Rife’s humor of the quick, off-the cuff variety is best suited to these more conversational modes of presentation. He is lucky that he has a gift for improvisation and interacting with crowds, because his straight up standup is pedestrian.
TV
Posted inArts & Culture, Ideas
Batman, Bruce Wayne and the complexity of the superhero’s psyche
In “Batman: The Caped Crusader,” we explore the mystery of heroism.
Posted inArts & Culture, Film
From Steve Martin to Simone Biles to Jesus: The America magazine summer watchlist
America’s staff returns to give their favorite recommendations of what to watch this summer.
Posted inArts & Culture, Television
‘The Acolyte’ shows us the dark side of the Jedi Order—and it should look familiar to Catholics
“The Acolyte,” the latest installment in the “Star Wars” franchise, shows us what happens when even the best of us cozy up to power.
Posted inArts & Culture, Television
What Catholics can learn from ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ about community and friendship
The new Netflix adaptation fails to capture what made the original not only beautiful, but also of great interest for Catholics.
Posted inArts & Culture, Dispatches
Why Pope Francis invited Stephen Colbert, Chris Rock and Whoopi Goldberg to the Vatican
Have you heard the one where Stephen Colbert, Whoopi Goldberg and Conan O’Brien walked into the Vatican?
Posted inArts & Culture, Television
Netflix’s ‘Baby Reindeer’ is painful to watch—but not just for the reasons you might think
Netflix’s latest thriller “Baby Reindeer,” is a chilling watch. The show haunts the viewer long after the credits roll, but not just because it is a stalker drama.
Posted inArts & Culture, Television
‘Shogun’ is a complex tale of religion and colonialism—with Jesuits as villains
“Shogun” is a dire portrait of the Catholic Church’s role in colonial history, but the Japanese are not mere victims in this story.
Posted inArts & Culture, Television
PBS’s ‘Dante’ introduces the divine poet—and neglects his Catholic faith
Ric Burns’s splendid two-part PBS documentary, “Dante: Inferno to Paradise,” has brought Dante’s achievement beyond the groves of academe and into America’s living rooms.
Posted inArts & Culture, Television
Netflix’s ‘3 Body Problem’ is a solid adaptation of the books. But it could use some religion.
“3 Body Problem” is an imaginative Netflix adaptation of Cixin Liu’s trilogy of sci-fi novels—and yet is mostly true to the books.