: Rufus Wainwright’s Out of the Game

Michelle Lopes — Mon, 07 May 2012 08:52:22 +0000

Underneath the skin of the music there is the pulse of the long car trip, songs that tell stories casually and with the easy rhythm of dotted white lines whipping by along the asphalt.