| 单词 | contrived |
| 例句 | Those words “I want a raise” sounded contrived and comical. Americanah 2013-05-14T00:00:00Z The story was clever enough to have had by itself, in all probability, the desired effect; but Poseidon, the most bitter of all the gods against Troy, contrived an addition which made the issue certain. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes 1942-01-01T00:00:00Z The noxious air of the hold, the gloom of confinement, and the screams of those shackled to her contrived to drive Ajarry to madness. The Underground Railroad: A Novel 2016-08-02T00:00:00Z They made a perfectly complementary pair, Thorne a skillful salesman who hawked the securities transactions contrived by the introverted Alfred. Big Science 2015-07-07T00:00:00Z Daedalus was the architect who had contrived the Labyrinth for the Minotaur in Crete, and who showed Ariadne how Theseus could escape from it. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes 1942-01-01T00:00:00Z It had been contrived as a way of letting Winston know O’Brien’s address. 1984 1949-06-08T00:00:00Z If Gollum had contrived to follow them, he remained unseen and unheard. The Fellowship of the Ring 1954-07-29T00:00:00Z Vermont is Volvos and antique shops and country inns with cutely contrived names like Quail Hollow Lodge and Fiddlehead Farm Inn. A Walk in the Woods 1997-11-01T00:00:00Z With an alphabet on the hearth at my feet for reference, I contrived in an hour or two to print and smear this epistle:— Great Expectations 1861-08-01T00:00:00Z Not the most sophisticated plan ever contrived, but the only one they had. Beasts of Prey 2021-09-28T00:00:00Z But my mother was blessed that her village was one of the places where a mission school had contrived to stay open in spite of the government’s Bantu education policies. Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood 2016-11-15T00:00:00Z “Not yet? Not if some better way can be contrived?” The Fellowship of the Ring 1954-07-29T00:00:00Z And so, by dint of alternate coaxing and commanding, he contrived to get them all once more enclosed in their separate dormitories. Jane Eyre 1847-10-16T00:00:00Z By means of them he contrived to persuade the people just as he used to persuade a man. Words Like Loaded Pistols 2011-10-20T00:00:00Z She went to a closet contrived of a calico curtain hung across a corner of the room and got the felt hat she had worn. The Sound and the Fury 1929-01-01T00:00:00Z Was my father, as he crouched behind the arras, yet another unwilling player in a drama contrived by Claudius? Ophelia 2006-10-31T00:00:00Z I knew they’d contrived the trip to get my mind off things. Red Kayak 2004-09-23T00:00:00Z A rumour went round that Snowball had after all contrived to introduce poison into Napoleon’s food. Animal Farm: A Fairy Story 1945-08-17T00:00:00Z It was probably as contrived as everything else about him. We Are the Ants 2016-01-19T00:00:00Z On the all-important question of sovereignty, the same artfully contrived ambiguity also obtained: Sovereignty did not reside with the federal government or the individual states; it resided with “the people.” Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation 2000-10-17T00:00:00Z It was possible that the whole situation was contrived to try to get me to escape, though I do not think that was the case. Long Walk to Freedom 1994-01-01T00:00:00Z And she took their ragged clothes and with thread she herself spun on a bamboo spindle from a wad of cotton she mended and contrived to cover the rents in their winter clothes. The Good Earth 1931-03-02T00:00:00Z “Let me help you here, sir,” the ticket seller said, in that comically contrived “white” accent that uneducated people liked to put on. Half of a Yellow Sun 2006-09-12T00:00:00Z Guenever alone had contrived to keep the raven on her head. The Once and Future King 1958-01-01T00:00:00Z How that was contrived we cannot guess; but Gollum is cunning, and the spies of the Enemy are many. The Fellowship of the Ring 1954-07-29T00:00:00Z They sent the cunning Hermes to his assistance, who contrived stealthily by night to get him out of his prison. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes 1942-01-01T00:00:00Z No one wanted this to be an ordinary seance, meaning one that was contrived by the medium. Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith 2009-01-01T00:00:00Z When it was finished they went within and with one mat she had contrived not to use they made a floor and sat down and were sheltered. The Good Earth 1931-03-02T00:00:00Z By comparison, the chariot costume seems garish, the interview dress too contrived. The Hunger Games 2008-09-14T00:00:00Z His voice was loud, contrived; it was as if he was acting and very aware of himself in the role of the bully. Half of a Yellow Sun 2006-09-12T00:00:00Z Their evidence against Sula was contrived, but their conclusions about her were not. Sula 1973-11-01T00:00:00Z On the former score, Adams had the misfortune to become the first occupant of what he described as “the most insignificant office that ever the Invention of Man contrived or his Imagination conceived.” Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation 2000-10-17T00:00:00Z Stendahl drank it in, the dreariness, the oppression, the fetid vapors, the whole “atmosphere,” so delicately contrived and fitted. The Martian Chronicles 1950-01-01T00:00:00Z I did not fear her revenge, for I did not think her clever enough to suspect that I had contrived the events of that night. Ophelia 2006-10-31T00:00:00Z It might, he added, be contrived of silver and precious stones and serve incidentally as a ducal chalice. Cosmos 1980-01-01T00:00:00Z While he had fewer tattoos than his companion, they were more elaborate—not the self-inflicted work of an amateur but epics of the art contrived by Honolulu and Yokohama masters. In Cold Blood 1966-01-01T00:00:00Z She was dressed as though she were going on safari, and contrived to be glamorous about it, too. Code Name Verity 2012-05-15T00:00:00Z But at last she said: ‘Lords, you are weary and shall now go to your beds with such ease as can be contrived in haste. But tomorrow fairer housing shall be found for you.’ The Return of the King 1955-10-20T00:00:00Z These were gratifying victories; prison is contrived to make one feel powerless, and this was one of the few ways to move the system. Long Walk to Freedom 1994-01-01T00:00:00Z Ere long, with the servant’s aid, I contrived to mount a staircase; my dripping clothes were removed; soon a warm, dry bed received me. Jane Eyre 1847-10-16T00:00:00Z Alice turned and walked back to the cluster of stalls, her gait dainty and contrived, as though a misguided person had taught her how to walk “like a lady.” Half of a Yellow Sun 2006-09-12T00:00:00Z Another group raided a hardware store, bought a roll of tar paper, and contrived to make raincoats out of it. The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics 2014-05-27T00:00:00Z Now I realize that Kwang has contrived that the girl is here for me. Native Speaker 1995-01-01T00:00:00Z We calculated that if we earned eight annas each day and contrived to live on four, we could save the money we needed to return in forty days. Nectar in a Sieve 1954-01-01T00:00:00Z It was one of those pictures which are so contrived that the eyes follow you about when you move. 1984 1949-06-08T00:00:00Z Banging his knee against the golden lard bucket he used for school lunch, he contrived a good bass drum, while his tongue fluttered sharply against his teeth to fill in snare drums and occasional trumpets. The Red Pony 1937-01-01T00:00:00Z They drew back from the horrible banquet and they turned upon the criminal who had contrived it. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes 1942-01-01T00:00:00Z After the midday meal, I contrived to overturn the pitcher that held the tea water, dumping it on the floor. Chains 2008-01-01T00:00:00Z Oppenheimer duly contrived “an elegant theory to rationalize these results,” and when Bohr came for his visit, the work was trotted out for him as a showpiece of Rad Lab science. Big Science 2015-07-07T00:00:00Z The man across the wall shuffled through a bunch of photographs in a plastic sachet, with an air of contrived interest. The God of Small Things 1997-01-01T00:00:00Z “Redneck Vacation,” the more contrived setup, may prove to have more oomph over the long run, perhaps because the specter of returning to how life always has been never looms very far away. | 'Bayou Billionaires' and 'My Big Redneck Vacation': 2 Families Face a Gust of Fortune 2012-01-21T00:37:32Z When the character played by Thulin, who had starred in Bergman’s masterly Wild Strawberries, mutilates herself with broken glass, the sceptical observer may see a contrived or even self-parodic flourish. Bergman: why are the great director's women all tragi-sexual goddesses? 2018-02-04T05:00:00Z It felt a little slapdash for these two professionals, and it wasn’t the only thing about the episode that seemed thinner and more contrived than usual. ‘The Americans’ Season 5, Episode 13: Deus ex Kimmy 2017-05-30T04:00:00Z And a secondary character, Aliya’s grandfather, claims deafness primarily when he desires it but steps up at critical moments, making his actions sometimes seem contrived. A young woman caught between Pakistan and the West 2017-11-30T05:00:00Z All this stuff, all these contrived signs of the artist's passage, must mean something. Monkeying with Mozart: the striking art of Helen Marten 2012-11-25T20:00:05Z Week after week Lubbock contrived his arresting images, given free rein to comment on the news or just to let his imagination roam. Tom Lubbock: the pain and the pleasure 2010-12-13T17:00:00Z It's a reflection of how contrived the screenplay by Gennarino is. 'After' could have used a lot more work before 2014-08-14T04:00:00Z The concert opened with an overly meticulous, contrived account of Beethoven's "Leonore" Overture No. 3. L.A. Phil concert favors theatrics over polished music-making 2016-11-27T05:00:00Z “People want things that aren’t contrived,” he said, pulling at his own shirt to drive the point home. Is It Street Wear or Is It Art? 2020-10-13T04:00:00Z On “Big,” the opener here as on the album, his solo conveyed intelligence and control but never a sense of the contrived. Music Review: Calm Demeanor, Assertive Sounds 2011-05-09T22:16:50Z I thought Shape of Water felt forced and contrived and the dance dream segment was clunky. ‘The Shape of Water’ Wins Best Picture as Oscars Project Diversity 2018-03-04T05:00:00Z This is where, in a contrived bid to win back the affections of his estranged wife, Larry David organised a Seinfeld reunion that brought all the cast back together to the Seinfeld set. A Seinfeld revival? Here's what they need to do to get it right 2018-02-14T05:00:00Z Aside from a few bravura scenes here and there, this self-conscious, tricked-up volume consists largely of gruesome anecdotes — which feel contrived for maximum gross-out value — desultorily strung together like ugly beads on a filthy string. Book Of The Times: Book Review: ‘Dead Stars,’ by Bruce Wagner 2012-08-10T06:30:09Z The first season of "Bridgerton" had an elaborate series of ruses contrived to keep the lovers apart for as long as possible, ranging from the accurate to the absurd. Dearest "Bridgerton" viewer, loosen your corset because this season smolders to the very end 2022-03-25T04:00:00Z It’s a contrived device, but within its narrow parameters, lively, funny speeches locate the humor in panic and desperation. | 'Den of Thieves': Imperfect Crime, Indelicate Outcome 2010-08-25T22:08:00Z This brisk, efficient film is set to a catchy soundtrack. and it is fun, albeit contrived, to hear "I've Gotta Be Me," or "The Impossible Dream," as Hutch takes care of business. In the joyfully violent "Nobody," Bob Odenkirk channels his inner John Wick 2021-03-26T04:00:00Z Focusing on R&B only when it has a contrived "weird" or "arty" angle, as per the Weeknd, is to fail to adequately engage with its form and its values. Real R&B fans aren't waiting for the Weeknd 2011-03-29T08:50:31Z There’s some contrived dialogue, and not all of the performances are at the same level. What You Should Watch This Week: ‘Greenleaf’ and ‘Thirteen’ 2016-06-20T04:00:00Z The first sex scene between Anne and Gustav pushes boundaries of explicitness, but the physical action is so transparently contrived that it’s very nearly ridiculous rather than shocking. ‘Queen of Hearts’ Review: A Gut-Wrenching Family Drama 2019-10-31T04:00:00Z You can sense how closely they worked together, but the effect is contrived, as is the busy choreography for the group known as the Workers Chorus. There’s Great Dance on Broadway. Hello, Tony Awards? 2019-05-29T04:00:00Z Two of the entries in this collection are contrived, schematic exercises that never really engage the reader’s attention. Books of The Times: ‘Vampires in the Lemon Grove,’ by Karen Russell 2013-02-04T22:45:07Z There are Enlightenment bodies in Elysium, contrived by landscape gardeners; and their successors, citizens of the world, in cosmopolitan cemeteries. Dust to dust 2015-11-26T05:00:00Z If the original villa was a place for sophisticated townies to party in a contrived version of nature, the cafe is also urbane. Chiswick House: 2010-06-12T23:04:00Z The cut screened for me and other critics ended with a contrived but emotionally effective coup de théâtre that dares the viewer to call it cheap. Review: In ‘Fahrenheit 11/9,’ Michael Moore Targets Trump, and Us 2018-09-20T04:00:00Z But the thing about suicide is that we can never know why, which means these attempts at resolution must be contrived. In Ronald Fraser's 'Drought,' outsider gets in path of village's future 2015-07-24T04:00:00Z While Mamet’s milieu was a seedy real estate operation, King’s is the contrived glamour of beauty products. Review | ‘White Pearl’ is an amusing take on the beauty business. But watch out — things get ugly. 2019-11-13T05:00:00Z It is a shame that this carefully constructed plan starts to feel contrived. Revenge never tasted so deliciously venomous in the slick and twisty "Promising Young Woman" 2020-12-24T05:00:00Z Many of the movie’s most memorable dialogue involving Bogart’s cutting witticisms and Jones’s contrived innocence can be found in Cockburn’s novel. ‘Beat the Devil,’ the Bogart Flop That Spawned a Cult 2019-03-29T04:00:00Z Unstoppable and still thrilling: the contrived becomes real. The 20 best glam-rock songs of all time 2013-02-01T07:00:00Z “They’re both contrived, artificial versions of the real thing without any connection to nature or the outdoors.” Social Climbing Has a Whole New Meaning 2019-11-14T05:00:00Z Dexter Dalwood's paintings seemed to me too brittle, too clever and contrived to win. Turner Prize winner Susan Philipsz: an expert view 2010-12-06T19:45:00Z That approach was driven by the clients’ desire to accommodate large, striking contemporary artworks in an inviting domestic setting redolent of history—however contrived—as opposed to clinical white contemporary rooms. A Historic Boston Townhouse Gets A Glam Update 2015-01-06T05:00:00Z Like most melodramas meant to uplift, "Unconditional" is contrived and simplistic. 