Stories by Jacob Axelrad
The Statement
Personal Statement: Observations of a North African kingdom
BY JACOB AXELRAD
RABAT, Morocco — On January 26, I boarded a plane at Los Angeles Airport and flew to Rabat, Morocco, the country’s capital. Since then, I’ve been living and studying in a country that, until a few months ago, I knew little aside from the fact that its largest city, Casablanca, is the namesake of a classic Hollywood movie.
FDR biopic 'Hyde Park' lacks direction, continuity
- Focus
BY JACOB AXELRAD
In 'Hyde Park on Hudson,' we’re given very little in the way of structure, something to invest us in these stories of the important historical figures' lives.
In vivo: How do students in biomedical research adjust to animal experimentation?
- Illustration by Megan Mulholland
BY JACOB AXELRAD
When many labs require live animal subjects, which can range from mice to dogs to rabbits, what is the adjustment process like for a student unaccustomed to working with animals, some of whom are killed by the end of an experiment?
Trailer Review: Musicals return, bigger than ever in 'Les Miserables'
- Universal
BY JACOB AXELRAD
The show transcends generations, a powerful reminder of a people’s strength as they band together, relying on the human spirit. And if the trailer is any indication, the latest incarnation will be magisterial in its grittiness and its realness.
Step Into the Salon: Are MC Skat Kat and Paula Abdul a match made in heaven?
- Virgin
BY JACOB AXELRAD
Arts Editors Jacob Axelrad and Kayla Upadhyaya debate the merit of Paula Abdul’s music video for the late-eighties hit “Opposites Attract.”
Personal Statement: I used to dance
- Illustration by Megan Mulholland
BY JACOB AXELRAD
We are four friends, each no older than 12. We are on the street; tap shoes draped around our necks, black dance bags at our sides. We wear baggy clothes and scarf down the remnants from a bag of Cheetos. Streaks of orange dust coat our hands. Our feet jitter in anticipation as we wait outside the studio where we take classes every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.
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Step into the Salon: Do you scream for 'Scream'?
- Dimension
BY JACOB AXELRAD
Two Daily Arts editors debate the icon status of Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson’s original installment of the “Scream” series.
'Detropia' zooms in on Detroit's ongoing story
- Loki
BY JACOB AXELRAD
In a sense, this movie is a character study of a city that refuses to fade into collective memory as a place that once was. Detroit isn’t over. It persists. And the future of this once-great American city is a story that still remains to be told.
the statement
What makes a holy man?
- Terra Molengraff/Daily
BY JACOB AXELRAD
Mohammed Tayssir Safi, the University's Muslim chaplain, is what one might call learned. He narrates with confidence and a smile that all but envelops his face. He is, as friends and family will tell me in the months to come, “spiritual.” They will repeat the word over and over again, until it hangs thick in the air.
'Searching for Sugar Man' finds a tender message in Motown's resident underdog
BY JACOB AXELRAD
“Searching for Sugar Man,” a documentary by first time director Malik Bendjelloul, is more than just an underdog story. It’s a story of a man who was lost, became a legend, and then, once found, proved more puzzling than one could have ever imagined.
