Brendan Howard has a whole truckload of perspectives and two-bit opinions, and he has never been skittish about sharing them with the world. Here's a taste of his media criticism, essays, interviews, blog posts, and opinion pieces written through the years.
FILM & TV REVIEWS
OPINION & PERSPECTIVE
PILLS FOR SALE
Boston's premier power pop combo is ready to explode into the collective subconscious. Here's a portrait of a band on the verge of stardom. (Originally published in The Noise, 11/1998.)
I WOULD DIE 4 U: THE WISDOM BEHIND PRINCE'S NAME CHANGE
Was Prince crazy for changing his name to an unpronounceable symbol? Maybe not.... (Originally published in Hopscotch, Spring 1997.)
DON'T YOU THINK? AN OPEN LETTER TO ALANIS MORISSETTE
Peeling back the layers of the most successful female artist of the alternative era, and failing to find anything within. (Originally published in Hopscotch, Spring 1997.)
WANNABE, MMMBOP
AND OTHER PROFOUND STATEMENTS
A point-by-point dismissal of popular attitudes about the Spice Girls, Hanson, Fiona Apple and Jewel.
Tom Cruise's career on the big screen is examined, revealing the negative impact of superstardom on the art of film.
THEY'RE NOT YOUR FRIENDS
What does this NBC sitcom have that everybody wants so badly? (Originally published in Hopscotch, Spring 1997.)
HOLY CRAP, BATMAN!
While Bruce Wayne's alter ego has grossed over a billion dollars at the box office, those flicks are creatively bankrupt. A rant to end all rants.
A twentysomething meditation on what it was like to be single when the year 1999 became 2000. Millennium shmillennium.
HEAD + CONCRETE = ARTIST
A portrait of the artist as a dumb kid, written for an application to film school at USC, included here for your amusement.