CHOUNG | Cluttered Collections 

I have often used my articles as another coping mechanism because I wanted someone out there to resonate with my feelings and to help me be heard on my struggles. In hindsight, I realized that I never really allowed myself to settle into college. It may sound obvious and strange but I never realized the importance of giving yourself grace and time to settle in. 

You Better Make Room for This Film

I went into Room knowing nothing other than that a mother and son are stuck in a room. For some reason, I was under the incorrect impression that this was a sci-fi plot, derivative of a Twilight Zone episode I had seen years ago. I don’t think this counts as a spoiler, but Room is very much grounded in a terrifying reality. Told from the five-year-old Jack’s (Jacob Tremblay) perspective, Room tells the story of Jack and his mother, ‘Ma,’ aka Joy (Brie Larson), who are prisoners in a tiny tool shed. Joy had been kidnapped seven years earlier, at the age of seventeen.

Guest Room | Some Last Minute Best Picture Reflections

If you were to ask last November which movie was poised to win the 2015 Best Picture at this year’s Academy Awards, a strong majority would subscribe to Carol as first-in-line for Oscar gold, as Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara crafted a dynamically real and voyeuristic affair. The queer-centric film was heavily lauded by critics not only for those performances, but also for its message that is breaking ground for gay rights and equality. As a result, I was left scrambling for clarification when the nominees were announced and Carol was surprisingly omitted. Thus, the question remains: who will win the ultimate award of Best Picture? If the past is indicative of anything, it is that unpredictability is inevitable.