Mars Volta “Frances the Mute” Universal An innocuous guitar gradually invades the air as a disembodied voice croons a soft verse. Suddenly the situation spirals out of control into an explosion of white noise, beckoning listeners into a macabre landscape of manifested nightmares. Read more...

From Romeo and Juliet to Leo and Kate on their sinking ship, the story of star-crossed lovers has been told and retold to an immeasurable degree. Read more...

“Imaginary Heroes” Directed by Dan Harris Sony Pictures Classics Although images of dysfunctional white suburbia bring films such as “American Beauty” and “The Ice Storm” to mind, “Imaginary Heroes” has a much stronger melodramatic tendency in which the story has closer similarities to a soap opera. Read more...

Flying dummies, pill popping and orgies flood the absurd, while floating hoop skirts, dinner parties and love express the en vogue. Satire takes two opposite forms in the theater as a 1920s Polish comedy and a 19th-century American comedy of manners strike the stage. Read more...

I’ve always wondered why everyone gets so worked up about the Oscars. I mean, what’s so great about that gold statue that can make people go more nuts and generate more talk than any other award out there year after year? Read more...

While many bands brand themselves with political banners in light of current events, a lesser known band seeks to shed light on less publicized issues. In an effort to join this musical bandwagon of the day’s unresolved issues, The Apex Theory will perform today at UCLA’s Awareness 2005, an event hosted by the Armenian Students Association in conjunction with other student and non-student groups to educate the community about historical and current political and social issues ““ specifically acts of genocide. Read more...

After class last Friday, I went back to my place, plunked down in front of my computer, and checked my e-mail. That doesn’t sound like a big deal, but hard to believe as it is, it marked a momentous turning point in the school year for me, one that will significantly alter my daily routine for the foreseeable future. Read more...