The Arts Desk’s weekly picks for music, movies and more
By NATALIE SALTER — ncsalter@theaggie.org
TV Show: “Gravity Falls” by Alex Hirsch (2012)
Mystery is the heart of “Gravity Falls,” a two season animated series about the misadventures of a pair of twins stuck for the summer in a not-so-normal Oregon town. 12-year-old siblings Dipper and Mabel are put in the care of their great-uncle Stan at his tourist trap attraction, the Mystery Shack, but soon discover that the oddities and myths of Gravity Falls are more real than they thought. Guided by a mysterious journal, the twins encounter a slew of eccentric creatures and curiosities, all whilst a darker conspiracy unfolds in the shadows. Dancing from funny and heartwarming to emotional and tense — and, at times, downright frightening — “Gravity Falls” is a fantastic work of storytelling, endlessly enjoyable at any age. And, with hidden codes and ciphers tucked away in every episode, the mystery doesn’t end when the episode does: leaving curious viewers with an undeniably unique chance to participate in the story themselves. It’s a loving reminder from the show’s creator to its fans to stay curious and to never stop dreaming up and discovering new wonders every day.
Film: “Charade” dir. by Stanley Donen (1963)
Millions of dollars are on the line when Regina “Reggie” Lampert (Audrey Hepburn)’s husband turns up dead, and three of his World War II compatriots come to cash in. With the help of the charismatic Peter Joshua (Cary Grant), Lampert is forced to unravel the mystery surrounding her late husband’s death and find his secret fortune, or her own life is in jeopardy. But how much can she trust those closest to her, when everyone has something to hide? “Charade” is a nail-bitingly suspenseful, and oftentimes extremely funny, work of cinema. Hepburn and Grant give dazzling performances as an unlikely investigative duo, and the twists and turns that the story employs will take even the most observant and suspicious of viewers by surprise. If you’re on the hunt for a good thriller, “Charade” stands as one of the finest, ready to make you doubt everything you thought you knew about the answer to its mystery.
Video Game: “Slay The Princess” by Black Tabby Games (2023)
You are on a path to a cabin in the woods, and, in its basement, there is a princess. “You are here to slay her,” the Narrator, your guide throughout the story, says. “If you don’t, it will be the end of the world.” The 2023 choose-your-own-adventure visual novel “Slay The Princess” operates on a seemingly simple premise — slay a princess, save the world — but in actuality, it’s anything but simple. Offering players a web of complex choices and endings, from whimsical to terrifying, it becomes quickly clear that “Slay The Princess” is hiding much more beneath its direct narration. It is not only a delightfully tense and scary game for fans of the horror genre to enjoy, but also a marvelous story about growth, sacrifice and what really gives life its very meaning. As you carve your own path through this strange and mysterious world, you’ll discover much more hiding there than you initially expect.
Song: “I Want You To Love Me” by Fiona Apple (2020)
“And I know none of this will matter in the long run, but I know a sound is still a sound around no one,” sings Fiona Apple over the bridge of “I Want You To Love Me,” her voice aching with emotion. In spite of her admission that she is just a speck of particles in a vast universe, she declares “I want what I want, and I want you.” The song, backdropped by a soaring piano melody that rings through the listeners’ hearts, is a tribute to how our human desire for love is all-encompassing, regardless of our relatively miniscule place in the grand design of time and space. Apple insists that, just because our lives are fleeting, does not mean our hopes and desires are any less real or important. In fact, she seems to suggest that our fragility is what makes our capacity for love all the more meaningful. How she manages to fit so much raw emotion into one song is a feat in and of itself, and it shines as one of the most exceptional pieces of music Apple has created in her career thus far.
Written by: Natalie Salter — arts@theaggie.org
