Defining the college experience in three albums
By Ian Flanagan / Culture Editor
May 31, 2016
Filed under Music, Specials / Newstudentguide2016
Whether it’s introspective headphone listening in a dark dorm room, or being knocked out by subwoofers at a loud party, music permeates college life. Though it frequently surrounds us, music is only truly rewarding when it validates our emotions and shortens the bridge of empathy between friends and stra...
Staff picks: finding the city’s best music venues
By TPN Staff
May 31, 2016
Filed under Music, Specials / Newstudentguide2016
Pittsburgh attracts a variety of bands and musicians — from acts touring on a global scale to the nearby talent of its thriving independent music scene. We know you’ve heard about Queen Bey and the Biebs making stops in the Steel City this summer, but living in a mid-sized city means even your f...
First 3 Rivers Screenwriting Conference held Downtown
By Ian Flanagan / Culture Editor
May 24, 2016
Local and national screenwriting talent collided in Downtown Pittsburgh this past weekend. Spearheaded by director and founder Cathy Rescher, the three-day inaugural 3 Rivers Screenwriting Conference was held at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center Friday, May 20, through Sunday, May 22. Resche...
B52: vegan cafe boasts ample options
By Megan Bray / Staff Writer
May 24, 2016
Filed under Culture, Food & Drink
Around 8:30 a.m., B52 Cafe, Lawrenceville’s newest vegan cafe, was still relatively empty. I began the excursion with a half pot of their green tea, brewed fresh and served in a stainless steel pot. The tea was quite bitter, so I asked for honey — forgetting that it is an animal byproduct — b...
An ode to ‘Pet Sounds’: the enduring genius of Brian Wilson
By Ian Flanagan / Culture Editor
May 17, 2016
Before The Beatles truly blossomed, The Beach Boys’ “Pet Sounds” represented one of the most seismic shifts in the rapidly evolving landscape of popular music during the latter half of the ’60s. Brian Wilson’s magnum opus turned 50 years old May 16, and the record remains a remarkable lis...
‘A Bigger Splash’ rides wave of passion
By Nick Mullen / Staff Writer
May 17, 2016
Filed under Movies
After a year of cycling through international festivals, Italian director Luca Guadagnino’s English-language “A Bigger Splash” has made its way to American theaters. As a dialogue-laden, lengthy slow-burner, “A Bigger Splash” relies heavily on quietly mounted suspense and intense character study. ...
Schenley Park hosts 3rd annual Pittonkatonk brass music festival and picnic
By Lexi Kennell / Staff Writer
May 10, 2016
Filed under Culture
Performing for a colorful sea of people splayed out on patchwork picnic blankets, national and local brass bands had people dancing and sweating into the night this Saturday. The annual, free Pittonkatonk 2016: A May Day Brass Barbecue featured 12 bands and 150 performers at the Vietnam Veterans Pavilio...
Marvel v DC: the battle for the multiplex
By Ian Flanagan / Culture Editor
May 10, 2016
Eight years after “Iron Man” set the stage — and perfected Marvel’s new brand — Disney’s unprecedented superhero franchise is still running like clockwork. Disney released the 13th entry in its hugely popular canon, “Captain America: Civil War,” last Friday to universal praise and a ...
Radiohead makes strong return with “A Moon Shaped Pool”
By Ian Flanagan / Culture Editor
May 10, 2016
Filed under 2. Featured, Culture, Music
England’s most perplexing rock band has finally broken its five-year silence, returning to the same hallmark glumness, lyrical oddity and eerie musicality that make up Radiohead. After its members went their separate ways for various solo works and collaborations, Radiohead came together again to ...
Black art matters: Pitt founds center on black poetry
By Amanda Reed / Staff Writer
April 25, 2016
With the Center for African American Poetry and Poetics, Dawn Lundy Martin wants to make Pitt the place people go to study black poetry. “We want to help to really put that MFA program on the map so that if you’re a black poet, the very first place that you would apply to and your top choice wo...
Pitt Tonight performs season finale
By Noah Coco / Staff Writer
April 22, 2016
Filed under Campus, Culture, News, Television
Most Pitt students remember Mr. McFeely from “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood” as the delivery man, but few expected to see him sink his first shot in “Pitt Tonight Pong” Thursday night. David Newell, the actor who portrayed Mr. McFeely, appeared on Pitt Tonight’s fifth and final episode at 8 p...
Tales from Morocco: School Days
By Elaina Zachos / staff writer
April 20, 2016
Filed under Culture
“Tales from Morocco” is a reoccurring column on reporter Elaina Zachos’ semester studying culture, tradition and daily life in the North African nation. How did I spend my spring break? In class. Late last month, we took a break from our urban lives in Rabat, Morocco, and traded them in for a few d...
