Cutlure

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Article

Tuesday March 25, 2008 10:18 AM EDT

image-1(Photo courtesy Magnolia Pictures)

Movie fans know that some of the most haunting 20th-century filmmaking has come from Japan. Films such as Rashomon (1950), Onibaba (1964), and Woman in the Dunes (1964) have the kind of impact that lingers for decades. Georgia Tech suggests that the national cinema continues to both enchant and get under our skin with its mini-film festival GHOSTS,...

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Article

Monday March 24, 2008 08:04 PM EDT

image-1(Photo courtesy Peachtree TV)

They are given just about everything a music act needs to succeed in the business. They’re given a development consultant, a choreographer, a vocal coach, a fashion stylist, even a nice hair trim. All they have to do is convince people that they can deliver the goods, on stage at an Atlanta nightclub, in front of Jermaine Dupri, Shakir...

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Article

Monday March 24, 2008 07:38 PM EDT
image-1Horton Hears a Who! was the number-one movie for the second straight weekend. I might not have guessed that when my daughter and I attended the first Saturday show at Landmark Midtown Art Cinema, since she and I were literally the only people in the theater. Then again, that was at 11:40 a.m. on a gorgeous Easter-weekend day. (As my wife suggested, “Maybe most of the Midtown... | more...

Article

Sunday March 23, 2008 10:54 AM EDT
image-1THE MERRY WIDOW, often called the “Queen of Operettas,” comes to the Fox Theatre today. The Czech Opera Prague, conducted by Martin Mazik and directed by Martin Otava, relates the comedic story of a rich widow on a quest to find a husband. For those of us who don’t understand the original German, the Fox is kind enough to provide English supertitles. $45-$65. 8 p.m. 660 Peachtree St.... | more...

Article

Saturday March 22, 2008 09:13 AM EDT

image-1(Photo by Gary Noel)

In the late 1960s and into the ’70s, the Weathermen made a name for themselves as a group of volatile and reactionary leftists. They have become infamous in some respects for their extremist philosophies and actions, including bombing the New York City police headquarters and declaring war on the United States. Professional dancer David Dorfman was 13 during...

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Article

Friday March 21, 2008 07:39 PM EDT

It seems like only yesterday — but it was nearly two years ago — that I wrote an article about a newfangled, one-year-old invention called “Youtube.” In my second graph, I confessed:

“Lately, I’ve been compulsively clicking my mouse to rerun The Easter Bunny Hates You, which, as far as I’m concerned, is 112 seconds of bliss. The short film’s plot solely consists of...

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Article

Friday March 21, 2008 07:18 PM EDT

image-1Because of, well, you know, I’ve been eager to read a review of Tyler Perry’s Meet The Browns, which opens today.

New York-based journalist and blogger Clay Cane has penned one of the first.

Cane writes it’s Perry’s worst film.

I’ve seen better storylines for a 1-800-MATTRESS commercial.

Nice.

(photo by Joeff Davis)

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Article

Friday March 21, 2008 06:07 PM EDT

image-1(Photo courtesy Dad’s Garage)

Some hilarious members of the Dad’s Garage Improv Ensemble, including Chris Blair, René Dellefont, George Faughnan, Tony Larkin, Matt Myers, Amber Nash and Tim Stoltenberg, run roughshod over Shakespearean themes in INDULGENCES, opening Fri., MARCH 21. Chris Craddock, artistic director of Canada’s Rapid Fire Theatre, imagines a gay, contemporary spin...

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Article

Friday March 21, 2008 04:05 PM EDT
image-1“Why does the public expect entertainers to behave better than everybody else?” comedian CHRIS ROCK writes in his 1997 memoir, Rock This! “It’s ridiculous. ... Of course, this is just for black entertainers. You don’t see anyone telling Jerry Seinfeld he’s a good role model. Because everyone expects whites to behave themselves. ... Nowadays, you’ve got to be an entertainer and a leader.... | more...

Article

Friday March 21, 2008 03:07 PM EDT
Creative Loafing has teamed up with radio station WMLB-AM (1690) for “Air Loaf,” a weekend preview on noteworthy arts and entertainment stuff worth checking out around Atlanta. This week CL Editor Ken Edelstein and CL A&E Editor Debbie Michaud discuss everything from Indulgences at Dad’s Garage to the AC3 hip-hop festival at the CW Midtown Music Complex. You... | more...

Article

Thursday March 20, 2008 09:28 PM EDT
image-1Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns opens tomorrow, and as usual, the Atlanta movie mogul did not pre-screen the film for critics, so we can’t tell you anything about it. (That no-screening strategy seems to be working out pretty well for Perry, one must say.) In lieu of actually meeting the Browns, this week Creative Loafing devotes a cover story to the Tyler Perry phenomenon and why some... | more...