'Unconditional': a religious message, shouted softly 2012-09-20T20:49:08Z It aims for a spirited sprint across the finish line with Travis kidnapping little Harrison, but it's all a bit contrived. TV highlights 15/06/2012 2012-06-14T18:59:01Z It's true, too, that this episode was more jumbled than usual, and was contrived in many ways. ‘Billions’ Season 2, Episode 10: Nonconformity 2017-04-23T04:00:00Z But the film, about the domestic and street ordeals of a drug dealer, also teems with one too many contrived, overheated situations. Movie Listings for Nov. 20-26 2015-11-19T05:00:00Z “The Experiment” was originally envisioned as a “meta room,” meant to examine our urge to let a contrived experience substitute for real life. In a virtual escape room, a family finds clues for getting through the pandemic 2020-07-23T04:00:00Z The slick, carefully contrived elegance of Bacon’s paint handling is regularly interrupted by oozing discharges of color. 'London Calling' at the Getty and the tension between abstract and figurative painting 2016-07-29T04:00:00Z However, I couldn't help feeling that this was a slight and contrived piece, compared to his earlier work. Cannes 2013: Grigris – first look review 2013-05-22T08:26:08Z Nothing felt, as it often can in Mahler performances, contrived or done simply for effect. Music Review: A Conquering Climax to a Tribute to Mahler 2011-02-28T23:16:12Z So it was a contrived posh accent she developed under Reece's guidance. Does Meryl Streep shine as the Iron Lady? 2011-07-07T14:51:30Z Coyne stopped short of saying Badu's reaction was contrived, but said she and her management certainly knew what was going down as they spent two days filming. Unbowed by Badu blowup, Coyne, Lips aim for record 2012-06-26T12:35:08Z All three fit with ease into McAnuff's staging, which is well thought-out in its details, even if the notion of Faust as inventor of the atom bomb seems as contrived as ever. Review: Alagna as a cartwheeling `Faust' at Met 2011-12-24T21:31:04Z “My tolerance for the contrived is less and less,” says Penn. Sean Penn, with daughter Dylan, directs again in ‘Flag Day’ 2021-08-17T04:00:00Z “Ultimate Survival” is too contrived to be truly compelling, as is “Ice Cold Gold,” which turned up in April on Animal Planet. Critic’s Notebook: ‘Ultimate Survival: Alaska’ and ‘Ice Cold Gold’ 2013-05-10T21:41:17Z The cantilevered balances the performers wrangle one another into are contrived for visual effect, but few of the visual effects are worth the contrivance. Dance Review: ?Last Touch First? at the Joyce Theater 2012-04-11T21:32:21Z Those sorts of elisions, combined with a contrived ending straight out of a “Twilight Zone” rerun, blunt much of the play's essential horror – a shame, considering the obvious potential of Petti's otherwise gripping drama. One family's cry of the 'Banshee' at Theatre of NOTE 2014-10-09T04:00:00Z The travails of Shep’s best friend and colleague, Jackson, are no doubt meant to serve as a sort of narrative counterpoint, but there is something self-consciously contrived about his dilemmas. Books of The Times: America?s Health Care Crisis Visits Families, and Stays 2010-03-01T22:49:00Z As “Fooling Houdini” explains, Mr. Stone did set himself the kind of tasks that often make books about studied self-improvement so contrived. Books of The Times: ‘Fooling Houdini’ by Alex Stone 2012-06-20T20:11:57Z What was somewhat awkward about the play in California — the contrived setup, the smattering of anachronistic cursing, the fuzziness of Nora’s emotional truth — now seems less problematic in the more explicitly comic context. Laurie Metcalf in 'Doll's House, Part 2': An acting marvel in one of the year's best plays 2017-04-27T04:00:00Z Reeves plays the part, however, as a blank canvas, and while some of the deliberately contrived elements of the combined plotlines are amusing, it becomes increasingly silly rather than gaining the laughs it seeks. "Crime" doesn't pay for Keanu Reeves in spoof 2010-10-04T21:36:00Z Its secrets are not tacked on or contrived. Books of The Times: ?The Starboard Sea,? a Novel by Amber Dermont 2012-02-28T23:57:01Z Every narrative twist — including some rather contrived mafia-thriller turns — hammers home the same point: that it’s hard to be a good man in a bad system. ‘A Man of Integrity’ Review: Fighting Dirty 2022-06-16T04:00:00Z Nigel contrived to fall off his own roof, ably assisted, one must admit, by David Archer. Nancy Banks-Smith on The Archers 2011-03-09T08:00:04Z It stars a very young Faten Hamama, who went on to become a huge star and who plays every role with grace and elegance, without ever seeming contrived or dull. The 10 best Arab films 2013-07-06T15:00:00Z Black's absorbing collection is filled with disabilities, illnesses and untimely death, but her stories are invested with such life that the many afflictions they catalogue feel natural, not contrived. A quick look at 2010 in short stories 2010-12-30T09:00:05Z All three are burdened with clunky dialogue and contrived plot exposition in place of character. ‘The Quiet Ones’: Horror flick is more creaky than creepy 2014-04-24T22:08:21Z This setup is the least interesting thing about Hunter's play, which becomes contrived when the plot gains the upper hand over the author's finely honed character observations. Character development counts in bringing plays to life onstage 2015-08-07T04:00:00Z I enjoy any episode which devotes some scenes to picking at this question and, however contrived its genesis, pitching Ted against Don does just that. Mad Men recap: season six, episode seven – Man With a Plan 2013-05-15T22:00:00Z My father, it appears, was not naturally connubial, and even in the early years of marriage contrived to be more absent than present. John le Carré’s ‘A Legacy of Spies’: An Excerpt 2017-09-06T04:00:00Z But then an awful lot in “We Live Here” feels contrived. | 'We Live Here: ?We Live Here? by Zoe Kazan at City Center - Review 2011-10-13T02:01:11Z Scott was quoted as calling the ceremonies "a two-hour meat parade, a public display with contrived suspense for economic reasons." Strange but true stories from Academy Awards past 2013-02-20T16:36:13Z Mars’ retro Motown performance was a lot of fun — and his James Brown impression was spot on — but at times it felt as contrived as a faux vintage photo someone might snap with an iPhone. The Best and Worst of the 2012 Grammys 2012-02-13T03:54:39Z And that is because I found “Scott Pilgrim” annoying, contrived and as emotionally meaningful as a chalupa. Film: The ?Scott Pilgrim? Crowd? This Gamer?s Not Part of It 2010-08-24T21:40:00Z The fate of Jenn, for example, who dies in spectacular circumstances midway through the play, seems a little contrived. Review: ‘Daphne’s Dive,’ Where Everybody Knows You’re Broke 2016-05-15T04:00:00Z In one song after another, he contrived a series of guitar embellishments that elevated the Beatles' music at every turn. George Harrison's songwriting evolution: The Quiet Beatle's considerable impact on the group’s sound 2023-02-25T05:00:00Z But even more, the issue is that we don't believe it, that there is too much here that seems contrived. 'The Farm' cultivates little suspense for a thriller 2014-05-30T04:00:00Z Melissa McCarthy is one of the funniest people working in Hollywood these days, but in “Spy,” she’s the victim of a plot—the one contrived by its director and writer, Paul Feig. Set Melissa McCarthy Free 2015-06-05T04:00:00Z The biggest problem is the use of a contrived plot — culminating in one of the most preposterous cross-examination scenes ever filmed — to get through what should be a simpler story of overdue reconciliation. 'Fury' treads on Peckinpah war picture territory 2015-01-24T05:00:00Z The connections that Goodyear found were no doubt different, but felt as inevitable as if he’d contrived this unusual program himself. Goodyear makes iconic Gould program his own 2016-01-11T05:00:00Z This sort of perverse preference might seem like a contrived philosophical scenario. The Strange Appeal of Perverse Actions 2019-07-19T04:00:00Z Biennales by their nature are sprawling, skin-deep omnibus festivals, contrived above all for tourism and congenitally awkward as a medium for architecture. Critic’s Notebook: 13th Venice Architecture Biennale: the Usual Hagiography 2012-09-11T13:57:00Z As often as not, classical-music people make Bach their partner in superabundance, in part because his music actually seems to thrive when placed in unusual formats and contrived contexts. Bach in New York 2014-12-03T05:00:00Z The lyrics are still limp, but their delivery forgoes some of the restraint of the original, and even the contrived dignity of Ms. Aguilera’s version. New Music: A Great Big World and Linnea Olsson Release Albums 2014-01-20T23:07:13Z Occasionally, the contours of a conventional coming-of-age story are visible through the haze, making Ms. Decker’s techniques seem as willful and contrived as some of Evangeline’s theatrical conceits. Review: In ‘Madeline’s Madeline,’ Hazy Boundaries Between Life and Art 2018-08-09T04:00:00Z Winnie's predicament may be preposterous, but there's nothing contrived about Adams' flesh and blood portrayal. Beckett classic 'Happy Days' on superb ground at Boston Court 2014-09-15T04:00:00Z If it works, it’s partly because of the easy allure of authenticity narratives, even the most contrived. ‘Fighting With My Family’ Review: They Body Slam You, Your Mum and Dad. Lovingly. 2019-02-13T05:00:00Z "It gets contrived and that's why a lot of these fusion projects fall flat." Gabriel Prokofiev gets the Proms into the groove 2011-07-28T20:29:01Z Times reviewer Rick Schultz reports that the show has moments both assured and contrived. Esssential Arts & Culture: An operatic Steve Jobs, a museum of O.J. ephemera, Dudamel and Venezuela's crisis 2017-07-29T04:00:00Z Yet the points the artist raised often seemed primarily conceptual and the greasy surfaces and exaggerated light seemed contrived, unpleasant. A New Level of Ambition in Art by 3 Women 2021-09-16T04:00:00Z Which meant it maintained almost exactly the same format, apart from the contrived addition of a meaningless competition against other local fishermen. Extreme Fishing Challenge; Food & Drink – TV review 2013-02-26T07:00:05Z Some critics found “Girls of the Sun” contrived. Feminist war movie captures zeitgeist at Cannes 2018-05-13T04:00:00Z This deeper subject is so resonant that, at times, the novel’s love theme struck me as contrived, even irrelevant, a vestige of a franchise that has grown darker and deeper. When Witches Run in the Family 2020-10-06T04:00:00Z It is “tendentious at best and totally contrived at worst”. The in crowd 2016-04-21T04:00:00Z Dividing its time between two major cities — Taipei and Beijing — and eight lonely, loosely connected souls, this contrived farce opens in a bathroom stall and culminates in the vicinity of a septic tank. Movie Review: ?Love? Is a Romantic Comedy Set in China and Taiwan 2012-02-17T01:30:50Z “Wonderland” is in that tradition, and much of its force comes from Anna’s struggle to navigate both the contrived, semi-magical world of touring and songwriting and the real world clamoring just outside it. ‘Wonderland,’ by Stacey D’Erasmo It was so different from the so-called romantic comedies of the time, which were often very contrived, and it had such a naturalistic feel to it. ‘Before Sunrise’: The Making of an Indie Classic 2020-01-22T05:00:00Z But what it never seemed was overly calculated or contrived. A Statement Ending at Louis Vuitton and Valentino 2015-10-07T04:00:00Z Jersey ShoreLooking for a less blatantly contrived follow-up to The Hills, MTV launched Jersey Shore, a "documentary" following young Italian Americans that many groups accused of racial insensitivity. Happy birthday MTV: 30 best moments 2011-08-01T10:42:00Z That didn't stop the stark, sentimental and somewhat contrived indie from being nominated for a Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. Why can't Hollywood get Jews right? 2010-05-27T19:45:00Z But all photographs are contrived, ultimately, and the passage of years can turn the best commerce into art. Critic’s Notebook: Ezra Stoller’s Photographs at Yossi Milo Gallery 2013-02-05T16:28:57Z At its worse, it's a morally and narratively contrived excuse to watch a very entitled Everyman navigate a world of rich but unhappy women, including his own wife and daughter. 'Satisfaction' and 'Rush' sound a bit familiar 2014-07-17T04:00:00Z Chewing on a line like that, Shannon is the only the actor who seems to recognize that this material is more suited to a potboiler than a limp, contrived spiritual parable. ‘The Quarry’ Review: Traveling With a Guilty Conscience 2020-04-16T04:00:00Z It struck me at the time as a smart, brutal, slightly contrived thriller about members of a rock band battling a gang of white-supremacist punks in the Northwest. The Best Movies of 2016 2016-12-07T05:00:00Z This bizarre, contrived character really is very odd, taking the movie away from realism into some stylised alternative universe of its own. Film review: Tetro 2010-06-24T21:15:00Z Sellars' staging, mostly on a platform in front of the orchestra, with the chorus, principal singers and dancers wearing a mix of work clothes and flowery trousers and t-shirts, seems desperately earnest and contrived. The Gospel According to the Other Mary – review 2013-03-17T19:07:10Z But while the many technology references also seem meant to remind the reader of Thomas Pynchon’s use of similar motifs in “Gravity’s Rainbow,” Mr. McCarthy’s reliance on them feels both derivative and contrived. Books of The Times: War Intrudes on a Man?s Bucolic Idyll 2010-09-05T21:34:00Z She says picnics are meant to be relaxed gatherings that are easy and laid-back, not too contrived. Pick your picnic style for a relaxing, Instagram-worthy summer afternoon 2016-06-22T04:00:00Z Most baseball films feature play that seems lame and contrived. What's the best baseball movie? 2011-09-23T20:59:00Z But by the end of the century, the fashion was for something less contrived. Watching you 2010-05-21T23:06:00Z Although a contrived test, this laboratory study, combined with real world data from Burleson, suggests there are real business benefits to movement. 