Early bird gets the bacon
Bank on breakfast and wi-fi at Lulu’s Bakery and Café
The silliest movie in the world
Isabella Rossellini and Mark McKinney star as Lady Port-Huntley and Chester Kent, two zany characters in Guy Maddin’s kooky film. The silliest movie in the world By Steven G. Kellman Kazuo Ishiguro serves up a frothy pint of nothingness In subtle books such as The Remains of the Day and The Artist of the Floating…
New Reviews
Louis Schwartzberg filmed “ordinary Americans” for America’s Heart and Soul. New Reviews America’s Heart and Soul Dir. Louis Schwartzberg (PG) By virtue of timing alone, America’s Heart and Soul, a slice-of-life series of stories released just in time for the flag-waving Fourth of July, has the dubious (and likely unwarranted) appearance of being Disney’s substitute…
Special Screenings
Special Screenings Umberto D Dir. Vittorio De Sica; writ. Cesare Zavattini; feat. Carlo Battisti, Maria-Pia Casilio, Lina Gennari (unrated) Italian actor turned filmmaker Vittorio De Sica was a famous proponent of neorealism, one of Italy’s greatest contributions to the cinema; the genre used non-professional actors and low-key screenplays to tell stories about working class characters.…
A good piece of ass
A good piece of ass By Elaine Wolff Bukowski at Bellevue is a grainy record of our bard of blue-collar nihilism Charles Bukowski had at least 10 years of published poetry under his belt (and by many accounts, quite a few more) when, in the spring of 1970, he took his first flight to Bellevue…
Not a drop to drink
The women of Rajastura, India, led the fight against privatization of the water supply. Not a drop to drink By Lisa Sorg ‘Thirst’ examines corporate takeover of water When Howlin’ Wolf sang, “I asked for water, she gave me gasoline,” it’s unlikely he knew that one day they would cost — and in some cases,…
Armchair Cinephile
Armchair Cinephile John DeFore on DVD I often dream of trains Rumors have circulated for years that the Criterion Collection was preparing a fancy edition of that ’90s sensation Trainspotting. Not so: Miramax has gone it alone with a two-disc release that, dull package design aside, is everything one expects from a top-shelf DVD: Audio…
News Dark horse
Does Libertarian Michael Badnarik have a shot at the White House? Michael Badnarik, the Libertarian Party’s presidential nominee, has a gun for every occasion – including the inauguration ball. In addition to several rifles, Badnarik owns what he describes as a “go-to-work” gun and a “dress-up” gun, the difference between the two .45-caliber, semi-automatic Colt…
Recent Reviews
Coffee and Cigarettes Dir. and writ. Jim Jarmusch; feat. Roberto Benigni, Steven Wright, Joie Lee, Cinqué Lee, Iggy Pop, Tom Waits, Cate Blanchett, Jack White, Meg White, Alfred Molina, Steve Coogan, GZA, RZA, Bill Murray. Filmmaker Jim Jarmusch (Mystery Train, Night on Earth) constructs a series of vignettes around caffeine- and nicotine-fueled conversations among a…
The wrong side of the tracks
Trains arrive and depart from the yard under the New Braunfels Street bridge. From 1999-2003, 26 people died in Bexar County as the result of run-ins with trains. (Photo by Mark Greenberg) The wrong side of the tracks By Jodie Briggs Faulty crossings, daredevil drivers place Texas as No. 1 for train accidents You are…
Jack of all trades, master of one
Rudy Souberbielle, maitre d’ at Francesca’s in the Westin La Cantera Resort. (Photo by Mark Greenberg) Jack of all trades, master of one By Ron Bechtol Francesca’s maitre d’ wore a few hats before he found his fit It’s been at least a week since Rudy Souberbielle returned from Manhattan, and he’s still flush with…
Quicksilver quagmire
Quicksilver quagmire By Lisa Sorg Pending mercury rules raise questions about CPS’ proposed power plant Talk about timing. City Public Service has filed its construction application permit for a proposed and controversial $1 billion coal-fired power plant, but a confluence of three events could affect how San Antonio’s public utility controls its mercury emissions on…
Early bird gets the bacon
The laid-back atmosphere at Lulu’s welcomes everyone from emo punks to wi-fiers and cops. (Photos by Laura McKenzie) Early bird gets the bacon By Laura Fries Bank on breakfast and wi-fi at Lulu’s Bakery and Café Lulu’s doesn’t have the best reputation in town. Truth be told, a lot of folks grimaced when I told…
Exponential growth
DJ and producer Ernest Gonzales holds up several of the CDs produced by his record label Exponential. The label features work by fellow DJs Klassen and Jester, as well as his own project Theory of Everything. (Photo by Mark Greenberg) Exponential growth By Gilbert Garcia Even as much of his roster moves to Brooklyn, Ernest…
Sound and the Fury
Sound and the Fury a week on the scene #3 dinner party For the fouth installment of Casbeers’ Healthy Music Experiment, the club will be offering a characteristically inspired bill. The Healthy Music Experiment began in April, with the idea of advancing the cause of health care for musicians by bringing together two wildly disparate…
Secret histories
Artist Anne Wallace sweeps as Luis Delgado of Pronto Sandblasting shakes water from a brush onto the freshly poured and smoothed concrete. (Photo by Mark Greenberg) Secret histories By Elaine Wolff Artist Ann Wallace leaves a trail of clues to the LaVaca Street neighborhood’s past Walking the LaVaca Street neighborhood that flanks South Presa just…
All Ears
All Ears By John DeFore Al’s friends, and their friends One surprising omission in the upcoming tribute to Alejandro Escovedo (see Gilbert Garcia’s article “True Believer”) is the absence of Los Lobos, whose members are longtime pals of Al and whose cross-cultural music certainly has much in common with his. Maybe the Wolves were too…
Shiny pretty things
Lauren Levy’s dense and intricate sculptures made of vintage buttons and found objects are on view at SSAC through August 29. Shiny pretty things By Elaine Wolff A review of July 1 openings finds nothing too heavy to carry home, but some goodies to feather your nest It’s hard to admit, but the biggest eye-catchers…
True believer
True believer There’s no real precedent in rock ‘n’ roll history for the career of Alejandro Escovedo. Working in a genre perennially associated with youth, he didn’t play an instrument until well into his twenties, didn’t write songs until well into his thirties, and didn’t think of fronting a band until he was pushing 40.…
Cafe society
Cafe Tacuba Cafe society Over the last decade, in the rush to proclaim rock en español a genuine musical movement (when it’s more accurately a cultural phenomenon), many bands have been hyped and overestimated simply for playing familiar-sounding music in a different tongue. Cafe Tacuba is not one of those bands. This Mexico City quartet…
A bird in the hand
A bird in the hand By Susan Pagani Finally, a guide for the gesticulating public Get out your life list folks; these are not your ordinary backyard birds. Forget the dandy plumage of the vermilion flycatcher, the elusive behavior of the Virginia rail, the raspy trill of the juniper titmouse – these birds are bald,…
Pyromania
Pyromania By Lisa Sorg Revisiting ‘Fahrenheit 451’ In the political firestorm over Michael Moore’s film Fahrenheit 9/11, Ray Bradbury inevitably entered the fray. The 84-year-old author recently told journalist Andrea Mitchell that, in naming the film, Moore “stole the title, and I want it back.” Regardless of Mitchell’s line of questioning, Bradbury reiterated his point,…
