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(02/14/20 6:00am)
by Emily Worrell
Once again, Valentine’s Day is coming around, and whether that excites you, terrifies you, or makes you want to hit something, there is no denying that Valentine’s Day is the perfect day to watch a romantic comedy. Unfortunately, the quality of films in this genre is incredibly hit-or-miss, and it can take hours of scrolling through Hulu or Netflix to find one that even sounds halfway decent. To save you from that fate, here are the top three romantic comedies from each streaming service (Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Disney +, and plain old Blu-ray/DVD), with honorable mentions included.
(02/13/20 9:47pm)
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8gOTGnYKNU&feature=youtu.be[/embed]
Tanner and Blake break down Blizzard's new embarrassing remake of the beloved classic Warcraft III.
Checkpoint is Byte's video news series, reporting on recent events in the world of entertainment, tech, and pop culture. Whether it's video games, film, television, or music, we've got you covered!
Anchors: Tanner Kinney, Blake Chapman
Executive Producer: Evan Fischer
Video Editing: Erik D
Audio Editing: Kellyn Harrison
Graphics: Daley Wilhelm, Tyler Westman
Music: Jack McGinnis
(02/13/20 9:48pm)
(02/13/20 5:31pm)
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/user-519363288/input2-s8e1-videogame-movies[/embed]
Hello, movie fanatics and welcome to a new season of InPut2! With the upcoming release of 'Sonic the Hedgehog' we're going to talk about modern video game movies. What does it take to make a great video game movie? How do our thoughts compare to what we've already seen? Get your answers to these questions and more in this season premiere of InPut2!
Hosts: Tanner Kinney, Katherine Simon, and Mason Kupiainen
Edited by: OK Schlatter
Thumbnail by: Malia Hutton
(02/13/20 5:28pm)
Hello, movie fanatics and welcome to a new season of InPut2! With the upcoming release of 'Sonic the Hedgehog' we're going to talk about modern video game movies. What does it take to make a great video game movie? How do our thoughts compare to what we've already seen? Get your answers to these questions and more in this season premiere of InPut2!
(02/13/20 5:10pm)
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/user-519363288/the-coven-s6e5-representation-in-the-super-bowl[/embed]
Welcome back to another episode of The Coven! Brewing in the cauldron this week is representation in the Super Bowl. How well did it include minorities in its airing this year? How did it compare to the past airings? What could it have done better to represent minorities? Get answers to all this and more, in this week's episode of The Coven!
Hosts: Ashley Curry and Shwetha Sundarrajan
Edited by: Blake Chapman
Thumbnail by: Malia Hutton
(02/13/20 5:03pm)
Welcome back to another episode of The Coven! Brewing in the cauldron this week is representation in the Super Bowl. How well did it include minorities in its airing this year? How did it compare to the past airings? What could it have done better to represent minorities? Get answers to all this and more, in this week's episode of The Coven!
(02/13/20 4:48pm)
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/user-519363288/remixed-s5e3-in-rainbows-by-radiohead[/embed]
Welcome back to another episode of Remixed! This week we discuss the in and outs of the Grammy-winning album "In Rainbows" by the band Radiohead. Plus, the recent controversy surrounding the Beach Boys. How will this controversy further dismantle tense ties within the band? How is "In Rainbows" upholding throughout the years? Answer these questions and more in this week's episode of Remixed!
Hosts: Jack Gillespie and Brandon Carson
Edited by: Tanner Kinney
Thumbnail by: Katy Szpak
(02/13/20 4:48pm)
(02/13/20 2:00pm)
Disclaimer: This review contains spoilers to Queen and Slim.
