SHOUT!

I’m sure most people will empathize with me when I say that I am always on the lookout for good, reasonably-priced places to eat. Budget is often made a priority over taste among college restaurant-goers, but it doesn’t always have to be that way.

Caramel charms

The fictional Si Belle beauty salon of Beirut, Lebanon, in which the new film Caramel largely takes place, is not a likely setting for those wonderfully masculine traits of Hollywood cinema. Among other things, I was expecting a healthy dose of humor, intrigue and exposure to interesting cultural memes from a foreign perspective.

Bruges adds star performances to dark comedy

For me the ideal hell would be to have to do useless homework assignments for all eternity while being forced to watch Mrs. Doubtfire on a loop. For newbie assassin Ray, played by Colin Farrell, his personal hell is to be stuck in Bruges, Belgium for all eternity.

Bartlett disappoints as teen comedy

Every once in a while someone makes a movie that attempts to be more significant than it actually is. Charlie Bartlett almost feels like a wannabe Juno, which is funny because the director of the former, Jon Poll, mentioned that he chose to direct Charlie Bartlett instead of the highly successful Juno. While both films focus on the lives of idiosyncratic teenagers as they struggle to find their role in the hectic world of high school, Charlie Bartlett falls prey to the over-emphasized importance placed on that period of time in a person’s life by authoritative figures.

XOXOX yields catchy tunes

After pushing play and listening for a few minutes, XOXOX will have somehow created a time machine while you weren’t looking and subsequently placed you back in the mid ’90s. Trances Arc recalls an alt-rock/pop sound that will have you checking twice to see if you aren’t actually listening to early Better Than Ezra tracks.

Jumper barely transcends shortcomings

Personally, I have always had a fascination with teleportation. I wouldn’t say it has anything to do with being nerdy or going to Tech or any such nonsense; it has to do with the very concept of defying spatial continuity. Popping in and out of existence may not be a physical possibility at the moment, but it seems I can live vicariously through Jumper until we get the chance to bend the space-time continuum.

New Familiars dish out fun acoustic folk

Tonight, raw talent and musical emotion are going to rip into cozy Eddie’s Attic. The New Familiars offer an organic acoustic sound. Deeply rooted in southern folk music, the band also interestingly blends in alternative country rock and dabbles in progressive rock. Their influences span from greats like the Avett Brothers and Bob Dylan, to Tool, Jane’s Addiction and Ryan Adams.

Two Bits

This election year, I’m voting for Justice. Justice is my favorite American Gladiator. Now that season one of American Gladiators is over, it’s time to decide which gladiator should lead the gladiators in season two. There are three gladiators running for the position of head gladiator.