Now that a new school year is ramping up, my mom’s volunteer day care service for my niece, Lily, and nephew, Lucas, is back in full swing. My sister, an elementary school teacher, had all-day meetings this week, and school doesn’t start until next week. As such, our house has…
Embracing My Inner Alien - a column by Kevin Schaefer
The new “Superman” movie features talking robots, giant monsters, interdimensional portals, and a crowd-pleasing, super-powered canine. Multiple heroes and villains factor into the story, and the action sequences involve a plethora of CGI-heavy special effects. It’s a big and fantastical summer blockbuster, the kind of spectacle that the superhero genre…
One of my favorite comfort shows is the CBS sitcom “How I Met Your Mother.” Centered around the romantic quest of Ted Mosby, who as his older self recounts to his kids the story of him meeting their mother, the series is also an ode to lifelong friendships. Surrounding Ted…
The best sitcoms capture the chaos and unpredictability of everyday life. In the new Apple TV+ series “The Studio,” co-creator and star Seth Rogen plays Matt Remick, a disgruntled movie executive who lands his dream job when he becomes the head of the fictional Continental Studios. Yet while…
When the movie version of “Wicked” hit theaters last fall and skyrocketed to critical and commercial success, musical theater enthusiasts everywhere felt validation. The blockbuster adaptation of the hit musical struck a chord with devoted fans, casual viewers, and anyone with a passing familiarity with “The Wizard of Oz” mythos.
Stephen King’s “The Shining” shows what happens when someone spends too much time cooped up indoors. Sure, supernatural forces provide the basis for the main character’s descent into madness, but a defining element of the novel is that it takes place in a remote hotel during winter snowstorms. I imagine…
I was always a “Star Wars” acolyte, but I became interested in the world of the “Star Trek” science fiction franchise when I was in high school. Whereas “Wars” is a giant space opera that takes place in the distant past with characters from a faraway galaxy, “Trek”…
The album “A Whole New Sound” is a treasure trove of nostalgia for millennials. Released last month, it features early 2000s punk rock bands performing covers of iconic Disney songs. Listening to Simple Plan’s rendition of “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” fuses every ’90s kid’s…
In the family classic “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory,” all four of Charlie Bucket’s bedridden grandparents share the same sleeping space. It’s a bewildering arrangement that fans have poked fun at throughout the years. Every time I watch the movie, I’m left wondering how these people share…
In the “Mission: Impossible” franchise, each movie starts with Tom Cruise’s character, Ethan Hunt, opening an encrypted message that outlines his next assignment. As an agent for the Impossible Mission Force (IMF), Hunt uses his unique skills to take down global threats that are too much to handle…