Kanye’s jest?: the revised ‘Life of Pablo’
By Nick Mullen / staff writer
April 20, 2016
Hip-hop’s most obsessive artist might be getting too finicky for his own good. When Kanye West released his new album, “The Life of Pablo,” on Apple Music, Spotify and other streaming services on April 1, he brought along some revisions. The album was initially released as a TIDAL exclusive, ...
All work, one play: Redeye Film Festival
By Noah Coco / Staff Writer
April 18, 2016
Filed under Art, Culture, Theater
Not all passion projects last 24 hours, but they do for students participating in Pitt’s Redeye Theatre Project. Twenty-nine students participated in the Redeye Theatre Project, a 24-hour theater festival where students work as playwrights, directors or actors. The project kicked off at 8 p.m. Fr...
Parquet Courts get spirits high
By Sarah Schneider / Staff Writer
April 18, 2016
The only audience member who could have been bored at Parquet Courts’ show in Spirit Hall Sunday night was the baby wearing noise-canceling headphones. Despite one of the band members, singer-guitarist Andrew Savage, suffering from the flu, Parquet Courts inspired mosh pitting and stage diving at its...
Culture staff interprets carbonated cameos
By Culture Staff
April 15, 2016
Filed under Beer Edition 2016, Culture, Food & Drink, Movies, Specials
If you are what you eat, movies are what they advertise. No matter how hard you groan or laugh, there’s no getting around product placement — but some movies do it better than others. In celebration of product placement and our annual beer appreciation edition, The Pitt News recalled some of our favor...
Warhol welcomes Mali rockers Songhoy Blues
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
April 13, 2016
Despite escaping violent oppression in the band’s native Mali, Songhoy Blues doesn’t make mournful music. The Andy Warhol Museum hosted the Mali blues band, Songhoy Blues, Tuesday night as part of its Sound Series, bringing a slice of Mali rock ’n’ roll to the Steel City. Songhoy Blues has...
Linklater’s latest his funniest yet
By Ian Flanagan / Staff Writer
April 13, 2016
Not many films that demand serious thought have exclamation points in their titles, but “Everybody Wants Some!!” earns that right. Director Richard Linklater’s spiritual sequel to “Dazed and Confused” is like a perfected “Animal House.” Though “Everybody Wants Some” depicts the revelry o...
What not to miss on campus this week
By Jack Trainor / Culture Editor
April 12, 2016
Filed under Art, Culture, Movies, Theater
Donald Trump’s Wednesday visit may be grabbing all the local headlines, but his isn’t the only event worth noting this week. The second to last week of class doesn’t usually garner the same amount of excitement as the last, but it’s hard not to get excited, as this week offers, among other events, an Acad...
Bill Nye charms student audience
By Lexi Kennell / Staff Writer
April 12, 2016
Filed under Culture, Television
Capping a lecture that transported audience members back to the third grade, Bill Nye tied his signature bow tie on stage, prompting a standing ovation from the audience. Nye rose to fame in elementary school science classes around the country in PBS and Disney’s “Bill Nye the Science Guy,” which r...
Unlikely allies: ‘Spider-Man’, ‘Deadpool’ redefine a genre
By Jack Trainor / Culture Editor
April 6, 2016
If "Deadpool" can see, it is because it stands on the shoulders of a web-head. It’s hard to think of anyone more deserving than Ryan Reynolds for delivering us this year’s massively successful “Deadpool.” The film has not only inspired a rapid industry rethinking of what superhero movies can be...
Tales from Morocco: on the march
By Elaina Zachos / Staff Writer
April 6, 2016
Filed under Culture
“Tales from Morocco” is a reoccurring column on reporter Elaina Zachos’ semester studying culture, tradition and daily life in the North African nation. Nothing wakes you up faster than the roar of national pride. From the air, the Centre Ville in Rabat, Morocco, is a sea of red and...
Weezer extends hot streak with ‘White Album’
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
April 5, 2016
What Bob Dylan is to protest songs, Rivers Cuomo is to lovesick ballads. Weezer’s fourth self-titled album, nicknamed “The White Album,” is just as inspired as their first comeback, 2015’s “Everything Will Be Alright in the End,” which followed 2010’s forgettable “Hurley.” But whe...
In defense of ‘The Walking Dead’ season six finale
By Jack Trainor / Culture Editor
April 4, 2016
Filed under Culture, Television
Across the Internet, fans of the comic and show alike are howling in distress over the season finale of “The Walking Dead” Sunday night, when the show brutally killed off a character — then hid their identity. Some critics have even vowed to stop reviewing the show. While “The Walking Dead” has ...
