Elina Shatkin

Written and photographed for LAist by Cecil Castellucci, author of The Plain Janes and Beige. More pics available here. Yesterday, I went to go check out the action at the LA Convention Center, which is playing host to Star Wars Celebration IV. It was the preview Fan Day for the Official Star Wars Fan Club members. I'm member number one bagazillion. I'm not going to lie. I have a love hate relationship with Star Wars....

Ventriloquism -- like terrestrial radio, like film projecting -- is a dying art, but British ventriloquist Nina Conti and her simian friend Monk singlehandedly make a case for bringing it back. With his doleful eyes, dour little old man voice and the most expressive face I've ever seen on a puppet, Monk is a work of pure genius. And Conti's ability to throw her voice is unparalleld. Nina & Monk may well be the funniest...

Watching the mainstream media hate on bloggers is becoming something of a sport, but if I were the betting type I wouldn't put my money on old school, print media. LA Times critic Richard Schickel is the latest to jump on the bandwagon. I like the Schickel's writing. I think he's a smart guy, and I respect his criticism. But he seems lost about the direction the publishing industry is heading. Schickel is absolutely...

Reviewed for LAist by David Grossman. When I hear the name Goethe (pronounced ger-the), my mind goes to the writer's remarkably sad book The Sorrows of a Young Werther and the copycat suicides that it inspired (a trend only slightly more bothersome then hearing people still say "Not!" à la Borat). Despite the gloomy connotations of its name, the Goethe Institute has found a way to stage some pretty cool events like this year's "Starring...

Diary Of A Mad Housewife & The Last Of Sheila It's another crazy 1970s double feature. Directed by Frank Perry Diary Of A Mad Housewife stars Carrie Snodgress (rocker Neil Young's girlfriend for a time in the 70s) and Richard Benjamin as a young, well-to-do Manhattan couple whose marriage hits the skids thanks to obnoxious, self-absorbed hubby. The film feels dated, but Snodgress' Oscar-nominated performance still rings true. The gem on tonight's double bill is...

Last night the Mann Village theater in Westwood hosted the premiere of writer Judd Apatow's latest comedy, Knocked Up. The movie is hilarious! From start to finish. And worth watching multiple times. But we'll save the review for another day. Here are some snaps from the post-premiere party, which was held at a dolled-up parking lot adjacent to the theater. All photos taken by Rob Takata for LAist....

The premise of CBS' upcoming Kid Nation may be the BEST idea for a reality show I have ever heard in my entire life: a group of 8 to 15-year-olds are plunked in a remote locale and forced to create their own society. Awesome! So awesome that William Golding's estate ought to sue for residuals, right? Too bad spineless CBS execs already f*ed up the show by allowing kids to leave when they want and...

We're all about creative dissent here at LAist. You got the pro view on the new Star-Vu Drive-In from Ryan Young. Now for something completely different. Here's an opposing take on the Star-Vu experience written especially for LAist by Josh Tate. The words of Ian Malcolm troubled me as I surged onto the 405-N. "Dinosaurs had their shot and Nature selected them for extinction." The last three and a half hours of my life had...

Two segments of a DIY animated show about magical unicorns, one of whom is named Tom Cruise and had a pink mini-mohawk....

Picture yourself lounging on a divan surrounded by nubile, young interns fanning you with palm leaves and feeding you peeled Muscat grapes, as you type yet another hilarious stream-of-consciousness film review for Los Angeles' leading group blog. Sound too good to be true? It isn't. It's a typical workday here at LAist headquarters, AKA Tony Pierce's lavish hilltop mansion, where the weed flows like water and the toilet paper is made of silk. All this...