By KATRINA BOND @KatBondETC The Harvester Theatre Company’s Dec. 2 performance of David Saar’s “The Yellow Boat” elicited a quasi-emotional response from the audience, but it did not carry the gravity one would expect from a play with such a heavy topic. “The Yellow Boat” is centered...

Stephenie Meyer’s “Twilight” teen vampire series and her standalone adult novel “The Host” both came packed with action and a supernatural romance. Nothing twisted or mysterious about the plot. But Meyer has shifted in a new direction since her last book release in 2008. “The Chemist,”...

Josh Taylor @TheEtCetera With raunchy humor, a clueless and somewhat mentally challenged sandwich maker and a bunch of alcoholic washed-up cons robbing a charity for children, “Bad Santa 2”is an outstanding comedy in an otherwise underwhelming year for comedic movies. While Billy Bob Thornton...

By DAVID SILVA @DavidSilvaETC Grouplove brought out a highly energetic setlist for their Dallas fans and accompanied it with a mesmerizing lightshow. The LA-based indie rock band kicked off the Texas leg of its 2016 tour at a sold out House of Blue on Nov 15. The tour followed the Sept 9 release...

Landon Williams @TheEtCetera You can hear the sounds of last minute preparations behind the giant curtain separating the stage from the audience. People push past each other to get as close as they can to the front. In a few minutes the curtains will open and the Oakland based SWMRS will begin their...

By CAITLIN PIPER Copy Editor @TheEtCetera There’s something inherently hypocritical about a developer trying to paint their game with a “war is hell” message while still setting aside room for a spirited multiplayer death match somewhere in the code. Civilians are being slaughtered, entire...

By DAVID SILVA Editor in Chief @DavidSilvaETC Just as “Iron Man” and Robert Downey Jr. broke open the gates for the “first generation” of Marvel Cinematic Universe glory, “Doctor Strange” and Benedict Cumberbatch look to keep the golden age of superhero movies alive and strong by bridging...

By CAT DYSON Reporter @TheEtCetera “Keeping Up With The Joneses” doesn’t start out like any other comedy involving spies, but a house exploding in the first scene might give that away. Director Greg Mottola fabricates an uplifting comedy with hilariously awkward moments and action scenes...

By JON AGUIRRE Staff Writer @TheEtCetera When you listen to the very first track of “Atrocity Exhibition,” you become aware that this isn’t your average hip-hop album. You realize you’re about to embark on a journey, a ride full of terror, pain and hilarity through the mind of Danny Brown. Brown...

By JON AGUIRRE @TheEtCetera When you think of experimental music, you may think it has to be weird, inaccessible or unpleasant. But experimental hip-hop trio clipping shows that innovation in music can be enjoyable and accessible. Clipping. has mostly been categorized as “noise rap,” a genre...

By DAVID SILVA @DavidSilvaETC Editor’s Note: Includes season one spoilers. How do you kill Pablo Escobar? Don’t ask anyone in season one of the critically acclaimed Netflix original series “Narcos.” They’ve all tried and failed. Local police officers, drug enforcement agents and other...

By KEVIN ORELLANA Reporter @TheEtCetera It’s been some time since I’ve watched, much less enjoyed, a Tim Burton film. Faced with the task of keeping my eyes in their respective sockets during a screening of Burton’s latest vision of spirals, white make up and sunken eyes in “Miss...

By RODRIGO MENDOZA @TheEtCetera Pittsburgh native Mac Miller has had a lot of hit songs including “Donald Trump” and his 2013 duet “That Way” with his now-girlfriend Ariana Grande. Miller’s last few albums have not done very well commercially or critically, but I think that when the couple...

By RODRIGO MENDOZA @TheEtCetera Rebecca Skloot’s debut nonfiction book, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” is this year’s common book, a literary work integrated into classes and activities throughout the academic year. The common book experience is designed to encourage the college...

By Macks Prewitt @TheEtCetera John Krasinski stars in and directs “The Hollars,” a humorous family drama that follows struggling cartoonist John Hollar (Krasinski) living in New York City with his pregnant girlfriend Rebecca (Anna Kendrick). When his mother (Margo Martindale) suffers a stroke,...

By DAVID SILVA @DavidSilvaETC Director Fede Alvarez takes audiences on a deadly game of cat-and-mouse in his new horror-thriller “Don’t Breathe.” Alvarez, director of the 2013 “Evil Dead” remake, scales back the blood, gore and shock horror that characterized his breakthrough film by delivering...

  By Jeremy Christian “Free State of Jones” is an action-drama that tells the true story of an unlikely, little-known episode in American history: A gang of poor white farmers and runaway slaves band together to rebel against the Confederacy during the later stages of the Civil War. The...

By James Hartley Just keep swimming and don’t give up on Dory, even if she does have a tendency to forget important things throughout her “Finding Nemo” sequel, “Finding Dory.” Shortly after returning home from their adventure to save clownfish Marlon’s (Albert Brooks) son, Nemo...

By Caitlin Piper The infamous difficulty curve of the “Souls” series isn’t so much a sharp incline as it is a Sisyphean trek up the mountains of the Underworld. Just when I think I’ve gotten used to the weight of that boulder and manage to reach the peak, it slips from my hands and goes...

By David Silva The legendary country singer with a larger-than-life personality Hank Williams gets a film rendition in Marc Abraham’s “I Saw The Light.” Hank is known as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century and is one of the most beloved characters in country music. During...

By Tarryn Lingle Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney’s debut novel explores the impact money can have on families and individuals. “The Nest,” released March 22, currently sits at No. 3 on The New York Time’s Best-Sellers List. Sweeney was a marketing copywriter for two decades before deciding to go back...

  By David Silva “Eddie the Eagle” tells the true story of underdog British athlete Michael “Eddie” Edwards, whose historic showing at the 1988 Winter Olympics made him an international celebrity. Eddie’s (Taron Egerton) dreams of Olympic gold begin in early childhood. As a young...

Tarryn Lingle Robert Eggers’s debut film “The Witch” is an absolute bone-chilling experience sure to haunt you far beyond the closing scene. The film is set in 1630, showing the daunting events William (Ralph Ineson) and his family encounter after being excommunicated...