West Side Story

West Side Story

Two cultures, both alike in dignity (In fair Manhattan, where we lay our scene), from ancient grudge break to new mutiny, where civil blood makes civil hands unclean: This is the story of the West Side, with language not quite as foreign to our ears as Shakespeare,...
Encanto

Encanto

Disney’s latest animated film Encanto is a visual delight, with moments of color, beauty, movement and light that left me entranced and at moments, I’d even say, spellbound. Set in Colombia and with music by Lin-Manuel Miranda, the movie pays homage to that...
Onward

Onward

Sometimes you go see a movie not because it looks appealing or it has a great trailer or it has great buzz, but because you trust the people making it. Such is the story of how I came to see Onward, an odd film from Pixar, the animation studio that, you may recall,...
Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker

Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is a satisfying conclusion to a journey that began for me back in 1977, and it’s impossible for me to watch it as a stand-alone film, or as a detached critic. It hits so many right notes, with an epic story arc and nostalgic touches...
Expanding to Include Essays

Expanding to Include Essays

I started this site 8 years ago, creating it in a day or so over Christmas break. I’ve tweaked some minor things over the years, but the site is pretty much what it has always been: A place to reign in my verbose tendencies by limiting myself (and other...