Wolf proposes funding for Kanye West
By Nick Mullen | Staff Writer
April 1, 2016
After calling on the likes of Mark Zuckerberg and Larry Page for help with his $53 million in personal debt, Kanye West is looking to an unlikely source for funding: Gov. Tom Wolf. The Republican-controlled state legislature refused to pass Wolf’s original budget, which contained a multi-billion dollar tax...
Tall order: Pitt adds another Starbucks on top of Cathedral
By Matt Maielli | Staff Writer
April 1, 2016
The University announced plans Thursday morning to construct a new Starbucks franchise on the top floor of the Cathedral of Learning. This will be the 20th Starbucks within a square mile of the University campus, including campus-affiliated and non-affiliated local chains. Construction will begin for the...
Baldwin lends voice to city
By Jack Trainor | Culture Editor
April 1, 2016
Filed under Culture, Movies, Television
Alec Baldwin announced yesterday he is making a considerable donation to the University of Pittsburgh — his voice. The “30 Rock” actor said after he performs with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on April 16, he will then record new audible crossing signals at intersections throughout Oakland a...
Divided ‘Demolition’ can’t put self back together
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
March 31, 2016
Sometimes fixing something means taking it apart and putting it back together again. That’s the driving mantra behind “Demolition,” director Jean-Marc Vallée’s third film following acclaimed projects “Dallas Buyers Club” and “Wild.” Following the personal struggles Vallée’s la...
The meaning of life: math and literature collide in new play
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
March 31, 2016
Turns out “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” might have been on to something. While the meaning of life might not in fact be the number 42, a new play at the Henry Heymann Theater suggests literature scholars and math nerds can learn a lot from each other. “The Mathematics of Being Huma...
Sojourning exhibit shares LGBTQ+ journeys
By Jack Shelly / Staff Writer
March 23, 2016
A new exhibit is flipping the script on LGBTQ+ awareness — letters and photos of encouragement will come not from the accepted, but from the accepting. The exhibit, titled “Acceptance Journeys Pittsburgh,” is on display around campus, with two to four narratives stopping in Posvar Hall, Parran Hall...
‘Batman v Superman’ a decrepit endurance contest
By Alec Davis / for The Pitt News
March 23, 2016
Superman may be faster than a speeding bullet, but he’s having trouble outrunning Zack Snyder’s pacing issues. After 2013’s “Man of Steel” earned flack for its grim, self-serious take on Superman — who’s admittedly tougher to drag into the shadows than Batman — Snyder returns with its sequ...
Tales from Morocco: navigating the desert
By Elaina Zachos / Staff Writer
March 21, 2016
Filed under Culture
“Tales from Morocco” is a reoccurring column on reporter Elaina Zachos’ semester studying culture, tradition and daily life in the North African nation. These days, I don’t ride the 71C — I ride camels. Last month, my study abroad program took journalism students from seaside Rabat, Morocc...
Conversation spoils dinner, not thought in ‘Disgraced’
By Madeline Franke / for The Pitt News
March 21, 2016
What’s the difference between living in America and being American? Ayad Akhtar’s 2013 Pulitzer Prize winning play “Disgraced,” which debuted at Pittsburgh Public Theater March 10, and runs through April 10, breaks down the complexities behind citizens’ dual identities. The one-act play, ...
Reexamining humanities’ role
By Rio Maropis / Staff Writer
March 17, 2016
What it means to be a human doesn’t warrant a black-and-white response. Monday’s “Poetry and Race: How the Humanities Engage with Social Problems” will highlight this theme by examining how African-American poetry engages with contemporary social issues, like police violence. As part of Pi...
‘Fences’ finds fresh audience at staged reading
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
March 16, 2016
The title of August Wilson’s “Fences” might sound like a dividing play, but Wednesday afternoon it united an auditorium full of people. Visiting anthropology professor Philip Kao’s Intro to Cultural Anthropology class hosted a two-day “Fences” excerpt reading, which drew about 70 students an...
Radiating beauty bears warning: exhibit at Pitt cautions of nuclear hazards
By Noah Coco / Staff Writer
March 14, 2016
Although the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster occurred on the other side of the world, photographer Morizumi Takashi is bringing the fallout close to home. An ethereal beauty spills out from Takashi’s photographs of radiation-poisoned objects, but hidden beneath the visual allure is...
’10 Cloverfield Lane’ a secretive success
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
March 14, 2016
Ever since January’s surprise trailer release, “Cloverfield” fans have been pining to know what, exactly, does “10 Cloverfield Lane” have to do with the original? The answer: basically nothing— but that’s not a criticism, just fact. After a car accident leaves her unconscious, Michelle (...
Tales from Morocco: TPN abroad
By Elaina Zachos / Staff Writer
March 2, 2016
Filed under Culture
In the pre-colonial pocket of modern Rabat, the walls of the Moroccan city’s Old Medina weave between slippery stone streets. Doors of varying heights, colors and sizes decorate these corridors, concealing homes within. The pathways corral the mangy, scrappy cats rummaging through trash and roami...
“Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” presents confounding take on war
By Jack Shelly / Staff Writer
March 2, 2016
As I walked out of “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot,” I realized I still had absolutely no idea what the title meant. The film, a close adaptation of war correspondent Kim Barker’s 2011 comedic war correspondant memoir “The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan,” starsTina Fey — ...
Rock solid: host’s comments on diversity outshined awards at Oscars ceremony
By Britnee Meiser / Staff Writer
February 29, 2016
Sunday night’s 88th annual Academy Awards ceremony was a night of firsts. Industry professionals started the ceremony’s first boycott over the #OscarsSoWhite controversy — which host Chris Rock returned to again and again throughout the night. The academy also nominated a woman for adapting he...
‘Fuller House’ overcrowded
By Sarah Schneider / for The Pitt News
February 29, 2016
Filed under Culture, Television
Returning to the Tanner’s is like going to grandma’s house — not much has changed, and everyone’s a little older. With “Full House’s” 1995 conclusion, watching the family-friendly show’s reruns became a beloved pastime across America. But Netflix’s “Fuller House” quickly prov...
@NihilistOakland finds meaning in Oakland life
By Annabelle Hanflig / Staff Writer
February 25, 2016
Forbes Digital Plaza is every bit as mysterious as it is flashy. The square’s meagerly lit screens, oddly placed Top 40 hits coming from nowhere and seemingly defunct, blank screens — despite opening last November — is a target for pointing fingers as a waste of money. The absurdity of the situat...
No backup for “Triple 9”
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
February 25, 2016
What happens when you have to kill the only person who has your back? This might be the only intriguing question director John Hillcoat’s “Triple 9” asks as the latest cops-and-robbers flick, but with a slight twist that ends up pitting a police officer against his partner. When executed we...
Pitt to screen acclaimed documentary
By Lexi Kennell / for The Pitt News
February 22, 2016
Not all tragedies end in misery. “Here One Day,” a documentary that follows one family coping with a mother’s suicide, offers hope and a positive message negating the stigma surrounding mental illness. The award-winning documentary will make its Pittsburgh premiere in the William Pitt Union Wednesday, Fe...
‘Eddie’ sails to mediocrity
By Ian Flanagan / Staff Writer
February 22, 2016
Despite its quirky hero threatening to flop the film, “Eddie the Eagle” is the latest true-life Olympic sports drama to dare for an Icarian flight. Following the likes of last week’s Jesse Owens biopic “Race,” “Eddie the Eagle” carves out its individual setting and dramatic structure, b...
Paperback writers: new Pitt course turns students into authors
By Sarah Schneider / for The Pitt News
February 18, 2016
Katelyn Prosachik’s dream growing up was to be a government spy — but while that dream hasn’t materialized in real life, a Pitt class is keeping her fantasy alive. Prosachik is writing a novel about a fictitious 17-year-old version of herself, a teenaged federal government-recruited spy. “Th...
Ivory cast: Pitt theater debuts “Rhinoceros”
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
February 18, 2016
Even the most outlandish trends, be it political ideology or viral internet meme, can generate a following — even rhinoceroses. Tonight, Pitt’s theater department will put that theory into practice in its debut production of French playwright Eugéne Ionesco’s “Rhinoceros,” which runs fr...
“Pablo” unites divided Kanye
By Nick Mullen / Staff Writer
February 16, 2016
I consider myself a Kanye West apologist. When stories of Kanye’s antics — read: the “BILL COSBY INNOCENT !!!!!!!!!!” tweet — pervade the news, I’m jump to defend him, citing his artistry and creative talent. Besides, Kanye West’s music and his public persona have historically been at odds wi...
Talk artsy to me: Creatives Drink unites creative types for free booze, conversation
By Brian Murray / for The Pitt News
February 16, 2016
Filed under Art, Culture, Food & Drink
Two Pittsburgh photographers are offering free alcohol in exchange for a chat and some creativity. Cody Baker and Chancelor Humphrey draw Pittsburgh’s cultural and artistic community together under one roof to promote collaboration during their three-hour schmooze fests, called “Creatives Drink.” O...
Dubnik falls in Jeopardy final
By Amanda Reed / Staff Writer
February 14, 2016
Filed under Culture, Puzzles, Television
Although she didn’t win the $100,000 grand prize in the “Jeopardy!” College Championship finals Friday night, Sarah Dubnik walked away with bragging rights and enough money to travel wherever she pleases. The Pitt senior chemistry and computer science major finished third in the competition, winni...
