Nathan Rabin
Vanity Fair
United States
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Past articles by Nathan:
The Triumph and Tragedy of Eddie Murphy
A new director’s cut of Dreamgirls underscores Murphy’s Oscar-worthy performance—and highlights the disappointing roles that followed. → Read More
Remembering the Zombie King: Shaun of the Dead’s Edgar Wright on George Romero
The man behind Shaun of the Dead celebrates his inspiration, who changed horror with a Trojan horse of a movie. → Read More
Everyone Knows Tupac the Rapper Was Great. But What About Tupac the Actor?
On the 25th anniversary of his breakthrough film Juice, an appreciation for the acting career that was cut way too short. → Read More
Everyone Knows Tupac the Rapper Was Great. But What About Tupac the Actor?
On the 25th anniversary of his breakthrough film Juice, an appreciation for the acting career that was cut way too short. → Read More
An unsolved murder and Nazi comedy can’t make Crane a compelling memoir
Silly Little Show-Biz Book Club is Nathan Rabin’s ongoing exploration of books involving show business, with a special emphasis on the very bad and the very sleazy.Bob Crane is best known for starring in the inexplicably popular Nazi-themed sitcom Hogan’s Heroes and for dying in an unsolved murder r → Read More
The spy who disappointed me case file #85: The Brothers Grimsby
My World Of Flops is Nathan Rabin’s survey of books, television shows, musical releases, or other forms of entertainment that were financial flops, critical failures, or lack a substantial cult following.With his pioneering work on Da Ali G Show and Borat!, Sacha Baron Cohen set the bar prohibitivel → Read More
The Alluring Darkness Beneath Saturday Night Fever’s Disco Floor
40 years later, John Travolta’s star-making film is remembered mostly as a fun 70s curiosity—but its pitch-blackness is the reason the movie has endured this long. → Read More
Going for the gold! case file #84: The Bronze
My World Of Flops is Nathan Rabin’s survey of books, television shows, musical releases, or other forms of entertainment that were financial flops, critical failures, or lack a substantial cult following.The runaway success of Napoleon Dynamite gave a lot of small-time filmmakers false hope. Jared H → Read More
Kelsey Grammer doesn’t even mention Sideshow Bob in his bizarre memoir So Far... · Silly Little Show-Biz Book Club · The A.V. Club
Grammer’s memoir feels like it was written in artisanal ink with a quill pen. → Read More
12 Angry Men Is More Relevant Than Ever in the Age of Trump
60 years after its initial release, the ultimate American morality tale still has lessons we’d do well to heed. → Read More
Newman, meet Waluigi: 10 of our favorite “unlikable” characters
Welcome back to AVQ&A, where we throw out a question for discussion among the staff and readers. Consider this a prompt to compare notes on your interface with pop culture, to reveal your embarrassing tastes and experiences, and to ponder how our diverse lives all led us to convene here together → Read More
Get outta here, 10 Things I Hate About You: 10 movies that embody the ’90s
Welcome back to AVQ&A, where we throw out a question for discussion among the staff and readers. Consider this a prompt to compare notes on your interface with pop culture, to reveal your embarrassing tastes and experiences, and to ponder how our diverse lives all led us to convene here together → Read More
This Is It!—the memoir of Michael Jackson’s doctor—is a morbidly fascinating train wreck
Yet Murray finds himself more fascinating than his former patient and keeps pushing Jackson out of the way so that he can stand front and center, the Christ-like hero of his tale. → Read More
Monkey dies, everybody cries case #82: King Kong Lives
My World Of Flops is Nathan Rabin’s survey of books, television shows, musical releases, or other forms of entertainment that were financial flops, critical failures, or lack a substantial cult following.On a 1977 episode of Saturday Night Live, John Belushi played Italian super-producer and schlock → Read More
The Monkey and the Metaphor: What Every King Kong Movie Is Really About
Because a giant ape has never just been a giant ape. → Read More
“No, really, Vanderpump Rules”: 9 critically reviled TV shows you enjoy
Welcome back to AVQ&A, where we throw out a question for discussion among the staff and readers. Consider this a prompt to compare notes on your interface with pop culture, to reveal your embarrassing tastes and experiences, and to ponder how our diverse lives all led us to convene here together → Read More
How X-Men Origins: Wolverine Paved the Way for Logan by Being So Terrible
Origins is awful. But the first standalone Wolverine movie also led to the best X-Men movie—by showing the newer film what not to do. → Read More
“Where are the flying cars?”: Pop culture that accurately depicts the future
Welcome back to AVQ&A, where we throw out a question for discussion among the staff and readers. Consider this a prompt to compare notes on your interface with pop culture, to reveal your embarrassing tastes and experiences, and to ponder how our diverse lives all led us to convene here together → Read More
My Father, Uncle Miltie is a luridly entertaining look at one of comedy’s biggest dicks
Silly Little Show-Biz Book Club is Nathan Rabin’s ongoing exploration of books involving show business, with a special emphasis on the very bad and the very sleazy. The cover of William Berle and ghostwriter Brad Lewis’ gossipy tell-all My Father, Uncle Miltie shows its subject, Milton Berle, in his → Read More
Definitely not Love, Actually: 11 candidates for the most romantic movie ever
Welcome back to AVQ&A, where we throw out a question for discussion among the staff and readers. Consider this a prompt to compare notes on your interface with pop culture, to reveal your embarrassing tastes and experiences, and to ponder how our diverse lives all led us to convene here together → Read More