Alice Munro died on May 13, and I ate half a grapefruit every morning for the next week. I first encountered the acclaimed author’s work in school, as Canadians often do. I remember enjoying her stories—particularly the landscapes within them—but was not yet entirely engrossed. Then moments began to emerge[Read More…]
Arts & Entertainment
Keep up to date on local art, new albums, and everything entertainment-related.
‘Été’ paints a portrait of a livable, walkable, and lovely Montreal
For many, thinking about video games elicits images of shooters, strategy titles, stressful levels, and intense gameplay. Été isn’t that. Developed by Montreal-based indie studio Impossible, the new PC game is all about relaxing. The player assumes the role of a budding painter who has just moved to Montreal for[Read More…]
The surrealism of ‘Problemista’ elevates its poignancy
Scored with futuristically unsettling synth melodies and interjecting choral staccatos, narrator and famed arthouse actress Isabella Rosellini relays the complicated and costly process of acquiring a sponsored visa in the United States in Problemista. What begins visually as a cramped, two-room equation expands into a maze-like structure of trapdoors, fluorescent[Read More…]
Melodies of a lifetime with Claude Dubois
As I pulled into the parking lot of Théâtre Hector-Charland on March 29, eager to see a Québecois musical legend perform, I noticed a bus transporting residents from a nearby retirement home had beat us there. This moment hinted at the crowd that I would find sitting inside, waiting for[Read More…]
Cash grab or uninspired choice? Deluxe editions of albums are both
Typically as an artistic or stylistic choice, deluxe editions of albums are released a few months or so following the initial album drop, expanding upon the original record with the inclusion of more songs. With (relatively) recent examples such as Olivia Rodrigo’s GUTS (spilled) (2024) and Tyler, the Creator’s CALL[Read More…]
Players’ McGill Drama Festival showcases the best of student theatre
From exploring dusty old houses in A Farce About Time Travel to a complicated reunion with old friends (or more than friends) in Coping Mechanisms, the McGill Drama Festival (MDF) had something for everybody. With prizes handed out for Best Script and Best Directing, the festival’s only real loser was[Read More…]
A letter to lonely writers: Words of wisdom from Heather O’Neill
“Oh here comes the torture” and “oh what crap” are phrases that acclaimed author Heather O’Neill uses to describe the harrowing experience of reciting passages from her novels in public. She is McGill’s Writer-In-Residence, known for her debut novel Lullabies for Little Criminals, which won Canada Reads (2007) and When[Read More…]
Peace has returned to Spotify via Neil Young and Joni Mitchell
At the beginning of 2022, music legends Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, alongside a few other artists pulled their music off Spotify in response to the streaming service platforming controversial podcaster Joe Rogan. Young explained that he did not want to be associated with a brand that had such a[Read More…]
Let’s go lesbians…to the movies!
From boxers to bodybuilders to road trippers and beyond, the past six months have given us an unprecedented number of movies about queer women. As slow, candlelit period pieces fueled by stolen glances, often the sole lesbian representation in media, feel increasingly outdated, this new “golden age” presents an exciting[Read More…]
’Until August’ —published against the late author’s wishes—revisits desire
“Memory was my source material and my tool. Without it, there’s nothing.” Gabriel García Márquez began to write Until August toward the end of his life. It was intended to be part of a much longer work, cut short by García Márquez’s battle with dementia. His final verdict was absolute:[Read More…]
