Mount Hood

Shane Dawson and Jeffree Star create a hit YouTube series and amazing makeup products

Never Retallack  | Entertainment Editor

On Sept. 24, Shane Dawson, a famous YouTuber, released a trailer called, “The Beautiful World of Jeffree Star.”

Shane Dawson started posting YouTube skits in 2008. As one of the original YouTube stars, Dawson has evolved with his channel, growing from inappropriate skits to making mini-documentaries.

Jeffree Star had an even earlier start on the media site; beginning in 2006, his main purpose was posting makeup tutorials, as well as discussing his personal life. 

Star has over 16 million subscribers and Dawson has over 20 million subscribers, collectively making them a powerhouse team.

On Aug. 1, 2018, Dawson posted a video called, “The Secret World of Jeffree Star,” where he showed how Star is not only a beauty influencer, but also has a multi-million dollar makeup company. During this video, Star joked about Dawson creating a makeup brand in partnership with him, but it wasn’t until later that they agreed to go through with the idea.

Starting in Sep. 2019 Dawson’s series, “The Beautiful World of Jeffree Star” shows the entire process of creating an idea for makeup, the money and time that goes into it, and the overall drama in the beauty world.

There are six videos, each running an hour long, that have been released so far, letting the world see the challenges that Star and Dawson went through for work and in their personal lives.

On Oct. 29, a new video revealed Dawson’s eyeshadow palette, “Conspiracy,” and his other products. The name and concepts for each product — even down to the name of each shadow — is connected to memes within his YouTube channel and his life. 

On Nov. 1, Dawson’s makeup was released on Star’s site which struggled to remain functioning for the first hour that the makeup was presented.

Most of Dawson’s products had sold out within a few hours, and the remaining products were there as a byproduct of the site crashing and not making them available until later in the day.

The video shows Dawson and Star trapeze through the complicated world of beauty, and Dawson will continue to produce videos covering their journey of what happens after his product has been released.

Those who would like to buy any of the merchandise released can visit https://jeffreestarcosmetics.com/collections/shane-x-jeffree-conspiracy-collection.

 

Contact the author at howlentertainment@wou.edu

Photos courtesy of jeffreestarcosmetics.com

Review: Sequels are hard to do right, “Zombieland: Double Tap” was up for the challenge

Never Retallack  | Entertainment Editor

When “Zombieland” came out in 2009 many were shocked by how fun this zombie comedy was to watch, receiving more positive reviews than not. Ten years later, Reuben Fleischer returned to direct the sequel, “Zombieland: Double Tap.” 

For those who saw the first film, they will know that the sequel title alludes to Jesse Eisenberg’s character, Columbus, rules for surviving in the zombie apocalypse. Shooting a zombie twice to ensure that they are dead — or rather, double tap.

Throughout the first and second film, Columbus is narrating the story in the past tense, delivering punchy one-liners and guiding the audience through the movie.

Along with Eisenberg, the rest of the original cast also starred in the sequel: Emma Stone as Wichita, Woody Harrelson as Tallahassee and Abigail Breslin as Little Rock.

While the only character who looks physically different is Breslin, now a young adult, Columbus’ character development was interesting to see. He was more physically daring and ready to fight the new breed of zombies that terrorize his group. 

Keeping true to the brand of “Zombieland,” the sequel was full of surprises, dark humor and lots of gore. The introduction of a new community of survivors who are weed-loving pacifists was a jab at millenials and earned some hearty laughter from the crowd. 

Zombie movies are a hard genre to nail. After “Shaun of the Dead” (2004), I think a niche for more comedy horror movies emerged. Comedy horror is one of my favorite genres; it takes situations and creatures that normally fill an audience with fear, and turn it into something laughable.

Overall rating: I prefer the first “Zombieland” but when it comes to sequels, they did a great job of creating a new idea while keeping the core elements of what made it successful in the first place. Anyone who enjoys a funny horror film with a great cast of characters should check out “Zombieland: Double Tap.” 

 

Contact the at howlentertainment@wou.edu

Photos courtesy of zombieland.com

Album review of “Mala Santa” from the impressive Becky G

Never Retallack  | Entertainment Editor

Those who are ready for an album to dance to, take a listen to Becky G’s new album released on Oct. 11, “Mala Santa.” 

Rebecca Marie Gomez, known as Becky G, is only 22 years old and was discovered in 2011 while covering songs on YouTube. She initially released songs in English, some well known such as “Shower” and “Can’t Get Enough ft. Pitbull” before she switched to her Latin roots in 2017 and released songs solely in Spanish.

Just this month, Becky G was awarded the Extraordinary Evolution Award at the Latin American Music Awards, a result of the success she has achieved and a prediction of all that is to come from this star.

She is also an actress, starring as the Yellow Power Ranger in the 2017 film “Power Rangers,” and some animated movies as well. Currently, Becky G is more focused on her music.

Her album “Mala Santa” is a reflection of her journey in the spotlight — being signed onto a contract at only 14  years old, she went through that challenge of growing from a young innocent teen to a woman while the world watches.

