written by David Steffen The House With a Clock in its Walls is a 2018 fantasy film based on a 1973 book of the same title by John Bellairs. In 1955, after his parents die in a car crash, ten-year-old Lewis Barnavelt (Owen Vaccaro) moves in with his weird uncle Jonathan (Jack Black), and meets … Continue reading MOVIE REVIEW: The House With a Clock in its Walls
written by David Steffen Star Vs. the Forces of Evil is an action comedy cartoon about an interdimensional mage-warrior princess visiting Earth. Season 1 aired on Disney XD between January and September 2015. Star Butterfly (Eden Sher) is a princess of Mewni, a magical parallel dimension. On her 14th birthday, her parents the king and … Continue reading TV REVIEW: Star Vs. the Forces of Evil Season 1
written by David Steffen This is one of a series of articles wherein I examine a music video as a short film, focusing on the story rather than the music, trying to identiy the story arcs and characters motivations, and consider the larger implication of events. The film this week is Run Boy Run by … Continue reading MUSIC VIDEO DRILLDOWN #4: Run Boy Run by Woodkid
written by David Steffen Patternmaster is a 1976 science fiction novel by Octavia Butler, first book in the publication order of the Patternist series, and the final book chronologically in the storyline. The story takes place in a distant future where the two dominant groups of humanity are the Patternists (powerful networked telepaths that are … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: Patternmaster by Octavia Butler
written by David Steffen Clay’s Ark is a 1984 science fiction novel by Octavia Butler, in her Patternmaster series. It was the last of the four of the books to be published, but is the third in the chronological storyline. It is the next book chronologically after Mind of My Mind (reviewed here). Chronologically it … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: Clay’s Ark by Octavia Butler
You are a high school student, and you have been arrested on suspicion of terrorism for being near some kind of terrorist act at the the time that it happened. Your only chance at freeing yourself is to hack into the smartphone of one of your classmates to gather evidence. Replica is a puzzle game by Somi published on Steam in July 2016 where you are tasked by Homeland Security to hack into a phone and gather evidence.
written by David Steffen This is the third in a new series of articles wherein I examine a music video by a well-known artist as a short film, trying to identify the story arcs and the character motivations, and consider the larger implications of things that we get glimpses of in the story. This time … Continue reading MUSIC VIDEO DRILLDOWN #3: Bad Blood by Taylor Swift
written by David Steffen ZOMBIES 2 is a 2020 Disney Channel original movie musical romance, a sequel to the 2018 Disney Channel original movie (reviewed here). Headlining the cast again are cheerleader Addison (Meg Donnelly) and the zombie football player Zed (Milo Manheim) after the school integrated rehabilated zombies into the human culture in the … Continue reading MOVIE REVIEW: ZOMBIES 2
written by David Steffen The Lightning Thief is a 2005 modern day fantasy story about modern-day children of the ancient Greek gods living in the United States, which was adapted into a 2010 feature film as well as a 2014 Broadway musical. Percy Jackson is a well-meaning but troubled teen who has been kicked out … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
written by David Steffen This is the second in a new series that I’m very excited about wherein I examine a music video by a well-known artist as a short film, trying to identify the story arcs and the character motivations, and consider the larger implications of things that we get glimpses of in the … Continue reading MUSIC VIDEO DRILLDOWN #2: Never Really Over by Katy Perry
