Playlists
Alternative Education: Beyond the Requirements
With registration around the corner and a schedule of boring requirements staring you down, remember that school doesn’t always have to provide a nuts-and-bolts education.
Ahh, Real Aliens!
Think of The Fourth Kind as the illegitimate child of The Blair Witch Project and Alien. Presented in a faux-documentary style, Olatunde Osunsanmi’s first feature follows Dr. Abigail Tyler (Milla Jovovich) as she investigates alien abductions in the small town of Nome, Alaska.
Blank Stare
In case you were wondering, staring at random farm animals isn’t exactly thrilling. Not that barnyard voyeurism is the primary subject of The Men Who Stare at Goats, but it features more than enough to go around. The first major studio film by character actor Grant Heslov, Goats follows reporter Bob Wilton (Ewan McGregor) as he ventures on a whim to the Middle East in an attempt to impress his estranged wife.
Guilty Pleasures: Hancock (2008)
What more can a guy ask for than a comedy with flying people and explosions? John Hancock (Will Smith) is a misunderstood lowlife with Superman-like powers who not only stops crime but also smashes buildings and cars for fun.
Ready to Rumble
As The Men Who Stare at Goats demonstrates this week, there’s no right way to represent a war on the big screen.
Because Who Doesn’t Want a Corsage?
When I think of Homecoming, I don’t necessarily think of football games or seeing old friends. I don’t think about tailgating or special alumni receptions or anything related to Penn, really. I think of high school dances. You know what I’m talking about.
The Round Up: 11.5.09
Never mind the Phillies’ World Series run or anything else going on in the world, there was one thing on everyone’s mind this week: you guessed it, Halloween.
From the Editor: 10.29.09
Tomorrow is my 22nd birthday. This is officially a non-exciting birthday. Who cares about 22? Nobody.
Fighting For the Flea Market
The crowds at the Uhuru Flea Market are relatively light on the last Saturday in September. With the weather beginning to turn, the usual stream of students and local residents who peruse cheap jewelry and used books in Clark Park each month is slowing to a trickle. A few Penn students meander between mugs wishing the buyer a “Happy Baby Mama Day” and a stall offering homemade soaps in scents like mango and pumpkin.
Here's to a Clean Halloween
College life is messy. And things get especially messy around Halloween. Fake blood and brains, sticky candy and trick-or-treat pranks can leave your place looking scary come November 1.
Beyond Twilight
Sure, it’s fun getting wasted and dressing up in a skanky costume for Halloween, but it’s also okay to indulge the intellectual Penn student lurking under that Party Ivy facade.
Royal Ghosts of Ancient Iraq
Ah, the Penn Museum. It’s so close, and yet so difficult to motivate yourself to visit. If you haven’t set foot inside the picturesque South Street locale since your freshman year toga party, consider checking out the museum’s fascinating new exhibit: Iraq’s Ancient Past: Rediscovering Ur’s Royal Cemetery.
Poe-tically Scary
With Halloween just a few days away, there’s no lack of scary entertainment. But sometimes reruns of Friday the 13th just won’t cut it.
Flying High
Evoking something between Itzhak Perlman and Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, Chicago-based singer/songwriter/violinist Andrew Bird took the stage on Sunday night clad in a scarf, a tattered suit coat and no shoes.
Second-Rate Island
Even though Flight of the Conchords predated Andy Samberg’s The Lonely Island, I Told You I Was Freaky feels slightly worn-out; Flight of the Conchords is a novelty act that’s no longer novel.
Defibrillator: Elvis Costello, "My Aim is True"
I spent much of my teenage years being pissy and rebellious. Not pissy in the emo way, or rebellious in the cool way, just a little dissatisfied and willing to espouse my contrarian beliefs to anyone who would listen.
For the iPod in Your Head
In 2009, what makes good hip hop? It can be a tricky question for young MCs who, like most college students, were barely old enough to speak when the genre had its golden age in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.
Artist to Watch: Jared Evan
In what seemed like a blink of an eye, rapper Jared Siegel dropped his last name, started hanging out with Diddy and got signed to Interscope Records.
What A Thrill
To say that This Is It has emerged as the most anticipated film of the year is an understatement.