She decided to name her album “Mala Santa” because she felt as if she is the music industry’s mala santa. In Spanish “mala” means “bad” and “santa” is referring to the concept of “holy” in her lyrics. So in essence she is a singer who is neither bad nor holy, but something in between.

“I think people now understand and see that I am still very much so that sweetheart, that little angel that they first met, I’ve just grown up into a woman,” Becky G said in an interview with Billboard.

Out of the 16 songs on her album, nine of them feature other artists; a great amount of collaboration went into completing this. Every song has a catchy chorus, an undeniable beat, and Becky G’s amazing voice serenading listeners. Most of her songs have themes such as love, drinking, partying, heartbreak and misunderstandings.

While these themes are quite similar among most pop, the catchiness and fast-paced songs are enthralling. Each bop on the album encourages listeners to dance along. 

Her song “ME ACOSTUMBRE” featuring Mau y Ricky is one of my favorites on the album, really showcasing her vocals with bigger runs and more focus on her voice.

The must-listen song will have to be “MALA SANTA” as it is a sensual play discussing essentially her naughty and nice side, which ties to her album cover of her in all black on one side and all white on the other: a balance between her devilish and angelic aspects.

Overall Rating: Regardless of your Spanish comprehension, this album is a crowd pleaser for anyone needing an album to dance to.

Contact the author at howlentertainment@wou.edu

Photo courtesy of iambeckyg.com

An exploration of the popular haunted house Fear PDX

Never Retallack  | Entertainment Editor

Haunted houses —  a Halloween classic, and a way to be terrified that is safer and more interactive than a horror movie. 

I am personally a huge fan of these events and I go to at least two or three different spooks every October. Fear PDX is a particular haunted house that I have been going to for the past few years. Based in Portland, they offer a collection of different themed houses on one site.

We waited approximately 2.5 hours outside before even getting inside the venue. A notable difference this year while waiting in line was the inclusion of a DJ. While that may sound weird or out of place, dancing to the early 2000 bops he was playing, it was a perfect way to kill the time.

There was also a good number of scary actors going around and interacting with the masses — jumping, crawling and revving a chainsaw as they went.

Up until this year, Fear PDX was typically held in the Moda Center and the eager crowds had to wait in a large line for at least an hour before entering the floor where the different themed “houses” were. Then, they’d wait in those individual lines for about 30-40 minutes. 

This year, they held their attraction on Glisan Street in an empty building where they combined all of the themed houses into one seamless walk. The four houses set up were: Doll Factory, Dead City, The Mansion and Dark Carnival.

By far, the Doll Factory was the scariest, with actors delivering each line with an eerie voice and looking at us with unblinking eyes —  not breaking character at all. 

The actual experience of going through the house was full of strobe lights, fog machines, loud sound effects and a lot of screaming, but the amount of time spent walking through each house took a total of 30 minutes.

The general admission ticket cost $28, while the VIP pass that allowed you to skip the lines cost $50. There was a bonus house that cost an additional $8 and was “interactive,” meaning the actors were allowed to grab you. I personally am not a fan of houses such as these so I don’t know how scary this particular portion was.

Overall rating: The spooks provided by Fear PDX were decent enough for the amount paid; the wait time was a little ridiculous — also typical for a successful haunted house. The added touch of a DJ did not go unappreciated, and there was enough happening in the actual haunted houses to keep me jumping in fright and eager to escape back into the night.

Contact the author at howlentertainment@wou.edu

Photos courtesy of fearpdx.com

It’s not too late to get in the spooky spirit, check out Huluween

Never Retallack  | Entertainment Editor

The staff of the Western Howl recommended our favorite horror movies in Issue 3— accessible to read on wou.edu/westernhowl — and now I want to focus on what the streaming service Hulu has to offer for their Halloween special, “Huluween.”

When on the Hulu website, simply search “Huluween” and there will be a page that has organized hundreds of spooky movies into categories: Hulu Originals, Huluween Essentials, Huluween Film Fest, For the Family, Hauntings & Supernatural and many more.

Seeing as there are hundreds of movies and television shows compiled on these lists, I will cover only the Hulu originals, seeing as they are new and possibly only available for a limited time.

For full length original movies they have created: “Little Monsters” (2019); “Wounds” (2019); “Uncanny Annie” (2019); “School Spirit” (2019)  and “I’m Just F——- With You” (2019).

I watched “Uncanny Annie,” which was a campy teen slasher film, but a highly entertaining and an easy watch. The monsters and jump scares kept me enticed, while some of the cheesy lines and poor acting kept my eyes rolling.

“Little Monsters” was a pleasant surprise; the comedic horror movie was a joy to watch. Featuring a tough kindergarten teacher unwilling to let her class get scared in a highly dangerous situation, singing to them while flesh-eating monsters were only a feet away was the only way to succeed.

Hulu also has a series of horror films all under the category “Into the Dark,” which encompasses full-length films as well as shorts.

