Arts and Culture

The Strand reviews 2019

Hadiyyah Kuma, Features Editor  Best movie of the year?  Parasite Relevant take on capitalism and how much it screws over EVERYONE. Incredible directing, acting, everything. Original and full of nuance. Time for a revolution, amirite? (I’m right)  Best album of the year?  Magdalene by FKA Twigs  Magdalene is a tender, dream-like, holy take on heartbreak and self-love. ‘cellophane’ and […]

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The Strand’s best of the decade

Hadiyyah Kuma, Features Editor  Best song of the decade?  “i” by Kendrick Lamar (2014)  So torn because there were six other Kendrick songs I could’ve chosen (Alright, How Much A Dollar Cost, HUMBLE, and Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe were close), but “i” is truly a victory. Besides being a jam, it’s an exclamation of power, reclamation, and resistance.  Best album of the decade? DAMN. by

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The unpopularity of “Popular Film”

In August of 2018, controversy arose surrounding the announcement that an award for “Outstanding Achievement in Popular Film” would be given out at the 2019 Academy Awards. Although the “Popular Film” Oscar did not live long enough to be awarded, backlash from academy members, journalists, and moviegoers alike caused the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to pull the category less than a month later. Criticism came

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The Strand Reviews In Fabric

The category is “Susperia, but make it department store chic”. Peter Strickland pays homage to vintage giallo horrors and Hammer Film Production with In Fabric. It takes place in a distorted version of either 1970s or 1980s England, in a fictional town that clings to the fading idea of luxury where a beautiful artery-red dress wreaks havoc on the lives of all who come in contact with it. While the premise

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Chilly Bitch Winter

Hot girl summer and thotumn have come and gone; ‘tis the season to sit in front of your light-therapy lamp in an attempt to ease those winter blues while wrapped in endless layers. Here are some icy tunes for sliding into winter’s frosty embrace.  “Horchata” by Vampire Weekend  “50 Words for Snow” by Kate Bush  “Sister Winter” by Sufjan Stevens  “Aurora” by Bjork   “Winter Time

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A Streetcar Named Desire Review

Content Warning: Mentions of domestic violence.  A story of an old world clashing with a new and brutal one, with all the hypocrisy and ugliness that such a story entails. Blanche DuBois (Amy Rutherford) has come to live with her sister Stella (Leah Doz) and Stella’s husband Stanley Kowalski (Mac Fyfe) in their New Orleans apartment after losing her job as a high school teacher and her ancestral plantation home, Belle Reeve, amid dubious circumstances. She immediately develops

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