Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896
December 4, 2025 December 4, 2025 | Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896

Arts & Entertainment

BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA / CC BY 3.0 Alia Bhatt is one of the stars of the innovative but lazily written Brahmastra: Part One — Shiva.

Brahmāstra feels like a crayon-drawn script mistakenly taken seriously by producers

By VAREN TALWAR | September 17, 2022

After years of Indian audiences imploring Bollywood to depart from its monotonous formulaic productions, the industry has boldly answered the calls with Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva. It’s by no means a perfect movie, and it fails to avoid many of the common pitfalls that contemporary Bollywood movies fall into, like clunky dialogue and awkwardly-paced plots. However, in the grand scheme of things, Brahmāstra breaks new ground by ushering the industry into the 21st century with its visual effects and introduction of the Astraverse, perhaps the first planned cinematic universe and trilogy in Bollywood.

PUBLIC DOMAIN The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power ultimately disappoints, lacking the soul of Tolkien fantasy.

Amazon’s The Rings of Power delivers stunning visuals in an empty world

By ZACHARY BAHAR | September 9, 2022

Nearly five years after it was first announced, Amazon Prime’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power debuted its first two episodes on Friday, Sept. 2. Drawing in more than 25 million views and costing over $715 million dollars for the first season — both record-breaking numbers — The Rings of Power was bound to enter the TV universe with a splash.

NICOLAS GENIN/ CC BY-SA 2.0 Poking fun at himself, Nicholas Cage mostly delivers on The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.

Nicholas Cage is back — not that he went anywhere

By VAREN TALWAR | May 3, 2022

Few actors have entertained, confused and bewildered audiences over the years more than Nicholas Cage has, and his unique ability is aptly celebrated in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. His character may not be the most accurate reflection of the actor’s real personality, but Cage gives the audience what it wants by playing the role with the hilarious intrigue of his cult status.

COURTESY OF EMMA ANDERSSON Students present their culture’s traditional clothing at the “Diaspora” Fashion Show.

The "Diaspora" Fashion Show demonstrates the power of clothing in fostering cultural pride

By EMMA ANDERSSON | April 30, 2022

Students took to the runway on April 23 for the Inter-Asian Council’s (IAC) “Diaspora” Fashion Show. The showcase illuminated the diversity of Asian cultures represented at Hopkins, granting Asian Pacific Islander Desi American students the opportunity to flaunt their culture’s clothing. Models sported both traditional and modern clothing from across the Asian continent, featuring styles from the Philippines, Vietnam, India, Korea, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Myanmar, Mauritius and Malaysia. 

COURTESY OF HELENA GIFFORD The Lan Yun Blue Orchids perform a fan dance during their Spring Showcase.

Lan Yun Blue Orchids perform Chinese traditional dance with a modern twist

By HELENA GIFFORD | April 23, 2022

The Lan Yun Blue Orchids presented their Spring Showcase on April 16. Though the on-campus dance group is devoted to learning and performing traditional Chinese dance, they add a twist of modernity by dancing to songs that are popular in China today. This was the group’s first time hosting its own showcase, which also featured performances from the Yong Hang Lion Dance Troupe, Music Dynasty and the Hopkins Oriental Music Ensemble (HOME).

COURTESY OF SOPHIA PASALIS The Hopkins Film Festival poster displays in a screening room of theater-goers.

The Hopkins Film Festival: Knives Out and animated film steal the spotlight

By SOPHIA PASALIS | April 17, 2022

The Hopkins Film Society presented Whodunnit, a screening of six famous feature-length murder mysteries and selected shorts, for the 2022 Hopkins Film Festival during the weekend of April 8 to 10. The Film Society chose the weekend’s theme as a group, deciding between other interesting theme suggestions, including “red flag” movies.

COURTESY OF EVAN MORRIS A dedicated Instagram page showcases students’ fascinations with the liminal spaces on campus.

The search for the University’s most liminal spaces

By PAIGE MAULTSBY | April 13, 2022

Visitors to Shaffer Hall’s basement might find themselves pausing at the odd sight of floor space dedicated to a shallow gravel pit. Some might have moved on without a second glance. Senior Evan Morris, however, stopped to take a picture of the pit, which he generously described in an interview with The News-Letter as a rock garden.

IMAGE GROUP LA/CC BY-ND 2.0 The documentary driving home 2 u (a SOUR film) follows singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo in her journey to create her album SOUR.

Olivia Rodrigo's driving home 2 u is a propaganda vehicle that fails to drive home its central aim

By SOPHIA PASALIS | April 4, 2022

Released March 25 on Disney+, Olivia Rodrigo’s driving home 2 u (a SOUR film) tries to depict a sentimental homecoming for the celebrity but falls flat with its contrived authenticity. The film follows Rodrigo as she drives from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles, a trip she took many times while writing her debut album SOUR. The star stops at various locations along the route to perform the songs that appear on SOUR.

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