The Rise of CliffsNotes Cinema
Oversimplified literary remakes miss the point of the works they are adapting.
Culture
Why Justin Bieber Played YouTube Onstage for Thousands of People
The pop star transformed the normal act of browsing your laptop into something interesting—and unsettling.
The New Age of Performance Anxiety
With the rise of screen culture, all the world has stage fright.
Where Did ‘Let Them’ Come From?
Years before Mel Robbins published her best-selling self-help book, a struggling writer posted a poem with a similar message.
Should I Break Up With My Trump-Loving Partner?
It’s a great relationship in nearly every other way.
The Transparent Cruelties of Diddy’s Entertainment Machine
The Bad Boy Records founder has been accused of mistreatment and abuse—and support for some of the allegations aired on Making the Band.
We’re Still Living in a Fight Club World
In the 25 years since its release, the film has burrowed deeply into American culture—and its insights remain apt.
A Radical Vision of the Sick Body
A Nobel Prize–winning author and her ex-lover explore the surprising vitality of a grave illness.
How Ariana Grande Brought Bad Singing to SNL
Sometimes, it’s funny to sound terrible.
Han Kang’s Transgressive Art
The author, who has never shied away from criticizing Korean culture, has also given South Korea its first Nobel Prize in Literature.
Scent of a Man
In a new memoir, Al Pacino promises to reveal the person behind the actor. But is he holding something back?
The Most Miraculous—And Overlooked—Type of Milk
Shelf-stable milk is a miracle of food science that Americans just won’t drink.
The Trap of Making a Trump Biopic
The Apprentice aims to avoid politics—and ends up being a shallow, murky portrait.