Rewriting the love story
By Michelle Reagle / Contributing Editor
February 12, 2016
Filed under Culture
When asked to name the last thing I read, I usually internally debate whether I should answer with the book I read three months ago or the 42,000-word fanfiction I read last night. But I get funny looks when I opt for the latter. For those outside of Internet fan culture, fanfiction repurposes...
Debunking Hillman’s dirtiest secret
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
February 12, 2016
Filed under Culture, Puzzles, Television
Playboy Magazine once ranked Hillman Library’s first floor as one of the best places in the country to meet women. Fact or fiction? Urban legends already hold a special place in our culture — Bigfoot, Goatman, Johnny Appleseed — but how does something that is published become an urban legend? Like a ...
Grind your own business: a horror story
By Jack Shelly / Staff Writer
February 12, 2016
Filed under Culture
I once went on a job interview that was advertised on a gay sex app. That might sound strange, especially if you’re not familiar with a little app called Grindr. But hear me out. Much more than the “gay Tinder,” Grindr is a microcosm of the gay male world. For better or for worse, the gay men...
‘The Bachelor’ out of touch with modern love
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
February 12, 2016
Filed under Culture, Television
For a show running 20 seasons and counting, “The Bachelor” still doesn’t get modern dating. The show, in which one enticing man whittles 20 women down to just one, and vice versa for “The Bachelorette,” takes participants on dates only millionaires could afford in exquisite and exotic lo...
Who is, ‘Sarah Dubnik’? Pitt student reaches final in ‘Jeopardy’ competition
By Amanda Reed / Staff Writer
February 10, 2016
Filed under 2. Featured, Culture, Puzzles, Television
Sarah Dubnik is frustrated at what transpires before her. “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek queries contestants of the show’s annual College Championship semifinal round: “The [Nobel] Peace prize went to the National Dialogue Quartet of this North African country,” for $1,600. As the cont...
‘Zombies’ resurrects Austen classic
By Britnee Meiser / Staff Writer
February 10, 2016
If suitors were intimidated by Elizabeth Bennet before, imagine her with a sword. Balancing Victorian romance and the zombie apocalypse, “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” is a fast-paced, surprisingly funny genre clash. Based on Seth Grahame-Smith’s 2009 best-selling novel that pulls directly...
Daily Dubnik: Pitt senior to compete in college ‘Jeopardy!’ semifinal Wednesday
By Jack Trainor / Culture Editor
February 9, 2016
Filed under Culture, Puzzles, Television
Who: Pitt senior Sarah Dubnik What: Competing in the Jeopardy! College Championship semifinals Where: NBC When: Wednesday Feb. 10, at 7 p.m. Why: Dubnik was one of the semifinal round’s two highest point-earners after the five regular-game winners at $14,801. She will take on North Carolina State’s ...
Fun-A-Day returns to Pittsburgh for ninth year
By Britnee Meiser / Staff Writer
February 9, 2016
A creative idea and the drive to get it done — that’s all it takes to exhibit artwork in Fun-a-Day, a national event with a loyal Pittsburgh following. Fun-a-Day, a volunteer-run concept that started in Philadelphia 12 years ago, has spread to cities all across America as an event focused more on the pro...
A fortunate turn of events: Netflix will give series new life
By Meghan Bray / Staff Writer
February 9, 2016
Filed under Culture, Television
Fans of “A Series of Unfortunate Events” have reason to believe their misfortune is over. After a less-than-satisfying 2004 film adaptation, the Baudelaire orphans might finally return to relevancy via Netflix, which is releasing an episodic series of the narrative in August. The dark children’s...
Q&A: Yancy balances work and play
By Lexi Kennell / for The Pitt News
February 5, 2016
In between working as a non-profit hero in a children’s hospital and writing fiction, modern day Clark Kent, Melissa Yancy, became this year’s recipient of the Drue Heinz Literature Prize. As a result, the University of Pittsburgh Press will publish Los Angeles resident Yancy’s manuscript “Dog Yea...
Chasing the Greene: Pitt student has rapping aspirations
By Annabelle Hanflig / Staff Writer
February 5, 2016
Kenny Greene is a sophomore finance and economics major, but he would drop school in a second if it meant getting his big break. “If anything, I could see music not only substituting college but [a typical career],” Greene said. “Plan B is to take [my major] and use it out in the world and mak...
Garner, Glaser honored with exhibit
By Noah Coco / for The Pitt News
February 3, 2016
Filed under Art, Culture, Music
Just as Jackie Robinson had Branch Rickey, Pittsburgh native and jazz pianist Erroll Garner had Martha Glaser. The University will unveil a display in the William Pitt Union today that showcases jazz memorabilia featuring Garner and Glaser, his manager and a civil rights champion. The memorabilia...
