city

Vancouver Culture

By Vancouver Magazine /

Movies

Twilight: New Moon Okay, Robert Pattinson isn’t a vampire (he just plays one on the screen). But Twihard celebrityhood has made him, and the city he calls his part-time playground, eternal.

Superbad Was life funny before Seth Rogen? The former Point Grey High student wrote the script for Superbad here at age 14, then disappeared into the bosomy delights of Hollywood. Take us with you!

Everything’s Gone Green Douglas Coupland is our truth teller. For every ode to our city of glass, he reminds us we’re small and young and have a long way to go. He still produces books and sculpture at a fearsome rate; now look to features and TV shows (Google “jPod” for episodes).

The Corporation Canada’s strong documentary tradition reaches an apex in this runaway success, winner of 26 awards and counting. Question: If corporations were people, what would they be like? Answer: psychopaths.

The X-Files Before there was Battlestar Galactica and Supernatural and Fringe and Smallville and X-Men, Chris Carter stuck a camera in our every nook and cranny, selling sci-fi producers across America on our bland photogeneity.

Music

Sarah McLachlan Thanks to teen girls’ endless angst, Surfacing went 10-times platinum in 1997. The crusader for children, animals, and women remounts Lilith Fair next summer, alongside other good works like fundraising concerts and music in schools.

Nickelback First we had Trooper, Cheap Trick, and Bryan Adams. Now we have these sludge-rock monsters living mega-stadium dreams (Lamborghini DUI charges included).

Joni Mitchell Back in the early ’70s, the outrageously talented artist bought 40 acres here. Through the tumult of divorces and a questionable rock phase (a duet with Billy Idol?), she returned every year to her “heartbeat.” We love you back.

New Pornographers Neko Case has moved on to alt-country solo superstardom, but the remaining Pornographers continue to pump out charmingly askew AM-rock hits.

Matthew Good Since Vancouver’s most conscientious son split from his band, he’s established himself as a blogger and singer-songwriter of renown. With Vancouver, he sets his gimlet eye on the social problems of his hometown.

Books

The Golden Mean: Annabel Lyon’s debut novel has landed on every prize list going, with reviewers calling Lyon “this generation’s answer to Alice Munro.” The Jade Peony: Wayson Choy took 20 years to transform a short story written for a class with Carol Shields into this poignant recalling of Chinatown in the Depression.A Story As Sharp As A Knife: Robert Bringhurst translates lost Haida myths and history into beautiful English, a Homer for our shores.Stanley Park: This 2001 novel wittily deconstructs our restaurant scene, then throws in an unsolved murder and tips on how to grill a goose over a shopping cart.