BOOK: The Suitcase Clone (2022)

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The Suitcase CloneYear: 2022Author: Robin SloanLength: 78 pages Much like Ajax Penumbra 1969 helped fill in some of the lore for Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore, Robin Sloan expounded on his book Sourdough with The Suitcase Clone. This short story doesn’t necessarily share any of the main characters from Sourdough, but it gives some insight about the mysterious “creature” that’s in the sourdough while also providing an interesting look into intellectual property theft when it comes to specific wines—which itself is reason enough to read this short story. Sloan takes a somewhat unorthodox approach to the point of view here, which took some getting used to. His language bordered on being too flowery, and it lost me as to what was happening at least a few times. But in terms of straight vibes, The Suitcase Clone successfully gives off that eerie, otherworldly feeling that helps add to the mystery of this almost microorganism entity. Reading this story is what I would imagine taking...
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MOVIE: The Brutalist (2024)

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The Brutalist Year: 2024 Rating: R Length: 216 minutes / 3.60 hours Conceptually, I enjoyed the idea of The Brutalist (2024). There are few biopics about architects, let alone ones of this specific style, so manufacturing a story that feeds from common tropes in the biopic format felt like an interesting way to showcase this unique artistic architecture. Of course, because the life of Laszlo (Adrien Brody) wasn’t real, The Brutalist leans into other metaphors that were uncomfortable to watch and ended up somewhat ruining the film for me. The problem with a main character like Laszlo is that it doesn’t take long for him to do things that make him unlikable. Sure, one could argue the PSTD from surviving the Holocaust would cause him to act out in these ways just so he could maintain any semblance of control of his life. Unfortunately, the control he seeks is partly the reason for his demise, as it is through drugs and alcohol. Not that this...
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VIDEO GAME: Minit (2018)

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MinitYear: 2018Rating: ETime Played: 3+ hours I love it when simple games take common aspects of gaming and explore them as a key gameplay mechanic. For most games, a timer doesn’t necessarily force me to play in a certain way. Sure, I might not spend a ton of time exploring if I know there’s a time limit to get through the level. But what if you’re only given one minute before your character dies? How much can you do in that time? That’s the premise behind Minit. With a gameplay loop that resets every minute, you start to realize just how much you can do in 60 seconds. The strategy in a game like Minit is finding ways to move faster or using the knowledge you gained in one life to get through a section in less time. Like a time loop (or micro-roguelike). Of course, this limitation also makes exploration difficult when you get stuck. If you only have a minute...
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MOVIE: Atlantis – The Lost Empire (2001)

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Atlantis: The Lost Empire Year: 2001 Rating: PG Length: 96 minutes / 1.60 hours I can appreciate that Disney was trying to do new and interesting things at the beginning of the millennium. There seemed to be a trend of more male-focused movies with Treasure Planet (2002) and Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001). That these were leaning into science fiction instead of fantasy was also a nice change of pace. Of course, in this era of Disney trying to find its identity in a post-Toy Story (1995) world, I can see why movies like Atlantis have since (ironically) been forgotten. While Treasure Planet was an adaptation of Treasure Island, Atlantis was an original story. Granted, some of the key elements felt like Stargate (1994), but that’s mostly because ancient tech stories have similar story beats and characters. The 1910s aesthetic and archetypes of the explorers was something new to Disney animation and were in a brown-coded contrast to the blue world of Atlantis. Of course,...
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BOOK: Clara Schumann – The Artist and the Woman (2001)

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Clara Schumann: The Artist and the WomanYear: 2001Author: Nancy B. ReichLength: 385 pages For a talented woman like Clara Schumann, she usually played a major role in biographies of her husband, Robert, or their mutual friend, Johannes Brahms. This was not the case in Clara Schumann: The Artist and the Woman, which took the complex life of this virtuosic pianist and made all its parts focus on Clara. If anyone ever wants to learn about the fascinating life of this woman, this is the book to read. While the biography of Clara’s daughter, Eugenie, had lots of useful, intimate information about Clara’s later life, this book fully explores all phases of Clara’s life. From her time under her father to the drama of Robert’s courtship and the eventual life as a widow who still had to support a sizable family, this book breaks down each of these life moments in a thorough way that helps tell her story. Of course, her life...
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MOVIE: Anora (2024)

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Anora Year: 2024 Rating: R Length: 139 minutes / 2.32 hours When I first watched Anora (2024) in theaters, I had heard a lot of buzz about how good it was. This was shortly before it was nominated for Best Picture, and I agreed it was a strong contender to win (which it did). There were three ways I thought the Best Picture could go, and Anora was the film that aligned best with modern cinema, with more independent artists in full control of their work. That it is also a striking (and hilarious) examination of the difference between the working class and the owning class is a bonus. The first act of Anora felt obnoxious as it introduced the titular character and this Russian oligarch’s son who wanted to buy this stripper’s time for an extended binge of hedonism. However, once reality hits the situation and the movie pivots, the unlikely group of people searching for this runaway son provides some of the funniest...
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