TransAtlantic

TransAtlantic amply demonstrates two of Colum McCann’s greatest strengths, namely his dexterity in occupying the voice of those observing, or in the orbit of, the famous (this is not new ground – his earlier novel Dancer is an enthralling novelisation of the life of Rudolf Nureyev) and his ability to depict the significant moments of Read More

Parallax (Winner of the 2014 TS Eliot Poetry Prize)

Parallax is an astronomical term for the apparent displacement of an object caused by a change in the point of observation. In this wide-ranging collection of the same name, short-listed for the 2013 Forward Prize, Morrissey considers from different angles how our position affects what and how we see. In several poems, Morrissey’s lens is Read More

Ain’t Them Bodies Saints

Spanning four to five years and set sometime during the decade after the second World War, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints is a story about liminality and transitions. The plot follows the homeward journey of Bob (Casey Affleck), a man born into a life of crime as he returns to his wife Ruth (Rooney Mara) and Read More

Rush

It is hard to believe this story is real. Those of you who might be sent running in the other direction by a film about racing may want to reconsider your previous inclinations. Set in the 1970s, the film exploits our natural tendency to white-wash the past. The beauty of Rush lies in its delicate Read More

Cut and Paste: Investigating the Materiality of Information

This exhibition, the collaborative work of three promising young artists from the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, continues the artistic interrogation of philosophical questions surrounding new media technology. This interrogation was begun with notable events such as Cybernetic Serendipity (Institute of Contemporary Arts, 1968) and Les Immatériaux (Centre Georges Pompidou, 1985). It Read More

Filth

It has been 17 years since Danny Boyle’s inspired adaption of Irvine Welsh’s novel Trainspotting took British cinema by storm, becoming a cult hit which inspired a new age of British film making under the banner of “Cool Britannia”. Subsequent adaptations of Welsh’s work have struggled by comparison, with Ecstasy and The Acid House representing Read More

Blue Jasmine

After recent excursions to some of Europe’s most iconic cities, prolific filmmaker Woody Allen returns to the United States with his latest film. Blue Jasmine (2013), the 43rd feature directed by Allen, is a loose and contemporary retelling of Tennessee Williams’ Pulitzer Prize winning play A Streetcar Named Desire (1947). The movie centres on the Read More

Negative Capitalism: Cynicism in the Neoliberal Era

For those interested in an account of the ways in which capitalism has made our lives miserable, J. D. Taylor’s Negative Capitalism: Cynicism in the Neoliberal Era will not  disappoint. However, the book is not simply a tirade; it aims to spur the reader to reject current conditions of work and existence in favour of Read More

The Way, Way Back

The Way, Way Back is an absolutely brilliant film which is funny, moving, uplifting and features a great cast. The film focuses on the difficulties faced by Duncan, a 14 year old boy (Liam James), on summer holiday as he tries to deal with puberty, girls and his new post-divorce family dynamic. His father doesn’t Read More