Maureen Ryan

Nick Cave has been singing about mortality for decades, and he's really good at it. Whether the narratives are biblical or pulpy, the victims innocents or death row convicts, the circumstances comprehensible or cruelly random, Cave's songs are on intimate terms with the infinite ways a life can be extinguished. And yet, "Skeleton Tree", his latest album with his estimable band, the Bad Seeds, is a relatively concise song cycle shadowed by death that feels different than all the rest. <a href="http://bancodeprofissionais.com/entertainment/music/kot/sc-music-nick-cave-skeleton-tree-ent-0916-20160916-column.html" target="_blank">Read the full review.</a>

Review: Frontline’s ‘Weinstein’ documentary is a necessary addition to the #MeToo movement

December 17, 2018 at 10:26 p.m.

A woman describes Harvey Weinstein, clad only in a towel, making her feel terrified and trapped as she tried to get away from him. Her story isn't new: We have...

‘Major Crimes’: Why was the star killed off a hit show?

December 15, 2018 at 6:02 a.m.

The saga of the final season of "Major Crimes" has had more twists than many a crime procedural -- but the most perplexing ones didn't necessarily occur onscreen. Mary McDonnell's...

‘Grown-ish’ is a smart, breezy expansion of the ‘Black-ish’ family

December 18, 2018 at 4:58 a.m.

Launching a spinoff from a successful show is a bit like sending a child off to college: No amount of high hopes and preparation can eradicate all the worries. But...

‘Stranger Things 2’ review: The old magic takes a while to return

December 18, 2018 at 6:11 a.m.

Perhaps the most retro thing about "Stranger Things" was the way people found it -- via word of mouth. The country was not inundated with ads and marketing stunts; instead,...

A TV executive sexually assaulted me: A former Tribune critic’s personal story

June 2, 2018 at 2:14 a.m.

I told a lie in 2015. A lie to save my life. I wrote a post in May of that year telling people I was taking two months off to...

’13 Reasons Why’: Addressing the controversy as a critic — and a parent

June 5, 2018 at 5:24 a.m.

Today my job and my life intersected in a way they never have before. But I suppose I should have seen it coming. My son is a freshman in high...

Multiple Jesuses may be the least controversial thing in ‘American Gods’

June 5, 2018 at 6:26 a.m.

Bryan Fuller was watching a key moment from the "American Gods" finale the day after the presidential election. Like many of his fellow citizens, he felt angry, stunned and at...

Dave Chappelle’s Netflix specials aren’t meant to make him look good

June 5, 2018 at 5:07 p.m.

It's a charged metaphor to use at the moment, but some standup comics function as border patrol agents. They may not stand in airports checking the papers of arriving travelers,...

Promising ‘The Good Fight’ blows up the world of ‘The Good Wife’

June 6, 2018 at 3:43 a.m.

It's appropriate that "The Good Fight" has a slightly more jagged and splintered atmosphere than "The Good Wife," the long-running CBS drama that starred Julianna Margulies. "The Good Wife" debuted...

‘The Young Pope’ review: Jude Law tries to make the Vatican great again

June 6, 2018 at 2:05 p.m.

Imperious, unpredictable, and a master manipulator, the new leader ignores tradition and precedent in favor of a cryptic agenda only he comprehends. Scattered clues about his worldview are ominous, if...

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