The Arts Desk’s weekly picks for music, movies and more 

By SAVANNAH ANNO — arts@theaggie.org

Song: “It Ain’t Me Babe” by Joan Baez (1998)

My absolute favorite Joan Baez cover, “It Ain’t Me Babe,” is the fourth track of “Baez Sings Dylan,” a compilation of various songs debuted by songwriting legend Bob Dylan. Baez, however, has proved to be a folk legend all her own, still playing sold out shows at 83 years old. Probably what proves to be most interesting about “It Ain’t Me Babe,” is the way it speaks so directly to Baez and Dylan’s rich history — playing music together, having an incredibly close relationship, but eventually realizing they had to let each other go. The sound is warm and somber at the same time, with Baez choosing to bring out her lower register rather than her usual haunting soprano. With just her and the guitar, the simplicity highlights the track’s flowing melody and Dylan’s meticulous lyrics as he explains to a lover, perhaps Baez, that she deserves better than he could ever offer. If you need a new song to add to that “sad girl autumn” playlist I know you’re working on, this is the one. 

Book: “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison (1970)

Singular in her craft, Toni Morrison creates worlds from the ground up in each of her novels, forming entire communities bursting with life, secrets and histories going back decades. “The Bluest Eye,” Morrison’s first novel, was the product of her dissatisfaction with the literature that surrounded her as an editor. Nobody was writing the book that she wanted to read, so she wrote it herself. “The Bluest Eye” surrounds the complexities of Black girlhood, centering on two sisters and Pecola Breedlove, a girl in their class who — after her father burns down their family’s apartment — moves in to stay with them. The three girls are faced with the terrible truths of the world, experiencing the brunt of eurocentric beauty standards while simultaneously having to deal with being oversexualized by the men around them. While the novel can be heavy at times, Morrison’s legendary prose, impeccable sense of rhythm and critical eye pushes you through. With the conflicts of “The Bluest Eye” still relevant today, it may not be a story you’ll always enjoy reading, but it’s one you absolutely have to read. 

Album: “Bright Future” by Adrianne Lenker (2024) 

There’s a specific feeling I get whenever I listen to Adrianne Lenker’s “Bright Future”: It’s the way your cheeks feel when you’re walking around and it’s freezing outside or the lightness in your chest watching a winter sunset. Refreshing and whimsical, “Bright Future” is just the latest in Lenker’s long list of masterpieces, reading like poetry and sounding like magic. Using the tiniest of details, pulling from nature and her own experiences, Lenker creates the most intimate of listening spaces. You feel like you’ve entered a newer, more beautiful reality. Moss covers stones, meadows bloom, stars fall from the sky and Lenker continues to spin worlds with tracks like “Real House” and “No Machine.” Her skillful wordplay comes out in “Evol,” and her love for traditional folk sound in “Sadness as a Gift” and “Vampire Empire.” If you need a new album for staring at the ceiling or chilly walks to class, you won’t regret stepping into Lenker’s Grammy-nominated sonic universe. 

TV Show: “Interview with the Vampire” dir. Rolin Jones (2022)

Originally published as a novel by Anne Rice (1976), then developed into a 1994 film starring Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise, “Interview With the Vampire” is a story that has surpassed decades. As the title suggests, the show follows the life of vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac as he conducts an interview with once-revered and now washed-up journalist Daniel Molloy. With du Lac’s story beginning in 1910s New Orleans, the show gives viewers the taste of the American gothic as well as the clean cut future, as it moves between flashbacks and the modern interview setting. Of course, it wouldn’t be a true vampire tale without romance. As du Lac tells his tale, it becomes apparent that much of his history revolves around the hypnotizing Lestat, the vampire who first turned him and remained his lover for decades. As he recounts their tumultuous relationship and the life of their eventual daughter, “Interview with the Vampire” proves to be visually stunning, heartbreaking and steamy all at once. 

Written by: Savannah Anno — arts@theaggie.org

Film buffs descend on Davis to check out a wide variety of independent movies 

By ELIZABETH BUNT — arts@theaggie.org 

Film lovers packed into the red velvet seats at the Davis Veterans Memorial Theater for a series of independent movies, short features and documentaries on Nov. 3 from 2 to 9 p.m. Members from the production crews of each film were required to be in attendance and entered the stage at several points to receive awards and answer questions.  

The festival had two sections: one in the afternoon and one in the evening. The afternoon portion was open to all and showcased 11 short films, all under 25 minutes. The highlighted film of this section was “A Journey Home: The Story of Sahaya Vietnam,” a documentary that tells the story of a Davis-based non-profit organization that grew to be a major force of education and housing projects in Vietnam. After the showing, director Andy Lauer spoke about the project, took questions and accepted the Best Cinematography Award on behalf of his team.

A brief intermission was called at 5 p.m., and attendees were offered dinner and music from Americana band “According to Bazooka.” As an alternative to the live show, three extra films were played quietly in the theater. 

The evening section of the festival began after dinner and was restricted to mature audiences. The evening schedule featured three films: “The First Rule,” “Vasomotor Rhinitus” and “Sally!” which was the main event on the playbill.

“Sally!” — directed by Deborah Craig — tells the biographical story of lesbian, feminist activist Sally Gearhart. Gearhart spearheaded the lesbian feminist movement in San Francisco in the ‘70s and ‘80s. With the help of Harvey Milk, she defeated the Briggs Initiative in 1978, a proposition that would have banned gay and lesbian individuals from teaching in California public schools. Additionally, Gearhart was hired by San Francisco University in the ‘70s and established one of the first women’s studies departments in the country while also being the first openly lesbian professor in the nation to receive tenure. Despite these accomplishments, Gearhart’s name has been largely lost to history, along with many of the details of the lesbian feminist movement that took place so near and so recently. Craig’s adaptation of Gearhart’s story in “Sally!” hopes to reintroduce the movement and its key figures to collective memory. 

