The Tangential
@thetangential.bsky.social
📤 30
📥 59
📝 28
Don't be boring. Don't suck.
Natalie Merchant tells us that Asher has the ability to capture “this kind of ecstatic energy” within the limits of a three-and-a-half-minute pop song.
loading . . .
Movie review: "Peter Asher: Everywhere Man" - The Tangential
For a subject who is discerning yet unassuming, director/producers Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine take a suitable approach.
https://thetangential.com/2026/06/15/movie-review-peter-asher-everywhere-man/
16 days ago
0
0
0
“Oysters do not have brains, do not have a central nervous system, and are not considered sentient beings,” writes Dan Martino. So that makes us the smart ones, for eating them.
loading . . .
Book review: Dan Martino's "The Oyster Book" - The Tangential
Even if long stretches read like Wikipedia entries, I came away with a new appreciation for the merits of oysters and their farmers.
https://thetangential.com/2026/05/22/book-review-dan-martinos-the-oyster-book/
about 1 month ago
0
1
1
William Shakespeare might have foreseen that one day, the entire world would become "Hamlet." Could he have guessed that Joe Alwyn would be at its center?
loading . . .
Movie review: Cries and whispers in Aneil Karia's "Hamlet" - The Tangential
Karia's "Hamlet" locks us into the title character's racing, flailing mind. Ophelia can't break through, and neither can we.
https://thetangential.com/2026/04/10/movie-review-cries-and-whispers-in-aneil-karias-hamlet/
3 months ago
0
0
1
Let mother vote!
@jaygabler.com
's mother votes in favor of "Suffs."
loading . . .
Theater review: "Suffs" resounds with righteousness - The Tangential
Wow! Everything about this show works: performances, songs, costumes, sets, lighting, and sound. Treat yourself and see it if you can.
https://thetangential.com/2026/04/08/theater-review-suffs-resounds-with-righteousness/
3 months ago
0
0
0
;-(
5 months ago
0
0
0
Empire Builder: not a good thing!
loading . . .
Movie review: "Train Dreams" turns petro-masculinity on its head - The Tangential
Writer/director Clint Bentley's sweeping frontier drama is romantic, but not regarding trains. (Planes fare better.)
https://thetangential.com/2025/12/30/movie-review-train-dreams-turns-petro-masculinity-on-its-head/
6 months ago
0
0
1
For a movie with so much to chew on, Joachim Trier’s feature moves with efficiency, finding moment after moment of gentle emotional truth.
loading . . .
Movie review: "Sentimental Value" explores the healing power of art - The Tangential
For a movie with so much to chew on, Joachim Trier's feature moves with efficiency, finding moment after moment of gentle emotional truth.
https://thetangential.com/2025/12/29/movie-review-sentimental-value-explores-the-healing-power-of-art/
6 months ago
0
1
1
These characters will surprise you and make you think.
loading . . .
Movie review: "Little Trouble Girls," a subtle struggle between church and corpus - The Tangential
"Little Trouble Girls" understands the power of a few days away when you're young and hopeful, even when that hope is bound to be dashed.
https://thetangential.com/2025/12/10/movie-review-little-trouble-girls-a-subtle-struggle-between-church-and-corpus/
7 months ago
0
1
0
If you found
#TheNakedGun
to be a healing experience, the British Arrows will give you another dose of what’s good for you: sharing a giggle with strangers.
loading . . .
Review: 2025 British Arrows inspire laughter and tears - The Tangential
Amid a numbing drumbeat of discouraging news, this year's ads arrive as a welcome reminder that it is still possible to actually feel things.
https://thetangential.com/2025/11/14/review-2025-british-arrows-inspire-laughter-and-tears/
8 months ago
0
1
0
If nothing else, pro-urbanists can take heart at "The French Italian," which argues that even living above an unstable couple with a karaoke machine is better than taking the New Haven Line home to dead silence.
loading . . .
Movie review: Revenge is sour in "The French Italian" - The Tangential
Writer-director Rachel Wolther bets big on an implausible premise that "The French Italian" strains to sustain.
https://thetangential.com/2025/10/28/movie-review-revenge-is-sour-in-the-french-italian/
8 months ago
0
1
1
Max Rebo plays keyboard with his...feet?!
loading . . .