Some of the better rated from this anthology are: “Culture Shock” (2019); “Pure” (2019); “They Come Knocking” (2019); “All That We Destroy” (2019) and “Treehouse” (2019).

There are several options available for their Huluween special, and while it is not a free streaming service, it only costs $5.99 a month. You can also try a one week free trial to get your fill of horror instead.

For those interested in trying some new scary films — full-lengths or shorts — the options on Hulu are quite entertaining.

Contact the author at howlentertainment@wou.edu

Photos courtesy of hulu.com/press

Review of the true crime tv series “Unbelievable”

Never Retallack  | Entertainment Editor

Editor’s note: Content warning — this review covers subjects such as rape and sexual violence in relation to true events.

According to Bloomberg after the “#MeToo” movement began in 2017, just one year passed and there was more than one sexual assault crime reported everyday. Bloomberg goes on to say that the “#MeToo” movement has made tolerance for sexual assault far lower.

The new Netflix original eight-part series, “Unbelievable,” covers the true story of 18-year-old Marie, played by Kaitlyn Dever, a Washington resident who reports she was raped at knifepoint. The two male detectives who were in charge of her case had suspicions that she was lying due to inconsistencies in her story, and after being coerced by the police, she eventually said that she had made it up.

These detectives took a rare step in charging Marie with a gross misdemeanor for filing a false police report — no one went to court with her besides her lawyer. After admitting to a false report, she lost the small support she had; her peers ostracized her.

The show then moves from Marie’s tortured and isolated character to two female detectives in other states dealing with similar rape cases. Toni Collette (Detective Rasmussen) and Merritt Weaver (Detective Duvall) play the unstoppable detectives.

Rasmussen and Duvall eventually piece together that there have been many rape cases that all have striking similarities, but because each crime had been committed in different counties and states, no one was piecing it together.

The show is somber and hard to watch, recounting tragedies, leaving the audience members with a heavy heart. “Unbelievable” does a phenomenal job of showing the inner workings of the justice department, and the challenges assault victims face.

The writers of the show faced another challenge aside from the delicate topic they were covering: the fact that they were basing the show’s premise on a real life case. “Unbelievable” deserves praise for how it addresses the relevant issues of rape and social justice, with amazing actors and a compelling plot. This is definitely a show worth watching.

Overall Rating: This show is hard to watch but definitely a powerful depiction of a terrible crime, I highly recommend this series to anyone who enjoys intense dramas and is interested on how sexual assault cases can be dealt with by the police.

Contact the author at howlentertainment@wou.edu

Photo courtesy of Netflix

Up and coming artist: girl in red

Never Retallack  | Entertainment Editor

Bedroom pop —  what is it? According to the Urban Dictionary, it is “a genre (of) DIY indie music, bedroom pop is characterized by its lo-fi quality and often contemplative lyrics. Guitars and vocals often feature heavy use of reverb or delay.”

This genre is similar to other styles such as shoegaze, dream pop, jangle pop and emo.

For those that typically listen to this kind of music, they’ll want to check out up-and-coming bedroom pop artist “girl in red.”

Marie Ulven is only 20 years old and has slowly risen to fame since her debut in her home country of Sweden in 2017. Her first song released, “i wanna be your girlfriend,” was unapologetic and unique. Ulven frames a lot of her music on love, as do most pop artists, but she makes it clear that she is not straight and not ashamed.

Her songs can also touch on darker subjects such as depression and death, and despite the somewhat sinister lyrics like, “Summer depression, so much time to question my life,” from her song “summer depression” I still find myself singing along with a smile.

Her most recent album, “chapter 2” released on Sept. 6 contains only five songs, but each one is catchy and a must-listen. The first song on this album, “watch you sleep.” is quite slower than her other songs, and stars her voice without the intense guitar and drums that normally accompany her music.

I was lucky enough to see Ulven perform in Portland at the Holocene club on Sep. 22. The stage was small as well as the venue itself — there was no more than about 150 people there — and despite Ulven being such a young artist, her fan base was quite diverse.

Ulven danced on stage like nobody was watching, and even though she played a guitar the whole show she had no problem jumping along with the audience. At one point she crowd surfed, despite her manager initially saying no — she convinced him while standing on stage — excitedly throwing herself into the crowd and singing all the while.

An interesting quality about Ulven that I noticed is her personality, perhaps it’s because she is still a relatively small artist, but she made sure to talk to audience members before, after and during the show. Joking around about relatable things such as procrastination and having a caffeine addiction.

Her quirky and fun-loving attitude resonated differently than her angsty and dark music.

Ulvan has been featured on several up and coming artists to look out for lists, including Ones to Watch, praised for her ethereal voice and modest behavior.

The style of bedroom pop has been on the rise with famous artists such as Clairo, Foxes of Fiction and King Princess. They all feature similar music of complex or poetic lyrics accompanied by heavy-lidded artists who sing alongside intense guitar and drums.

Contact the author at howlentertainment@wou.edu

Photos courtesy of worldinred.com

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