Homecoming vs. Friendsgiving

Whether we gather with family and friends for Thanksgiving in November or get together at Christmas in December, the holidays are associated with homecoming. Assuming that there’... Read More

Films

Don’t fear the subtitles

By Michael Snyder

Despite Hollywood’s continuing global prominence, more of the best movies are coming from other countries and in languages other than English. Reading subtitles while watching on... Read More

Coastal Commuter

FOMO times two

By Michael Snyder

Over the past few years, the use of the acronym FOMO has become a little hackneyed in some circles, but I’m all too familiar with the concept it represents: fear of missing o... Read More

Pop Culture

Spooky, scary, and silly tunes

By Michael Snyder

Some might suggest that music inspired by All Hallows’ Eve begins with Bobby “Boris” Pickett & the Crypt-Kickers’s whimsical 1962 rock ’n’ roll novelty number “Mo... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Rock-and-roll women

By Michael Snyder

On my way back to my place in Los Angeles after a night that included watching the terrific young roots-rock group American Mile at the Farmers Market, a familiar song came on the ... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Anon: Fueling the burn from beach to Black Rock and beyond

By Michael Snyder

More than 30 years after Larry Harvey and Jerry James built an eight-foot-tall figure out of wood and set fire to it on San Francisco’s Baker Beach to mark the night before t... Read More

Films

Love and loss with Anton Yelchin

By Michael Snyder

Love, Antosha is a forthright, detailed documentary about the short, incandescent life of actor Anton Yelchin, and it’s a heartbreaker. Directed by Garret Price, the movie uses c... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Don’t be illin’

By Michael Snyder

As I bounce between San Francisco and Los Angeles, one of the unexpected obstacles to a hassle-free two-city life has turned out to be something medical. It’s not about exhaustio... Read More

Television

All hail the princess and the commander in chief

By Michael Snyder

Call me eclectic when it comes to storytelling. No matter the genre, if it’s done well, I’m interested. That leads me to high-quality entertainment in some unexpected places. F... Read More

Coastal Commuter

In two places at once

By Michael Snyder

The Firesign Theater was a very funny and appropriately trippy comedy troupe that sprang into existence on the radio in mid-1960s Los Angeles, right as the drug-fueled psychedelic ... Read More

Films

Big-screen summer scene

By Michael Snyder

The summer movie season doesn’t care to wait until the official debut of summer later this month. The parade of midyear big-screen diversions got rolling on Memorial Day weekend,... Read More

Films

Biopics and fictionalized realities

By Michael Snyder

Lately, it feels like every other new movie is based on or inspired by real people and true events. And even if that’s an exaggeration, you need only look at what’s currently p... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Bloomin’ crazy

By Michael Snyder

As I sit here and write this, I can smell the fragrance of orange blossoms from one of the fruit trees gracing the backyard of the house where I stay when I’m in Los Angeles. For... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Put a little English on it

By Michael Snyder

I suffer from Anglophilia. And there’s no pill, serum, or vaccine to cure or prevent it, unless you count a hot cup of Earl Grey tea and some Jammie Dodger biscuits — a tem... Read More

Movie Reviews

Meet Shazam and Diane

By Michael Snyder

One of the gratifying things about reviewing movies is the massive variety of styles and genres that filmmakers can explore. For example, a pair of the more noteworthy and watchabl... Read More

Michael Snyder