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Articles by Eric Althoff

Lumina Foundation CEO Jamie Merisotis says U.S. needs to revamp labor departments

Jamie Merisotis wants to revamp the way the U.S. sees its labor pool. The Indianapolis-based member of the Council on Foreign Relations and CEO of Lumina Foundation for education believes that the federal government needs to refocus to attract the best possible talent to fill the growing needs of America's job sectors. "I'm not advocating for more government, I'm advocating for a realignment in what we do at the federal level," Mr. Merisotis said.

January 19, 2016
(AndrewLeaheymusic.com)

Andrew Leahey & The Homestead to appear at D.C.’s Hill Country BBQ

Andrew Leahey, whose band calls both Nashville and Richmond, Virginia, home, knew that he had to release an album after a 2013 brain cancer scare, so the singer/songwriter pulled out all the stops for this self-titled debut for Thirty Tigers. He will appear at the District's Hill Country BBQ, located at 410 Seventh Street NW, on Feb. 4 at 8:30 p.m. There is no cover charge.

January 17, 2016
(Amazon)

Josh Abbott Band to appear at D.C.’s 9:30 Club Jan. 28

Texans Josh Abbott Band are embarking on their first headlining tour in 2016, including an upcoming stop at the District's 9:30 Club Jan. 28. On the toe-tapping new disc "Front Row Seat," Mr. Abbott and his Lone Star cronies pony up some celebratory country/bluegrass that's an ode to both their home state and the musical stylings that brought them up.

January 14, 2016

Scott Ian of Anthrax says people who tell him he’s too old to rock are ‘idiots’

Scott Ian has been rocking out for over three decades, but he and his Anthrax bandmates have no plans to slow it down. In fact, when asked what he would say to people who tell him rock is strictly for the young, Mr. Ian, 52, says he has a simple yet eloquent response at the ready: "I would tell them they're an idiot, and to stop talking to me."

January 14, 2016
Geza Rohrig (left) and Laszlo Nemes, from "Son of Saul" pose at The 41st Annual Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards at the InterContinental hotel on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016 in Los Angeles. (Photo by Danny Moloshok/Invision/AP)

‘Son of Saul’ filmmakers warn genocide can happen again

Some pundits say that making films about the Holocaust is impossible -- that its horror simply cannot be recreated on film, and that any attempts to do so run the risk of seeming either prurient or futile. However, the new film "Son of Saul" attempts to showcase the savagery of seven decades ago from ground level, with its tale of a Hungarian "Sonderkommando" named Saul Auslander (Geza Rohrig), one of thousands of Jewish prisoners who were forced by the Nazis to dispose of the bodies of their departed neighbors, friends and relatives in the concentration camps.

January 13, 2016
The Norfolk shipyards harbor. (Eric Althoff)

Norfolk, Virginia, offers travel treasures not far from D.C.

It's a good three-hour drive from the nation's capital to scenic Norfolk, Virginia, a port city that sits at the extreme southeastern corner of the Commonwealth, where the James River meets up with the Chesapeake Bay as both collectively empty eastward into the Atlantic. Norfolk has its own history and culinary and artistic secrets as well, as I discovered during a two-day sortie from the hustle and bustle of D.C. to ring in the new year.

January 7, 2016

D.C. middle schoolers compete on two Food Network shows

Helping out in the kitchen has gotten two District middle school children on "Kids Baking Championship" and "Chopped Jr." on The Food Network. While both Virginia young men had to maintain strict secrecy about their involvement in the shows -- and their eventual outcomes -- their embargo of silence has been lifted ahead of next week's premieres, giving both of the lads a certain fame among their peers.

December 31, 2015
In this image released by Lionsgate, Benicio Del Toro appears in a scene from "Sicario." (Richard Foreman Jr./Lionsgate via AP)

Top 10 films of 2015

It's been an interesting year at the movies. More than anything, the best of 2015 was defined by strong performances that elevated the source material to new heights. Between established screen veterans and newer actors, 2015 was indeed the year of the thespian.

December 30, 2015
This image released by The Weinstein Company shows Samuel L. Jackson in a scene from "The Hateful Eight." The movie opens in U.S. theaters on Jan. 1, 2016. (Andrew Cooper/The Weinstein Company via AP)

REVIEW: ‘Hateful Eight’ showcases Quentin Tarantino’s talents and his flaws

So here now is "The Hateful Eight," Quentin Tarantino's Western that is neither homage nor antithesis of the genre. Similar to Mr. Tarantino's previous films, it is unclassifiable and belongs in its own category of movies that exist solely within the Tarantino universe. And that is fine, up to a certain point.

December 23, 2015
Bruce Willis in a scene from "Die Hard." (originalprop.com)

Christmas action movies provide holiday entertainment alternatives

A segment of the movie-appreciating public spins movie discs that utilize the holiday season as the backdrop for for an entirely different type of yuletide joy: action movies. So if you're one of the chosen few who appreciates "Christmas action movies," here are eight alternative holiday flicks to ease the pain of family visits and fruit cakes. And just because it's Christmas doesn't mean you have to stop enjoying your entertainment loudly and explosively. For as Hans Gruber once observed: "Now I have a machine gun. Ho...ho...ho."

December 22, 2015
James Stewart (left), Donna Reed and Thomas Mitchell appear in "It's a Wonderful Life."

Best Christmas films to watch this year

What makes a film a Christmas "classic," i.e., one audiences return to year after year after year for repeat viewing, sometimes years or even decades after first appearing on the scene? For our purposes, let's say that a "classic Christmas film" equals quality plus repeatability plus a general sense of cultural acceptance into the canon. Here are top 12 greats and some dark horse candidates worth another look this holiday season.

December 17, 2015
This photo provided by Disney/Lucasfilm shows stormtroopers in a scene from the new film, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." The movie releases in the U.S. on Dec. 18, 2015. (Film Frame/Lucasfilm via AP)

REVIEW: ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ a return to adventure minus the human heart

After a decade of no films -- and 32 years since the last with the classic cast -- J.J. Abrams takes audiences back to that galaxy far, far away this week with "The Force Awakens," picking up 30 years after "Return of the Jedi." It is a welcome return, but one nonetheless somewhat cursed by the collective memory of the original trilogy.

December 16, 2015