The Rise of CliffsNotes Cinema
Oversimplified literary remakes miss the point of the works they are adapting.
Culture
Why Justin Bieber Played YouTube Onstage for Thousands of People
The pop star transformed the normal act of browsing your laptop into something interesting—and unsettling.
The New Age of Performance Anxiety
With the rise of screen culture, all the world has stage fright.
Where Did ‘Let Them’ Come From?
Years before Mel Robbins published her best-selling self-help book, a struggling writer posted a poem with a similar message.
Seven Books That Actually Capture What Sickness Is Like
These titles aren’t interested in sticking to a simple narrative about sickness and health—they explore the textures of human life.
The Curious SNL Return of Kate McKinnon
The quirky ex–cast member came back to the sketch show, only to disappear into it.
The Sound of Cruelty
The Zone of Interest is an eerie and restrained study of the Holocaust that never shows a single frame of the atrocity.
Madonna Dances With Death
Her greatest-hits tour has the feeling of a memorial—a spectacular one.
An Origin Story That’s Actually Fun
The charming Wonka wisely understands that Roald Dahl characters don’t need much backstory.
When History Doesn’t Do What We Wish It Would
In Ed Park’s new novel, the past is slippery, elusive, and alive.
SNL’s New Kings of Bizarro Buddy Comedy
The Gen Z zaniness of Please Don’t Destroy
The Final Word on a Notorious Killing
Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage & Reckoning, a new docuseries about the 1989 murder of Carol Stuart, revisits the case with an eye toward Boston’s stark racial divisions.
Camille Claudel’s ‘Revolt Against Nature’
In a new exhibition, the sculptor escapes the shadow of her mentor Rodin, and claims a place as one of the finest artists of her era.
The Last Time a Concert Documentary Saved the Movies
Before The Eras Tour and Renaissance, there was Woodstock.