Baseball

“I wrote 63 songs this year. They’re all about Jeter.” Just kidding. The game we love, the players we hate, and more.

Culture and Criticism

From Norman Mailer to Wendy Pepper — everything on film, TV, books, music, and snacks (shut up, raisins), plus the Girls’ Bike Club.

Donors Choose and Contests

Helping public schools, winning prizes, sending a crazy lady in a tomato costume out in public.

Stories, True and Otherwise

Monologues, travelogues, fiction, and fart humor. And hens. Don’t forget the hens.

The Vine

The Tomato Nation advice column addresses your questions on etiquette, grammar, romance, and pet misbehavior. Ask The Readers about books or fashion today!

TRON: Legacy
January 29, 2011 · 17 Comments
<I>TRON: Legacy</I>

Death Race 42, Sarah 14; 1 of 24 categories completed
You can’t come at a movie like TRON: Legacy with qualitative adjectives — or at least I can’t. I’ve never seen the original in its entirety, …

Salt
January 28, 2011 · 21 Comments
<I>Salt</I>

Death Race 43, Sarah 13; 1 of 24 categories completed
Altogether satisfying! Salt reminds me of one of my favorite movies, The Fugitive: the action is exciting, the contrivances and twists seem deft instead of obtrusive, …

The Vine: January 28, 2011
January 28, 2011 · 10 Comments
The Vine: January 28, 2011

I need help with a book that I read as a kid, and I can’t remember the title (or most of the plot). It was about a girls’ home, possibly in England, that had about …

Restrepo
January 27, 2011 · 8 Comments
<I>Restrepo</I>

Death Race 44, Sarah 12; 1 of 24 categories completed
A solid documentary, but not groundbreaking, with one exception. It’s one of the few artistic documents of war, for lack of a better term, that shows …

ODR11 Ill-Advised Double Feature: Blue Valentine and 127 Hours
January 27, 2011 · 22 Comments
ODR11 Ill-Advised Double Feature: <I>Blue Valentine</I> and <I>127 Hours</I>

Death Race 45, Sarah 11; 1 of 24 categories completed
When “Blue Valentine” ended, I knew [Derek] Cianfrance had directed his actors, but I wasn’t sure he’d done the hard work of writing (he’s the cowriter).
Without …

The Vine: January 26, 2011
January 26, 2011 · 19 Comments
The Vine: January 26, 2011

Dear Sarah and Tomato Nation,
It’s Green here, saying a big thank-you to all of you for your fantastic suggestions and very kind invitations for our U.S. road (and air) trip. I had the most amazing …

Alice In Wonderland
January 25, 2011 · 23 Comments
<I>Alice In Wonderland</I>

I’d never have seen Alice In Wonderland of my own accord. I like Tim Burton a lot and I enjoy everyone in the cast, but the source material has always annoyed me; even as a …

Bradelor! DUN!: And Ah Love It
January 25, 2011 · 15 Comments
Bradelor! DUN!: And Ah Love It

Sars: Michello!
Miss Alli: Oh my GOD, seriously. SHE IS INSANE.
Sars: I had a few moments last night where I thought, fleetingly, that her whole shtick is a giant put-on. Because who can actually act like …

Oscars 2011 Death Race
January 25, 2011 · 47 Comments
Oscars 2011 Death Race

Welcome to The Tomato Nation Oscars 2011 Death Race! In case you missed last year’s iteration, the ODR is exactly what it sounds like: I try to watch every single Oscar nominee before the ceremonies …

Oscars 2011 Death Race Preview: Shutter Island
January 24, 2011 · 21 Comments
Oscars 2011 Death Race Preview: <I>Shutter Island</I>

It’s tempting to blow Shutter Island off with a “there’s no there there,” but there’s a there. It takes the script about an hour too long to arrive at, is the issue, and the story …