Congrats, that's awesome to hear! And I, for one, am very here for your intersection of interests

the penne opticon

$2 million per ship — to cross a Strait that was free six weeks ago.

@nytimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2026/04/06/w...

Immediate thoughts on THE DRAMA, which seems to be, let's say, polarizing:
1. It actually really worked for me (mostly)
2. I'm actually pretty surprised by that

Immediate thoughts on THE DRAMA, which seems to be, let's say, polarizing:
1. It actually really worked for me (mostly)
2. I'm actually pretty surprised by that

Has he been reading The Crucified God this week just like me?

There are a lot of reasons to be frustrated by my team. But this is NOT one of them.

Dumb stadium foods are both an art (with delusions of grandeur) and a science (of perfecting hubris). And in this competition,the Rangers are operating at a height only Daedalus could dream of.

It's tortoise crypto scams all the way down

Mail Carrier Hurt To Learn Residents On His Route Have Been Receiving Electronic Mail

Mail Carrier Hurt To Learn Residents On His Route Have Been Receiving Electronic Mail theonion.com/mail-carrier-hurt-to-lea...

Amen. It also opens up the most generative avenues for creativity—reading widely allows each writer to find connections only they would think to make and to explore those into new territories, thereby adding something new for the next reader.

Two shots from Chungking Express. He Zhi Wu stands in a convenience store lamenting, "We broke up on April Fools' Day...So I took it as a joke."

happy he zhi wu day

NBC's MLB scorebug for Pirates vs. Mets, where the logos and scores spell out P-0-N-Y-0 (or Ponyo, like the Studio Ghibli movie)

PONYO

"For the love of God, Montresor!"

wtf how is this supposed to be about Jesus?

THE GREEN KNIGHT (2021)

Big iced tea matchup on Friday

Co-sign

The Secret Agent Is Full of Verve, Weight, and Tension — micah rickard Review of Kleber Mendonça Filho's The Secret Agent starring Wagner Moura, a complex political and historical thriller that blends tension, style, weight, and color to dizzying results.

My latest best picture nom catch up was the fantastic THE SECRET AGENT. Not my absolute favorite of the bunch, but it's a movie with tremendous style and punch

www.micahrickard.com/film/the-sec...

As someone focused on media / cultural criticism, I hate how absolutely abundant and overt the need for such criticism has become

Just phenomenal work here

Everybody Digs Bill Evans (and so do I) — micah rickard Movie review of Grant Gee's Everybody Digs Bill Evans starring Anders Danielsen Lie. A glimpse of the artist in grief and addiction, a rhythmic, stylish, and constrained film with a strong performance...

2026 Berlinale #14. Grant Gee's EVERYBODY DIGS BILL EVANS navigates the biopic minefield to create a stylish glimpse at Bill Evans.

"The occasional visual fury is pulled back by Anders Danielsen Lie's acting... a wise fit for a script of tacit responses."

www.micahrickard.com/film/everybo...

The Trump Administration Goes to War, by Any Memes Necessary

I wrote about the White House’s nihilistic war-meme videos [giftie] www.nytimes.com/2026/03/11/a...

Heysel 85 and the Collapse of Political Ineptitude — micah rickard Movie review of Teodora Ana Mihai's Heysel 85, a political thriller based on real events, starring Violet Braeckman and Matteo Simoni. The farce of political egotism collapses in scandal and death.

2026 Berlinale #13. I found HEYSEL 85's blend of archival footage and recreation potent.

"In many ways, Mihai’s film feels like In the Loop... if every ounce of humor were vacuumed out of the satire. It’s too real, too chilling, to elicit a laugh."

www.micahrickard.com/film/heysel-85

A Prayer for the Dying Falls on Deaf Ears — micah rickard Movie review of Dara Van Dusen's A Prayer for the Dying, a grim Western-horror hybrid tracking the spread of disease through a small village.

2026 Berlinale #12. The tonal clash of A PRAYER FOR THE DYING stops the film dead in its tracks.

"It’s too earthbound to be intriguingly hellish; too fixated on the supernatural to succeed as a Western; too vague and static to provide a character study."

www.micahrickard.com/film/a-praye...

Dao Presents a Glimpse of Diaspora and Reconnection — micah rickard Movie review of Alain Gomis' Dao, a patient and lovely portrait of African diaspora, reconnection, and the shifting of culture across generations.

2026 Berlinale #11. Alain Gomis' DAO dances on the border of fiction and reality.

"As Dao gently interrogates the family dynamics and how they change with generations, Gomis frames the events with a fluid camera."

www.micahrickard.com/film/dao-2026

Australia grants asylum to 5 members of the Iranian women's soccer team Australia has granted asylum to five members of the Iranian women’s soccer team who were in the country for a tournament when the Iran war began.

Australia granted asylum to five members of the Iranian women’s soccer team who were visiting the country for a tournament when the Iran war began, a government minister said.

We Are All Strangers: A Patient Wonder of Belonging — micah rickard Movie review of Anthony Chen's We Are All Strangers, a follow up to The Breaking Ice, starring Yeo Yann Yann and Koh Jia Ler

2026 Berlinale #10. Another great one: Anthony Chen's WE ARE ALL STRANGERS.

"Every time the film diverges, it shocks the expectations, but it consistently allows us the space and time to settle into each new path."

www.micahrickard.com/film/we-are-...

A Child of My Own Is a Disastrous Lie — micah rickard Movie review of A Child of My Own, a deceptive documentary whose blend of reality and reenactment traces the ill-conceived attempt of a young woman to fake a pregnancy.

2026 Berlinale #9. As I watched the documentary A CHILD OF MY OWN, I was discomfited by a question: Is this evil?

"Any commentary that the film is striving to make is dismantled by the abortive choices in form and perspective."

www.micahrickard.com/film/a-child...

The Recovery Drama At the Sea Is Overly Familiar — micah rickard Movie review of Kornél Mundruczó's At the Sea, an addiction recovery drama starring Amy Adams that does frustratingly little to reinvigorate a familiar arc.

2026 Berlinale #8. AT THE SEA boasts a strong performance from Amy Adams and little else.

"If you’re looking for something more profound, unsettling, or transformative, however, At the Sea may leave you feeling a bit marooned."

www.micahrickard.com/film/at-the-...