(02/12/20 10:00pm)
by Blake ChapmanOne of the major criticisms of prior Smash Bros. iterations is that on the professional level, variety and unique competition is basically nonexistent. This criticism stems primarily from the domination of Fox McCloud in Smash Bros. Melee and Zero’s 56 tournament win streak during the era of the Wii U. Upon Smash Bros. Ultimate’s release though, many believed that this would be the title that offered both high-level gameplay and entertaining matchups. Over a year after release, the top ten of the PGRU for Fall 2019 meets most of those expectations.The newest list comprises input from the Panda Global stats team and prominent members of the smash community along with results from 81 major competitions between July and December 2019. These include events like Super Smash Con, Shine, 2GG: Kongo Saga, and EVO. Placing is determined by comparing player wins, losses, and outplacings of other PGR-eligible players which is all scaled based on the size of each event.The second season of competitive Smash analysis offers insight into the future of Ultimate in 2020 and who to watch out for at tournaments like Frostbite, Smash N’ Splash, and MomoCon.MKLeoThe 2019 Smash Bros. Ultimate EVO champion is at the head of the pack when it comes to professional competition for the second consecutive year. He has already won six of the 10 biggest smash tournaments in the newest game’s history. That includes the aforementioned EVO, the biggest Smash tournament ever, along with Super Smash Con 2019 and 2GG: Kongo Saga. The Joker main continues to dominate the highest level of competition; at the most recent S-tier tournament Genesis 7, he defeated Maister and Samsora, ranked sixth and second on the PGRU respectively, without dropping a set.GluttonyThe Wario player from France put up one incredible showing in Europe and abroad throughout fall 2019, and his eighth place position reflects that. What is the most impressive is the rise in position Gluttony has experienced across both seasons of Smash Ultimate competition. He has jumped up six positions since being ranked 14th in Spring of 2019, thanks to his notable victories over other international competitors such as Japanese players Kameme and Raito. Additionally, he is one of only two European players in the top 50–36 positions above Mr. R from the Netherlands.MaisterAnother Hispanic player made it into the top 10 but it was their first time on the PGRU board. This was not Maister’s first appearance in top Smash competition; he had a relatively meager showing in Smash Bros. for Wii U with a ranking of 44th. This time around, notable wins against ESAM and Light along with top five finishes at Big House 9 and Ultimate Summit 2 meant a sixth place position on the newest ranking was not that unlikely. This pure Game and Watch main–the only one on the entire list–is also currently not signed to a team, so expect him to get picked up in the next few months.Other notable playersNot all storylines that came out of this round of rankings were positive though. Both Panda Global Marss and Team Liquid Dabuz dropped two positions. The former is fortunately still in the top five even after an unexpected performance at EVO and no s-tier tournament wins. The latter also dropped two spots and did not have a single major win last season. He does have the best x-factor in the top 10, so other notable players still see him as a tough rival. However, Zachray became the youngest player to enter the upper echelon of Smash competition at only 17 years old. Impressive milestones for him included winning Big House 9 with a near perfect record and a top five finish in his home country at EVO Japan.
(02/11/20 5:30pm)
by Tanner Kinney
At the tail end of 2019, critically-acclaimed film studio A24 released their last film of year with Uncut Gems, an insane piece of entertainment that follows Adam Sandler as Howard Ratner, a diamond dealer and big-time gambler that gets into some real sorts of messes. It was a shocking move and something that critics and audiences weren’t entirely sure about, but a lot of people came out loving. If you’re curious in reading more about this film, check out our review here.
Uncut Gems ended up becoming a bit of an Oscar contender in a few categories, particularly that for Lead Actor. In a year where many people considered Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of the Joker in Joker to be the big front-runner, Adam Sandler was going to potentially be his toughest opponent. And, for the record, Sandler deserves the recognition for his quality work. Sandler was ready to pull out all the stops, and he wasn’t afraid to make threats. While promoting Uncut Gems on the The Howard Stern Show, Sandler said he’d be “there to win.” Additionally, he said if he didn’t win, he’d “come back and do one again that is so bad on purpose just to make you all pay.” Which, from the mind behind legendary dumpster fire Jack and Jill and my absolute favorite piece of cinema in “Dunkaccino,” is the greatest threat to modern cinema.
So, now that the Oscars are over and done with, Sandler’s Uncut Gems didn’t just not get nominated for Best Picture, it didn’t get nominated for anything. The film got, as they say, “snubbed”. Which means we are in the timeline where Sandler is going to craft the worst Adam Sandler film possible. If he’s reading this right now, I’m going to offer some of the greatest terrible Adam Sandler film ideas I can come up with. All I ask is a little bit of credit as a treat, and some royalty checks. It’s a fair exchange for these high quality films, trust me.
