- Terra Molengraff/Daily
Alzheimers and the Arts: museums push forward novel approach to combating dementia
BY JENNIFER XU
Andrea Simons, a docent for the Detroit Institute of Arts, is giving a tour. She pauses at a sculpture called “The Genius of the Dance,” showcasing a man with long, flowing locks holding a tambourine. His body, taut with muscles, sways with the motion of the imaginary music.
Berg's 'Battleship' embraces the camp, fails to excite
- Universal
BY JACOB AXELRAD
There’s a lot of Peter Berg in “Battleship.” The creator of the critically acclaimed series “Friday Night Lights” was handed the reigns of an alien-invasion movie based off of a board game where players attempt to destroy each other’s ships through a series of strategic guesses. The story is at times disjointed, making large narrative jumps without fully developing characters, and leaving plot holes too big for viewers to fill in on their own.
Changes for 'Community' leave series creator Harmon and fans reeling
- NBC
BY KAYLA UPADHYAYA
Creator-showrunner-producer-writer-wizard Dan Harmon has been replaced — not as an insane revolution staged by Ben Chang and the “Doppeldeaner” — but by an entity far more evil: Sony Pictures Television.
'Shadows' star-studded cast lays flat
- Warner Bros.
BY ADITI MISHRA
Few classic tales, be they works of fiction or television, have lived to retain the same legacy after director Tim Burton (“Alice in Wonderland”) has given them his edition of an extreme makeover. “Dark Shadows” seems to be the latest in line to have fallen prey to the maestro’s vivid, eccentric imagination and come out truly and thoroughly “Burtonfied.”
'Vampire Diaries' proves deeper than a quick bite
- CW
BY KAYLA UPADHYAYA
After over 30 significant deaths and approximately three shocking moments per episode, you would think that “The Vampire Diaries” would be starting to run out of ways to make its viewers say: “Did that really just happen?” But alas, the third season of the CW’s super-serialized vampire saga might just be the most twisty, risky season yet.
Critically acclaimed, innovative Thursday line-up fails to pull big numbers
- NBC
BY RADHIKA MENON
Every show on NBC Thursday features an ensemble cast that exemplifies the wayward worlds that are being depicted. What would “30 Rock” be without the antics of Tracy and Jenna? How much fun would Leslie Knope’s campaign on “Parks” be without Tom, Andy and April? How dysfunctional would “The Office” be without Stanley, Meredith and Dwight? And where would the Greendale Human Beings be without their resident study group on “Community”?
Joss Whedon's 'Avengers' to pack new punch behind overworked concept
- Marvel
BY KAYLA UPADHYAYA
It’s fitting that a man with the super skills of Whedon has stepped up to write and direct Marvel’s “The Avengers,” the much-anticipated culmination of four years of box-office-exploding Marvel superhero movies.
PlayStation handheld gaming console fails to find its niche among competitors
- NAMCO Bandai
BY JULIAN AIDAN
Sony’s PlayStation Vita attempts to fill a niche that’s too small with a library that’s too dull while going against some tough competition. It’s an awesome system that lacks the support and demand needed for serious success, and until the Vita gets its own set of high-octane releases, I’ll stick to Words with Friends.
Teens run into horror-satire genius in their getaway to 'The Cabin in the Woods'
- Lionsgate
BY ARIELLE ACKERMAN
"The Cabin in the Woods” is not your typical horror film, except that it is. It is unmistakably every scary movie ever rolled into one strikingly exceptional film, which is why anyone who’s a fan of horror will be a fan of this.
Rude Mechanicals to explore automated nature of day-to-day life in 'Machinal'
- Teresa Mathew/Daily
BY JOEY STEINBERGER
An expressionist work written by playwright Sophie Treadwell, “Machinal” follows a woman stuck in a post-industrial mechanical society. With the mechanical nature of our own daily routine, “Machinal” could ring especially poignant.
Throw-away style makes 'Dictator' forgettable.
4 hours ago
BY AKSHAY SETH
“The Dictator” feels too much like the writers are just trying to get the movie wrapped up and out of the way. And sadly, after the first half of the film, the audience will likely start to feel the same way.
Peony festival brings arboretum to life this month
BY ANNA SADOVSKAYA
Bursting with color, the peonies stand tall in their rows, blooming under the sun. The 90th anniversary of the U-M Nichols Arboretum Peon y Festival came early this year as the March weather warmed the flowers and sped up the blooming time.
- Fox Searchlight
'Marigold Hotel' embraces forgotten demographic with all-star cast
BY PROMA KHOSLA
The charming film, an adaptation of Deborah Moggach’s “These Foolish Things,” follows seven British senior citizens as they seek adventure and peace in Jaipur, India, at the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (for the Elderly and Beautiful).
- Blizzard
Intricate gameplay in 'Diablo' pushes third installment to next level
BY JULIAN AIDAN
The third installment of Blizzard’s “Diablo” series arrives after 12 years of development with promises of an intense and unforgiving dark fantasy adventure, and delivers a single- and multiplayer experience whose chaotic combat is second to none.
- PBS
Understated PBS not up to par
BY KELLY ETZ
Why don’t we care about our public broadcasting? Maybe it’s an oversimplification, but in every way you look at it, we are losing to Britain. I’d hazard a guess that while I’m contentedly watching “Sherlock,” not a lot of British people are hunkering down with their Earl Grey, ready to catch the latest gripping hour of “American Masters.”
Indigo Girls' Amy Ray to perform at Blind Pig
BY JOHN BOHN
As artist and social activist, Ray, one half of the folk-duo Indigo Girls, is a clear example of that unclear and rather dizzying oscillation between art and identity, art and politics and politics and identity. Tonight Ray will be returning to Ann Arbor for a performance at the Blind Pig where she will be sharing her music, and perhaps inextricably her identity and her politics.
- Gaijin
'Blades' makes lackluster transition to PC
BY JULIAN AIDAN
Gameplay offers little opportunities for individualized experiences, and the number of available spells and items makes for personalizing your character next-to-impossible. “Blades of Time” is NOT a roleplaying game, though, and succeeds in its aim to provide high-octane combat that’s easy on the eyes and the mind.
'The Dreamer' takes on multimedia, percussion and dance in 'U' alum-produced show
BY SARAH SCHWENDEMAN
Imagine waking up to the sound of heavy rock music to see, amidst a colorful, dreamlike landscape, a group of dancers twisting and turning, controlling mysterious sounds through screens of flashing light. You are watching part of “The Dreamer,” a nine-piece multimedia performance that has come to fruition through the collaboration of Steve Joslin and Christina Sears-Etter.
The Beet Box: engaging and creating a health community
BY JOHN BOHN
The Beet Box is a place where students can not only eat a quick, healthy meal to the sweet sounds of Motown, but also meet others with a similar passion and together join this vertex to a community founded on the celebration of health and empowerment.
