Film Review: Mama

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starring: Jessica Chastain, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Megan Charpentier, Isabelle Nélisse, Daniel Kash, Javier Botet, Jane Moffat

written by: Andrés Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti, Neil Cross

directed by: Andrés Muschietti

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for violence and terror, some disturbing images and thematic elements

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Film Review: The Last Stand

Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Last Stand
Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Last Stand

starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Forest Whitaker, Johnny Knoxville and Jaimie Alexander

screenplay: Andrew Knauer

directed by: Jee-Woon Kim

MPAA: Rated R for strong bloody violence throughout, and language

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Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 1/17/13-1/23/13

On Sunday, if you don't watch his team. he may get mad. Don't make him mad.
On Sunday, if you don’t watch his team. he may get mad. Don’t make him mad.

Dakin’s off this week, and he left me in charge, which means I totally mentioned sports. It’s championship week in the NFL, and for those of you not as sports minded as the rest of us (aka those of you make jokes like “what’s happening in sports ball this week?”), I’m also recommending some “music concerts” for you. Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 1/17/13-1/23/13”

Show Review: Keane with Youngblood Hawke at the Warfield, 1/11/2013

Thanks to Jason Miller for this awesome pic of Tom Chaplin killin' it!
Thanks to Jason Miller for this awesome pic of Tom Chaplin killin’ it!

Have you ever seen something advertising a band playing in your city, and thought, “I’d really like to see them, even though I only know one or two of their songs”? That was the extent of my relationship with Keane until recently. I’ve certainly heard several of their songs on the radio over the years, and especially love their biggest hit, “Somewhere Only We Know,” but until I found out I had access to check them out with opener Youngblood Hawke this weekend at San Francisco’s Warfield, I hadn’t actually sat down to give their tunes a thorough listen. Continue reading “Show Review: Keane with Youngblood Hawke at the Warfield, 1/11/2013”

Film Review: Gangster Squad

Gangster-Squad

starring: Josh Brolin, Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Nick Nolte, Anthony Mackie, Robert Patrick, Michael Peña, Mireille Enos, Giovanni Ribisi

screenplay: Will Beall

directed by: Ruben Fleischer

MPAA: Rated R for strong violence and language

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Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 1/10/13-1/16/13

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Is this Ox a Cannibal? Doubtful…

Happy New Year from SpinningPlatters.com. Remember, it’s always warmer inside a music venue…

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The Spinning Platters Guide to the Best Films of 2012

Screen shot 2013-01-07 at 4.24.02 PM

It’s list time! 2012 marked my second full year serving as Spinning Platters’ movie editor, and I once again had the kinda-privilege of seeing nearly every theatrical release. But I have to say, and maybe it’s just because I’m already jaded and embittered after only two years of full-fledged film criticism: I was rather disappointed by the 2012 crop. Last year I had a bitch of a time narrowing my favorites down to just ten, while this year I had to talk myself into believing a few of them were even worthy of top-ten canonization. And unlike 2011, this year left me without a clear favorite. I still use a ranked list below, but my top four are fairly interchangeable. Still, some things have remained the same: as with last year, there is at least one optimistic critical favorite I’ve aligned myself squarely against (last year it was The Artist, this year it’s Silver Linings Playbook), as well as one blockbuster comedy that somehow made it into my top five. So without any further ado, let’s dive into my begrudging top ten, some honorable mentions, my bitchiest moments of the year, and the movie I’m most embarrassed about praising.

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Spinning Platters Presents The Official List of the Top 20 Albums of 2012

Here to present the top 20 albums of the year as voted on by the SpinningPlatters staff.
Here to present the top 20 albums of the year as voted on by the SpinningPlatters staff.

By The Spinning Platters Staff

Every website has a Top XX albums of the year list. This one is ours, and there is nothing by The xx on it. I mean, I really like The xx’s Coexist. There were just 20 records that came out this year that were better. Maybe you’ll find something that you missed?

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Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 12/27/12-1/2/13

Royal Teeth at Rickshaw on January 2nd
Royal Teeth at Rickshaw on January 2nd

Happy New Year from SpinningPlatters. Please go support a local live music venue or seven… Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 12/27/12-1/2/13”

Film Review: Django Unchained

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starring: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson

written and directed by: Quentin Tarantino

MPAA: Rated R for strong graphic violence throughout, a vicious fight, language and some nudity

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