(02/10/20 6:17pm)
(02/08/20 9:00pm)
by Mason Kupiainen
January is well-known for being the month where mediocre films flood the box office. In January, when movie theater traffic is low, studios usually throw out the movies they know are bad or don’t have faith in making much revenue at the box office. However, this January has been different, featuring the release of some great films including 1917, Bad Boys for Life, and even The Gentleman. Sadly, The Rhythm Section is a harsh reminder that January is still the garbage dump of months when it comes to movie releases.
The Rhythm Section follows Stephanie Patrick (Blake Lively) a few years after her family’s death in a plane crash. When she finds out from a journalist that the plane crash wasn’t an accident, the discovery leads her down a path of vengeance as she tries to track down the people responsible for her family's death.
(02/08/20 4:00pm)
by Daniel O’Connell
The works of Howard Phillip Lovecraft are elusive when it comes to adapting them to the silver screen. His works are incredibly influential when it comes to popular culture, since they serve as the basis for the popular Cthulhu Mythos and created the subgenre of cosmic horror. However, film adaptations of his work are incredibly rare. Guillermo del Toro tried to make a big-screen adaptation of At the Mountains of Madness back in 2006, but it quickly fell apart because of his refusal to give the movie a PG-13 rating. The closest things to proper adaptations are either movies that adapt Lovecraft’s stories in spirit, such as In the Mouth of Madness or Annihilation, or movies that perfectly capture the tone of his work, like last year’s The Lighthouse.
However, that is no longer the case, as the first proper adaptation of Lovecraft’s work has arrived with Color Out of Space, adapted from the short story of the same name. It is also the triumphant return of writer-director Richard Stanley, being his first feature film in over 20 years, after being fired from 1996’s The Island of Dr. Moreau (a movie that’s infamous for its heavily troubled production). Stanley not only brings the first proper Lovecraft adaptation, but also the first great horror movie of 2020.
The film follows the Gardner family, consisting of Nathan (Nicholas Cage), Theresa (Joely Richardson), and their three children Lavinia (Madeleine Arthur), Benny (Brendan Meyer), and Jack (Julian Hillard), who have recently moved to the countryside after inheriting a family estate near Arkham, Massachusetts. Their mundane existence comes to an end when a meteorite lands in their backyard and begins to alter everything around them, marked by a mysterious, indescribable color.
(02/07/20 8:49pm)
by Jack Gillespie
A record like 2017’s Rainbow was not able to exist—or even be enjoyed fully—within a vacuum. Not only was the record a stunning shift in sound from the dirty, raw electropop of past projects like Animal and Warrior to heavy influences from country and rock music, but much of the record is a strong, emotionally potent response to the legal battle with former producer—and Kesha’s accused sexual abuser—Dr. Luke. And while there are not any moments where Luke is mentioned by name on Rainbow, tracks like “Praying” are about as direct of a response as Kesha could possibly make without doing so.
Now in 2020, we've got a new record, High Road. While there are definitely moments and aspects where the history of Kesha’s career could definitely add more meaning, High Road does not require the listener to be well-educated on the Kesha narrative like its predecessor. It honestly seems deliberate; the lead single “Raising Hell” saw a return to the larger-than-life, fun-loving Kesha we saw on those first two records and the following single. “My Own Dance” is a direct response to people who dare to put her into any boxes as just a party girl or a victim. "You're the party girl, you're the tragedy / But the funny thing's I'm f*cking everything” Kesha sings before the hook busts in. Even the name of the record suggests that she is looking to move on from the trauma that she faced head-on all over Rainbow.
The hints of moving on are, for the most part, quite true. High Road sees a full return to the off-the-wall dance-pop of her earlier work. The opener of the record, “Tonight,” sets this tone quite effectively; after a short piano intro, the listener is met with a fake-out, a reintroduction of the party-animal Kesha that we haven’t heard from since she was Ke$ha. She rapped bars about getting drunk and high, losing your phone, not seeing your boyfriend for months and the like.