12,000 Steps to Being More Creative at Work 2014-10-28T04:00:00Z Here, the term seems contrived or forced, as if it were needed as a seal of approval for O’Keeffe’s entry into the Modern’s pantheon. Georgia O’Keeffe, ‘Modernized’ by MoMA 2023-04-27T04:00:00Z Mr. Rosen has a somewhat contrived role as Gabriel — yes, the name’s a mite symbolic, as it is believed he’s a fallen pilot. | 'Gabriel': World War II Melodrama at Atlantic Theater Company 2010-05-14T03:55:00Z With wildly contrived laughter, he tossed them about the kitchen, pretending he was dropping them. ‘I couldn’t deal with it, it tore me apart’: surviving child sexual abuse 2019-02-01T05:00:00Z This contrived road-trip plot therefore becomes series of step-and-repeat awkward encounters that show how this bohemian family is morally superior to everyone else. Worst of 2016: 10 movies that failed spectacularly to deliver on their promise 2016-12-30T05:00:00Z It’s not until the film’s almost over that you realize: that notebook contains a kind of fairy tale of reality more conspiratorial than anything Michael Moore contrived. 2004: ‘Fahrenheit 9/11’ and a Country at War With Itself 2020-06-30T04:00:00Z It’s something about the relationship having a public facade so contrived and self-aware that makes my eyes water with shame. When the school is the bully 2012-05-18T16:15:00Z Her new show, “Unicorn Gratitude Mystery,” is made up of three short pieces that share an exasperation with the habit of taking refuge in fantasy and contrived distractions to avoid reality. Review: Karen Finley Has Presidential Politics on Her Mind 2016-08-11T04:00:00Z Delicate, clear and ringing at the same time, beautifully floated without being winsome, the emotional impact coming from understatement rather than anything contrived or overdone. Alfred Deller: a voice from the past 2012-05-31T09:52:25Z They give mundane scenes a cartoonish flair and make historical details look decorative, cheesy and contrived. Perspective | ‘Dickinson’ is another example of pop culture trying to liberate Emily Dickinson 2019-10-30T04:00:00Z It’s hard not to crack a cynical smile listening to this, but it doesn’t seem contrived. For His Next Act, Anthony Doerr Wrote a Book About Everything 2021-09-16T04:00:00Z “When we’re bombarded with perfect bodies and really contrived stuff already, I think there’s something really funny about imagining a toy in the world.” Tally of the Dolls 2018-10-30T04:00:00Z When I started this writing, I wanted it to be one of those profoundly optimistic screeds, and maybe you thought this was leading to that telegraphed payoff, that shallow, contrived epiphany. My formerly adventurous life 2012-07-13T23:00:00Z Other parts, such as allusions to Hurricane Sandy, felt bolted on and contrived. Landfall - review 2013-03-03T02:23:23Z Despite Enron's relevance, its intelligence, and its technical bravura, about half the Broadway critics found it either too obvious or too contrived. Why doesn't Broadway love Enron? 2010-04-29T11:33:00Z But to me, a physically disabled woman who uses a wheelchair and believes all lives have value, “Me Before You” isn’t just a contrived tearjerker. Spare me, “Me Before You”: Hollywood’s new tearjerker is built on tired and damaging disability stereotypes 2016-05-24T04:00:00Z “There’s some contrived dialogue, and not all of the performances are at the same level,” Margaret Lyons wrote in The New York Times. What’s on TV Tuesday: ‘Greenleaf’ and ‘The Shop’ 2018-08-28T04:00:00Z The bad feeling reached a nadir when I reviewed a contrived Channel 4 reality show in which families road-tested servants. Charlie Brooker: Why I'm calling time on Screen Burn 2010-10-15T13:54:00Z "I know that's a little contrived - kind of like buying a present for a friend after you did something crummy," she said. EA apologizes for 'SimCity' launch woes 2013-03-10T22:31:04Z “All elements in this rainbow program,” Crowther wrote, “are carefully contrived and guaranteed to lift the dolors of winter and put you in a buttercup mood.” What’s on TV This Week: ‘What We Do in the Shadows’ and ‘Yannick’ 2021-08-30T04:00:00Z Never mawkish or contrived, it’s an absolutely authentic depiction of how friendship can overcome adolescent anxiety and grief. The Best TV Shows of 2018 2018-12-03T05:00:00Z The show gardens are inherently contrived — they are displayed in the grounds of a veterans home in London — but the sophistication of the designs and level of craftsmanship and plantsmanship elevate them beyond their setting. Perspective | The low-key, high-style approach to crafting gardens for the stars 2020-02-25T05:00:00Z Dayan’s Walt erupts in patriarchal explosions that are all the more frightening for seeming contrived and self-generated. 'Blueberry Toast' from Echo Theater Company is a darkly whimsical dish 2016-09-27T04:00:00Z Even so, the Picker scenario feels decidedly more contrived than the parts of the movie that are vaguely based on reality. Primary Colors: fiction takes second place to fact 2013-05-29T13:20:34Z But if the narrative machinery expertly grinds out suspense, the details Ms. Ali feeds into that machine are ridiculously contrived. Books of The Times: Imagining a Secret Life for Diana 2011-06-13T22:41:42Z It’s a complication as contrived as they come, but then again, so is a prince shoving a kingdom’s worth of feet into a stiletto. ‘Sneakerella’ Review: Beauty and the Hypebeast 2022-05-12T04:00:00Z The carefully contrived nature of her search allows Murray to send her crisscrossing London among a variety of social strata, populated by eccentrics, bigwigs and average folks, deepening his portrait of this alien environment. Review | There’s no shortage of novels about what happens when the Earth stops spinning. ‘The Last Day’ may set a new standard. 2020-02-10T05:00:00Z It was a masked ball, but many of the celebrity guest contrived to wear the smallest masks possible. Suzette Field's top 10 literary party hosts 2012-12-12T16:27:54Z I can only think that their programmatic dreariness was contrived to drive art lovers back to the permanent collection; if so, it's not a bad thing to aim toward. Nothing to see here - beyond the blockbuster exhibitions 2010-07-09T20:31:00Z The film, with sweeping questions of family, time, misfortune and regret, is almost wholly lacking in contrived sentiment. Setsuko Hara, Japanese movie star of exquisite power, dies at 95 2015-11-25T05:00:00Z Variety called it a “thin, contrived, one-joke comedy”, but don’t let that stop you. Operation Dumbo Drop to Mr Boogedy: the 10 strangest Disney films 2019-10-15T04:00:00Z It’s a subliminal message of sincerity that some language experts consider contrived. Hillary’s New Go-To Gesture: Hand to the Heart 2016-08-05T04:00:00Z The digitally contrived effect in which 9-foot gods mix it up with normal-size mortals suggests nothing so much as celebrities slumming with their fans. ‘Gods of Egypt’ and ‘Alexander the Great’: Let Me Polish That Breastplate 2016-07-28T04:00:00Z The author of “The Gift” likes a bit of contrived mischief. Weekly Culture Review: Bill Cosby on Trial, Hasan Minhaj’s “New Brown America,” and More 2017-06-09T04:00:00Z There’s an analogy to be contrived from his argument. Hey, Ohio! Make me, a millennial, want to move to you 2016-11-10T05:00:00Z However, it hardly helps that the festival has contrived yet another confrontation, this time with its 4,000-strong press corps which, when all is said and done, sustains the festival’s enormous media profile. Cannes in crisis: has the festival learned the lessons of Weinstein? 2018-05-04T04:00:00Z Evidently this demon unleashes a plague of spy fiction cliches, leaden dialogue and tiresomely contrived twists, because that's what happens next. The Good Shepherd: Angelina Jolie and Matt Damon can't sex this up 2010-04-22T07:00:00Z All of which sounds like a pretty contrived plan to get Damon robo-ed to the max in the name of ass-kicking spectacle. Field of dreams 2013-04-10T15:33:00Z The contrived resolution sets in motion a triple switch, a kidnapping and an accelerated coronation schedule. ‘The Princess Switch: Switched Again’ Review: A Who’s Who of Hudgens 2020-11-19T05:00:00Z Then came Knussen's own pivotal third symphony, compact and powerful, a little too structurally contrived in some ways, but compellingly directed and awash with beauties, the BBC Symphony Orchestra responding to all the challenges. Prom 56: BBCSO/Knussen – review 2012-08-26T10:24:43Z Gonzalez contains his love of screen excess with a deliberation that never feels contrived or cheap. ‘Knife + Heart’ Review: Gay Porn and Murder in ’70s Paris 2019-03-14T04:00:00Z But it’s a natural effect of the music and ambience, not something contrived. Bo?te | Tillman?s: Soulful Music at Its Heart 2010-02-26T23:42:00Z As contrived as the notion may be, the performer in this role steals the movie, in more ways than one. “Mary Magdalene,” Reviewed: A Sludgy, Trivial Attempt at Revisionist Christian History 2019-04-16T04:00:00Z Alexander Schulin’s stylish production is alert to the opera’s shifting moods and keeps the many arias dramatically lively without resorting to contrived action. Review: A Spotlight for an Unsung Talent 2010-08-17T15:23:00Z This, however, reeks of simplistic moralizing, is lousy with hackneyed dialogue and filled ludicrously contrived melodrama that only pours out of writers and director who think they understand racism but really, really don’t. 26 films Rotten Tomatoes got 100% wrong 2017-09-17T04:00:00Z He spent much of his life traveling, and his novels frequently contrived to transport working-class Englishmen to foreign lands. Alan Sillitoe, ?Angry? British Author, Dies at 82 2010-04-26T04:37:00Z In that context, the movies’ resolutions, however contrived, may feel less cheap and more like a bargain. The Unreality of Racial Justice Cinema 2018-10-24T04:00:00Z It was a storytelling device that reflected the endearing, if slightly contrived, makeup of the “Star Trek” franchise’s most popular character. Review: ‘Picard’ Is, Finally, ‘Star Trek: Peak TV’ 2020-01-23T05:00:00Z Doran's myopia in this regard made me uncomfortable, particularly in the final scene when she resorts to naked metaphors to sum up her unwieldy and increasingly contrived drama. 'Parenthood's' Mae Whitman explores 'The Mystery of Love & Sex' 2016-02-22T05:00:00Z Some of Studio Job’s less ambitiously contrived works are among its most appealing. High-End Works Toying With Politically Loaded Signifiers 2016-03-31T04:00:00Z “Dreams of Flying” is a contrived simulacrum — or is it a limp sendup? — of an Albee play. | 'Dreams of Flying Dreams of Falling': ?Dreams of Flying Dreams of Falling? at Classic Stage - Review 2011-10-04T02:01:04Z But the concision is greater and the breath of nature fresher in a fluid composition freed from the contrived effect of the previous century. Drawing Outside the Lines of the Times 2010-03-26T13:30:00Z Maybe so, but the connections that Mr. Huff has contrived to link together the many characters in “Big Lake Big City” are not my idea of theatrical heaven, either. Critic’s Notebook: Back in Chicago, Michael Shannon and David Schwimmer 2013-08-09T20:44:12Z And a subplot involving Dr. Campbell’s real identity, which involves her switching somehow to a private channel to take calls from the dean, and from her mother, seems a trifle contrived. Review: ‘Sell/Buy/Date,’ Sarah Jones’s Futuristic Look at Sex Workers 2016-10-18T04:00:00Z Olympic men’s basketball consortium, known as the “Dream Team,” was one of the most shamelessly contrived. ‘The Redeem Team’ Review: Squad Goals 2022-10-06T04:00:00Z But maybe Mrs. Loving was a little more Rosa Parks than history — and the highly contrived photo-essay format — allowed. Art Review: ?The Loving Story? at International Center of Photography 2012-01-26T23:30:12Z Similarly, a recurring motif of lights going out starts to get contrived, no matter how representational it is. A superb ensemble anchors "The Humans," showcasing an anguished, claustrophobic Thanksgiving dinner 2021-11-24T05:00:00Z It is even stranger and more contrived this time round: a hybrid of prison-break thriller and chokingly emotional TV movie about a devoted husband's battle against a miscarriage of justice. The Next Three Days ? review 2011-01-06T22:03:01Z In the end, I perhaps found its denouement a little contrived, but it would still be a worthy and popular winner. Who should win the Costa? 2011-01-25T16:23:35Z This suggests a potential paradox when it comes to the so-called single-shot movie, one contrived to look as if it were recorded in one take, in real time. ‘Boiling Point’ Review: The Worst Night in the Life of a Restaurant 2021-11-23T05:00:00Z An experienced director of fantasy fare – Steven Spielberg or Alfonso Cuarón, perhaps – might have been able to help the movie transcend its monstrously contrived roots. Maleficent 2: the worst example of Angelina's Jolieland syndrome 2016-04-26T04:00:00Z A series of weak, contrived obstacles torpedo Bob and Andy’s relationship far too early in the proceedings. 'Big Gay Love' struggles with big themes 2014-06-07T04:00:00Z It seemed inevitable that the first Star Wars movie in more than a decade would be a gross disappointment, a hastily conceived and painfully contrived mess. Is the Han Solo Star Wars spin-off spiralling towards disaster? 2018-03-28T04:00:00Z Now he returns with a rich, sweet slice of Americana – although a little more contrived and sentimental than it promises to be at first. Cannes 2012: Mud – review 2012-05-26T16:58:05Z The ambient children’s sounds that fit so naturally on “Flutes” simply sound contrived on “Let Me Be Him,” or maybe they just can’t compare to the seven-minute floor-filler at the heart of the album. Hot Chip's In Our Heads: Between Earworms and Experimentation 2012-06-12T17:30:07Z If this sounds a bit contrived, it is. 'Dreams of Joy': Lisa See's novel of two women adrift in Mao's China 2011-06-01T21:53:04Z Its ending is so contrived that you wonder if Robinson isn't undermining his vision in preparation for some as-yet-unwritten sequel. 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson – review 2012-06-14T07:00:03Z Even if it seems silly or contrived, try advising or coaching yourself the way you would talk to someone you care about the next time you get stressed. Need a quick stress-reliever? Try one of these surprising science-based strategies. 