‘Caesar’ pales in comparison to past Coen bros’ films
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
February 3, 2016
Take a look in the mirror, Hollywood — you might not like what you see. That’s the sentiment behind the Coen brothers’ latest film, “Hail, Caesar!,” which follows Eddie Mannix — a slim, mustachioed and suited Josh Brolin — as a major Hollywood studio “fixer.” His job is to make sure...
Laser turns in stunning debut
By Jack Trainor / Culture Editor
February 2, 2016
Toronto indie-rock supergroup Broken Social Scene’s four-year hiatus hasn’t kept its 20-plus members quiet. Now, it’s singer Lisa Lobsinger’s turn to break out. Since the band quietly dissolved after 2010’s brilliant “Forgiveness Rock Record,” many of the band’s 20-plus members have...
Bee joins late night, Stewart club
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
February 2, 2016
Samantha Bee may become the first woman in late-night television this week, but she’s also extending the genre’s latest trend — emulating Jon Stewart. While the state of late-night talk shows is unsurprising, what is surprising is that almost half of all late night talk shows lead back to one man: Stewart. He left a void in comedy and journalism with his departure from “The Daily Show,” but his influence on televis...
Hollywood, time to act
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
January 28, 2016
Every year in Hollywood’s Dolby Theater, movie stars celebrate themselves together — but now they need to protest together. For the second year in a row, the Oscars caused controversy by not nominating a single actor of color in any of its four acting categories, causing Will Smith — an unnom...
Reign Check: Future’s latest a misstep
By Nick Mullen / Staff Writer
January 28, 2016
After collaborating with Drake on the popular track “Jumpman,” Future’s latest solo venture won’t be jumping over anybody. Future released his latest mixtape, “Purple Reign,” on Jan. 17. As his thirteenth mixtape, the 40-minute collection is 13 tracks of recycled trap motifs and thumping ...
Lump sum: PSO to cover Bon Iver in FUSE series
By Noah Coco / for The Pitt News
January 25, 2016
Audiences to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra are trading in slacks for skinny jeans, Mozart for “Skinny Love.” On Wednesday, Jan. 27, the orchestra will perform its newest program as part of its FUSE@PSO series by covering the acclaimed indie-folk band Bon Iver. The FUSE series challenges the p...
“Anomalisa” an animated achievement
By Ian Flanagan / Staff Writer
January 25, 2016
While “Inside Out” advanced the potential of modern animated cinema last summer, “Anomalisa” matures the field into serious critical consideration. “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and “Adaptation” screenwriter Charlie Kaufman derived his stop-motion “Anomalisa” from a pla...
Burr brings comedic genius to Netflix in “F is for Family”
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
January 21, 2016
Filed under Culture, Television
When Netflix revealed it was teaming with vulgar, rambling comedian Bill Burr for an animated comedy, I was naturally skeptical. The product, “F is for Family,” to my thrill, turned out to be an undeniable success. The Vince Vaughn-produced show, released Dec. 18, takes place in the 1970s and ce...
Prairie art companion: student exhibit showcases annual Wyoming trip
By Jack Shelly / Staff Writer
January 20, 2016
Picture pieces of rusted iron, makeshift fly swatters and pairs of turquoise and purple gloves. It might seem difficult to draw a connection between these individual items, but the new exhibit on display at the Frick Fine Arts Building’s University Art Gallery contains all of them, each speaking ...
Vinyl meets vegan at Amazing Books & Records
By Rio Maropis / Staff Writer
January 20, 2016
Filed under Culture, Food & Drink, Music
Oakland’s newest commodity won’t be the first in the neighborhood to house books and records under the same roof — but it will be the first to add a vegan cafe. It’s a quiet, rainy day, with an indie rock vinyl spinning on the record player in one of the corners — it’s audible, gentle an...
Laskas discusses ‘Concussion’
By Elaina Zachos / Staff Writer
January 18, 2016
Filed under Art, Culture, Movies
Before a slew of NFL allegations, outcry over football and a blockbuster film, a journalist was chasing her curiosity to concussion research. Jeanne Marie Laskas’ GQ article-turned-book and now film adaptation “Concussion,” didn’t start as the controversial lightning rod it is today. The story, abo...
Jam on: PB&J restaurant opens in Bloomfield
By Nick Mullen / Staff Writer
January 14, 2016
Filed under Culture, Food & Drink
Finally, someone other than your parents will make you peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Located on Liberty Avenue in Bloomfield, Peanut Butter Jelly Time has become Pittsburgh’s latest haven for childhood recipes turned functioning restaurant. Chris, 29, and Lauren Firman, 23, a brother and siste...
The Nothing: Kid Cudi’s abysmal return
By Nick Mullen / Staff Writer
January 14, 2016
Kid Cudi knows a thing or two about being lonely — at the top and the very bottom. What’s apparent from the rapper’s fifth studio album “Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven,” which was released Dec. 4, through Republic Records, is that he is no less lonely than he was when he was the “Man on the M...
