Blogcritics Author: Phillip Winn

U.S. Presidential Politics Will Never Be The Same

Phillip Winn — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:51:03 EDT

It's hard to imagine a party ticket with two white men ever again!
On August 29, 2008, the presumptive Republican Presidential candidate announced a decision that will have a lasting impact on U.S. politics. By announcing Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate, Senator John McCain assured that one way or another, the American people will be establishing a new precedent in November.The Democratic National...

Movie Review: The Dark Knight Rules Gotham

Phillip Winn — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 13:40:34 EDT

Christopher Nolan has created a film that is almost as wild and daring as The Joker.
The Dark Knight is the audacious sequel to 2005's Batman Begins. Where many writers and directors might have been tempted to follow a relatively safe formula for this second film, Christopher Nolan has created a film that is almost as wild and daring as The Joker. Profoundly written, beautifully choreographed, and brilliantly executed, The Dark...

Movie Review: Hellboy II - The Golden Army

Phillip Winn — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 13:48:39 EDT

Hellboy is back, in a world more gorgeous than ever. The story sometimes suffers, but it doesn't matter.
Director Guillermo del Toro delivers a gorgeous alternate reality for Hellboy II, but the story sometimes suffers for the sake of visual effects.Hellboy II begins with a few sentences and still photos of backstory for Hellboy himself, explaining that he was rescued from Nazis as a young child during World War II and raised as a human despite his...

Senator Obama: Change We Can Believe In, or Politics As Usual?

Phillip Winn — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 07:08:58 EDT

Is Senator Obama a new kind of politician, delivering change we can believe in, or is he just yet another partisan politician, delivering politics as usual?
There are a few stories circulating about Senator Barack Obama, and you've probably heard at least one of them. Perhaps you've received a few via email. There's the malicious lie-filled story that claims he's an America-hating Muslim, but that is completely untrue, and I'm tired of seeing it in my email inbox.More interesting is...

Twitter Is...

Phillip Winn — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 11:43:09 EDT

Twitter is many things, but primarily it's a revolutionary, or perhaps just evolutionary, way of communicating online.
Blogger, SimplerEvan Williams revolutionized blogging in 1999 by making it simple. His software, Blogger, asked for only one thing: text. It was easy for anyone, and blogging quickly became an activity more popular than many had believed possible.Other blogging software adds more and more features, and even Blogger allows for optional titles, but...

Dianetics vs The Church Of Scientology

Phillip Winn — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 09:38:40 EST

One is a religious philosophy, one is an organization. It's like Christianity vs. The Roman Catholic Church.
As Anonymous battles against the Church of Scientology, some people sympathetic to the Church of Scientology raise the issue of religious freedom. What those who protest the Church of Scientology should keep clear is that they are protesting against an organization, not a system of belief. The distinction is commonly lost when people outside of a...

The Translation of Dr. Apelles by David Treuer [Review]

Phillip Winn — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 19:31:07 EST

There are two stories One is resolved traditionally, while the other ends in a bit of post-modern trickery.
There are two stories in The Translation of Dr. Apelles. One is resolved traditionally, while the other ends in a bit of post-modern trickery. Both, however, end well. Author David Treuer even manages to tie the two stories together, though it seems impossible at first.The novel hints right at the beginning that things will be non-traditional. A...

A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz [Review]

Phillip Winn — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 10:47:33 EST

Toltz peels back layers of absurdity from modern life, showing us how life could be from slightly left of normal.
There are more than 500 pages in Steve Toltz' first novel, A Fraction of the Whole, and yet one can turn to nearly any of them and find something worth reading aloud. It has the weight and complexity of a life's masterpiece, but reads as if it was written in a stream of consciousness style. But what consciousness!The novel begins during a...

Each Birthday Brings Joy And Sadness

Phillip Winn — Fri, 1 Feb 2008 13:32:35 EST

We spend one day each year stopping to smell the roses, and every year they smell just a bit less sweet.
My oldest child, Grace, turns ten today. The clichés have flooded through my mind for days now. Yes, they really do grow up too fast. Yes, I really would give very nearly anything to freeze her in time. (No, I wouldn't. Yes, I would. That's a cliché too!) Yes, I look at my daughter and feel as if my heart might burst, even as...

Macworld 2008: MacBook Air, Apple TV, Time Capsule, iPhone, iTunes Movie Rentals

Phillip Winn — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 14:22:55 EST

The banners read "There Is Something In The Air," and the theme of over-the-air and light-as-air was a common theme during the Stevenote.
Every year since 1997, Apple CEO Steve Jobs has given the opening keynote address at the Macworld Conference & Expo in San Francisco. These speeches have come to be known as "Stevenotes," and generally feature Jobs in blue jeans and a black turtleneck reporting on the previous year and announcing new products, promotions, and...