Reviews | Reason Archives (original) (raw)
Review: Like Friday Night Lights, But For High School Mariachi
A documentary on Netflix follows a team of young musicians vying for competition wins in Texas.
Fiona Harrigan | 11.15.2024 6:00 AM
Review: A New York Times Reporter Explores Psychedelic Therapy
Trippy author Ernesto Londoño points out that supposedly ancient psychedelic rituals don't always lead to great outcomes.
Brian Doherty | 11.8.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Evil on Trial Seeks To Reach A Younger Audience
WWII correspondent William L. Shirer's The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich comes to life in this Netflix docuseries.
Bekah Congdon | 11.8.2024 6:00 AM
Review: An Action Movie About Civil Asset Forfeiture
Netflix's Rebel Ridge is a thrilling tale about an ordinary man wronged by an unjust system.
Peter Suderman | 11.1.2024 6:30 AM
Review: A Rap Trio Fights the Power In Gaelic
Kneecap is a semi-dramatized biopic of the Belfast music group of the same name.
Matthew Petti | 10.25.2024 6:00 AM
Review: In Ren Faire a Tyrant King Tries To Find a Successor
George Coulam didn't just create the Texas Renaissance Festival. He built a utopia and crowned himself king.
Katarina Hall | 10.18.2024 6:30 AM
Review: A Medieval Black Comedy With No Monarch
The state is almost completely absent in 'The Decameron. The characters don't exactly handle this responsibility well.
Emma Camp | 10.11.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Bullet Vending Machines Debut in U.S. Grocery Stores
The company claims its machines are more effective than store shelves at preventing shoplifters or underage purchases.
Joe Lancaster | 10.4.2024 6:00 AM
Review: House of the Dragon Imagines Dragon Combat and It's Awesome
Much like in nuclear war, there’s no way to win when both sides have dragons.
Robby Soave | 9.20.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Choose Your Own Deal With the Devil at the Theater
The show Life And Trust is an immersive performance that unfolds over three hours across six floors inside what was once a Wall Street office building.
Eric Boehm | 9.20.2024 6:00 AM
Review: A Monopoly-Style Game About the January 6
The hosts of the popular TrueAnon podcast made a board game that doesn't take the presidential transition crisis too seriously.
Matthew Petti | 9.13.2024 6:00 AM
Review: Inside the Southern Baptist Sexual Assault Crisis
Author Christa Brown shares her story of abuse and exposes the hypocrisy inherent in the Southern Baptist Convention's cover-up.
Bekah Congdon | 9.6.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Hacks Explores the Comedy of Cancel Culture
An aging comedian wrestles with woke campus culture in the new season of the Max series.
Joe Lancaster | 9.6.2024 6:00 AM
Review: A Satirical How-To Guide for Imperialists
Freedom "requires you to curtail freedom of speech and freedom of the press," the book declares.
Jesse Walker | 8.30.2024 6:00 AM
Alien: Romulus Is a Slick, Empty Franchise Pastiche
The taut, grisly new entry plays like a greatest-hits reel.
Peter Suderman | 8.16.2024 10:18 AM
Review: A Former Foster Child Lambasts the 'Luxury Beliefs' of Wealthy Elites
Rob Henderson's new book documents his journey from a troubled adoption to Yale and Cambridge.
Emma Camp | 8.16.2024 6:00 AM
Review: A South Korean Film Explores Nativism and Authoritarianism After a Disaster
Concrete Utopia is a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked power under any circumstances.
Katarina Hall | 8.9.2024 6:00 AM
Review: James Retells Huckleberry Finn From Jim's Perspective
Author Percival Everett reimagines Mark Twain's novel from the enslaved character's point of view.
C.J. Ciaramella | 8.2.2024 6:00 AM
Review: The Women Entrepreneurs of Impoverished Countries
She Rises Up manages to be inspirational without being sappy, like so many documentaries are.
Katherine Mangu-Ward | 7.19.2024 6:00 AM
Review: Is Fallout Actually a Good Game-to-TV Crossover?
Staying true to the game, producers of the Amazon show even leave room for side quests and open-ended exploration.
Christian Britschgi | 7.5.2024 6:00 AM
Review: A Drug Reformer Makes the Case for Harm Reduction
The Harm Reduction Gap argues for individual autonomy and meeting drug users where they're at.
Jacob Sullum | 6.28.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Blowback Podcast Exhumes the Seeds of the Afghan Conflict
Hosts Noah Kulwin and Brendan James explain how proxy war fighters can become America's enemies.
Matthew Petti | 6.28.2024 6:00 AM
Review: Documenting Julian Assange's Legal Battles
Kym Staton's documentary also tries to debunk several accusations against the WikiLeaks founder.
Brian Doherty | 6.27.2024 7:00 AM
A Brief, Biased History of the Culture Wars
Kliph Nesteroff's book Outrageous turns into a screed against conservatives.