Three Star Wars retcons Kenner kids can't accept - The Tangential
Those of us who grew up with the original Star Wars trilogy and collected the Kenner toy line remember how real those action figures felt compared to the images we caught only occasionally onscreen. N...
https://thetangential.com/2025/09/26/three-star-wars-retcons-kenner-kids-cant-accept/
9 months ago
0
0
1
"My Sunshine" has a lo-fi appeal: cozy, yet yearning.
loading . . .
Movie review: "My Sunshine" is a low-key charmer - The Tangential
"My Sunshine" is a beautiful film. There's more below the surface, but writer/director Hiroshi Okuyama doesn't spell it out.
https://thetangential.com/2025/09/19/movie-review-my-sunshine-is-a-low-key-charmer/
9 months ago
0
0
0
The film’s continual need to serve its twisty plot distracts from the themes it points to.
loading . . .
Movie review: "Twinless" stretches an implausible premise - The Tangential
The story touches on grief, sexuality and male loneliness, but writer-director James Sweeney does those themes short shrift.
https://thetangential.com/2025/09/12/movie-review-twinless-stretches-an-implausible-premise/
10 months ago
0
1
0
If nothing else, "Swiped" serves as a look-into-the-camera moment in the face of Mark Zuckerberg declaring that corporate America needs more “masculine energy.”
loading . . .
Movie review: "Swiped," a Bumble biopic - The Tangential
It's a good thing the story is true, because, sadly, this triumph over toxic masculinity would beggar belief if presented as fiction.
https://thetangential.com/2025/09/10/movie-review-swiped-a-bumble-biopic/
10 months ago
1
0
1
If Dario Argento had become a CBS journeyman, daytime TV might have looked like this.
loading . . .
Movie review: "The Luckiest Man in America" hits a whammy - The Tangential
For all this movie's missed opportunities, it remains a watchable, often engaging movie about a guy who decided to make his own luck.
https://thetangential.com/2025/09/04/movie-review-the-luckiest-man-in-america-hits-a-whammy/
10 months ago
0
0
1
What is it about Emma Mackey that makes directors think her eyebrows will take care of any required character development?
loading . . .
Movie review: "Hot Milk" is sour - The Tangential
Would this film ever have been made if it was about homely people in Rochester, Minnesota?
https://thetangential.com/2025/08/26/movie-review-hot-milk-is-sour/
10 months ago
0
0
0
Is OH, HI! meant to be a dark character study? A goofy rom-com? A surprise thriller? It just burbles along for an hour and a half, never resolving the disconnect between the affable characters and their ludicrous situation.
loading . . .
Movie review: Don't let "Oh, Hi!" in - The Tangential
The premise has potential, if the movie could build a world and stay there, but it's as if director Sophie Brooks and co-writer Molly Gordon keep getting distracted.
https://thetangential.com/2025/07/17/movie-review-dont-let-oh-hi-in/
12 months ago
0
1
1
We’ve been here before — and by “here,” we mean in a lucid dream in Madrid.
loading . . .
Movie review: Beatrice Grannò is Henry Golding's dream girl in "Daniela Forever" - The Tangential
The frustration of "Daniela Forever" is that writer/director Nacho Vigalondo favors style over substance, failing to ground his characters.
https://thetangential.com/2025/07/11/movie-review-beatrice-granno-is-henry-goldings-dream-girl-in-daniela-forever/
12 months ago
0
1
0
80-plus minutes of one guy talking about theology: more interesting than you'd expect!
loading . . .
Film review: "C.S. Lewis On Stage: Further Up & Further In" arrives on video - The Tangential
The film brings one of the 20th century's most beloved figures, as portrayed by Max McLean, into living rooms wanting to welcome him.
https://thetangential.com/2025/06/26/film-review-c-s-lewis-on-stage-further-up-further-in-arrives-on-video/
about 1 year ago
0
0
1
How many Billy Joel albums would you include? (This book has three.)
loading . . .
Book review: "501 Essential Albums of the '80s" - The Tangential
The '80s still have surprising delights to be unearthed by curious listeners. Now, those listeners have one more guide to steer their ears.
https://thetangential.com/2025/05/02/book-review-501-essential-albums-of-the-80s/
about 1 year ago
0
1
1
The final season of Andor is a relentless suspense machine, with more tension than fans have experienced since Darth Vader was lowering Han Solo into the carbon freeze chamber.
loading . . .
