Authors: Esther Merono
mr. Gnome @ Burt’s 10.26
I arrived a week early to mr. Gnome’s show at Burt’s … That’s how excited I was to see this band from Cleveland play live. … read more
Böikzmöind Film Premiere @ SL Art Center 10.27
The audience at the Böikzmöind (pronounced Bikes-Mind) movie premiere, held in the Salt Lake Art Center’s auditorium, were welcomed with letter-pressed posters at the door and a glossy set of printed cards on their arm rests designed by the film’s director, Gavin Strange. … read more
An Oversimplification of Her Beauty
If a man like first-time director/screenwriter Terence Nance was as fascinated by me as he is by actress Namik Minter, my love-struck gaze would’ve been penetrating out of the silver screen rather than staring longingly into it from my seat amongst the audience of An Oversimplification of Her Beauty. … read more
Middle of Nowhere
In her directorial debut, director and screenwriter Ava DuVernay tells the story of a young woman whose husband is sentenced to eight years in prison. Choosing to drop out of med school to stay close to him and have more time for visits and phone calls, Ruby (Emayatzy Corinealdi) supports her husband 100-percent through this hardship. … read more
Thrice and a Bazillion Other Bands @ Saltair 11.1
Thrice is my favorite band. If I was allowed to post a video of me just saying that, it’d probably be a sufficient review—that’s how much love would exude from me. Alas, my job isn’t to make creepy videos of myself, so I must describe it all to you with words. … read more
About The Pink Sky
The story is undoubtedly a unique one, as is the execution. Filmed in black and white and completely void of a musical soundtrack, About The PInk Sky might seem to deceive with its title, but upon completion of the film, I found that it was a conscientious and poetic decision. … read more
Sleepwalk With Me
First spawned as an off-Broadway one-man show, Sleepwalk With Me is a translation of Birbiglia’s comedy act adapted for the silver screen, polished to perfection with the help of Ira Glass. … read more
The Last Elvis
Part of the World Dramatic Competition, this Argentinian film was beautiful and complex. Set in Buenos Aires, “Elvis” Gutierrez (John McInerny) is a spot-on Elvis impersonator. … read more
Grabbers
Erin Island, a quaint little fishing village off the coast of Ireland, is a quiet place where everyone knows everyone and the cops have so little to do, they can get away with drinking on the job. … read more
Safety Not Guaranteed
“WANTED: Someone to go back in time with me. This is not a joke. P.O. Box 91, Ocean view, WA. You’ll get paid after we get back. must bring your own weapons. SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED. I have only done this once before.” … read more
Bear
I’m not one to interject during movies, especially when I’m watching them alone, but I gasped a loud “Holy shit!” to the strangers in the audience as I watched Bear, the short film that preceded the screening of Safety Not Guaranteed at Sundance. … read more
Goats
In this coming-of-age story based on the novel Smart People by Mark Jude Poirier, Ellis Whitman (Graham Phillips) is a 15-year-old with a strange family dynamic. … read more
