It’s been seven years since Phantom Planet played a “proper show” in Los Angeles. But at the Lodge Room on Friday, May 10 (after a last-minute shift from Downtown’s Resident), it seemed like the band and Angelenos hadn’t missed a beat. The show, the second of a trio of Southern California reunion shows, drew a […]
About Nicholas Slayton
Learning to Appreciate Life in Jim Jarmusch’s The Dead Don’t Die
The Dead Don’t Die is certainly a Jim Jarmusch film. In his career, he’s brought his own idiosyncratic approach to quiet dramas, mafia films and Westerns. It never quite approaches parody or deconstruction; Jarmusch is interested in and a fan of the tropes of genres, and he sees how they can be used to examine […]
Dhani Harrison Plots His Own Path With Solo Debut In///Parallel
Dhani Harrison has a story to tell. After working with thenewno2, Fistful of Mercy and scoring movies and television, the musician found himself hearing a certain sound in his head that he had to make real. The result is In///Parallel, Harrison’s first solo album, a 10-track record that was released on Oct. 9. The album […]
“The Day Tennyson Died” Indicates That Season Three Might Be Penny Dreadful’s Best
Penny Dreadful Season 3 Episode 1 “The Day Tennyson Died” Let’s get it out of the way: Dracula has arrived. Penny Dreadful started out as a strange, Gothic adventure, throwing audiences right into the world of vampires, Egyptian magic and a collection of characters from Gothic and Victorian literature, or at least those that fit […]
The Leisure Class is a Slog of a Film
The Leisure Class is many things, but never once a coherent or good film. Jason Mann’s HBO feature is a tonal and narrative mess, one that does a disservice to talented pieces to produce a cringe-worthy whole. It is a shining example that no matter how strong a cast and crew are, without a solid script, […]
Penny Dreadful Season Two Finale Review
S2E09 “And Hell Itself My Only Foe” “And Hell Itself My Only Foe” served as an epic set up for a season finale, filling itself with developments and cliffhangers, with the right pacing to keep the story moving forward. It also showed a marked improvement in John Logan’s pacing compared to season one. Although both […]
Penny Dreadful S2E08 “Memento Mori” Review
A tip of the hat to creator and writer John Logan. Beyond the occasional pacing issue, he’s kept Penny Dreadful a rich and smart show, but most of all treated the audience with respect. He’s avoided drawing out plots that could easily become frustrating — Hecate (Sarah Greene) attempting to seduce and distract Ethan (Josh […]
Penny Dreadful S2E07 “Little Scorpion” Review
The ties that bind in Penny Dreadful are a strange thread. The company of heroes isn’t full of nice people — Vanessa Ives has committed selfish actions that doomed others, Ethan Chandler took part in the genocide of Native Americans, Sir Malcolm Murray killed and abused his way across Africa in the name of “exploration,” […]
Penny Dreadful S2E06 “Glorious Horrors” Review
As Penny Dreadful enters the back-half of its second season, the pieces of the puzzle are starting to come together, and they paint a dark picture for the heroes of the story. In the previous episode, Ethan (Josh Hartnett) described the heroes as being under siege, and said they need to bunch up and prepare […]
Penny Dreadful S2E5 “Above the Vaulted Sky” Review
Only Penny Dreadful could make a breather episode so intense and fraught with developments. “Above the Vaulted Sky” features some big developments, but they are developments that set up the second half of the season and trouble to come. But best of all, the episode gives two storylines — Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett) and Victor […]