‘Lucy in the Sky’ (dir. Noah Hawley) opens with astronaut Lucy Cola (Natalie Portman) looking from the outside to the world she left behind. It appears as a sphere strung with lights of connection. She’s told to come in, but she asks for another moment. The vast vista is exchanged for a view from earth, a fast-moving amalgam of cars and faces and
Daniel Boscaljon
Posted inArts & Entertainment
The new Stanley Museum of Art will serve as ‘a library and a laboratory,’ says its director, bringing art to all majors
Lauren Lessing began serving as the eighth director of the University of Iowa Stanley Museum of Art in July 2018, and less than nine months later, presided over the ceremonial groundbreaking of the new site for the museum. UI’s renowned art collection (arguably one of the top university collections in the United States) was displaced by
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‘Monos’ is unstuck in time — and sticks with you
In ‘Monos,’ the lack of a centralized, framing point of view, the young children who lack a fixed identity and the absence of much context make the film difficult to predict. Choices that lead to unexpected consequences are less revelations of character than witnesses to forces that alter our sense of what life and survival mean.
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Lush and moving, ‘Aquarela’ is the quintessential film for the new FilmScene Chauncey space
Aquarela is shot at 96 frames per second, four times faster than most film. And, at last Friday’s opening, Iowa City’s FilmScene — Chauncey is the only theater in America where you can see it in its intended format. Combined with the new 7.1 surround sound system and the new chairs, the space itself is […]
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Q&A: Kathleen Madigan on YouTube, hecklers and being a ‘Catholic-school-kid rule follower’
On the heels of releasing her new Netflix special, Bothering Jesus, Kathleen Madigan will be bringing her highly acclaimed comedy set to the Englert at 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 6.
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Fields of Yogis promises growth and connection at fourth annual yoga festival
Fields of Yogis was designed to cultivate a sense of community for yoga specific to Iowa, as the name indicates. The event’s motto, “Choose How You Grow,” similarly combines the agricultural context of yoga in Iowa with the sense of self-determination and an orientation toward wellness that is important in the practice of yoga overall.
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Five questions with: Musician John Paul White
John Paul White returns to Iowa City as a solo musicia, playing the Mill on May 26 at 8 p.m. and featuring Caleb Elliott as an opening act. Tickets are $20 in advance, $22 at the door. White tours in support of his new album, ‘The Hurting Kind.’
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Ethiopian life through the eyes of a precocious and imaginative boy in ‘Anbessa’
FilmScene’s Vino Vérité series presents Anbessa, directed by Mo Scarpelli on July 14. The hors d’oeuvres and wine tasting, part of the experience of the series, start at 6:30 p.m.
Posted inBook Reviews
Book Review: ‘God Land: A Story of Faith, Loss, and Renewal in Middle America’ by Lyz Lenz
I heard about Lyz Lenz’s newest book, ‘God Land: A Story of Faith, Loss, and Renewal in Middle America’ (out Aug. 1), a few months ago and had been eager to read it, as it brought together almost all of my personal and professional interests: art, religion, community, Iowa, theology, space, place, stories. It is an audacious attempt to synthesize
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‘The Dead Don’t Die’ is summer blockbuster parody, Romero homage and philosophy treatise rolled into one
I appreciated ‘Broken Flowers,’ enjoyed ‘Coffee and Cigarettes,’ have a copy of ‘Paterson’ that remains unwatched — and loved ‘Only Lovers Left Alive.’ I was thus incredibly excited to see that Jim Jarmusch was exploring the horror genre again in ‘The Dead Don’t Die,’ playing now at FilmScene.
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‘Non-Fiction’ exemplifies its own ideas, taking a backseat as a film to the philosophies it presents
Written and directed by Olivier Assayas, ‘Non-Fiction,’ showing currently at FilmScene, is definitely a thought-provoking and overall enjoyable use of time. It is a meaty movie that hearkens back to past themes in Assyas’s work.
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Iowa City black metal band Dryad on fighting fascism, channeling Tolkien and consuming music responsibly
Anger and outrage can be expressed through any musical genre, but metal has proven particularly contentious: From its inception, it found a place in working class culture — but, as the 2016 election exemplified, the revolutionary anger and discontent of the working class is often pushed toward the political right and into racist, nationalist and misogynist
