Category: Commentary
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Lost in translation
“Ghost in the Shell,” directed by Rupert Sanders and written by Jamie Moss, William Wheeler and Ehren Kruger, turns a successful manga and film series into a somewhat bland science fiction & action movie. Though filled with stunning visual effects and based on an intriguing concept, the film lacks character development and has a generic,…
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Game Corner: Shadow Warrior 2 Review
“Shadow Warrior 2” is a first-person shooter game where players take control of a mighty ninja that spews carefree one-liners while fighting off demons and angry mobsters. The game is at its absolute best when the player is in the middle of the fray, fighting off various enemies. However, it does suffer from some odd…
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My State Fair Adventure
A family tradition since 1886, the State Fair of Texas commemorates all things important to the state: food, agriculture, community, football and family. Located just miles away from downtown Dallas, Fair Park spans 277 acres of museums, food courts and the world’s largest collection of Art-Deco structures. Fairgoers can expect Texas-sized amounts of fair foods…
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Dangerous Liaisons
Student actors put on performance of 18th century French novel In the first few moments of the “Les Liaisons Dangereuses”, Marquise de Mertueil claims that “Love is something you use, not something you fall into like quicksand,” setting the tone for the crafty, complex play that follows. “Les Liaisons Dangereuses” ran from April 9-18 at…
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Drama wastes interesting premise
“True Story,” based on Michael Finkel’s memoir of the same name, fails to be as interesting as the true story. Finkel’s stories were on multiple covers of The New York Times until it was revealed a piece he wrote on modern slavery in Africa was partially fictionalized with the use of composite characters. While he…
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New ‘Furious’ film resorts to same formula
“Furious 7” has a nonsensical plot and dull dialogue, but it speeds past these road bumps that might otherwise sideline any other film with a familiar mix of levity and the care it shows for its fallen cast member. James Wan directs the latest entry in the “Fast and Furious” franchise. He’s a newcomer to…
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‘Marigold’ sequel delightfully simple
Film underwhelmingly mixes talented cast with stuffy plot As the title suggests, “The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” doesn’t portray anything new or particularly interesting, but the film’s geriatric cast is charming and delightful. The sequel to “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” picks up right where the 2011 film left off. While the original isn’t…
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Dallas music scene emerges
Take a drive through Deep Ellum on any given weekend and you’ll likely hear local music echoing among the old buildings covered in buffed out graffiti behind the massive highways and the canyon of downtown skyscrapers and looming in the background. The music tells the story about an abundance of culture that many people take for…
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‘Dark Girls’ a dialogue on colorism
The Meteor Theatre kicked off Black History Month on Feb. 4, 2015 in the Jonsson Performance Center with “Dark Girls,” a film that delves into the much unspoken world of colorism. This documentary takes viewers into a world filled with prejudice, anger, and conflict over a physical attribute that people have the inability to change,…
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Weak cyber crime action movie features lackluster performance
“Blackhat” fails to make hacking watchable for audiences “Blackhat,” starring Chris Hemsworth, is a plodding crime drama about hacking, with clumsy dialogue and boring characters. Michael Mann’s “Blackhat” opens with a Chinese nuclear plant explosion caused by a cyberattack. Minutes later, a villainous entity manipulates the stock exchange to collect more than $70 million. Now…