2021-09-07T04:00:00Z His fortress, like Frank Lloyd Wright’s Guggenheim Museum several blocks north — which contrived its own enclosed, spiral version of a vertical city — reflected ambivalence about what was outside the front door. Review: A New Whitney Lets New York City Pour In 2015-04-19T04:00:00Z The audience is entitled to wonder if some of the ambiguity and restraint of Hausner's film was contrived to get official permission for these sequences, but even that possibility has its own subversive fascination. Film review: Lourdes 2010-03-25T22:25:00Z Since they get together pretty early, the rest of the movie consists of contrived flare-ups that threaten to keep them apart. Capsule reviews: `The Back-up Plan' and others 2010-04-23T00:31:00Z After a while, the uniformity of the response can tempt you into thinking that this is all contrived and orchestrated, and certainly a lot of it is. Scarfe's Netanyahu cartoon was offensive? Hurrah 2013-01-29T18:30:02Z Ms. Dunye’s loose, confident approach to characterizations makes the political issues play in a narratively organic way rather than as a series of contrived polemics. ‘Caravaggio’ and Other Pleasures and Provocations for Pride Month 2018-06-08T04:00:00Z But their showy style too often looks contrived for YouTube hits. Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla takes the lead in an inspired women's night with the L.A. Phil 2016-03-02T05:00:00Z If Blur indulged in highly contrived fantasies of street life, Oasis’s references to urban junk were casual and straightforwardly naturalistic. Pop music’s elitism problem: Why Oasis never got the respect they deserved 2018-06-09T04:00:00Z "Brushing wax onto the surface of the prints," the artist writes, "further enforces the uncertainty of what the picture really is, when it may have been made, and whether the scene is real or contrived." Review: Seattle exhibits show photographs in their altered states 2010-08-26T20:51:00Z H. L. Mencken considered his operas “the most stupendous works of art ever contrived by man.” From George Eliot to Neo-Nazi Skinheads: The Chaotic Cult of Richard Wagner 2020-09-16T04:00:00Z The life-on-tour antics and details feel hammy and contrived; there is nothing similar to the easygoing vibe mixed with panicky momentum that Crowe conveyed in “Almost Famous.” ‘Roadies’ chokes on too many monologues about the romance of life on a rock tour 2016-06-23T04:00:00Z These days, I find myself steadily drifting from the contrived faction to the comfort camp. A Small Slice of Versailles 2018-06-12T04:00:00Z He struggled to incorporate the episode into his fiction because, as he explained in “The Great Derangement,” it is difficult for a writer to use a case of “extreme improbability” without it seeming contrived. When Climate Change Is Stranger Than Fiction 2019-09-07T04:00:00Z The action is never contrived to assume the shape imposed by the demands of a good story. The human heart of the matter 2010-06-11T23:05:00Z There were contrived walker shenanigans, including Rick’s Tarzan routine with the hanging zombie. ‘The Walking Dead’ Season 7 Premiere: Negan’s Victim Is Revealed 2016-10-23T04:00:00Z The assembly of parts is less a contrived, linear narrative than a kind of collaged tone poem about a pervasive sense of dislocation that characterizes our heavily mediated environment. Bruce Yonemoto at Luckman Gallery: Of grow lights and glaciers 2017-05-06T04:00:00Z What's bizarre is how effortless and yet contrived it all is – like celebrity culture generally. "Dancing with the Stars" recap: Kate's suffering 2010-04-13T12:14:00Z Yes, the Ford commercials are a little contrived. Ford Looks Hypocritical In New Anti-Bailout Commercial 2011-09-19T20:57:36Z Add surreal touches to an abstract setting, and the staging can feel contrived. Review: A New, Abstract ‘Guillaume Tell’ at the Met Opera 2016-10-19T04:00:00Z The star does his patented shtick, supported by a handful of blue-chip supporting performers, as the story lurches through contrived, seminaughty comic set pieces toward a sentimental ending. | 'Arthur': A Lush Life Revisited, With Nanny on Board 2011-04-07T21:14:56Z Amid all the killing, the characters emphasize family as their uniting bond, in a way that doesn’t come off as contrived. Five Action Movies to Stream Now 2023-01-27T05:00:00Z In the movie, this is made palatable via contrived character-development devices: Look, the misogynist has a nephew he loves, so his jerk behavior is just a facade! Perspective | Love-struck hero or creepy harasser? Suddenly we’re seeing our favorite rom-coms in a new light. 2018-02-27T05:00:00Z Mr. Stewart applies his deceptively shaded efforts to a contrived confrontation scenario. ‘Match,’ Starring Patrick Stewart as a Dance Instructor 2015-01-13T05:00:00Z It’s an intriguing literary experiment that just about justifies the slightly contrived setup. ‘Lemons’ Review: A Fun Thought Exercise, Without Deep Thoughts 2023-02-01T05:00:00Z In retrospectively tying up loose ends, the script creates a lot of artificial bows that belong to another, more contrived era of drama. Critic?s Notebook: In London Theater, the Past Isn?t Dead, It?s Onstage 2012-02-03T23:49:33Z But the group’s punchy tunes, yearning lyrics and singalong choruses never seem contrived. Two decades in, Jimmy Eat World is still all business 2016-12-15T05:00:00Z In the end, “The Healing Sevens” was propulsive, flashy and more than a little contrived. Review: DanceAfrica Excels With Tradition. Why Go Beyond? 2017-05-30T04:00:00Z “There were nights where they were up at 5 a.m. yelling at each other outside a dorm in front of tiki torches because they’re angry about things that happened in contrived scenarios,” Trupp said. Meet the super-obsessed college students making their own low-budget ‘Survivor’ 2018-07-07T04:00:00Z Derek Cianfrance's film is a sombre, painful portrait of a toxic marriage, often touching and sometimes moving, though occasionally contrived and self-conscious in its effects. Blue Valentine ? review 2011-01-13T15:00:00Z Thirty years of “Control” is a useful, if contrived, excuse to argue for Ms. Jackson’s necessity, especially as someone who knew the power of an image. Sorry, Ms. Jackson: You’re Underrated. ‘Control’ at 30 2016-08-08T04:00:00Z The ballads are absolutely beautiful – you'd expect nothing else – but they've produced something that fits absolutely into that fin de siècle feel but nevertheless doesn't sound contrived, deliberately antique or period. Jerry Leiber's last lyrical masterpiece to celebrate the many sides of Oscar Wilde 2011-08-27T22:22:58Z Unfortunately, Matt Williams’s slack psychological thriller, “Fear,” offers plenty of opportunities not just to ponder inconsistencies and contrived plot twists, but also to sneak glances at your watch. ‘Fear’ Review: 3 Men in a Shed, 1 Missing Girl on Their Minds 2019-10-29T04:00:00Z These contrived $20 plus drinks are all a waste of money. A Sprinkle, a Snapshot, a Sensation: My Dinner With Salt Bae 2018-02-02T05:00:00Z But seeing them in the flesh threatens to break the spell: the more you look at CocoRosie on stage, the more contrived they seem. CocoRosie 2010-05-06T22:30:00Z More than acceptable, they have proved a reliable means of relaxing or, indeed, subverting a look that may otherwise seem contrived. Spring Fashion, Hand Yourself Bouquets 2014-04-16T21:59:50Z But don’t assume that the standards of moral hygiene are anywhere near as high for those who inhabit this dark, teasingly contrived comedy. Review: In the Hotel in ‘Zürich,’ Room Service Comes With a Bang 2018-04-17T04:00:00Z Even seemingly contrived experiments in leading a normal life, such as Paul McCartney sending his children to state schools, would be impractical nowadays. Non-stop action: why Hollywood’s ageing heroes won’t give up 2015-08-18T04:00:00Z This is the brilliant thing about political families – there is nearly always one child who rips off the mask of contrived ultra-respectability. Idolising bad boys makes Charlies of us all 2011-02-20T00:06:25Z Readers will start to feel that it's all too coincidental, too easy, too contrived and convenient for the writer's purposes. Iain Banks: the final interview 2013-06-15T07:07:55Z Otherwise I would have had to make a drawing with a hole in it, and I didn’t like that idea; it would have been contrived. ‘Sgt. Pepper at 50’ Artists on How the Beatles’ Album Inspired Them 2017-06-08T04:00:00Z So all of the things that are shocking are not contrived. Bethenny Frankel Is Back on TV Because ‘I Know What People Want to See’ 2021-04-23T04:00:00Z Beyond its uneven pacing and contrived outcome, the play never cares about any of the characters. Theater Review: Frank Strausser?s ?Psycho Therapy? at Cherry Lane 2012-02-09T22:33:29Z There's actually not even a whiff of desperation about Valentine's Day; the film skips along pleasantly, supremely confident in its own cuteness and utterly unapologetic about how shallow or contrived it might be. 2010-02-12T05:15:00Z It’s hard to say this without sounding cheesy or contrived, but that’s where we started. The Head and the Heart are taking over a Seattle landmark Sunday. What inspired the free concert? 2019-08-22T04:00:00Z A roadside ambush in the rain should be urgent and stressful, but it feels contrived; it lacks power and emotion. Sean Penn directs “The Last Face” like it’s his last chance 2017-07-25T04:00:00Z The crime is how brazenly they reveal themselves to be pseudo-events, contrived for the very purpose of seeming newsworthy and thus being widely shared. Please Kill the Celebrity Roast 2016-09-08T04:00:00Z It’s light and nourishing but also supremely comforting and desirable, crushing the contrived notion that pleasure must now be put on hold in the name of health. This one-pan savory fish is one step in the right direction 2018-01-04T05:00:00Z “I thought it was a little contrived,” he later said. Black voters in West Virginia are tired of being invisible 2021-08-11T04:00:00Z Written and directed by David M. Rosenthal, it feels mostly authentic until a contrived ending that leaves a saccharine taste. | 'Janie Jones': ?Janie Jones? With Abigail Breslin - Review 2011-10-27T23:09:29Z Counterpoint - I thought the plot was ridiculous contrived and borderline offensive. Did You Hear the One About the Housewife Who Walks Into a Comedy Club? 2017-11-21T05:00:00Z But despite the philosophical and educational value of “Occupant,” and the terrific performances, the play’s contrived and starchy format keeps it from being a satisfying theatrical experience. Review | At Theater J, Albee’s ‘Occupant’ takes a lifeless look at the life of Louise Nevelson 2019-11-16T05:00:00Z The ending felt contrived and disappointing, which was probably inevitable. Television: No Longer ?Lost,? but Fans Are Still Searching 2010-05-24T17:23:00Z It is perhaps a trifle complicated, and some elements are contrived. The Long Life and Great Good Fortune of John Clare – review 2013-04-10T17:00:04Z Of course the movie hurtles toward reconciliation, but here it feels even more contrived than usual in such fare because the hate feels all too real. Netflix Holiday Movies Ranked, From Tree Toppers to Lumps of Coal 2021-12-03T05:00:00Z Is it a merely a less than subtle ironic comment on the paradox of asking viewers to invest themselves in contrived fictional entertainments? ‘Mr. Robot’ Season 3, Episode 5: Taking the Long Way Around 2017-11-08T05:00:00Z Free of piano and strings,”Riding to New York” — about a lung-cancer victim’s last motorcycle trip — felt less contrived. Quiet fans happily go for a ride with Passenger at Echostage That looks clever on paper, but none of the music sounded contrived. Cuban Music and More at Jazz at Lincoln Center 2014-12-21T05:00:00Z There isn’t the same contrived controversy that came with Skins or “voice of a generation” baggage that followed Girls around. Skam: the hit Norwegian teen show headed for a US remake 2016-12-13T05:00:00Z “Juan” nails the way food documentaries fetishize chefs’ single-mindedness, their sometimes contrived restrictions and demands, and the secretly nonsense ways they talk in these kinds of docs. What You Should Watch This Weekend: ‘Luke Cage’ and ‘Documentary Now!’ 2016-09-30T04:00:00Z It’s not an echo of the real thing, the recipe contrived by substitutions and arch compromise and regret. Jay Rayner: thou shalt eat veg! 2016-06-19T04:00:00Z I consistently tried to preserve them, no matter what it takes, and avoid a certain contrived formality, which is an established convention in modern design. After Fashion, Hedi Slimane Turns to Photography Full Time 2017-01-11T05:00:00Z Thus her post-pyromania speech, in which she redefines the indiscriminate killing of unarmed men, women and children as "liberation" feels as contrived as the rest of what follows. "Game of Thrones" recap: The Iron Throne apparently goes to the person with the best story 2019-05-20T04:00:00Z That makes for some earnest songs about love and courage, and for drama that can seem contrived. Theater Review: ‘A Letter to Harvey Milk’ at Pershing Square Signature Center 2012-07-27T21:36:40Z The writing of “The Knick” isn’t as distinguished, and the plotting can be contrived. ‘The Knick’ Season 2 Premiere Recap: Tied Up in Knots 2015-10-17T04:00:00Z Nothing seems forced or contrived in these performances; Capuçon's tone is unfailingly warm, Braley's piano sound lacks any hard edges, and each of their phrases seems shaped with uncomplicated naturalness. Beethoven: Complete Violin Sonatas 2010-10-14T22:15:00Z You could argue that “reality TV” applies to programs whose producers put people in a contrived environment and impose a narrative on the results. Review: ‘The Circus’ Is Reality TV for a Reality-TV Presidential Race 2016-03-02T05:00:00Z Published in 1950, Paz’s essay endures for its imaginative associations and musical prose, though it is contentious: Some anthropologists and historians consider his definition of Mexicanness to be Manichaean and contrived. Read Your Way Through Mexico City 2022-08-31T04:00:00Z I have never been a fan of the parothead thing though, and the concerts are a highly contrived goofy white guy convention. Jimmy Buffett Does Not Live the Jimmy Buffett Lifestyle 2018-02-08T05:00:00Z But much that has been presented was speculative or contrived, as was the case with the Oscar-nominated Zero Dark Thirty. A Former CIA Analyst on the New Osama bin Laden Documentary, Manhunt 2013-05-01T14:45:23Z The result, alas, is an ungainly, mannered — and unbelievable — story that’s saccharine where it’s meant to be moving, contrived where it’s supposed to be suspenseful. Review: Jo Nesbo, in ‘Blood on Snow,’ Tries a New Kind of Hero 2015-04-08T04:00:00Z There’s some nice wonky stuff here about how the station’s chief engineer contrived to make Z100 louder than other stations on the dial. ‘Worst to First: The True Story of Z100 New York’ Review: An FM Radio Sensation 2022-02-10T05:00:00Z Beneath them lay a platinum armature to which were affixed 400 additional carats of stones — turquoise cabochon, faceted diamonds, aquamarines all contrived to imitate the effect of sunlight refracted through water. At Tiffany, Something New Inside the Blue Box 2015-04-15T04:00:00Z His efforts to save a stranger’s failing