When is a movie not just a movie? Horror columnist Niko Kay Smith dives deep into the trans phenomenon of Jane Schoenbrun’s recent coming-of-age horror film “I Saw The TV Glow” and the ways it demands participation from its audience.
Film
Girl Power: Cult Classics in the post Roe v. Wade era
Last summer was “Barbie;” this summer is “brat.” Columnist Anna Peterson SC ‘25 unpacks what it means to release these two pieces of media in the wake of the Dobbs v. Jackson decision.
A Nightmare on 6th St: A sincere defense of ‘Dream Warriors’ and 80s cheese
Horror columnist Niko Kay Smith (SC ‘25) risks their reputation as a critic to passionately defend “A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors” (1987). Jam packed with see-it-to-believe-it 80s absurdity, the film also proves surprisingly relatable for Gen Z living through the nightmare that is the 2020s.
Frame Rating: A really, really half-hearted defense of David Lynch’s “Dune”
With the recent success of Denis Villenueve’s Dune 2 (2024), film columnist Gerrit Punt theorizes about David Lynch’s Dune adaptation (1984). He argues that Dune (1984) is a remnant of a forgotten 1980s science-fiction film genre, and that movie lovers should find what works instead of casting it aside.
Frame Rating: “The Room” is high art (and I’m not kidding)
Film columnist Gerrit Punt PO ’24 defends “The Room” as a legitimate work of art and attempts to challenge the notion that movies like it are only “so bad they’re good.”
Frame Rating: Deer, death, and the art of the children’s film
Film columnist Gerrit Punt PO ’24 explores the strange, simple, beautifully dark “Bambi,” the paragon of a type of children’s film he believes has been somewhat lost to time.
Frame Rating: In defense of the “unwatchable”
The contentious film “Gummo” has been called a lot of things: abhorrent, degenerate, unwatchable. Film columnist Gerrit Punt PO ’24 explores his love for the controversial film, and advocates for a responsible engagement with challenging works of art.
Frame Rating: Holy sincerity! How “Batman” (1966) stands up to the self-conscious super-genre
Film columnist Gerrit Punt PO ‘24 writes about his love for Batman (1966) and how he thinks self-awareness has taken the joyful sincerity from films of the past.
Horror Hour: The plague of marketability in holiday horror
Have you ever heard of “Krampus” (2015)? How about the new Eli Roth movie “Thanksgiving,” starring Addison Rae? Horror columnist Anna Peterson SC ‘25 dives into holiday horror, how the neo-capital subgenre succeeds and where it fails.
Rom-Com in Review: ‘Palm Springs’ and cosmic emptiness
“Palm Springs” (2020) takes the time-loop setup of “Groundhog Day” and dresses it up with apocalyptic nihilism and wedding-guest angst. Through the heaviness, the film remains charming and laugh-out-loud funny, writes rom-com columnist Nadia Hsu PO ’27.