There are few love stories in modern cinema that bore me more than this whole Bella-Edward affair everyone is obsessed with right now. The concept of eternal love is a really grandiose one, something we all aspire to–but in this particular case, the characters are so very bland that it’s…
It started way back in 1979 with an accordion and a dream. “Weird Al” was a lowly college disc jockey with a strange sense of humor and questionable fashion sense. During a break from his radio show, Al went across the hall, accordion in tow, to the natural echo chamber…
In the summer of 2007, two Western journalists dug in with a platoon of American soldiers on a 15-month deployment in the Korengal Valley, a strategic outpost near Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan. The mountainous region was infested with Taliban fighters and possibly was also used by Al-Qaeda leaders as a…
Serious comedy, powered by an enthusiastic cast and full of good-natured innuendo, Lisa Cholodenko’s The Kids Are All Right gives adolescent coming-of-age and the battle of the sexes a unique twist, in part by creating a romantic triangle between a longstanding, devoutly bourgeois lesbian couple Nic and Jules (Annette Bening…
The Father of My Children, a drama about love, sorrow and the heartbreak of independent film financing, is sliced neatly in half by the sudden death of its protagonist, Grégoire Canvel. I’m not spoiling: Writer-director Mia Hansen-Løve has admitted that Grégoire is based on the French producer Humbert Balsan, who…
As the lights were dimming before a preview screening of Despicable Me, the 6-year-old who lives in my house leaned over and said, “I hope this is funny–not like Toy Story 3.” Now don’t misunderstand: He adored that movie. It’s just that whenever the subject comes up, the first word…
Exploding with forced fabulosity, the national tour of Dreamgirls currently at the Music Hall at Fair Park lifts the 1981 musical into the realm of high-tech spectacle. Visually, it’s a stunner. Spanning the stage are revolving walls of LED lights on designer Robin Wagner’s enormous, industrial-grid set. These become giant…
We can’t even begin to tell you how many days we wasted (well, maybe not wasted) when we were kids playing Clue at our grandma’s house during the summer. See, she didn’t have a pool or a lot of neighborhood kids, so it was either board games or the sprinkler…
With temperatures soaring into the triple digits, taking a dip in the nearest body of cool water should be on the top of your summer to-do list. Who cares if your hair reeks of chlorine? Way back when bathing suits were rented (um, ew!) and at the dawn of the…
With Sunday’s Final pitting the Netherlands against Spain, there will be a new country’s name joining the seven already engraved on the bottom of the FIFA World Cup Trophy. While this year’s edition of the quadrennial tournament is the 19th, there are only eight nations who have won soccer’s biggest…
In Hollywood’s “Golden Age” it seemed like every other movie that graced the silver screen was based on a hit Broadway musical. In recent years, however, that trend has reversed itself. There have even been bizarre “double remakes” like Hairspray and The Producers, where stage musical adaptations of earlier movies…
If you’re not doing anything else Friday Night, your Dallas Vigilantes could really use you cheering them on and intimidating the reviled Tampa Bay Storm at the American Airlines Center. If you haven’t been following the Vigilantes…it’s a little grim. With only a couple wins thus far, a season-ruining injury…
Al Madrigal may have dark complexion, a Spanish surname and a Mexican father. He may have even performed at a Latino comic showcase or two. But he is definitely not a typical Latino comic getting by on tired jokes about wacky relatives and the differences between Mexicans and gringos. Hell,…
It’s hard to tell whether the goose-bump-inducing harmonies or the wicked banjo picking is more impressive, but Cadillac Sky, a bluegrass band for the next generation, really has it going on. A long-time favorite of Americana fans, the band is gaining popularity with those less accustomed to the genre’s lonesome…
A complete overhaul of the book of this 1966 Strouse-Adams musical has been achieved by comic book author and screenwriter Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. The result is a fresh, new American musical comedy that has great possibilities for success beyond its current run at Dallas Theater Center at the Wyly Theatre downtown…
It’s stressful isn’t it? The cooking, the cleaning and oh, don’t forget to wear something impressive. It’s even more of a nerve-racking nightmare when you’re doing it all for your future in-laws. Here’s to hoping your father doesn’t go all Father of the Bride on you. And if all else…
You’ve been dying to try that restaurant in Dallas that everyone is talking about. You’re also afraid of splurging there and hating it. Well, now is your chance. Taste of Dallas is here! More than 60 Dallas restaurants will be set up in Fair Park, eager to dish out their…
Some of Texas artist Bert Long’s work looks like Napoleon Dynamite’s doodles, only better. So, there’s a bunch of tigers and vaginas, only they’re way more realistic. Lately, he’s inspired by Carl Jung’s private journal entitled The Red Book. Jung Center board members are calling Long’s new body of work…
I’ve always wondered what it would be like to attend a fancy event with fancy food and even fancier people. Honestly, the closest I’ve been to one of those fancy gatherings is through watching the Real Housewives throw weekly bashes on Thursday nights. Food for Thought is back for its…
You ever wonder why a professional novelist can spend every day for years doing nothing while a single mom with a full-time job can write a bestseller in a couple of months? Or why sometimes a composer with unlimited resources can just plain suck compared to a man with a…
I know, I know…you’re disappointed that the Jerryworld Tennis Classic has been unceremoniously canceled, your credit card has been credited back the small fortune you forked over to observe the insane acoustic abilities of Maria Sharapova’s grunting and no explanation has been given (WTF, Jerry?). But you’ll be OK. Because…
If a variety of local art is what you crave, then Conduit Gallery should be in your Rolodex of galleries to frequent on a regular basis. Often showcasing the works of artists from all over the state, Conduit’s exhibitions are as big and varied as the Lone Star State itself,…