marriage become increasingly contrived and farcical, ultimately propelling Pete into a hallucinatory, nighttime odyssey amid the coyotes, the cactuses and a sinister dancing teenager. Review: ‘Rancho Viejo,’ Where Banality and Trouble Cohabitate 2016-12-06T05:00:00Z Worse, the contrived narrative that the shows collectively push — the idea that Harry and Meghan’s romance is “a fairy tale” — is jarringly backward. Royal Rumble: 7 Meghan and Harry Specials Face Off, and We All Lose 2018-05-15T04:00:00Z As in my book, it ignores those I think of as designer eccentrics: people who affect a wackiness that may be contrived, not simply spontaneous. David McKie's top 10 eccentrics in literature 2011-03-02T11:31:07Z It somehow doesn't work: the beats are too regimented, the sound too contrived and formulaic to suggest rebellion. Chase and Status: No More Idols ? review 2011-01-27T15:30:01Z But so contrived was the drama that there was never any doubt that the true culprit was Morgan. Royal Wedding; Worried About the Boy; Girls and Boys: Sex and British Pop; Ashes to Ashes 2010-05-22T23:05:00Z This crucial episode may come off as facile and contrived. In the tension-filled "Profile," a journalist goes catfishing online to get recruited by ISIS 2021-05-13T04:00:00Z The surreal effect is contrived, and any supposed satirical comment on modern Greece is not especially compelling. Alps – review 2012-11-08T21:40:01Z In last night's series opener, the terrifying vice principal collected the new intake of over-refreshed belching Australians amid contrived scenes of drunken misbehaviour at the airport. Ladette To Lady needs to forget some of its reality TV etiquette 2010-07-21T12:28:00Z In a decidedly contrived episode, Biel then abruptly leaves the consulate and disappears. ‘The Director,’ by David Ignatius, a Novel About the C.I.A. 2014-06-03T04:00:00Z It wasn’t simply the excruciatingly twee musical choices, or the well-worn trajectory of a plot as contrived as its woolly-hatted heroine. ‘Adult Life Skills’ Review: In a Shed, and Out of Time 2019-01-17T05:00:00Z This mathematical construct lends structure to the volume, though this is the one aspect of the enterprise that feels artificial and contrived — happily, something the reader barely notices so engaging is Mr. Brown’s narrative. Books of The Times: ‘Hello Goodbye Hello,’ by Craig Brown 2012-08-05T20:56:23Z “Anything that feels false or contrived feels jarring.” Barry Levinson sings a new tune as ‘Diner’ heads to the stage 2014-12-11T05:00:00Z The film's real punch lies in the likable and entertaining odd-couple double act which grounds the action in engaging emotions even as the narrative ties itself up in increasingly contrived gothic knots. Mark Kermode on DVDs 2010-05-15T23:07:00Z Not contrived or reactionary, she transcends the page or the screen. Where are the women Kerouacs? 2013-03-13T22:28:00Z When younger he fell passionately for a woman named Betty, who craved a baby so badly that she contrived a supernatural pregnancy; Daniel assisted at the birth. The Man Who Rained by Ali Shaw ? review 2012-02-10T22:55:03Z Roberts turns in an interesting performance, but the film is treacly and contrived. Comes a Bright Day – review 2012-07-12T21:00:01Z They're playing words on a page — and often contrived words at that. SCR's 'Mr. Wolf' sharply provokes, then turns blunt 2015-04-21T04:00:00Z In “An Ideal Husband,” accommodation and even forgiveness are pitted against rigid morality in a series of deliciously contrived dramatic conflicts. Deep Dives Into Justice From Shakespeare, Wilde and Atticus Finch 2018-08-03T04:00:00Z From beginning to end it's contrived and false. Early Cannes films are the polar opposite 2010-05-14T05:26:00Z The food looked appetisingly edible but the whole contrived concept was way too much to swallow. Delicious Dahl 2010-03-28T00:05:00Z These characters don’t all snap together at some contrived moment like a literary flash mob, but “their lives have long been connected, deep underground,” Powers writes. Review | The most exciting novel about trees you’ll ever read 2018-04-03T04:00:00Z They knew that his ultra-Iowan simplicity was more than a little contrived. Books of The Times: Behind That Humble Pitchfork, a Complex Artist 2010-10-03T22:19:00Z But even capable actors can’t make this play plausible or mend the contrived and sentimental conclusion. Review: A Priceless Violin, a Cut-Rate Caper 2017-09-20T04:00:00Z Excellent cast doing their utmost, but they can't redeem a contrived, overblown piece of work. Review: In ‘Love, Love, Love,’ All You Need Is Selfishness. 2016-10-19T04:00:00Z However, it also stands out as perhaps the only contrived element in a work of otherwise unflinching honesty. "The Pacific" a realistic view of American combat 2010-03-02T02:39:00Z “Yellowstone,” for all of its flaws — there are actors who are miscast and story angles that feel contrived — presents a fatalistic look at a land and people where the answer is "no." “Yellowstone,” an American purgatory: No heroes in Kevin Costner’s new Western series 2018-06-30T04:00:00Z Calling himself, in a contrived bit of whimsy, a Gumshoot, he takes photographs of paying strangers while hidden from their sight. | 'Monogamy': Cheating on His Fianc?e With a Camera 2011-03-11T01:49:09Z Reality TV becomes its best when contrived scenarios and set-ups unexpectedly slip into raw, unguarded moments. Are You the One? Reality show's sexually fluid season was a Gen Z fever dream 2019-09-10T04:00:00Z It “has the feeling of a contrived acting exercise,” writes Times theater critic Charles McNulty, “but the experience deepens as the actors probe their characters’ contradictory hearts.” Essential Arts & Culture: Misty Copeland and Dudamel, 'Heisenberg' uncertainty, authenticity in casting 2017-07-14T04:00:00Z He's somehow contrived to sell a quarter of a million CDs since he signed to a major label, but, judging by the audience's reaction, Tesfaye is a far bigger star than that figure suggests. The Weeknd – review 2013-03-25T18:38:22Z Although interested in the clashing voices of London, of homegrown Grime music, the book itself is as tidy and contrived as a suburb. A Debut Novel Unfolds Over 48 Tense Hours in London 2018-12-11T05:00:00Z The circumstances of their encounter are rather contrived. 'The Love of My Youth': Two former lovers and their reckoning in Rome 2011-05-04T19:33:04Z What some see as beautiful and strange others regard as artificial and contrived. Jim Jarmusch: ‘I’m for the survival of beauty. I’m for the mystery of life’ 2019-07-07T04:00:00Z I think it meant not contrived, not incidental or gratuitous: it had to be deeply felt, emotionally important. The Story Is the Thing: On Lucia Berlin 2015-08-12T04:00:00Z There's a wedding, a troublemaking visitor from the old country, snappy dialogue, lots of contrived liveliness and a big old secret that forces everyone to rethink their relationships. Danai Gurira's 'Eclipsed' — a harrowing tale of women and war in Africa — is a promising sign of Broadway's future 2016-03-07T05:00:00Z What remains unchanged is the patience with which Pires allows Schubert's music to unfold so naturally that nothing seems forced or contrived. Schubert: Piano Sonatas in A minor D845 and B flat D960 – review 2013-02-21T21:35:01Z His grand finale was an encore of “The Hills” drenched in red lights and images of fire as if we’d just landed on the sun with an artist far from his days of contrived obscurity. Review | The Weeknd embraces his superstardom at Verizon Center 2017-05-19T04:00:00Z To her credit, these encounters don’t feel contrived, and certainly never for plot reasons. Emily St. John Mandel Is Back, With a Ponzi Scheme Instead of a Pandemic 2020-03-22T04:00:00Z And in small doses — if not the contrived big picture — the writing is often smart. Review: Alpha Male Romantic Problems in ‘Devil of Choice’ 2018-05-29T04:00:00Z The hood signifiers ladled into the lyrics sound forced and contrived, not least because the singer sounds bored out of his skull. Real R&B fans aren't waiting for the Weeknd 2011-03-29T08:50:31Z Spiotta has no need for any typical Hollywood-style contrived conflict; the interior lives of these three characters are more than enough. In 'Innocents and Others' Dana Spiotta explores the creative tensions between two female filmmakers 2016-03-03T05:00:00Z Devoid of charisma or a third dimension, these contrived characters — whether dissolute or doltish, shrill or sheepish — rarely engage. Movie Review: ?Love? Is a Romantic Comedy Set in China and Taiwan 2012-02-17T01:30:50Z The identities performed on LinkedIn are contrived with employers in mind. Why Aren’t We Talking About LinkedIn? 2019-08-08T04:00:00Z It is a timely satire not only in its strafing of privilege but also in its funhouse-mirror reflection of the contrived façades and convoluted selves of aspirants to political power. Ryan Murphy’s “The Politician” Is a Funhouse-Mirror Reflection of the So-Called Meritocracy 2019-09-24T04:00:00Z Instead, the film wallows in contrived plots and subplots, made worse by the dearth of chemistry between the two leads. ‘Purple Hearts’ Review: A Marriage of Convenience 2022-07-29T04:00:00Z She and finds the character contrived and artificial. Emma Thompson doesn't go lightly on Audrey Hepburn 2010-08-10T09:21:00Z The torturous production is only the core of the novel, which follows our principals into the subsequent First World War, the brutality of which mocks the contrived fake-blood Grand Guignol horrors of a movie. Review | An irresistible tale of early cinema makes for perfect summer reading 2019-06-10T04:00:00Z But even in such a contrived movie world, it's asking far too much for us to accept that Noomi Rapace would be hounded as a "monster" for a little scaring around her left eye. Review: 'Dead Man Down' is lifeless, ludicrous 2013-03-07T21:00:11Z I thought Shape of Water felt forced and contrived and the dance dream segment was clunky. ‘The Shape of Water’ Wins Best Picture as Oscars Project Diversity 2018-03-04T05:00:00Z The show presents itself as a carnival, but it is a cleverly contrived and manipulated one in which genuine delirium is all too rare. Fuerzabruta – review 2013-01-07T13:27:52Z The longer you study it, the more contrived and masterful this seemingly fleeting moment becomes. Review | Another Renoir show? But this one is worth it. 2017-10-06T04:00:00Z Create a "jukebox" show of rock hits around a contrived plot? Album-turned-show 'American Idiot' in Seattle June 5-10 2012-05-30T22:06:04Z Had they written this moment into the pilot, it might have felt contrived. ‘Gentefied’ Asks, Can a Show About Gentrification Be Funny? 2020-02-20T05:00:00Z Each regret always somehow resonates with her current situation, but the show manages to be wistful and gentle, not corny or contrived. What You Should Watch This Weekend: ‘The Last Man on Earth’ and ‘Being Erica’ 2016-05-13T04:00:00Z And while the implicit connections between Chris’s father and Nazi Germany might feel overly contrived in a more traditional play, here they become natural echoes in a nightmare that enwraps the whole world. Review: ‘He Brought Her Heart Back,’ Adrienne Kennedy’s Beautiful Nightmare 2018-01-30T05:00:00Z But more recently, it has become a less appetising prospect – way more contrived than in the early days. Has Come Dine With Me gone off the boil? 2011-01-14T11:48:57Z While the ending seems a bit contrived, Akhtar’s characters and dialogue are convincingly real, and his play is a thoughtful examination of how one family’s conflict mirrors larger societal issues. Review: ‘The Who & The What’ by Akhtar is vibrant 2014-06-17T04:00:00Z It's a quietly affecting film which is certainly no more contrived than the average Ken Loach offering. London River: an outsider's journey to the heart of a very London tragedy 2010-07-13T15:03:00Z But the play’s contrived plotting and overwrought language smother any such points in melodramatics. | 'Prophecy': The Legacy of Wars in Karen Malpede?s Play 2010-06-10T23:30:00Z Maybe it's because his love not just of puns but all kinds of ludicrously contrived wordplay means that he fits neatly with a tradition of humour that's always been popular over here. If you enjoyed those Peter Kay one-liners, they were probably written by Emo Philips 2010-07-09T23:14:00Z They perched at a rostrum contrived from stacked milk crates and a broken-down corrugated box. The Verbal Wit and Bronx-Born Street Wisdom of “Desus & Mero” 2019-02-22T05:00:00Z Like “Skin,” “Lessons” has a dense, historically contrived libretto, offering a callous plot that hacks away at any sentimentality you might have left about power or love. Review: An Opera’s Exquisite Brutality Arrives in America 2022-08-10T04:00:00Z “I said, ‘This is too artificial, it’s too contrived,’” he said. Tim Gunn’s Happy Place Is ‘Schitt’s Creek,’ Washed Down With Good Gin 2021-07-13T04:00:00Z It is a little contrived, but the material that emerges and the relationships between the men often rises far above the schematic. Inside ? review 2010-11-22T22:01:00Z It’s an ideal option for those uninterested in contrived vibes in places like Marrakesh’s main square. Beyond the tourist circuit: Runners see the real Morocco during a mountain marathon 2016-09-08T04:00:00Z I’m Single, Not an Alien: Is there a more contrived and idiotic party-construct than a “couple thing”? Not a rhetorical question. Perspective | Carolyn Hax: Should a single try to burst her friends’ couple bubble? 2019-03-05T05:00:00Z Kennedy’s evolution quickly becomes too contrived and convenient. Jodi Picoult’s New Novel Reviewed by Roxane Gay 2016-10-11T04:00:00Z This sweet, modest, romantic interlude is as clichéd as it is contrived. | Theater in the Dark, With Lights: Lots of Modern Angst, and Free Beer 2011-02-11T22:30:51Z So were her recent performances in Australia a contrived bit of showmanship, or a legitimate meltdown? Was Madonna’s “meltdown” her greatest acting performance? 2016-03-14T04:00:00Z Sharing its characters’ highs and lows was once again a valuable catharsis, however contrived some of the big moments might have been. The 50 best TV shows of 2018: 50-31 2018-12-04T05:00:00Z However, he is close to unique in managing to straddle those two musical worlds in a manner that appears organic, inventive and not even remotely contrived. James Blake – review 2013-04-10T15:15:01Z The two meet up through one of Bigna’s contrived escapades, after which Frank immediately bursts into tears. ‘99 Moons’ Review: On-Again, Off-Again 2023-03-09T05:00:00Z And despite his occasionally contrived situations, he rightly dreads a Coney of corporate chain logos and upper-class condominiums. Theater Review: ‘Coney,’ by David Johnston, at New Ohio Theater 2012-11-14T00:07:23Z And beaches! — the movie involves a miscellany of men and women of varying backgrounds, ages and skin tones who laugh and weep through an assortment of contrived setups. 