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.
A Gross and Fabulous Mother’s Day, Courtesy of SNL
Maya Rudolph’s return to the show proved why she’s so beloved.
Steve Albini Was Proof You Can Change
To a certain kind of listener, it sometimes felt like he was the last honest musician in the industry.
It’s Not a Rap Beef. It’s a Cultural Reckoning.
The feud between Drake and Kendrick Lamar has become far, far bigger than music alone.
The Great Honeybee Fallacy
For years, people have understood them to be at imminent risk of extinction, despite evidence to the contrary. Why?
Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show Goes Too Far
The comedian wants you to know everything about his life, but sheer voyeurism is only so revealing.
Six Books That Explore What’s Out There
These titles reflect on what drives our species to seek out the uncharted and unknown.
SNL Completely Misses the Point of the College Protests
An awkward, unfunny cold open fails to meet the moment.
Poetry Is an Act of Hope
Through verse, we can perhaps come closest to capturing events that exist beyond our capacity to describe.
How Do You Make a Genuinely Weird Mainstream Movie?
Jane Schoenbrun, the director of the unsettling new film I Saw the TV Glow, has some ideas.