USC’s top five sports moments of the year


It’s been a crazy year in college athletics. Scandals ran rampant across college football and college basketball. The NCAA tournament certainly defined madness. But amid all of this, it was clear the cardinal and gold still boasts some, if not most, of the top teams in the nation across all sports. So as the year […]

That’s What I Am more than just a coming-of-age tale


Were kids just as mean 50 years ago as they were today?  The quote “It has often been said that children are cruel” is displayed at the beginning of That’s What I Am, a remarkable, uplifting exploration of a boy’s journey to manhood amongst the discrimination and trials of a 1960s middle-school. Written and directed […]

Bananas! tells story of a global food industry


We see them in piles at the grocery store, on our kitchen counters, atop our cereal, but for many plantation workers in Nicaragua, daily exposure to bananas has had a much more profound impact on their lives. Swedish filmmaker Fredrik Gertten’s Bananas! artfully relates the true stories of a handful of these plantation workers as […]

Take Care, Take Care, Take Care quiet yet explosive


How does one go about listening to post-rock instrumental band Explosions in the Sky’s new album, Take Care, Take Care, Take Care? There’s a lot of answers to that question.  But a quality pair of headphones or good speakers is key, as is a solid chunk of time to hear as much of the album […]

Amanda Jo Williams’ new record reflective of her past


Not too long ago, Amanda Jo Williams was a mother of two who performed in Woodstock before coming to Los Angeles to gather a solid fan base. Although she’s been given the reputation of a sad, lonely mother who has suddenly made it big, the magical-sounding freak folk singer rejects this, saying in an interview […]