The COVID-19 pandemic has halted the regular bustle of Montreal life, and with it, halted its entertainment industry. Cirque du Soleil was forced to lay off 95 per cent of its staff; music festivals, including Osheaga and Ilesoniq, were postponed; and even the world-famous comedy festival, Just For Laughs, was[Read More…]
Arts & Entertainment
Keep up to date on local art, new albums, and everything entertainment-related.
Embracing the new without abandoning the old in ‘Imploding the Mirage’
Imploding the Mirage sounds distinctly like a Killers album: The upbeat, new wave-meets-modern rock style is recognizable to longtime fans of the Las Vegas band. However, it’s impossible to ignore the album references to other artists, styles, and eras. The busy instrumentalism, coarse-sounding vocals, and reinvented ‘80s synth-pop sound is remarkably[Read More…]
What we liked this summer: Pandemic edition
With the start of virtual classes, it feels like we’ve been jolted out of a limbo. Still, with Netflix binges about to be replaced by Zoom classes, we can at least say that our five months indoors have given us plenty to watch, listen to, and read. The pandemic aside,[Read More…]
Where do I begin? ‘The Kissing Booth’
When Netflix released The Kissing Booth in May 2018, it appeared to be just another one of the teen rom-coms that the streaming service had become known for. Most Netflix users simply ignored it, and they were right to do so: It’s a terrible movie rife with misogynistic tropes[Read More…]
The painfully beautiful storytelling of ‘folklore’
Taylor Swift surprised her fans on July 24 when she released her eighth studio album, folklore, which she wrote and recorded in isolation. Folklore is filled with tragically honest storytelling that blends confessional subject matter with fictional tales. While the song production of folklore is simpler than Swift’s past albums,[Read More…]
Award-winning novel ‘The Dishwasher’ is a dark, nostalgic trip to a past Montreal
Stéphane Larue’s novel, The Dishwasher, begins with an all-too-familiar scene: Montreal in the dead of winter. However, the story that emerges from beyond the snowbanks is anything but ordinary. Larue’s novel is a masterful depiction of Montreal in all its dark, eclectic charm at the turn of the new millennium.[Read More…]
An end in sight: How independent Montreal cinemas are coping with COVID-19
Quebec authorities have allowed concert venues, theatres, and cinemas to open as of June 22 as part of the province’s deconfinement plan. The government’s lack of forewarning from, however, left some independent venues unprepared and unable to open on June 22 without sufficient safety measures—such as shields and precise measurements[Read More…]
‘Influence’ presents a damning portrait of Lord Tim Bell
Influence, written and directed by Montreal-based documentary filmmakers Diana Neille and Richard Poplak, sets forth a captivating portrayal of Lord Tim Bell, the British advertising executive who co-founded the public relations firm, Bell Pottinger, and helped to put Margaret Thatcher into 10 Downing Street. Influence does not get lost in the[Read More…]
Pop as healing in Lady Gaga’s ‘Chromatica’
Lady Gaga has always been beset by her public image. Whether it’s the bombastic music videos and otherworldly costumes of her debut, or the earnest, style-shifted music of Joanne and A Star is Born, critics have always questioned the authenticity of Gaga’s persona. The long awaited Chromatica, released May 29, with[Read More…]
McGill hosts Montreal International Poetry Prize
The biennial Montreal International Poetry Prize is happening now, with submissions open until June 10, and this year, McGill’s Department of English is hosting. Known colloquially as the “Prize,” this competition was founded in 2010 as an initiative by Montreal poet and literary critic Asa Boxer. The Prize awards $20,000[Read More…]