‘Hateful Eight’ leans on familiar tropes
By Ian Flanagan / Staff Writer
January 12, 2016
For as much as Quentin Tarantino delights in shocking, bloody spectacles, the director is a cliche of himself in “The Hateful Eight.” The filmmaker’s usual — shock violence, rambling dialogue and hilarity via overt self-awareness — populates his latest work’s whopping three-hour runtime. By non-Ta...
Exit Starman: David Bowie dies at 69
By Amanda Reed / Staff Writer
January 12, 2016
Filed under Culture, Movies, Music
In 1977, David Bowie sang “I will be king, and you, you will be queen.” Little did he know how literal that would become. After a nearly 50-year career that transcended musical and societal labels, Bowie’s cosmic career as one of Pop music’s most important figures came to an end when he died Sun...
Golden Globes offers few surprises
By Britnee Meiser / Staff Writer
January 12, 2016
Filed under Culture, Movies, Television
For as much predictability as TV and film awards bring every year, it always feels better when the obvious choice isn’t the same as last year’s. Sunday night’s 73rd annual Golden Globe Awards saw much of the usual winners but with a few highlights that, while expected, will prevent this year’s awar...
The Pitt News editors review “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”
By The Pitt News Staff
January 6, 2016
Long before “The Force Awakens” hit theaters, a conflict started within The Pitt News staff the likes of which hadn’t stewed since 2005 — who would review the newest Star Wars film? After much argument and anticipation, we decided to let the every willing staffer review it, no matter if this wa...
“Danish Girl” a subtle masterpiece
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
January 6, 2016
Long before Caitlyn Jenner, there was Lili Elbe. Although one of the first traceable transgendered artists, Tom Hooper’s “The Danish Girl” (Artemis Productions, Pretty Pictures, Working Title and others) is certainly not the first trans story on television or film. The film appears at a time when...
Vine star Enick finds comedy in seconds
By Annabelle Hanflig / Staff Writer
January 6, 2016
Filed under Art, Culture, Movies
One switch of his camera to selfie mode, and Pitt student Nathan Enick becomes someone else. He’s Sherri, the neighbor who loves to brag about her exceptional baking skills while casually showing off her artisan baguettes. Or he’s Will, the roommate who only sees the light of day for emergencie...
A pop culture review of 2015
By Jack Trainor / Culture Editor
January 6, 2016
Filed under Culture, Movies, Music, Television
“Back to the Future Part II” may have predicted tablets, flat screen televisions and video conferencing in 2015, but not even Doc Brown could have foreseen Jon Snow’s fate. Last year hosted many unpredictable scenarios and return-to-forms, from Justin Bieber’s chart-topping comeback to “True Detective...
TPN staff contemplates 2016
By Culture Staff
January 6, 2016
Every year, college-themed New Year’s resolutions take the same predictable form — get in shape, find a job, join a club — but these easy goals leave us distressed when they don’t easily materialize into action. This year, why not give yourself a break and make resolutions that are fun and enhanc...
Jumbled ‘Concussion’ tackles too many subjects
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
December 31, 2015
Filed under Culture, Movies, Top Stories
If anything, “Concussion” teaches us not to lead with the head. “Concussion” is the story of Dr. Bennet Omalu, a forensic pathologist at the Allegheny County Coroner's Office from Nigeria, who discovered chronic traumatic encephalopathy, more commonly known as CTE. CTE is a disease that d...
Space age brought JFK, Space Research Center to Pitt
By Brady Langmann / Staff Writer
December 14, 2015
When Murray “Buzz” Susser enrolled in Pitt’s School of Medicine in 1962, he hoped to someday be the first doctor on the moon. An Air Force Reserve captain and former National Guard pilot, Susser wanted to trade jets for spaceships as a medical astronaut on Project Apollo. He was ready for the gi...
The case to land Star Wars in Pittsburgh
By Nick Mullen / Staff Writer
December 14, 2015
Who says Tatooine has to stay in a galaxy far, far away? With the resurgence of the “Star Wars” franchise coinciding with Pittsburgh’s erupting big-ticket film scene, Steeltown seems as poised as any other American city to host the Millennium Falcon. From the plethora of abandoned industrial ...
Phone home: Aliens in film depict human history
December 14, 2015
From “Transformers” to “E.T.,” no other media has had a turbulent fascination with aliens as film. The science fiction genre would be moot without consideration of intelligent life somewhere in the infinite reaches of space. Filmmakers’ consideration of aliens and our contact with them h...
