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CCNY One-Acts: Reviews
Photography by Joseph E. Parker By Max Pearson and Joseph E. Parker Group F Reviews By Max Pearson The CCNY One-Acts were several student-written and directed plays performed during the weekend of May 10th. Split into several groups of four, the plays were approximately seven minutes long, offering a quick way to see many students perform. This is a review for Group F, which included Hunting Bigfoot?, Speed Dating, Phone Sex & A Dumb Show, and The Baby. Group F’s production o


Have You Seen 'The Drama'?: A Review on One of the Year’s Most Anticipated Films
Design by Ingrid Ibarra By Ingrid Ibarra The Drama, starring A-listers Zendaya and Robert Pattinson who play Emma and Charlie respectively, made buzz online long before it hit theaters. The dark romantic comedy, directed by Kristoffer Borgli, released April 3rd, 2026. Borgli is a Norwegian filmmaker who also made Dream Scenario (2023), starring Nicholas Cage, and Sick of Myself (2022). Borgli has a natural talent for taking seemingly normal scenarios and using dark humor to e


Twenty-four Years of '25th Hour'
Image Credit: Touchstone Pictures By Arlen Fox-Helbig There are satellite photos of September 12th, 2001 in New York City. A pale ominous cloud floats from Ground Zero, casting deep shadows on Jersey City and Hoboken. This year, we’re coming up on the 25th anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center. As the stock phrase goes: 9/11 was a marker of the true start of the current century. I was upstate, staying at my parents’ house, helping my brother move. It was on my


A Review of CCNY’s Theatre Production: “The Knight of the Burning Pestle”
Art by Jordan Champ By Sara Outar This March, the CCNY Theatre Department stunned viewers with the production of The Knight of the Burning Pestle . Originally performed in 1607, this play embraces chaos and disorder on the stage through constant unpredictability and scene interruption. This play not only embraces absurdity; absurdity is the whole point! The result of this is an experience that is hard to put into words and certainly hard to forget. This play is most ofte


"Marty Supreme" Review: A High-Octane Thrill Ride of an Ambitious Dreamer
Design by Arlen Fox-Helbig Editor's Note: The Paper does not align with Chalamet's distasteful comments on ballet and opera. This is a review of the film as a whole, written before the events took place. We respect all art forms and don't condone the actor's behavior. By Quinn Kinsella Timothée Chalamet made sure that Marty Supreme wasn’t just a movie, but an event . Thanks to the viral marketing campaign Chalamet dedicated himself to the few months before the movie’s relea


Three Wuthering Heights: Brontë, Fennell, and XCX
Design by Christian Branch By Quinn Kinsella, Max Pearson, and Arlen Fox-Helbig Revisiting Emily Brontë’s Seminal Gothic Love Story, Wuthering Heights By Quinn Kinsella Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights is one of the most important novels of the 19th century. Scholarship and discourse has never ceased to find new layers to the gothic romance. The book has found an influx in readership with its 2026’s adaptation starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi, and helmed by Saltburn d


A Review of CCNY's Theatre Production: "La Gringa"
Photography by Sofia Peña By Sofia Peña On the weekend of November 7th, 2025, the City College production of La Gringa brightened the black box theater at Aaron Davis Hall. Director Karina Verna, along with the actors, tackled the themes of Carmen Rivera’s Obie award-winning play with authenticity. In an interview for The Paper with Carmen Rivera, she praised the entire team for how well they supported one another, and the research they did for each of their characters. This


"The Emperor of Gladness" Review: Ocean Vuong’s Second Novel Is a Quiet Epic
Art by Christian Branch/Book Cover Design by Suzanne Dean By Quinn Kinsella Ocean Vuong is the poet laureate of our time. His deeply empathetic nature and honest writing have won him the trust of readers worldwide and the best-selling status he boasts at 37 years old. His latest novel, The Emperor of Gladness, is a quiet epic, tackling themes of identity, addiction, and family, both found and born into. Vuong’s prose soars and dips through the peaks and valleys of the human e


Ari Aster’s Eddington: The Prophetic Satirical Criticism of America & the Myth of the West
Image Courtesy: A24/Square Peg Films By Quinn Kinsella Ari Aster is a polarizing director. With his one-two punch horror releases Hereditary and Midsommar , he revolutionized the horror genre. His follow-up was the 3-hour nightmare-comedy Beau Is Afraid , which became a box office bomb and a cult classic overnight. And with his fourth feature, Aster proves himself as confident as ever in his searing commentary on the modern day division of America and the COVID-19 pandemic. T


Ryan Coolger’s Sinners Might Just Be One of the Best Movies of the Decade So Far
Credit: Image Courtesy Proximity Media By Quinn Kinsella Sinners is a modern masterpiece. At its heart, Sinners is a love letter to the blues, and the transformative power of music. Written and directed by Ryan Coogler and starring an ensemble cast led by Michael B. Jordan playing twins, Sinners melds genre and style, creating something wholly new and unique. It is a film made to be seen on the biggest screen possible. Shot with IMAX and Ultra Panavision 70 film, Coogler’s


Beyond Therapy Review: A Charming and Hilarious Night at CCNY Theater
Photos Throughout by Quinn Kinsella By Quinn Kinsella The CCNY theater department kicked off the spring semester with the comedy Beyond Therapy . Originally penned in 1981 by renowned playwright Christopher Durang, Beyond Therapy follows two characters, Bruce and Prudence, who seek romance amid a bustling landscape of sex and confusion: Manhattan. A farce of cinematic emotional scope, Durang’s dialogue weaves in and out of the profound beauties of love and sexuality with biza


Nosferatu Review: Robert Eggers’ Gothic Passion Project Is a Bloody Masterpiece
Image Courtesy Focus Features By Quinn Kinsella “Does evil come from within us or from beyond?” Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu seeks to answer this question posed by Lily-Rose Depp’s character, Ellen Hutter. Director Robert Eggers is no stranger to lavish period pieces steeped in the occult, envisioned by the devout research that makes his films so compelling. Nosferatu is a passion project; Eggers first saw F. W. Murnau’s classic 1922 silent film as a child. Of his first encount


Shakespeare, Clearly: Romeo & Juliet Review: CCNY’s Theater Department Breathes New Life Into a Classic
Photo by Quinn Kinsella By Quinn Kinsella The theater department of the City College of New York’s most recent production was the much-anticipated adaptation of William Shakespeare’s classic play, Romeo and Juliet . It is a story ingrained in the pop culture psyche and has been retold countless times. CCNY’s production of the classic account of star-crossed lovers is an inspiring and heartfelt interpretation with a talented cast and superb production. Written by Jon Jory and


Sally Rooney Tackles Brotherhood and Loss in New Novel Intermezzo
Photo by Quinn Kinsella By Quinn Kinsella October 1st, 2024 Sally Rooney’s fourth novel, Intermezzo , is her most nuanced and moving work to date. Centered around the Koubek brothers, this novel tells the complex story of brotherhood and the relationships they find themselves engaged with in the wake of their father’s death. Peter, the elder brother, is a successful lawyer. Ivan is a skilled and celebrated chess player. The title comes from a chess move of the same name and t
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