After the showing of Craig’s film, there was a second set of awards and Q&As. For her work, Craig was awarded Best Director of the Davis Film Festival. In the past month, “Sally!” has also won the Audience Award at the Seattle Queer Film Festival, Way Out West Film Fest and Pittsburgh LGBTQ+ Film Fest. 

Once the final awards had been handed out, the audience shuffled out, talking in groups of three or four about the films they’d watched over the course of the evening. The concession stand shut off its popcorn machine, and the theater closed and locked its doors. The little crowd dispersed, and after a few minutes it looked as if nothing at all had happened at the Veterans Memorial Theater that day. The Davis Film Festival occurred quietly, tucked away amongst residential neighborhoods. Its advertising was sparse; there were only one or two small signs outside of the theater itself. The people in attendance seemed mostly to be traveling the film festival circuit or associated with one or another film’s production. Still, it was not just an event for those entrenched in the independent film world. 

The Davis Film Festival showcased a handful of films you can’t see anywhere else as well as people who love to talk about them. Anyone who has any love for movies should mark their calendars for next year’s festival; it is a uniquely Davis event and offers an experience you won’t find at any other theaters in town. 

Written by Elizabeth Bunt —- arts@theaggie.org 

As the highly anticipated film adaptation of the musical releases later this month, watch these four films to get you in the musical spirit 

By AALIYAH ESPAÑOL-RIVAS — arts@theaggie.org 

“Hairspray” (2007) dir. Adam Shankman

“Hairspray,” originally debuting on Broadway in 2003 as an adaptation of a 1988 John Waters film, follows 16-year-old Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) who dreams of becoming a dancer on the popular variety show, “The Corny Collins Show.” However, Tracy’s weight and political views become a topic of conversation when she gains a spot on the show much to the dismay of the community. With an overarching theme of acceptance, the film brings viewers through the hardships of racial segregation and prejudice in the ‘60s. However, despite the ongoing tensions, Tracy begins to shake up the show with her forward thinking, advocating for racial integration on the show and body positivity. 

The film features many catchy songs, such as “You Can’t Stop the Beat,” “Good Morning Baltimore” and “Without Love.” With other big names at the time, the film also features actors Zac Efron (Link Larkin), Amanda Bynes (Penny Pingelton) and Elijah Kelley (Seaweed). The film is vibrant and grand, a fun watch if you’re just getting into Broadway musicals. 

“West Side Story” (2021) dir. Steven Spielberg

“West Side Story,” originally debuting on Broadway in 1957 by Stephen Sondhiem, is a modern retelling of the Shakespearean story of “Romeo and Juliet.” However, instead of Capulets and Montagues, there are the Jets, known as the white New Yorkers, and the Sharks, the newly immigrated Puerto Ricans. The film follows Maria (Rachel Zegler), whose family are all Sharks, and Tony (Ansel Elgort), who is a member of the Jets, as they fall in love much to the dismay of their family and friends. As race and turf tensions begin to arise between the two gangs, Maria and Tony have to decide: Is their love worth fighting over? 

Despite the popular film adaption of the musical in 1961, director Steven Spielberg aimed to reinvent the story to correct the racist depictions from the original film and musical. Despite the film flopping at the box office due to casting choices for the role of Tony, the film is absolutely breathtaking and enhanced with the vocals from Zegler and Ariana DeBose (Anita). The song sequence of  “America” alone perfectly encapsulates Spielberg’s aim to create a powerful and accurate depiction of Puerto Rican immigration in a racially polarized time period of the ‘50s. 

“Dreamgirls” (2006) dir. Bill Condon

“Dreamgirls,” originally debuting on Broadway in 1981, tells the semi-fictional story of many Black R&B acts in the time period of the ‘60s and ‘70s. The film follows “The Dreamettes,” loosely based off of the real life group “The Supremes,” as they make their rise in the music industry. They experience problems with the lead singer of the group not appealing to white audiences due to her weight, looks and soulful voice as well as issues with money laundering. The film takes multiple twists and turns to show the barriers Black singers had to overcome in the music industry.

The film is also backed by an impressive all-Black cast, with powerhouse vocals from Jennifer Hudson (Effie), Beyonce (Deena) and Anika Noni Rose (Lorell). Songs such as “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going,” “Listen” and “One Night Only” are absolutely heart wrenching. The film serves as a vast reminder of the resilience of the Black women who fought for visibility in the music industry and the challenges they had to overcome. 

“The Last Five Years” (2014) dir. Richard LaGravenese

“The Last Five Years,” originally debuting off-Broadway in 2002 but now slated for an official Broadway debut in March 2025, is an underrated pick amongst musical movies. Starring Anna Kendrick (Cathy) and Jeremy Jordan (Jamie), the film follows a nonlinear plot to tell the five-year relationship between Cathy and Jamie. For Cathy, the order of songs she sings goes from their divorce to the beginnings of the relationship, whereas Jamie’s songs start from the beginnings of their relationship to its eventual downfall. 

The songs such as “I Can Do Better Than That,” “Moving Too Fast” and “See I’m Smiling,” are beautiful songs that encapsulate the harrowing relationship problems the two characters face as they grapple with their past and present. Jordan and Kendrick, two previous Broadway actors, show the two perspectives of a breakup incredibly well, proving there are always two sides to every story.

Written by: AalIyah Español-Rivas — arts@theaggie.org