Star Wars countdown: Episode VI: “Return of the Jedi”
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
December 14, 2015
Welcome to the “Star Wars” countdown and may the Force be with you. Each week leading up to the release of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” The Pitt News will retroactively review the “Star Wars” movies chronologically. The countdown concludes this week with Episode VI: “Return of the Jed...
Language aloud in library: Carnegie Library offers free language lessons
By Rio Maropis / Staff Writer
December 10, 2015
Filed under Art, Culture, Puzzles
Every first and third Tuesday of the month, Oakland’s Carnegie Library encourages its visitors to get chatty. That’s when the Japanese Conversation Club meets, in the library’s large print room. Nearly 20 participants sit at three separate tables. It’s obvious that attendees are familiar wit...
Inarritu’s “Revenant” a triumphant return
By Tarun Sathish / Staff Writer
December 10, 2015
In many ways, Alejandro G. Inarritu’s “The Revenant” is the opposite of his previous project, the Oscar-winning “Birdman.” For one, no character’s career is on the verge of breakout or implosion, as Michael Keaton’s was as “Birdman’s” titular character. But despite its title, “Th...
Star Wars countdown: Episode V: “The Empire Strikes Back”
By Walter Howard / Staff Writer
December 10, 2015
Welcome to the “Star Wars” countdown and may the Force be with you. Each week leading up to the release of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” The Pitt News will retroactively review the “Star Wars” movies chronologically. The countdown continues this week with “Episode V: The Empire Strike...
State budget woes vary among filmmakers
By Elaina Zachos / Staff Writer
December 8, 2015
Lights, camera, no action on the state’s budget is shoving film production crews out of Pittsburgh, hurting the hospitality industry and pulling the curtains on the city’s reputation as the next Hollywood. With Pennsylvania’s state budget in flux since July, the state’s reserved $60 million film...
‘Brooklyn’ sails above stereotypes
By Ian Flanagan / Staff Writer
December 8, 2015
From its universal ideas to its Oscar-bait-period-piece aura, everything about “Brooklyn” feels familiar — in a good way. The film’s magnetic central performance in Saoirse Ronan alone could warrant Academy attention, but “Brooklyn” is an otherwise elegant examination of an Irish girl...
Star Wars countdown: “Episode IV: A New Hope”
By Dan Sostek / Contributing Editor
December 3, 2015
Welcome to the “Star Wars” countdown and may the Force be with you. Each week leading up to the release of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” The Pitt News will retroactively review the “Star Wars” movies chronologically. The countdown continues this week with Episode IV: “A New Hope.” ...
Knock out: “Creed” one last breath in Rocky franchise
By Matt Maielli / Staff Writer
December 2, 2015
Don’t let the trailer fool you — “Creed” is not just another “Rocky” sequel. At first, another “Rocky” movie, let alone a spinoff, seems ridiculous — at this rate, his retirement comeback count rivals Brett Favre’s. But “Creed” proves that not every comeback has to be one’s own jou...
Q&A: Kicking out of the Bond Girls
By Walter Howard / Staff Writer
December 2, 2015
For every Bond film there is a “Bond girl,” destined to shack up with the secret agent. Then, cut, roll tapes. Since 1962, Bond has received gadgets and Aston Martin cars, and the actresses have been reduced to vessels of the male gaze. With the latest installment of the daring man’s saga s...
American “Secret” not so mysterious
By Jack Shelly / Staff Writer
December 1, 2015
The appeal of the newly-released movie “Secret in Their Eyes” is not much of a secret. Producers cast some of the most bankable actors in Hollywood and purchased the rights to remake the 2009 Argentinian blockbuster of the same name, which is arguably the most famous South American film of all ...
Sweet dreams: Love Yogurt not just dessert
By Chang Zuo / Staff Writer
November 30, 2015
Filed under Food & Drink
Winter’s coming, but frozen yogurt is already here. Love Yogurt opened at the corner of Atwood and Sennott streets two weeks before Thanksgiving, becoming the third froyo shop in Oakland, but the first to also serve crepes and Asian-styled beverages and desserts. It’s a cozy, beautifully decorate...
‘Exposure’ celebrates black local artists
By Eric Acosta / for The Pitt News
November 24, 2015
What once was a coal city is now a center for culture and creativity. Pittsburgh’s transformation from a steel city to an artistic hub is evident in neighborhoods like the Hill District and Lawrenceville, where public art and street murals decorate the urban fabric. But a new exhibit in the Frick ...
Students bring late night to Pitt
By Alessandra Roberto / for The Pitt News
November 24, 2015
Filed under Culture, Television
The event with the most buzz at Pitt last week wasn’t a sporting event — it was a student talk show. With all 95 seats sold out, Jesse Irwin, senior political science and film studies major, will debut Pitt Tonight, Pitt’s first student talk show, Dec. 14. It will film its episodes in the Cathedral’s Studio Theater and wi...