2010-02-11T23:01:00Z Creepy, twee Chaplin, with that creepy, twee walk, every joke so painfully contrived even a 10-year-old could see every punchline waddling over the horizon? Bravo Charlie 2010-07-30T11:15:00Z One other thing: The realness that is theater seemed reflected in the acceptance speeches on Sunday, which covered a full range of emotions and rarely seemed contrived, as they sometimes do at the Oscars. Putting On a Show at the Tonys 2014-06-09T04:00:00Z I wish Ward had not employed the tricks of lesser novelists, such as contrived cliffhangers and misdirection in order to engender suspense. A Widow Takes Her Grown Kids on a Cruise. What Could Go Wrong? 2020-02-21T05:00:00Z But there's a huge difference between amateurish images, or artists' carefully contrived means of recording their work, and the glittering lights of the mass media. Tino Sehgal has created a you-had-to-be-there moment at Tate Modern 2012-07-24T12:56:01Z The Pinterest look is starting to feel just as contrived and theatrical as glitzier weddings — and maybe J. Crew saw that writing on the wall. The J. Crew bridal dress is dead. But the casual wedding it inspired lives on. 2016-11-14T05:00:00Z Though the sequence is a lot more contrived than the music, its point — this helpless, unpolished little outburst of impulsive high spirits when alone in nature — is pleasing. Review: Mark Morris’s New Pastoral Says Less Than Its Music 2018-08-10T04:00:00Z Some of the solo work, like the rock set at the end, sounded a bit contrived. Iran's Namjoo ignites a thrilling musical ride 2011-02-27T02:17:04Z And then of course it’s their mothers who, in the most contrived plot twist of all, bring them together: Batman refrains from killing Superman once he finds out both their moms were named Martha. Wonder Woman's Epic Introduction Is Undercut by the Perpetually Helpless Lois Lane 2016-03-27T04:00:00Z Fiction's most recent deathwatch began with David Shields' provocative 2010 book "Reality Hunger," in which he diagnosed the traditional novel as "predictable, tired, contrived and essentially purposeless." T.C. Boyle roams the American psyche in 'The Harder They Come' 2015-03-26T04:00:00Z Female gaze or not, that was a convoluted and contrived way to tell it. ‘Outlander’ Season 2, Episode 7: Of Love and Sacrifice 2016-05-21T04:00:00Z It's contrived, of course, but no more so than Gwyneth Paltrow's romantic fate hingeing on which train she caught in Sliding Doors. Mind the werewolf: the London underground in film 2013-01-09T05:59:01Z As she tells Ms. Chiu, “There’s an interesting relationship in Japanese gardens between a manicured, contrived occurrence and what seems to be a natural, wild occurrence.” Art Review: ?Sarah Sze: Infinite Line? at Asia Society - Review 2011-12-15T23:22:12Z Though she is a charming and skilful writer, I thought the premise of a smalltown retiree setting out to repay a decades-old debt was contrived. Perfect by Rachel Joyce – review 2013-07-03T10:59:08Z “Bird Song” is just that, a contrived string of ornithological wordplays: “Stayin’ rich like an ostrich.” Review: M.I.A.’s Album ‘AIM’ Juggles Social Consciousness and Self-Assurance 2016-09-07T04:00:00Z In the main, Cal’s speeches seem contrived to push the story into another storytelling register, away from grounded psychological realism and into something approaching the mythic. ‘Montana Story’ Review: A Domestic Drama in Big Sky Country 2022-05-12T04:00:00Z However, Keating's highly contrived plots and acute sense of whimsy failed to find favour in the US. HRF Keating obituary 2011-03-28T17:04:57Z Yes, this odd-couple situation is contrived, but it’s also continuously charming. Review | Emma Donoghue’s ‘Akin’ sends an odd couple to France 2019-09-10T04:00:00Z At Pier 39, Mr. Holcom has carefully cultivated the romance of the Astoria waterfront by recruiting businesses with nautical cred — some real, some contrived. Overnighter: Astoria, Oregon, Discovers a Waterfront Chic 2011-03-25T18:55:00Z The program took an awkward turn with Donald Byrd’s antiseptic and contrived “Contested Space.” Dance Theater of Harlem Comes to Celebrate Brooklyn! 2014-08-01T04:00:00Z While conventional wisdom holds that studios should lard movies with Chinese characters or backdrops to increase their chances with the censors, Ms. Galano recommended against being too contrived. Save My Blockbuster! 2013-06-28T16:14:07Z In a novel as contrived and uneven as this one, the human touches go a long way. A Pulpy New Novel and Juiceless Old Essays From Mario Vargas Llosa 2018-02-19T05:00:00Z If you look at American mainstream movies, they will take people who would lead safe lives, and then use a contrived situation — an asteroid is going to hit — to put them in jeopardy. Coming to the L.A. Times Festival of Books: Atticus Lish 2015-04-16T04:00:00Z But “Housewives” becomes more contrived as it goes along, its themes overwhelming its characters. | 'The Housewives of Mannheim': At 59E59 Theaters, Restless Women on the Homefront 2010-05-18T22:26:00Z Despite the specificity of its setting, much of the movie — its obstacles, ambushes, moments of reflection and oases of respite — felt generic, schematic and often laughably contrived. Sorry, best picture front-runners: She’s just not that into you. 2020-02-06T05:00:00Z He chooses not to talk about details of his festival project, saying: "If I think too much about the project it becomes too contrived." Edinburgh festival: art comes out of the gallery 2012-08-10T21:54:01Z None of the improvements in diversity feels contrived, incidentally. Is Star Wars: The Force Awakens really female-friendly? 2015-12-16T05:00:00Z They and the musicians seem always aware of one another, and of their audience, and while some of this seems contrived, it also reads as deeply felt. Dance Review: ?more, more, more future? at the Kitchen - Review 2011-10-14T23:03:18Z "Constructed reality" is one way of describing the show but it doesn't quite do justice to its creepy plasticity and contrived machinations. Rewind TV: The Fall; The Murder Workers; Skint; Made in Chelsea – review 2013-05-18T17:00:05Z There are contrived touches, like Vuthy’s speeches to a skull he keeps in a cookie jar. | 'Year Zero': Michael Golamco?s Play Opens at the McGinn/Cazale Theater 2010-06-02T21:06:00Z The Vice Guide to North Korea Is it journalism in any sense, though, or just a curious, contrived spectacle? Shane Smith: 'I want to build the next CNN with Vice – it's within my grasp' 2013-03-23T22:24:20Z Without ever seeming contrived for polemical purposes, Shriver's narrative strands systematically illustrate the traps of provision by private health insurance companies. So Much for That by Lionel Shriver | Book review 2010-03-27T00:07:00Z The sophistication of the atmospheric effects contrived by the 25-year-old is remarkable. Art Review: John Martin's Greatness and High Kitsch 2011-09-30T11:30:09Z The high jinks and banter are contrived -- they could be a bit arch and sitcommy on the original show, too -- but the sentiments and situations ring true more often than not. "Shameless": American TV's problem with class 2011-01-08T02:01:00Z “She reveals what’s naturally present in the ingredient. We go to plenty of restaurants where that is contrived.” How acclaimed Chicago chef Iliana Regan found her bliss in the woods 2019-08-12T04:00:00Z Too contrived — a bit of a chore, really. Review | Shakespeare returns to Central Park with a ‘Merry Wives’ that lives up to its title 2021-08-15T04:00:00Z But this half-baked rehash of a dynamic familiar from “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” through “God of Carnage” is too contrived to score many compelling points. | 'A Perfect Future': Racism Comes to Dinner and Everything Is Flamb? 2011-02-22T22:30:23Z A lot of what we see seems contrived. Review: In ‘Taxi,’ a Filmmaker Pushes Against Iranian Censorship From Behind the Wheel 2015-10-01T04:00:00Z Despite the careful stage management, some of the musical point-making seems rather contrived. Mahler: Symphony No 2 ? review 2011-02-24T22:15:01Z While such narrative techniques may work well for video games, however, in a novel they seem contrived. China Mieville's 'The Last Days of New Paris' makes the surreal real 2016-08-11T04:00:00Z “I did,” he says, “but I’m a stickler for authenticity. Some of the love just felt intentionally contrived.” Neil Patrick Harris Prepares for ‘Hedwig and the Angry Inch’ 2014-02-19T13:00:18Z It’s an all-or-nothing album, either goofy and contrived or immersive and euphoric. New Albums From Jesse Winchester, Lia Ices and Others 2014-09-19T04:00:00Z But without characters who are credibly grounded by the actors portraying them, the show feels slicker and more contrived than it did. | 'Rent': That Ragtag Bohemian Army Returns 2011-08-12T02:01:00Z It is beautifully shot, affecting despite its contrived storyline, and filled with fine performances by a largely young and unknown cast. The Flowers of War fails to bloom for Chinese film industry 2012-08-02T19:00:07Z Soon it became a contrived and shambling hybrid of the two. ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves 2015-10-24T04:00:00Z It is less edgy than Baron Cohen's previous two films, featuring big, conventionally contrived gags and a colossal central turn from the man himself. The Dictator ? review 2012-05-17T20:00:01Z Awkward phrasing, painfully contrived rhymes and unnecessary repetition constantly kill the mood. Seattle Opera’s uneven ‘Flight,’ cleverly filmed at the Museum of Flight, takes off 2021-04-19T04:00:00Z While Noah is inside gathering his things Paul, who’s looking to score, suddenly takes off with Jesse — the first of several rather contrived exits and entrances — leaving Noah to face awkward questions when Fink arrives. Theater Review: ‘The Bad Guys’ by Alena Smith at McGinn/Cazale Theater 2012-06-06T21:13:07Z They were individuals but felt genuine rather than contrived, unlike Baby, Posh and Sporty. Why the TLC comeback matters so much 2017-03-27T04:00:00Z Certified Copy is the deconstructed portrait of a marriage, acted with well-intentioned fervour by , but persistently baffling, contrived, and often simply bizarre – a highbrow misfire of the most peculiar sort. Film review: Certified Copy 2010-09-02T21:35:00Z In her earliest work, she posed Aboriginal and white subjects against stagily contrived backgrounds, as if parodying the imaginary realm in which whitefellas placed blackfellas. Why Bran Nue Dae should get a UK release 2010-07-25T21:04:00Z Of the three, it seems the least contrived and the most like being inside a design studio. When Fashion TV Becomes an Anthropological Treasure 2020-03-24T04:00:00Z Might she single-handedly redeem 90 minutes of contrived nonsense? Review: ‘Carrie Pilby,’ Saved by Bel Powley, Superhero 2017-03-30T04:00:00Z It’s a bit like being at a Broadway play, if that play were a particularly contrived and superfluous star vehicle. Fall TV Reviewed: Choir Wars, Zany Immigrants and Demons of the Week 2019-09-25T04:00:00Z It's all a bit tame, predictable and muted; the inevitable revelation of German decency seems contrived and there's an outrageous plot cop-out towards the end. Cross of Honour – review 2012-09-27T21:15:02Z Yes, the Lannisters contrived a spectacular way to win a battle. Game of Thrones Watch: Smoke on the Water, Fire in the Sky 2012-05-28T15:20:17Z The New Journalism movement of the nineteen-sixties and nineteen-seventies, spearheaded by Truman Capote, Norman Mailer, Tom Wolfe, Gay Talese, and others, had famously contrived an effective presentational style around obscuring the journalist. William Goldman Turned Reporters into Heroes in “All the President’s Men” 2018-11-27T05:00:00Z This premise is disquieting, though Never Let Me Go may be too tasteful to be scary, and yet too contrived and unreal to be tragic. Never Let Me Go - review 2011-02-10T22:46:01Z Posting to a feed is a contrived and profoundly strange way to communicate with, say, close friends or family members, who are combined into the same audience, assembled to do what, exactly? The Secret to a Better Internet? Post Less, Chat More. 2021-11-12T05:00:00Z Hatched as part of marketing campaigns that cost millions of dollars, the catchphrases are heavy on the superlatives and metaphors, testing the boundaries between catchy and, well, contrived. Summertime … and the Sloganeering Is a Little Awkward 2021-05-29T04:00:00Z It’s a contrived scene, de rigueur for a film like this, but Rodriguez milks it for all of Gloria’s conflicted emotions. Try to keep up with "Miss Bala": Gina Rodriguez stars in this entertaining if bumpy ride 2019-02-01T05:00:00Z As agonizing as this emergency decision would be, the setup plays like a false trichotomy, compounded by ancillary ironies contrived for dramatic purposes. ‘The God Committee’ Review: At a Hospital, Judgment Day 2021-07-01T04:00:00Z The show is cunningly contrived, with the interactive element threaded through with statistics about markets and global debt, and a narrative that allows for emotional investment. Money: The Gameshow – review 2013-02-06T20:00:00Z But French actor Rahim, in his first big US production, a decade after the success of A Prophet, never makes them seem contrived. 