‘West Side Story’ and the Decline of the Movie Theater The remake is wonderful. Its poor performance at the box office suggests streaming is here to stay.

The new “West Side Story” is, so far, a box-office flop. Steven Spielberg’s much-anticipated remake of the landmark 1961 musical received rave reviews and has been called a masterpiece. Yet its first weekend theatrical release yielded only $10.5 million, which Variety called “a dismal result for a movie of its scale and scope.” What happened? […]

Kamala Harris Needs to Get Serious Her shaky standing is a danger to the country given the position she could be called on to fill.

President Biden’s poll numbers are bad and Vice President Kamala Harris’s are worse. A survey this week from conservative-leaning Rasmussen had her at 39% favorable, 57% unfavorable.The number that stuck in the public’s mind came last month, from a USAToday/Suffolk poll that put her approval at 28%, disapproval at 51%. The past few weeks she’s […]

Will the Justices Let Go of Abortion? Overturning Roe v. Wade wouldn’t settle the issue, but it would create the possibility of a settlement.

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. On Friday, under the court’s usual procedure, the justices would meet to hold a preliminary vote on their decision. A member of the majority will be assigned to write it. The court will review and amend that document and is expected […]

Social Distancing Was a Problem Before Covid Marriage and childbirth rates, declining for years, reached new lows during the pandemic.

On this family holiday weekend, a look at a study of the American family. It’s called “The Divided State of Our Unions: Family Formation in (Post-)Covid America” and comes from the Institute for Family Studies, the American Enterprise Institute and the Wheatley Foundation. It’s based on two surveys conducted by YouGov for IFS and Wheatley. […]

America Slowly Learns to Live With Covid Shots are an achievement but not a miracle, and other realities with which we’re coming to terms.

We’re in a funny place with the Covid pandemic. It feels like it’s ending. Its ability to govern our lives is, certainly. Lockdowns and shutdowns ran out of steam; people have returned to life or are returning. At the same time we know we’re not at the end. We read the headlines—infections flare here, hospitals […]

Voters Give Democrats a Woke-Up Call Will the party recognize its mistake in embracing extremism? Will the GOP prove worthy of its wins?

‘Took my first DC trip yesterday since pre-COVID. Union Station mostly deserted, hardly any stores/restaurants open. 2 homeless guys hanging out & begging in the seating area at Sbarro’s. Real ‘decline of the republic’ vibe in the building. The election results didn’t surprise me.”—the Week columnist Damon Linker on Twitter Wednesday “What a weird thing […]

Can Slidin’ Biden Regain His Footing? Clinton and Obama both overcame adversity, but the 46th president doesn’t have their political gifts.

In a way Republicans have already won in Virginia. Democrat Terry McAuliffe, a former governor and longtime party mover, has been forced to fight for his life in a state Joe Biden won by 10 points. If Mr. McAuliffe pulls it out Tuesday, his not-so-Trumpy challenger, Glenn Youngkin, will still have come close in the […]