Since 1954 the world of cinema has had a definition for filmmakers who use the medium to generate “high art”. The Auteur Theory has been championed by directors like Francois Truffaut, Jean Renoir, and Alfred Hitchcock over the years. The theory asserts that an auteur makes films that share a common aesthetic and break through the wall of studio interference to generate a work of moving art. Terrence Malick is perhaps the best example of an auteur in present cinema. With only five films under his belt Malick is responsible for some of the most important films in the last few decades. In 2011 Malick released Tree of Life, reinventing his style with a more angelic approach to story-telling. His latest effort, To the Wonder, takes all the style of Tree of Life and none of the brilliance.
Continue readingAuthor: Sean Hunter
Local Band Profile: Mike Ring and the Connection
Newcomers Mike Ring and the Connection haven’t been in the Greeley music scene for long, but you’d never know it. Blending folk and electronic pop, the band explodes with a percussive mix of invigorating songs. And while the band has a well-polished studio sound, their passion for live music is what drives them.
Continue readingReview: Lady Lamb the Beekeeper – “Ripely Pine”
Assuming the moniker of Lady Lamb the Beekeeper and releasing her first album on February 19th of this year, Aly Spaltro has traded in her modesty for an all-out musical declaration. Ripely Pine is an album made for playing with volume all the way up.
Continue readingReview: “A Good Day to Die Hard”
In A Good Day to Die Hard (or Die Hard 5) young director John Moore tries his hand at the franchise, and comes up short in just about every way imaginable.
Continue readingReview: Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – “Push the Sky Away”
Hot off the heels of his 2012 film Lawless, Nick Cave returned to the studio with his most successful career project, The Bad Seeds. Push The Sky Away was released on February 18th and features some of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’ most cinematic music to date.
Continue readingReview: “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is the first in a new trilogy of films based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1937 “Lord of the Rings” prequel of the same name and directed by Peter Jackson. Starring British television favorite and “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” star Martin Freeman as a young Bilbo Baggins (relative of Frodo Baggins from “LOTR” and previously played by Ian Holm.)
Continue readingReview: Nightlands – “Oak Island”
Dave Hartley, bassist for Kurt Vile’s The War On Drugs, is set to release his sophomore solo-album, titled Oak Island, on January 22nd of this year under the name Nightlands. With a sound that effortlessly evokes a blend of The Smashing Pumpkins and Bon Iver, Nightlands is poised for a breakthrough year in music.
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