Article

Thursday March 20, 2008 09:17 PM EDT
image-1Drillbit Taylor and CJ7, two films opening in Atlanta on March 21, both involve schoolboys who hope that outsiders can protect them from bullies. In Drillbit, three high school freshman hire Owen Wilson’s blonde super-soldier as a bodyguard, unaware that he’s actually a conflict-adverse, homeless panhandler. In CJ7, a penniless boy attending a private elementary... | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 09:30 PM EDT
image-1George Kuchar may not have the household name recognition of other underground filmmakers who emerged in the ’60s such as John Waters and Andy Warhol. But the 8mm kitsch-and-sex extravaganzas he made with his twin brother Mike are legendary among outré cinema fans. John Waters has called the Kuchar films, featuring the twins’ Bronx neighbors acting out steamy, DIY variations on... | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 08:43 PM EDT

True Colors Theatre Company artistic director Kenny Leon scored an impressive payoff with A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry’s classic 1959 play, which he directed on Broadway in 2004 and then helmed as a new TV movie for ABC. A Raisin in the Sun aired on Feb. 25 (the night after ABC’s broadcast of the Oscar show) and was a ratings hit:

“It’s the highest-rated movie of the week among...

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Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 08:06 PM EDT

image-1(Photo courtesy Polimedia Entertainment)

In the online version of this week’s issue, I had a chance to interview comedic acting legend Cloris Leachman, who among other things holds the record for most Emmy Awards by an actress (nine), including two from her recent stint on “Malcolm in the Middle.” As reported in the blurb introducing my podcast interview with Leachman, I noted that...

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Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 08:03 PM EDT
Sometimes you stumble upon viral video clips that give you the willies without featuring any objectionable content. The so-called “BigDog” makes my skin crawl. Essentially it’s a Pentagon-funded robot designed to be a four-legged “mule” for military purposes, and demonstrates a striking ability to climb over rough terrain and even slippery ice. It reminds me of nothing so much as a wingless,... | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 07:30 PM EDT

“Gertrude,” he countered, “you simply cannot draw a line around Mosul, Baghdad and Basra and declare everything inside it a nation! It won’t matter whom you use as a figurehead.”

“Well, of course,” Miss Bell said airily, “we’ll have to take Kurdish sentiments into account.”

– From Dreamers of the Day, Mary Doria Russell’s historical novel set at the 1921 Cairo Peace...

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Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 07:22 PM EDT
image-1The Tony Award-winning musical Avenue Q, playing March 25-30 at the Fox Theatre, has charmed audiences nationwide with its adults-only spin on “Sesame Street.” Rob McClure, one of the stars of the tour, plays such roles as Rod, the closeted half of Avenue Q’s gay equivalents to Bert and Ernie. The 25-year-old actor, who appeared in the Broadway revival of I’m Not Rappaport, reveals some... | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 12:04 AM EDT
Images offer a sense of a woman, at Jackson Fine Art | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 12:04 AM EDT
Swan Coach House glams up | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 12:04 AM EDT
Prize-winner Hillary Jordan deepens the South | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 12:04 AM EDT
George Kuchar may not have the household name recognition of other underground filmmakers who emerged in the ’60s such as John Waters and Andy Warhol. But the 8mm kitsch-and-sex extravaganzas he made with his twin brother Mike are legendary among outré cinema fans. John Waters has called the Kuchar films, featuring the twins’ Bronx neighbors acting out steamy, DIY variations on Hollywood... | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 12:04 AM EDT
The Tony Award-winning musical Avenue Q, playing March 25-30 at the Fox Theatre, has charmed audiences nationwide with its adults-only spin on “Sesame Street.” Rob McClure, one of the stars of the tour, plays such roles as Rod, the closeted half of Avenue Q’s gay equivalents to Bert and Ernie. The 25-year-old actor, who appeared in the Broadway revival of I’m Not Rappaport, reveals some of the... | more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 12:04 AM EDT

“Gertrude,” he countered, “you simply cannot draw a line around Mosul, Baghdad and Basra and declare everything inside it a nation! It won’t matter whom you use as a figurehead.”

“Well, of course,” Miss Bell said airily, “we’ll have to take Kurdish sentiments into account.”

– From Dreamers of the Day, Mary Doria Russell’s historical novel set at the 1921 Cairo Peace Conference and featuring...

| more...

Article

Wednesday March 19, 2008 12:04 AM EDT
One man’s attempt to understand Tyler Perry | more...