Author: Dan Brown

I was talking with a friend over the past weekend when she mentioned that she had just recently seen 12 Years a Slave. Knowing my love of that film, you can imagine the ecstatic discussion that followed. However, our conversation changed course when she told me how one of her

Over the past year, I have become enamored with podcasts. One of my personal favorites is Radiolab, a series of episodes featuring stories and interviews with a broad theme generally relating to science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM). Though STEM-focused, the podcasts occasionally move into philosophic discussions. These are hit

Well, the Oscars are long over and done with now, but I do feel like I have to come out and admit that I was impressed by this year’s winning award choices. For one year, I happily accepted each of the Academy’s decisions. Well, scratch that—I did sadly accept at

Like many entertainment critics, I have a love-hate relationship with awards shows.  For every worthy recipient of a prestigious title, there is at least one questionable offering as well. Certain institutions are more corrupt than others but, sadly, not one is foolproof. It has long been understood, for instance, that

I know I promised to discuss some of the Academy Awards’ Best Picture selections this week, but like many other critics, a certain release has thrown a wrench into my gears. I’m not going to be able to move on until I address the dark horse that is The Lego

Like many of you, I devoted no small portion of my winter break to an epic media binge — catching up on all the television, games, and movies I missed over the fall semester. As you’d expect, I particularly dedicated myself to tackling that last category of entertainment. Over the

There is a famous quote from the science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke that goes, “Any sufficiently advanced technology would be indistinguishable from magic.” This truism is actually a major theme across pop culture, from television series like The X-Files and Lost to movies like The Box (which wasn’t very good). Comic

I’ve wanted to say this for a while, but I’ve been too nervous. I’m not a superstitious person, but I do believe it’s not smart to call something before the clock stops. I will let it out now, though: 2013 has been a remarkably good year for movies. Of course

When I was a kid, I was terrified of horror films. I was the proverbial “scaredy cat.” Just seeing the trailer for a scary movie would keep me up all night. And yet, I was, and have always been, fascinated by the horror genre. Upon entering high school, I grew

I’m going to tell you something very important.  As much as entrenched intellectuals like me like to joke about how certain mainstream movies are such crap that each and every person involved must not have given a second thought to what they were doing, this has never—not once—been the case.