'They totally underestimated al-Qaida': The Looming Tower and America's pre-9/11 complacency 2018-03-02T05:00:00Z The film is enjoyable and was warmly received but Vacth, undeniably a magnetic screen presence, is almost a contrived caricature of the sullen poetic French teen, chain-smoking Gauloises. Cannes Film Festival 2013 2013-05-16T20:23:54Z But "The Affair" hasn't made good on its early debut-season promise, leaving the door open for another loopy, contrived drama. A look at who's likely to win Golden Globe Awards 2015-01-01T05:00:00Z In a recent interview with Barron — which covered everything from her culinary inspirations to how the industry has changed for female chefs — Hutchings acknowledged that her praise may sound "contrived or overly ebullient." These elevated, sweet-but-not-too-sweet strawberry and rhubarb shortcakes taste just like summer 2023-05-29T04:00:00Z Such reminiscences, though chilling, seem both overly contrived and overly familiar when spatchcocked together, departing little from abused-children narratives handed down by Dickens and Charlotte Brontë. Review: In ‘The Saviour,’ Past Trauma Is Very Much Present 2023-07-14T04:00:00Z One of the mainstays of Mariah season, as devotees of Mariah Carey’s Christmas music have christened the holidays, is Christmas movies, from classic comedies to the contrived romances created by the Hallmark Channel. ‘The First Noelle’ Review: All I Want for Christmas Is My Ex 2022-11-10T05:00:00Z It also has the counterintuitive effect of making the "Alita" universe seem more contrived. Alita is a fascinating badass. "Alita: Battle Angel" fails her at every turn 2019-02-15T05:00:00Z Isn't this stuff so original that it's utterly contrived? Joanna Newsom ? easy to appreciate, hard to enjoy 2010-07-29T20:33:00Z Mr. Dhaenens takes particular relish in gently lampooning Frank Vanhecke, a present-day nationalist Belgian official of the European Union who, with a contrived aw-shucks demeanor, speaks contemptuously of Europe’s Muslim population. Theater Review: ‘BigMouth’ Lets Talkers Across Time Have Their Say 2014-01-17T22:15:41Z His Satie is perfectly clear, yet robust and a touch smoky; his Claude Debussy, luminous and open, without contrived mystery. Aldo Ciccolini, pianist of virtuosity and elegance, dies at 89 2015-02-05T05:00:00Z Anyway, I find it contrived that the second challenge is to make two French dishes in an hour and a half by using both "vintage" and "modern" kitchen technology. It's nostalgic to watch amateur cooks tackle Julia Child's oeuvre—but this "challenge" also irks me 2022-03-29T04:00:00Z It usually starts at the school board, after some contrived uproar over sex education or liberal indoctrination. GOP insider: Religion destroyed my party 2012-08-05T16:00:00Z Blomkamp digs into the emotions when Jann has a setback, but this narrative pit stop does not feel corny or contrived. Get revved up for "Gran Turismo," the summer's suspenseful thrill ride based on a true story 2023-08-24T04:00:00Z It was one of those instances of reality asserting itself forcibly into these contrived situations. Waiting for Kanye 2016-09-07T04:00:00Z But the directors, the brothers Bill and Turner Ross, never reveal that this setup was contrived. Does It Matter if a Documentary Is Staged? These Two Films Hold Answers 2020-08-20T04:00:00Z Ms. Moore’s “Anthem for the Living” is even more contrived. Dance Review: ?Heist Project,? by Belinda McGuire, at Joyce SoHo - Review 2011-12-04T23:14:42Z Passion simulated either becomes real or risks looking contrived and yucky. 'Stage Kiss' elicits lots of giggles but not much emotion at Geffen Playhouse 2016-04-15T04:00:00Z And some narrative choices are contrived: Too much time is given over to West’s desire to be featured in an MTV News segment spotlighting new artists. Kanye West Always Wanted You to Watch 2022-02-17T05:00:00Z Thinking about her movie about Jelly, Meadow worries that “it was too contrived, too forced, too cheesily consequential.” Review: Dana Spiotta’s ‘Innocents and Others’ Explores the Dynamics Between Life and Art 2016-02-29T05:00:00Z It’s a radically upbeat note that’s too contrived in an otherwise desolate situation. Review: ‘Rosa Chumbe’ Offers Little Hope for Redemption 2017-11-30T05:00:00Z But these conclusions hardly matter in a deeply contrived world of nonspecific female characters, allowing even for the freedoms of allegory. ‘House of Darkness’ Review: If You Prick Them, Do Bros Not Bleed? 2022-09-08T04:00:00Z He comments about “how helpless desire is outside its little theater of heat, how ridiculous it becomes the moment it isn’t welcomed, even if that welcome is contrived.” Review: ‘What Belongs to You,’ a Story of Desire and Outcomes 2016-01-19T05:00:00Z Her pursuit of tough inharmonious motifs is ambitious, but too often leaves her work looking brittle and contrived, as if she were avoiding traditional beauty yet declining to find an alternative. Review: Charline von Heyl, ‘Düsseldorf: Paintings From the Early 1990s’ 2015-04-23T04:00:00Z The clothes reflected the pattern of recent Galliano seasons — say, a gutsy suede coat or knitted jacket contrived to look careless and cool, with romantic fur, little checked shorts or knickers, and over-the-knee platform boots. | Fashion Review: In Paris, Ovations Where Merited 2011-03-05T00:36:15Z It was contrived, middling in a festival filler kind of way. Review: Michelle Dorrance Returns to the Joyce. Where’s the Zip? 2022-12-09T05:00:00Z And so the repartee begins, but this time seeming much less fresh and much more contrived than before. Sundance film festival 2013: Before Midnight – first look review 2013-01-21T12:11:46Z Her own book becomes as contrived as the ones she is lampooning. Books of The Times: Carolyn Parkhurst?s Third Novel, ?The Nobodies Album? 2010-06-09T20:24:00Z But not everything beautifully done makes sense beyond its immediate context, and often the context seems woefully contrived. Review: In ‘Grand Horizons,’ Marriage Is a Long-Running Farce 2020-01-23T05:00:00Z The whole film could have been contrived for that single staggeringly powerful image. Bergman: why are the great director's women all tragi-sexual goddesses? 2018-02-04T05:00:00Z But the narrative also drags George Bailey through contrived and increasingly satirical levels of suffering just because it can. The harmful messaging of "It's a Wonderful Life" 2021-12-30T05:00:00Z For what it's worth, the ending is "so ridiculously contrived, it's almost worth the movie's extended length. Almost." 'The Longest Ride': Critics aren't bullish on Nicholas Sparks romance 2015-04-10T04:00:00Z There’s nothing contrived about Mr. Watts’s nonconformist presentation. Reggie Watts, a Master of Improvisation 2010-05-28T22:35:00Z Everything I was doing was edited and contrived to get more value, to get more views.” A social media star comes clean: “Everything I was doing was edited and contrived to get more value” 2015-11-03T05:00:00Z When the film finally circles back to the detective narrative, it does so in a contrived and groan-inducing way that is simply unforgivable. In the heavy-handed "Stillwater," Matt Damon is an Oklahoman in France trying to free his daughter 2021-07-30T04:00:00Z But he finds Poppy instead, and a contrived scandal soon forces their hands into marriage. In These Romance Novels, the Characters Are Sexy, Hot and Toting a Ton of Emotional Baggage 2018-09-20T04:00:00Z It is a dizzying pattern of coincidence contrived by the gods to sport with and punish these hubristic lovers. Madame De … – review 2013-02-14T22:40:01Z Oh yes -I found the contrived rut scene before the stone unbelievable. ‘Outlander’ Season 2 Finale: I Believe You 2016-07-09T04:00:00Z “Harry” finds himself just as puzzled by departmental expense chits, arcane filing systems, contrived acronyms and where, in all of London, can be found a decent cup of coffee? A maze of danger and deception in newly reissued spy novels 2013-12-06T22:54:24Z Many of the stories in “Bark” suffer from being squished into contrived packages, intended to underscore similar realizations on the part of the hero or heroine. Books of The Times: ‘Bark,’ Lorrie Moore’s Meditations on Time 2014-02-19T20:59:55Z If the last of the tetralogy, “Regular Singing,” felt slightly more contrived than the others, I was still sorry to say goodbye to a family who somehow turned casual conversation into theatrical catharsis. Review: ‘Hungry’ Portrays a Mourning Clan in Election Year 2016 2016-03-06T05:00:00Z The art is meant to look “naive,” or simple, or homespun, rather than polished, finished, contrived or rhetorical. Perspective | Can a noose be art? There’s one hanging from a porch in Washington that’s here to challenge your assumptions. 2020-07-01T04:00:00Z After such a candid look at the lives of the city's most unfortunate inhabitants, the return to McQueen's quest to survive a day on the roads alone seemed contrived and hollow. Toughest Place to Be a … Taxi Driver; Shetland 2013-03-11T07:00:15Z It was a superb concert, Nelsons bringing the best from his orchestra and from a programme which, were it not for his charisma and energy, might have seemed oddly contrived. The Proms 2011: week two in review 2011-08-04T11:04:34Z The acting is excellent and some of the scenes are quite enthralling; but large plot arcs seem almost nonsensical or heavily contrived to me. ‘Billions’ Season 2, Episode 10: Nonconformity 2017-04-23T04:00:00Z I think aesthically she is unlike any other friend I have or anyone else I’ve worked with, because she doesn’t care about labels, about brands, about any of the contrived things. Solange Knowles’s Stylist Will Do Anything to Hunt Down a Look 2016-10-07T04:00:00Z Much of the comedy is effortful, failing to rise above this level of contrived mishearing: He even reeled off a sentence from each of my first two novels. Zoo Time by Howard Jacobson – review 2012-08-30T07:00:42Z It leads her to an act of spite that in turns leads to a death: and this finale is as empty and contrived as everything else. The Smell of Us review: Larry Clark's passionless voyeur flick 2014-08-31T04:00:00Z Or a contrived fairy tale apropos only of itself? Oscar Spotlight: The Screenplays 2017-02-14T05:00:00Z The tweets feel slightly contrived compared to the audacious voice of the Jidadans. NoViolet Bulawayo Allegorizes the Aftermath of Robert Mugabe 2022-03-06T05:00:00Z A lesser artist might have contrived a tidier plot or affixed a more ringing lesson, but Bratton seems to be motivated less by didacticism than by curiosity. ‘The Inspection’ Review: Boot Camp, a Love Story 2022-11-17T05:00:00Z He blurs the lines between fiction and nonfiction by sometimes using a contrived storyteller’s voice in an essay, or by throwing criticism into something that sounds more like a piece of fiction. Have personal essays gotten too personal? 2013-03-17T17:00:00Z The movie flirts with intriguing notions of recessionary struggle — especially its impact on relationships — but strained, contrived humor bogs it down. Movie Listings for March 21-27 2014-03-20T22:36:36Z A comprehensive lesson in Japanese aesthetics could be illustrated by this work, which embodies paradoxes of natural and contrived, ephemeral and permanent, simple and exalted. Review | In the galleries: The past invades the present in paintings by Gregory Ferrand 2017-12-14T05:00:00Z The veteran British actor delivers a wonderfully ebullient and moving turn that lends a genuine humanity to the otherwise overly contrived and mechanistic proceedings. Review: 'Upside Down' is mostly down 2013-03-15T03:16:04Z Paul Outerbridge Jr., known for his elegantly spare commercial photographs of inanimate objects, also worked with live models and overheated color in a more visibly contrived manner. Review: ‘Grand Illusions’ Showcases Deceptive Photography 2015-08-27T04:00:00Z And at times, the attempt to look at the future of ballet seems more contrived than organic, like the appearances of the street dancer Rauf Yasit. Review: William Forsythe Takes Dance to a Quiet, Uneven Place 2019-10-13T04:00:00Z He contrived a triptych – posh Scottish upbringing; the war years; and his time running Granada TV. In praise of ... Denis Forman 2013-02-26T00:15:01Z His cattleprod measures – a sudden spate of cop deaths, a cull of middle-aged characters, a live episode – proved jarring and contrived. Killing The Bill 2010-03-26T16:06:00Z Moreover, McCullough said he was fed up with "reality TV" shows because they weren't truly real, but were contrived settings and situations put in place by writers, directors, producers and others. Reality TV gets real on the Web and in "The Vault" 2010-03-24T23:58:00Z The Young British Artists were anarchic within a contrived system. The cultural cringe subverted 2011-04-13T19:30:01Z So his insistence on knocking both parties, even when his jibes at President Obama are clearly dutiful at best, seems oddly contrived, if not self-defeating. Critic’s Notebook: Comedy and Politics, Uneasy Bedfellows but Snuggling 2012-10-03T20:05:01Z This movie is more for hard-core pro football fans who are fascinated by the front office mechanics — although those fans may also be disappointed that it plays out so melodramatically, with so many contrived confrontations. 'Draft Day' a 'Moneyball' for the hard-core pro football fan 2014-08-30T04:00:00Z The reason why Sage hasn't been living with the royal family is ridiculously contrived and lame, as if the author hadn't thought about the reason before she wrote it. The False Prince by Jennifer Neilsen - review 2012-10-05T14:00:00Z The delicately carved limewood panelling around the walls had been contrived in such a way that there were no sharp corners anywhere in the room, only curves. The City at the Bottom of the Sea 2018-10-02T04:00:00Z This contrived yet entirely representational scene suggests an artistic journey that has carried Winslow back to a place that’s both the same as and different from 40 years ago. In the galleries: An artist’s past, present and future 2015-07-10T04:00:00Z But many readers will question the risk that Ward took by leading them on such a contrived course to such a dismal destination. 'The Flooded Earth': Peter Ward's vision of a world awash in the consequences of climate change 2010-06-10T20:50:00Z The narrative furniture is a bit more clunky, and the love triangle between Katniss, Peeta and Gale a mite more contrived, but when the action finally arrives, it more than makes up for it. Why Hunger Games 3 will kill one Mockingjay with two stones 2012-07-12T14:54:53Z Mr. Keller is good too, even if Nick seems more contrived, as does his job. 2010-01-13T23:02:00Z “Force of Circumstance” can’t sustain this suavely contrived mixture of dis- and reorientation. ‘Force of Circumstance’: Casablanca in the East Village 2023-05-24T04:00:00Z Sincere and contrived, amateurish and slick, this new one adds a baffling footnote to his résumé. | 'Snow Flower and the Secret Fan': Ties That Bind: Life-Sustaining Friendships Transcending Life?s Brutalities 2011-07-14T23:41:45Z I suppose out of habit I contrived for us to go on an occasional shopping trip, and, perhaps because of Hortense’s wonderful prettiness, I was drawn to stores that were a bit more upscale. “This Is Pleasure” 2019-07-08T04:00:00Z From a fast-paced action-movie opening, building up the tension, we jump to a plot so contrived it wouldn’t be considered worthy of a soap opera. 