It’s definitely an attention-grabbing intro, but not really for all of the best reasons. Kesha is still great at embodying the free-spirited party girl, but messy, overblown production and incomprehensible mixing buries all of that charisma and turns the track into a muddled fever dream of a song. For a song that is trying to contrast between two radically different musical styles, this is a death sentence.
(02/07/20 6:30pm)
by Aaron Dwyer
In this day and age, it’s hardly surprising to see a film adaptation of classic horror literature in theaters. What is even less surprising is Hollywood presenting us with a case of “the book was better.” It may be an age-old complaint, especially from avid readers, but it has persisted for a reason.
The Turning is an adaptation of Henry James’ 1898 horror novella The Turn of the Screw, but in name only. All the basic ingredients of the story are there: A young woman named Kate is hired as a private tutor for Flora, a little girl in need of company following the death of her wealthy parents. At first, things are great between them until Flora’s older brother, Miles, arrives home from boarding school. The strained relationship between Kate and Miles, as well as the presence of a disapproving housekeeper, puts a lot of pressure on Kate. The fact that the house also seems to be haunted by the ghosts of two former staff members also isn’t helping.
On paper, this seems like an ideal setup for a classic historical horror story. It has orphans, a creepy old house, mysterious deaths, and most importantly, people who refuse to talk about them. What more could you want? Unfortunately, somewhere in the process of adapting it from page and screen, something went screwy. There are so many trademarks of a typical scary movie: an abundance of cheap jump scares, multiple creepy dolls and mannequins, and fake-out dream sequences, just to name a few. The Turning actually ignores several of the story elements of the novella it’s based on, not in favor of being its own entity, but more in favor of being like every other horror movie you may have seen in the last decade.
(02/07/20 4:00pm)
by Elizabeth Jolly
In the last 3 years, superhero films led by women have been an explosive topic, with millions of box office dollars coming in for films featuring women as heroes. Yet decades before this, superwomen were box office disasters - so what changed? How has the evolution of superhero films headed by women brought us to the upcoming film Birds of Prey?
(02/06/20 5:00pm)
by Bradley Spurlock
If you know anything about Guy Ritchie, you know that he has made his name mostly off of Gangster Comedy films that are full of very unique characters. "The Gentlemen" is no exception to this rule. Ritchie is hot off directing the 2019 top 10 box office hit "Aladdin". His directorial debut came with his 1998 crime film "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels". Though this was his first film, his filmography includes movies like "Sherlock Holmes" (2009), "The Man from U.N.C.L.E" (2015), "Aladdin" (2019), and perhaps his most popular "Snatch" (2000).
This film follows the story of drug lord Mickey Pearson (Matthew McConaughey) and his bodyguard/right hand man Ray (Charlie Hunnam) as they try to get out of the drug game and sell the empire Pearson built. The only problem is that everyone wants a piece of Pearson’s business. When Pearson finds a buyer for his business in an Oklahoma businessman named Matthew (Jeremy Strong), a series of unfortunate events is caused by an up-and-comer named Dry Eye (Henry Golding) to try and throw off this deal for personal gain. While the group is going through their trials and tribulations, they’re being followed and recorded by a man named Fletcher (Hugh Grant), who is trying to get $20,000,000 from this deal via blackmail. The film goes through a string of intricate plots and schemes where you find out that everyone has their own interest in this deal.
(02/05/20 10:34pm)
by Taylor Smith
New York City has always sparked the greatest curiosity in my mind. It has always been a city I have seen countless times in movies and could only dream about visiting, a city where you were either born there or made enough money to move into a penthouse in Manhattan. No one in my family really liked the idea of going to a “bigger, dirtier Chicago,” but I have always longed to understand what made the City That Never Sleeps so special, to understand what it was about it that captured so many people. In June of 2018, I stepped foot in what has since become my favorite place on Earth for the first time, and since then, I have promised myself that one day I would be able to call New York City my home, and here’s why.