TV review: "Andor" final season is heart-stopping, jaw-dropping - The Tangential
The season is a relentless suspense machine, with more tension than fans have experienced since Darth Vader was freezing Han Solo.
https://thetangential.com/2025/04/21/tv-review-andor-final-season-is-heart-stopping-jaw-dropping/
about 1 year ago
0
0
1
Whether three women can effectively support each other, in a world that only sees them all as pretty pieces of flesh, is this unforgettable novel’s unanswered question.
@jaygabler.com
reviews Colwill Brown’s debut:
loading . . .
Audiobook review: Colwill Brown's "We Pretty Pieces of Flesh" - The Tangential
Authentic Yorkshire language is foundational, establishing the girls' world and serving as a measure of how far they have traveled from it.
https://thetangential.com/2025/04/16/audiobook-review-colwill-browns-we-pretty-pieces-of-flesh/
about 1 year ago
0
0
1
đź’…
@jaygabler.com
’s mom and niece agree: “Mean Girls” is relevant.
loading . . .
Theater review: "Mean Girls," at the Ordway, plumbs perennial teen angst - The Tangential
"You can’t provide what you don’t offer, so because Cady was being fake, she lost friends because she wasn’t being her real self.”
https://thetangential.com/2025/04/09/theater-review-mean-girls-at-the-ordway-plumbs-perennial-teen-angst/
about 1 year ago
0
0
0
reposted by
The Tangential
National Book Critics Circle
about 1 year ago
For
@thetangential.bsky.social
,
@jaygabler.com
reviewed Neal Shusterman's "All Better Now":
loading . . .
Audiobook review: "All Better Now" is a creepy chronicle of a feel-good pandemic - The Tangential
Shusterman leverages the unsettling sense amid pandemic precautions, some people were downright eager to let COVID romp.
https://thetangential.com/2025/03/24/audiobook-review-all-better-now-is-creepy-chronicle-of-feel-good-pandemic/
0
1
2
reposted by
The Tangential
Jay Gabler
over 1 year ago
Neal Shusterman, already established as a blockbuster talent in YA speculative fiction, imagines the coming of a second virus — this one instilling the belief that it’s morally wrong to deny others the benefits of infection.
loading . . .
Audiobook review: "All Better Now" is a creepy chronicle of a feel-good pandemic - The Tangential
Shusterman leverages the unsettling sense amid pandemic precautions, some people were downright eager to let COVID romp.
https://thetangential.com/2025/03/24/audiobook-review-all-better-now-is-creepy-chronicle-of-feel-good-pandemic/
0
0
1
Oh, Canada. 🥲
loading . . .
Theater review: "Come From Away" is a reminder of human decency - The Tangential
Canadians accommodated thousands of stranded airline passengers on 9/11. How did we thank them? With...this Tony-winning musical!
https://thetangential.com/2025/03/06/theater-review-come-from-away-is-a-reminder-of-human-decency/
over 1 year ago
0
0
0
The hold Johnny Carson had on the nation’s attention in the late-night hours, most weeknights for 30 years, is difficult now to imagine. Tonight’s late-night hosts only pull a fraction of his numbers, even while following a formula he set in stone.
loading . . .
Audiobook review: Heeeeeeere's "Carson the Magnificent"! - The Tangential
Johnny Carson was a born showman, we learn, but a calculating one: he had the discipline and charisma of a magician.
https://thetangential.com/2024/12/17/audiobook-review-heeeeeeeres-carson-the-magnificent/
over 1 year ago
0
0
0
Today’s kids may or may not appreciate the more meta aspects of a show in which kids within the Star Wars universe play with Star Wars action figures…but never mind, Skeleton Crew is fun.
loading . . .
TV review: "Skeleton Crew" lets Star Wars be for kids again - The Tangential
Think "The Goonies" in space, and if you think, they already did that and it was called "Explorers," you're going to appreciate this show.
https://thetangential.com/2024/12/02/tv-review-skeleton-crew-lets-star-wars-be-for-kids-again/
over 1 year ago
0
1
1
Kids in America today are having a rough time of it. Do we just...not like them all that much?
loading . . .
Do we hate children? - The Tangential
It's increasingly difficult and expensive to raise a child in this country. Have our attitudes towards children fundamentally changed?
https://thetangential.com/2024/11/22/do-we-hate-children/
over 1 year ago
0
1
1
Is Liquor Lyle's on Bluesky yet?
over 1 year ago
0
0
0
you reached the end!!
feeds!
log in