Let me get a little Brechtian on you for one second: A good arts section is, in my humble opinion, about more than just telling you what to spend your lunch money on this week. Sure, it’s handy to know whether or not a new movie like “The Kingdom” is any good, but what’s really worthwhile is to take pieces of culture we’re handed and then pull them apart—to examine what values and ethics they’re really presenting us with, reconciling it within a wider context and cultural climate and then finally deeming its worth.I use “The Kingdom” as an example because Daily Cal writer Ryland Walker Knight recently used most of his 12 inches of newsprint to focus on the troubling racial politics that had been slipped in under the big Hollywood sheen in that particular film. If you’re looking for a simple, thumbs up or down kind of rating, this may frustrate you, but a good review section will put a bit of dignity back into that colorless term “consumer.” Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 26%