Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has been in the news regularly for her steadfast refusal to let her series fade from public consciousness. These efforts range from small pieces uploaded to the website, pottermore.com, to the addition of an entirely new instalment in the form of a play script. In the[Read More…]
Books
From the Viewpoint: Diction: Readings by Gay Men
I entered Stock Bar, one of the premier male strip clubs in the Gay Village, just after 7 p.m. to see Diction: Readings by Gay Men Jazz music played throughout the bar, which was lit by soft red-and-pink lights. The centerpiece of the establishment was the stage about three feet[Read More…]
Pop Rhetoric: Jughead’s coming out marks the new era of Archie 2.0
After 75 years, the Archie universe is undergoing a much-needed update. In July of last year, for the first time in the comic’s history, Archie, along with its multiple spin-off series centered around specific characters, was relaunched with an aesthetic that reflected a modernized Riverdale universe with ‘edgier’ characters and[Read More…]
Port Symphonies pays tribute to the “Queen of Crime”
Pointe-à-Callière Museum’s 22nd edition of Port Symphonies, featuring composer and trombonist Scott Thomson, honoured the achievements of Agatha Christie, the famed murder-mystery novelist. The concert was held in Old Montréal at Place-Royale Square, next to the Pointe-à-Callière Museum, where a current exhibition, Investigating Agatha Christie brings to light Christie’s many interests,[Read More…]
Deadpool is a triumph for fans, a challenge for general audiences
In 2014, a short clip of Deadpool test footage was leaked on YouTube, after the character was considered too crass for movie screens. The video—which has since been deleted by 20th Century Fox—sparked a movement among fans who had been altogether disappointed by the character’s 2009 appearance in X-Men Origins:[Read More…]
Comic books 101: How to start reading (and loving) comic books
As comic-cons become more popular and geek culture merges with pop culture, comic books are attracting more and more attention. With movie franchises and television series, characters previously restricted to ink and paper are attracting new fans through digital media. However, comics remain intimidating to newcomers, since most characters have[Read More…]
Artist Spotlight: James Dunnigan
As a poet, novelist, and aspiring academic, McGill student James Dunnigan lives his life in a cloud of creative energy. While finishing a degree in Honours English (with a graduate essay on Virgil and Wordsworth’s pastoral poetry) Dunnigan reads and writes constantly while keeping up with Montreal’s thriving literary scene. [Read More…]
Past vs. Present: Paradise Lost (1667) vs. Ex Machina (2015)
Warning: This piece contains spoilers from the film Ex Machina. Alex Garland’s 2015 film Ex Machina is, in fairly obvious ways, a creation story for the modern age. Nathan (Oscar Isaac)—who strikes the balance between charm and egomania with uncanny precision—is the film’s self-styled deity. Nathan is Narcissus equipped with[Read More…]
Flashback: “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” (1974)
The Vietnam War and the correlated counterculture movement disenchanted many young people with the way society functioned, and for some, the outlet to this frustration was murder. The ‘60s also saw a rise in serial killers, including Charles Schmid—also known as the Pied Piper of Tucson—who murdered three young women[Read More…]
From the Viewpoint: Authors in Their Undies
Performers are often told to imagine the audience in their underwear to help themselves calm their nerves. Christopher DiRaddo—a queer Montreal author—joked that he “must have gotten it wrong” when organizing Authors In Their Undies. The event featured three other queer Canadian authors who walked onto Stock Bar’s stripper stage,[Read More…]