'Doctor Who' Series 8 Episode 2 Review: Into The Dalek 2014-08-30T04:00:00Z In one song after another, he contrived a series of guitar embellishments that elevated the Beatles' music at every turn. George Harrison's songwriting evolution: The Quiet Beatle's considerable impact on the group’s sound 2023-02-25T05:00:00Z It is a measure of the suppressed hysteria that Oscar night engenders that this egregious cockup is the subject of its very own “truther” conspiracy – a theory that it was deliberately contrived to boost ratings. What is the best Oscar-winning film of all time? 2018-03-01T05:00:00Z While there are a few contrived moments, it's well worth a look. Tonight's TV highlights 2011-02-28T08:00:02Z Not to riot, but to reconcile with the racial narrative this country has contrived to center a white supremacist provenance, and which Whitehead lays bare. Colson Whitehead's 'The Underground Railroad' is timely, necessary and shattering 2016-08-26T04:00:00Z The novel’s text seems positively contrived to be quoted out of context: “When you have poor intuition, everything is counterintuitive.” ‘Quicksand’ review: A zany, and trying, tale of a man who can’t catch a break 2015-09-14T04:00:00Z Mr. Hill’s flair for orchestrated tumult is here augmented by some skillfully contrived suspense. ‘Southern Comfort’ and 'Hearts and Minds' on DVD 2014-07-03T04:00:00Z What ensues, the reader — by now accustomed to Mr. Ross’s propensity for nasty denouements — correctly anticipates, is bloody and contrived. Books of The Times: Tall Tales From Gifted Storytellers 2011-06-20T22:00:07Z The picture on the card showed dozens of Scottish family crests, many of which looked as if they had been hastily contrived for postcard purposes. A Portrait of My Ego as a Big Black Dog 2016-11-24T05:00:00Z For contrived reasons too convoluted to explicate, Leo becomes the reluctant and unlikely protector of the other four when they find themselves trapped outside during the violence-filled night. Review: ‘Purge’ sequel provides requisite thrills 2014-07-17T04:00:00Z The tone, perfectly conveyed in Edith Grossman’s virtuoso translation, is amused and theatrical — realism that never asks the reader to forget it has been neatly contrived. In Politics if Not Art, Realism Trumps Magic for Mario Vargas Llosa 2018-03-13T04:00:00Z Somehow, "Lost" contrived to reach its finale confronted with a choice: It could do justice to the puzzle or it could wrap up the character arcs. "Lost": Ruined by its own fans? 2010-05-24T14:30:00Z A twist near the end sends this contrived movie into a maudlin stratosphere from which it doesn’t recover. | 'Bodyguard': ?Bodyguard? With Salman Khan - Review 2011-08-31T21:42:33Z The results are inevitable, often contrived and undeniably moving. ALS drama 'You're Not You' pulls its emotional punch 2014-10-09T04:00:00Z “Doppelgänger” places Schubert works alongside new pieces explicitly inspired by them — Thursday’s concert pairs Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s “Rituals” with Schubert’s “Rosamunde” — and the links in “Prism” are similar, if less deliberately contrived. The Danish String Quartet’s ‘Prism’ Is Essential Listening 2023-04-19T04:00:00Z What he is doing here is as arty and contrived as the very things he's taking a pop at. Roy Lichtenstein: too cool for school? 2013-02-18T18:15:39Z In a seemingly contrived non-sequitur, she ended up dedicating the performance to her late "Brady Bunch" cast member. "Dancing with the Stars": Bristol Palin, monkey-style 2010-10-19T12:30:00Z I think that it would have been bad writing if he did figure it out, because it would have been contrived. “Breaking Bad”: “He’s a pure psychopath” 2012-07-22T19:00:00Z I found comedy drama Silver Linings Playbook contrived, but it had critics around me whooping and cheering. Toronto closes after very public festival 2012-09-13T10:22:04Z At this point in any dance form, excessive hand movements are contrived, but Ms. Pericet, using her hips shrewdly, redeems these moves with absorbing touches that reveal the sinuous spiral of her back and arms. Review: In ‘Olga Pericet: Flamenco Untitled,’ the Dancer Maintains Control 2015-11-08T05:00:00Z And then there was the contrived political correctness of the "Chinese Turkey" scene, which transformed the "Deck the Hores With Bores of Horey" song of the original to a professional a capella harmonized choir. Review: ‘A Christmas Story Live!’ Wasn’t Lively Enough 2017-12-18T05:00:00Z Their — literally — overnight romance is preposterous and embarrassing, as is so much else in this creaky, contrived tale. 'A Night in Old Mexico' a waste for Robert Duvall 2014-05-15T04:00:00Z I got drunk many times and contrived an argument, which was unfair. A letter to the woman I adored but was afraid to be with 2016-06-04T04:00:00Z But don't be fooled: it may not wear its art on its sleeve but it is most cunningly contrived. Sweet simplicity 2013-04-09T22:01:00Z When it’s contrived or controlled, it feels like a deception. Perspective | I miss live performances, but what I really miss is applause 2020-08-26T04:00:00Z It’s a tough ask, and runs the risk of seeming contrived, but the potential for genuine drama is clear. Dark knight rising: why Ben Affleck's Batman is the key to DC's movie future 2017-07-25T04:00:00Z He says he knows that other chefs think he's pretentious, that his dishes are contrived, clever, soulless. Grant Achatz: The making of Chicago's top chef ... and what's Next 2011-02-15T06:00:00Z Hertog concluded that Amazon's bestseller rankings are "inaccurate", "contrived" and "misleading" to customers, saying his findings meant "the Kindle experience is dead". Amazon withdraws ebook explaining how to manipulate its sales rankings 2011-01-05T09:54:13Z Louis Dudek, a literary critic who focused on modernist poetry, once described Mr. Hine’s poetry as “a series of extremely recherché, abstract, contrived word forms, containing oblique and ambiguous philosophical essays and meditations.” Daryl Hine, 76, Poet, Editor and Translator 2012-08-25T03:43:30Z Much of "Going the Distance," too, feels contrived. Review: Drew Barrymore's 'Going the Distance' 2010-09-01T22:49:00Z Some pieces involve carefully contrived illusions of damage. Art in Review: ?PERFECTLY DAMAGED? 2011-07-07T21:00:05Z He contrived a thrilling balance between cantabile and cutting edge, with a daring line in tiny pianissimos. The Turn of the Screw; BBC Proms 32, 35, 36 ? review 2011-08-13T23:06:02Z But this Lifetime series turned into much more — anyone can call “The Bachelor” contrived, but it takes a gutsy kind of cynicism to turn that same skepticism on romantic love in general. What You Should Watch This Weekend: ‘Penny Dreadful,’ ‘UnReal’ and ‘Election’ 2016-04-29T04:00:00Z You may recall that Kugelmass, the hapless literature professor in one of Mr. Allen’s classic comic sketches, contrived to transport himself into the pages of “Madame Bovary.” Movie Review: ‘In the House,’ Starring Fabrice Luchini 2013-04-18T21:57:15Z MB And it is so contrived, and it is contrived to look so spontaneous, it makes you sick. Hillary Clinton meets Mary Beard: ‘I would love to have told Trump: “Back off, you creep”’ 2017-12-02T05:00:00Z It’s a contrived and heavily stage-managed premise — but contrived in a Dickensian sort of way with coincidences that reverberate with philosophical significance. The Handmaid’s Thriller: In ‘The Testaments,’ There’s a Spy in Gilead 2019-09-03T04:00:00Z Its central conceit is pretty inarguable: it has totally worked out The X Factor is exploitative, contrived and cynical and that Simon Cowell is probably a bad hat, less interested in music than money. 'The real problem is the songs' 2012-12-11T23:02:00Z I found it contrived and treacly because I'm cold and soulless. A look at Channing Tatum's 5 films this year 2012-09-14T00:46:04Z I thought the writing began to feel too contrived this season. ‘Girls’ Finale: Is It Just Us, or Did the Show Get Better? 2016-04-17T04:00:00Z It was the relatively uncomplicated style that they cultivated — contrived somehow as both new and firmly rooted in tradition — that Richter would later promote worldwide. Playing Bach, Was He a Pioneer or a Reactionary? 2021-01-21T05:00:00Z Brown and Barnard don’t meld as seamlessly with their characters as Horne does with his, and once in a while they make bits of stage business look contrived instead of spontaneous. Review | ‘My Children! My Africa!’ still resonates in expected and unexpected ways 2021-11-19T05:00:00Z “I also honestly think I am first and foremost — this sounds terrible, it sounds contrived, but it’s really real — I think I am a supporting actor,” he said. Liev Schreiber, the Reluctant Rake 2016-09-20T04:00:00Z Distilled in lushly hued images of tropical paradise, his vision of Tahiti as an antidote to rotten "civilisation" is positioned as an artfully contrived come-on. This week's new exhibitions 2010-09-24T23:06:00Z But all of it is highly structured, contrived and almost dogmatically artless. Wild gardens that grew out from Washington 2015-10-19T04:00:00Z When it doesn't, it simply sounds contrived: middle-of-the-road rock coloured sepia. The Lumineers: The Lumineers – review 2012-11-08T23:00:01Z Of the 1975 comedy-drama "Lucky Lady," for example, he wrote that it was a "cynical, vulgar, contrived, mismated, violent, uneven and uninteresting disaster." Charles Champlin dies at 88; former L.A. Times arts editor, critic 2014-11-17T05:00:00Z He ended up in a tiny village called Touba Sanokho, which he describes as a place where “people live spirituality in a way that is not contrived, or unnatural or separate.” This new bakery is taking local grains to another level — and the results should have you standing in line 2017-11-27T05:00:00Z Nearly lost among the cutesy diction and contrived structure is the simple and powerful notion that, to teenagers, it always feels like the end of the world. A Survival Guide for the End of the World 2022-11-15T05:00:00Z Gregory Costello, the creative director at Ideeli.com, a free flash sale site where members can pay for earlier access, discourages contrived poses that are staples of fashion magazines. A Look That?s Worth a Million Hits 2010-12-01T23:40:00Z There are no neatly contrived life lessons at the end of each episode. Terrible name, terrific sitcom: how Schitt's Creek became a surprise hit 2020-05-09T04:00:00Z The play’s suspense ebbs away, along with much of its comic momentum, as the plot grows more contrived and implausible. Theater Review: ‘Fly Me to the Moon,’ With the 1st Irish Festival 2012-09-13T02:00:00Z So if the girl power moments felt contrived, they were. 'Game of Thrones' Bends Over Backwards to Give Us a Girl Power Moment 2016-06-20T04:00:00Z Yet, most of the time, “Judy” renders Garland’s pathos, as well as the details of her life story, in the form of dramatic clichés and contrived arcs. “Judy,” Reviewed: Renée Zellweger’s Transcendent Performance as Judy Garland 2019-09-25T04:00:00Z Even so, it seems tacked-on, contrived, lazy almost — a superficial way to engage a complex idea. George Pelecanos' 'Martini Shot' short stories colorful but confined 2014-12-26T05:00:00Z The caption below the engraving reads, “The apparatus contrived for the purpose of determining whether the manifestations attributed to spirits could be made without mortal aid.” “Is there an afterlife?” Ghost-hunting at my grandmother’s house 2014-02-02T11:59:00Z In less able hands this conversation turns lugubrious and contrived. Maile Meloy reads at Seattle's Elliott Bay Book Co. 2010-07-01T20:39:00Z It’s all admirable but irksomely self-conscious and contrived. Dance Review: Moving Preciously to the Music, Sometimes Stealing Away With It 2010-09-23T21:53:00Z Yet several plot points tend toward the contrived and would likely be more believable onstage, with the special intimacy that theater can afford. Review: ‘Anything’ Finds a Small-Town Man Baffled by the Big City 2018-05-10T04:00:00Z The situation, which grows contrived in the final stretch, is merely a pretext for verbal war games. Chutzpah and humor temper message 2015-06-18T04:00:00Z Even the old reprobate Gingrich misted up over some contrived misdeed intended to distract attention from his well-known adventures in serial matrimony. GOP insider: Religion destroyed my party 2012-08-05T16:00:00Z The characters very rarely come across as real, perhaps because the story itself is so contrived. Review | ‘Thirteen Reasons Why’ shows how adults can really mess up teen angst 2017-03-30T04:00:00Z Alas, all this feels far more contrived than satisfying. Despite a steely performance, Sandra Bullock's dreary film of life after prison is "Unforgivable" 2021-12-10T05:00:00Z CGI Buck, a strange cyborg composite whose animal instincts are contrived by humans, fails to preserve this legacy. Have dog actors had their last on-screen bark? 2020-03-18T04:00:00Z Everything is so contrived, contorted, unrelaxed and unreal. How Do You Know ? review 2011-01-27T22:00:01Z The decor inside is unassuming, but don’t let that put you off – “honest” is a better description, for this is a real Paris bistro bar and there is nothing contrived about its appearance. Favourite Paris bistros: readers’ travel tips 2016-02-18T05:00:00Z As America’s supplicant, Churchill contrived the special relationship, a sentimentalized international bond based not in shifting national interests but on permanently shared values. Britain and the U.S.: A Forced and Unequal Marriage 2020-08-28T04:00:00Z Mashing limp romance and artless satire into a ludicrously contrived plot, “The Clapper” lurches from one mirthlessly eccentric scene to another. Review: Finding Unwanted Fame in ‘The Clapper’ 2018-01-25T05:00:00Z In time a relationship between them develops that’s emotionally believable and almost too contrived to work. | 'Another Earth': Living in a Different World, Searching for a Second Chance 2011-07-21T22:19:22Z It’s hard to know what the director Allen Coulter could have done to improve Will Fetters’s absurdly contrived, yakky script about love and loss, largely set in the summer of 2001. Movie Review | 'Remember Me': Robert Pattinson as a Brooding Rebel 2010-03-12T00:11:00Z However contrived and impoverished their means, these films are a crucial part of African-American cinema history. The Swinging, Jamming Musical Charms of 1940s Soundies 2020-06-11T04:00:00Z "The working artists who survive and thrive," Kidd adds, "seem to consistently either avoid the tabloid spotlight entirely, or they present the media only with a contrived performance, like Lady Gaga." 'How did we let this happen?' The Amy Winehouse question and social science's take on modern fame 2015-06-18T04:00:00Z As the original works so well, there is no justification for digitizing it, and the result is doomed to feel unnecessarily contrived. 2010-01-25T09:32:00Z The invisible man sketch for instance, contrived though it is, shows such skill that it wins you over. Comedy gold – Rowan Atkinson Live 2013-02-28T16:26:02Z It comes off as an artfully contrived tease, like the scene in the “Mission Impossible” movies in which someone goes on at length about the impenetrable security that makes a big heist so unlikely. Review: ‘Always at the Carlyle’ Hints at Scandal, Chooses Discretion 2018-05-09T04:00:00Z It is sweet when the female characters come together and support each other, but it feels contrived when a hateful man shows up and causes trouble. "Berlin, I Love You" won't bring you down 2019-02-08T05:00:00Z |
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