The Atlantic's Week in Culture

Don’t Miss

The United States of Billy Joel—Adam Chandler investigates how the Piano Man, who hasn’t released a new pop album since 1993, continues to sell out stadiums.

Film

What’s in Store at This Year’s Cannes Film Festival—David Sims reports on the surprising titles to screen next month in France, including episodes of David Lynch’s Twin Peaks and Jane Campion’s Top of the Lake.

Unforgettable Is the Opposite of Its Title—Christopher Orr bemoans the new female-stalker movie starring Rosario Dawson and Katherine Heigl.

Why Fast & Furious Needs to Go Small to Survive—David Sims makes the case for a back-to-basics approach for the high-flying franchise.

A Quiet Passion Is a Biopic With Poetic Scope—David Sims enjoys Terence Davies’s new film about the reclusive, and sometimes frustrating, life of Emily Dickinson.

Free Fire Brings the Guns, but Forgets the Characters—David Sims argues that Ben Wheatley’s latest film, a 90-minute shoot-out in an empty warehouse, is exactly as interesting as that sounds.

Television

What Was Missing From the Girls Finale—Sophie Gilbert laments the disappointing ending to the HBO series.

The Leftovers: Seven-Year Itch—Spencer Kornhaber and Sophie Gilbert unpack the premiere of the HBO show’s final season.

In Fargo Season 3, a Family Feud Turns Bloody—Lenika Cruz weighs in on the return of Noah Hawley’s anthology series, which stars Ewan McGregor.

Why Was Bill O’Reilly Really Fired?—Megan Garber explains how the host’s ouster serves as an object lesson about what happens when morality and money come to a head.

Stephen Colbert’s Alex Jones Parody Is Hardly a Parody—David Sims recaps the Late Show host’s take on the embattled InfoWars conspiracy theorist, who now claims he’s been “in character” for years.

Veep’s Return Brings Bad News for Selina Meyer—Megan Garber discusses the HBO show’s return for a sixth season.

The Americans Offers a Rare Lesson in Humility—Megan Garber weighs in on the latest episode of the FX series.

Books

A Graphic-Novel Memoir That Tangles With the Puzzle of Existence—Arnav Adhikari reviews Kristen Radtke’s Imagine Wanting Only This, which fuses existential prose and breathtaking illustration.

When Writing Is Actually About Waiting—Joe Fassler talks to The Good Thief author Hannah Tinti about what she learned about patience and risk from the T.S. Eliot poem “East Coker,” as part of The Atlantic’s ongoing “By Heart” series.

The Thrill and Pain of Inventing Angela Carter—Jeff VanderMeer explores a new biography by Edmund Gordon, which takes an exhaustive and meticulous look at the revered British author.

Podcasts

The Podcast Spreading the Love of Cowboy Culture—Carson Vaughan listens to a new audio series that aims to connect a vibrant community of western poets, singers, and storytellers with a wider audience.

Art

Remembering Barkley L. Hendricks, Master of Black Postmodern Portraiture—Kriston Capps pays tribute to the work of the late painter, who documented the African American figure as a cultural, and commodified, phenomenon.

Music

Kendrick Lamar and the Sin of Swagger—Spencer Kornhaber listens to the Compton rapper’s excellent new album Damn.