Top Picks

IN FILM:

With strife breaking out in the Middle East, historical films that depict the region seem more real now than in recent history. Reverting back to classics can sometimes reteach us some of the lessons that people learned in the past. David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia brilliantly portrays a world that is misunderstood by Western culture. By engaging the audience in a captivating story about how the Arabic nation was able to fight against the Turks in World War I, coupled with some of the most amazing cinematography shot by Freddie Young, Lawrence can have just as much impact as it did fifty years ago.

The film follows the journey of a young British officer named Thomas Edward Lawrence played by Peter O'Toole. Being a little quirky, he is assigned to lead a revolt in 1916 against the Turks by using local Arab militias. What turns into a basic war film becomes a grand experience, following the psyche of how one man can go from a humble servant of the Royal Forces to a man who believes he is a savior and a god. However, Lawrence does provide a glimpse at current world issue. Even then there was bitterness between local tribes. The film is able to beautifully portray the Middle East in conflict, while still providing a masterpiece that has withstood the test of time.

IN MUSIC:

There are those rare times where something so terrible could be amazing. Atzen musik as a whole has sent culture shocks throughout German speaking countries but for everyone else, especially for some who can't understand a word of the songs, it's a throw-down, get trashed, fun good time. And there are no better geniuses at creating Atzen club beats than Frauenartz & Manny Marc. In their latest attempt at providing beats for youngsters to engage in lascivious orgies, Präsentieren Atzen Musik Vol. 2 comes out much harder than their prior attempts, relying on loud techno sounding bass with high-intensity repeating lyrics that would make anyone ready to party go into frenzy.

With their latest Deutchland topping single Disco Pogo opening up the three disc album, the message is very clear. It's a big 'screw you' to mainstream media with lyrics like, “Die Spiesser sind geschockt, und packen ganz schnell ihre Sachen.” Loosely translated, it means the ordinary people are so shocked they get their things and leave. As the album plays in its entirety, songs cover anything from Germanic pride to sex and boozing it up. While this style of music is not for everyone, for those wanting a full album of fun nonstop party action, Atzen Musik Vol. 2 be keeping you up all through the night.

IN LITERATURE:

Just because a book is small in size, does not mean it doesn't carry the same weight in the minds of the reader. Topping out at at a mere four ounces, Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea is a knockout short novel that has the same power as many of his longer works. Helping to secure Hemingway's Nobel Prize in 1954, The Old Man and the Sea is a tale of a solo Cuban fisherman named Santiago who goes out to sea and catches an oversized blue marlin. On his way back to shore, Santiago has to battle sharks who are trying to devour his prized catch.

What makes the story interesting is that there is a clear protagonist, yet to pinpoint a definite antagonist has an array of problems. For example, the fish who Santiago catches is just doing what fish do. It struggles with Santiago, fighting for its life. It's not a monstrosity like Moby Dick is or other various sea beasts who intentionally try to harm the main character.

The sharks, while deliberately going after Santiago's fish, are seen as vicious, yet all they are trying to do is eat. The overall theme that is sometimes described is that Santiago's adversaries are nothing more than the regular cruelty of the world. The story is captivating and the reader is forced into feeling sympathy for this poor old man who seems to be forsaken. It's a story about survival and how the world can bring you down even though you did all the right things.