Back in 2013, James Wan’s The Conjuring represented the high point of a wave of mainstream horror that showed there was still value in old-school scares — that there was life beyond torture porn and slick slasher reboots. It was a ghost story-turned-possession thriller that mined terror out of the…
Some things in life are certain. Death and taxes and every former contestant on The Bachelor and The Bachelorette will go on to write a book and do everything in their power to promote it. Desiree Hartsock is no different. But to be fair, she didn’t write a tell-all memoir…
If mid-century pulp and noir gave us the cynical, quippy hardboiled detective, then Peak TV has given birth to its successor: the charbroiled cop, a bitter, corrupt, philandering, violent, addicted, nihilistic or just psychotic contemporary crime fighter. The supposed irony of this figure is that he (almost always a he)…
Growing up in Lake Highlands, Amy Acker never imagined she would find herself anywhere near a comic convention, let alone traveling to cons from Canada to San Diego, greeting fans dressed up as characters she’s played on TV. But that’s exactly what she did this weekend at Fan Expo Dallas…
The Real Housewives of Dallas Episode 9 Recap “Killing Time in Austin” We really, really, really — emphasis on the emphasis — wish The Real Housewives of Dallas episode 9 was the first episode. Because finally, there is less charity talk and more death threats. Yes, actual death threats. Episode…
Here’s what we’re excited about, Dallas: putting our rain boots in storage; getting a respite from school speed zones for a couple of months; picnic blankets; excuses to eat watermelon; lots of music; and a summer arts calendar that makes us sweat in the best possible way. All of those…
Stephen Tobolowsky’s strength as an actor is that he finds complexity in all of his characters; he doesn’t believe stories can always be reduced to a struggle between good and evil. Take, for instance, the Dallas native’s role as “Action” Jack Barker in the current, third season of Silicon Valley, the…
The word legendary is almost always used to describe Studio Ghibli. All but one of the company’s 20 films, Tales from Earthsea, has a fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and five have been nominated for Academy Awards. Spirited Away took one home in 2003. These accomplishments are particularly impressive because Ghibli…
At first glance, the most obvious analog to Mark Elijah Rosenberg’s Approaching the Unknown would be The Martian, both being about lone men on treacherous missions to Mars. But Approaching the Unknown operates on a much smaller and more philosophical scale, and is ultimately more satisfying. Captain William D. Stanaforth…
If you can get past the spectacle of British and Australian actors portraying some of the most important figures of 20th-century American literature, Genius is a good example of a prestige pic that is not only literate but surprisingly vibrant. It’s the story of the tumultuous relationship between hot-tempered, Asheville-born…
Do This! Fort Worth-based artist Christopher Blay thinks art prizes are meaningless, so naturally he has created his own. Friday at 7 p.m. Blay will adopt his character Frank Artsmarter for a satirical exhibition, auction and presentation at Cris Worley Fine Arts (1845 E. Levee St., No. 110), where 18…
Last year, Giovanni Valderas started making art that mimicked real estate signs using traditional piñata techniques. After months of painstaking work, he decided to apply for a public art grant aimed at revitalizing downtown Houston. He submitted his new works to be considered for a 40 x 60 foot image…
There’s something satisfying about hearing Tyler Perry, as mad scientist Baxter Stockman, say the words “Eliminate those turtles,” but it’s not quite novel enough to bring Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows up to street level and out of the sewers. Early on, giant squid-like brain Krang (Brad…
Figures at Nasher Sculpture Center 2001 Flora St. Part of Soluna Music and Arts Festival, Figures is a performance by artist Mai-Thu Perret. Originally performed at the 2014 Biennale of Moving Images in Geneva, Perret’s performance will function as a series of happenings throughout the Nasher and its garden. Figures reflects…
The lure of everything Cuba is strong. It’s in the news, on top of everyone’s travel list and in our movie theaters. But the recent films about Cuba aren’t exports from the still-embargoed country. Most come from visiting filmmakers. Irish director Paddy Breathnach captures a gorgeous portrait of Cuba with…
Even by the standards of Yorgos Lanthimos, The Lobster’s premise is a doozy: Colin Farrell plays a recently single schlub forced to report to the Hotel, where he has 45 days to form a romantic relationship lest he be turned into an animal of his choosing. This is the plight…
“Did I want to shoot comedies?” asks Brandon Trost, director of photography on two of this summer’s funniest films, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping and Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising. “It’s funny — not at all.” But then came MacGruber, Jorma Taccone’s 2010 SNL film.“The director wanted me because I wasn’t…
In 2013, a 22-year-old Palestinian named Mohammed Assaf won the second edition of the Middle Eastern singing competition Arab Idol, a spinoff of the same popular British Pop Idol franchise that also gave us American Idol. Mohammed had snuck out of Gaza and crashed the auditions in Egypt before making…
It’s a feat to out-idiot TMZ culture. In achieving that, the fake-doc white-rapper satire Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping is a breakthrough for studio comedies, which here at last catch up to the metabolism and meaninglessness of the internet age. In its generous, frenetic first hour, Popstar’s jokes and parodies…
“It’s just messy right now,” a character in playwright Steve Yockey’s The Thrush and the Woodpecker states defensively early in the play. If only it were just messy right now. Steve Yockey is a Los Angeles-based writer whose play Blackberry Winter is currently receiving a National New Play Network (NNPN)…
Through August 21, visitors to the Nasher Sculpture Center have the chance to visit one of the most poetic uses of Renzo Piano’s light-filled gallery in quite some time. American sculptor Joel Shapiro rose to prominence alongside Frank Stella, Carl Andre and Tony Smith as part of a movement in…
The Real Housewives of Dallas Episode 8 Recap “Birthday Bashed” We’re back again for episode 8 of The Real Housewives of Dallas! And it’s Travis’ birthday! You know, Travis. Stephanie Hollman’s husband who gives her a list of chores and doesn’t trust her to check the mail, much less plan…