Steven Kurtz | 6.22.2024 6:00 AM
Review: An Arkansas Jail Unlocked the Cells. Did it Work?
A new Netflix documentary series shows what happened when inmates were free to roam the cellblock with no guards in sight.
Natalie Dowzicky | 6.21.2024 6:00 AM
The Dark Side of Alexander Hamilton
The first treasury secretary's plans would have created cartels that mainly benefited the wealthy at the expense of small competitors.
Jeffrey Rogers Hummel | 6.16.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Charles Fort's Underrated Influence
The eccentric writer cast a long shadow, leaving a mark not only on the world of Bigfoot hunters and UFO buffs but in literature and radical politics.
Jesse Walker | 6.14.2024 6:30 AM
Review: How a Catholic Sister Resisted an Oppressive New York City Government
A new film depicts Mother Cabrini, the patron saint of immigrants.
Stephanie Slade | 6.14.2024 6:00 AM
Review: Defy Anti–Alternative Meat Politicians With These Tasty, Pricey Ribs
Juicy Marbles' vegan ribs pull apart in a shockingly realistic way, and they taste great. But they'll also set you back $77.
Katherine Mangu-Ward | 6.7.2024 6:30 AM
Review: This Netflix Drama Depicts North Korean Refugees' Tribulations
My Name is Loh Kiwan dramatizes the experiences of refugees escaping oppressive regimes.
Katarina Hall | 6.7.2024 6:00 AM
Review: An Anime Murder Mystery With an AI Twist
In Netflix's Pluto, a serial killer targets the world’s most advanced robots.
Katarina Hall | 5.31.2024 6:00 AM
Review: The Terminator: The Original Killer AI
Arnold Schwarzenegger's classic role colored our perception of AI, for better or for worse.
Joe Lancaster | 5.24.2024 6:00 AM
Review: South Park's Take on ChatGPT
The long-running satirical show turns its animated sights on AI and ChatGPT.
Matthew Petti | 5.17.2024 6:00 AM
Review: Understanding AI Helps Separate the Sci From the Fi
Like it or not, AI is here to stay. In his newsletter, Timothy B. Lee helps explain what comes next.
Christian Britschgi | 5.10.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Klara and the Sun Tackles AI Regulation
Kazuo Ishiguro's beautiful meditation on the parameters that constrain robots and humans alike
Katherine Mangu-Ward | 5.10.2024 6:00 AM
Review: The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress Underscores How Technology Supports Freedom
According to Grok, Robert Heinlein's novel reminds us that even a supercomputer can have a heart—or at least a well-programmed sense of humor.
Jason Russell | 5.3.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Mrs. Davis Tests the Limits of Science and Faith
When does a sufficiently advanced algorithm start to mimic our conception of God?
Eric Boehm | 5.3.2024 6:00 AM
Review: Here There Are Blueberries Investigates a Nazi Photo Album
"Where is the line between complacency, complicity, and culpability?” asks producer Matt Joslyn.
Ronald Bailey | 4.26.2024 6:00 AM
Does the Constitution Protect the Right To Get High?
Columbia law professor David Pozen recalls the controversy provoked by early anti-drug laws and the hope inspired by subsequent legal assaults on prohibition.
Jacob Sullum | 4.23.2024 7:00 AM
How To Be the President's Kid
From Alice Roosevelt to Hunter Biden, we've never been sure how to reconcile American democracy with American dynasties.
Katrina Gulliver | 4.21.2024 6:00 AM
Review: Fun Police Podcast Exposes the Nanny State
Don't trust the do-gooders campaigning against drinking, smoking, and gambling.
Eric Boehm | 4.19.2024 6:30 AM
Review: An Anime Reboot About Japan's Transition From Feudalism
The protagonist's adversaries eventually embrace modernity.
Katarina Hall | 4.19.2024 6:00 AM
Review: What the Cities: Skylines II Flop Tells Us About Urban Planning
It turns out that making video games and making cities are both really hard.
Christian Britschgi | 4.12.2024 6:30 AM
Review: It's Cloned Mammoths vs. Billionaire Hunters in This New Sci-Fi Novel
Ray Nayler's The Tusks of Extinction explores the value of nonhuman intelligence.
Peter Suderman | 4.12.2024 6:00 AM
A Magical World Where Government Discriminates Against the Nonmagical
The anime Mashle: Magic and Muscles offers an absurdist metaphor for politically driven discrimination.
Katarina Hall | 4.5.2024 8:30 AM
Review: This Young Podcaster Is Channeling Adam Smith
A locked-down high schooler started asking libertarian thinkers what people in her generation should know.
Katherine Mangu-Ward | 4.5.2024 6:30 AM
Review: Apple Vision Pro's Magic Is Short-Lived
Apple's pricey new headset ends up feeling clunky.
Justin Zuckerman | 4.5.2024 6:00 AM
The F-Word and Its Consequences
In a new book, left-wing writers debate whether America is going fascist.
Brandan P. Buck | 4.3.2024 1:34 PM