Arts Criticism | The Collective

The Collective

Fall 2022

A picture of promotional artwork for the video game Cyberpunk 2077. A woman with a bionic arm and bright purple hair cut into a half shaved style stands in the foreground next to a large robot. The background consists of a sci-fi city with various signs written in kanji.

The Recent Decline of Product Quality in the Video Games Industry

by Alexis Askew There is no denying that the video game industry has come a long way in the last few decades. What started out as a means to test missile trajectories turned into a source of entertainment for children and adults alike. Video games are revolutionary; they are always testing the boundaries of…

Blonde: Disappointing but Beautiful

By: Adalei Stevens Edited by: Laura Power Blonde is Andrew Dominik’s film adaptation of Joyce Carol Oates’ bestselling 2000 historical-fiction novel of the same name. The self-described “biographical” film lazily retells the familiar narrative of Marilyn Monroe: a sexually promiscuous yet infantile victim of Hollywood who met a tragic demise. While aesthetically impressive, Blonde…

The Meaning Behind Warsan Shire’s “For Women Who are ‘Difficult’ to Love”

By: Sarah Tibbitts Edited By: Samuel Line Warsan Shire is a Somali British poet and writer. She has an impressive collection of works including two chapbooks, Teaching My Mother How to Give Birth and Her Blue Body, as well as a full-length debut poetry collection, titled, Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her…

Slasher Films & Why We Love Them

Cailyn Lockwood Edited by: Amber Atkinson Slasher Films & Why We Love Them Halloween is right around the corner so, of course, candy corn, jack-o-lanterns, and sexy women being violently murdered are all trending again. This year, as I was considering which version of the “blonde woman with minimal clothing…

Harry Potter: The Subtext Behind the Texts

By: Alix Wells Edited by: Jacquelyn Medley The magic of Harry Potter has been a household topic in many homes for the past two decades. This literary epic takes readers of all ages on a journey not only to save the British magical community but the battles through the growing pains of becoming…

Peach State: Pitch Perfect

By: Jackson Hunter Rock In the late 1960’s The Allan Brothers were performing in Piedmont Park, Atlanta. Meanwhile, the members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, the legendary 70’s band, sat and watched in awe as Duane Allman ripped a mesmerizing slide guitar solo up and…

Stop-Motion Animation in Horror

By: Jacquelyn Medley The Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline, and Paranorman are just a few well-known examples of stop-motion animation in the horror genre. Stop-motion animation is a filming technique that involves taking a series of slightly different photos one after the other and then combining them to create the illusion of motion. But what exactly…

Representation of Same-Sex Relationships

By: Samuel Line When we look to relationships in media what do we typically see? The honest answer is that we see what will sell the best. People are so starved for any same-sex relationships that any relationship between two characters of the same gender is likely to become seen as a homosexual relationship. I…