Act of Valor
SOC Dave (whoever he may be) serves as our marble-mouthed narrator and member of the team led by Lt. Rorke (also whoever he may be). Partly shot in Bruckheimer burnt orange, their missions take them around the globe, first to rescue a comely CIA agent (Roselyn Sanchez, The Game Plan, Rush Hour 2) who’s been…
Perfect Sense
Spread director David Mackenzie’s movie imagines a new disease in which victims inexplicably become overwhelmed with grief, then lose their sense of smell entirely. While not thought to be contagious, the threat is so unfamiliar that the public overreacts, anyway. Meeting in the midst of this madness are epidemiologist Susan (Eva Green, Dark Shadows, Cracks,…
Careful where you point that
With no means of immediately identifying at a distance whether a person has a valid concealed carry permit (authorizing an open carry), anyone can open carry without being questioned. So how long before criminals become audacious enough to wear their firearms openly? From a legal standpoint, there are almost no circumstances where a private citizen…
Turpen high?
There is no better person to lead that effort than McLain’s most successful graduate, Mike Turpen. Turpen is a former Muskogee County district attorney, former state Attorney General, author and TV star with offices in OKC and Tulsa. Turpen proved his mettle as a teacher by counseling Oklahoma City high school boys to learn the…
You hear?
Credit: The Ely Brothers Being an experimental rock act, mewithoutYou is no stranger to risk. When writing and recording its fourth album, 2009’s It’s All Crazy! It’s All False! It’s All A Dream! It’s Alright, the band chose to ditch its signature heavy riffs for something that more closely resembled Modest Mouse or Bright Eyes…
Sultan of sting
Credit: Ben Pobjoy Mark Sultan has been playing garage rock well before it was in vogue. For 23 years, the Canadian has plugged away either as a solo musician (often under the moniker BBQ) or a member of The Spaceshits, Les Sexareenos, Almighty Defenders and, most notoriously, The King Khan & BBQ Show. Through that…
Dial H for Hero
At 42, Scott Lucas may be getting older, but he’s not giving up on music. In fact, he’s even more committed. As half of the Chicago rock duo Local H (“Bound to the Floor”), Lucas evidently found one band’s full slate of touring and recording as not enough, so he struck up a solo project,…
District fine
Memorial Day weekend marks the 36th anniversary of what began as a small street market with a few devoted, if ragtag, artists. Today, the Paseo Arts Festival has grown into an attraction boasting more than 80 visual arts booths for fairgoers to peruse. Painters, sculptors, ceramists, jewelers and fiber artists are all represented in the…
J crew
“Not everybody likes everything that I do, but I feel like it gives everybody a better view of who I am as a person, because I do so many different things,” said Henderson, who works under the moniker Cameron J. Henderson began making music when he was a junior in high school. He participated in…
Manson then and now
Marilyn Manson Agata Alexander The word “slut” was painted on his forehead, an expletive hand-drawn onto a black T-shirt. A Bible rested beside him on the ground. Cyrus was there to see the band Marilyn Manson perform. He was one of the first people in a long line for a sold-out show. The 17-year-old is…
Summer suds
Summer beers are supposed to be lighter and more refreshing than those for other seasons, so hops are not prominent in these new arrivals. The goal is to deliver light, clean beers that don’t weigh down the palate. Mustang Brewing Co., a local brewer, released Mustang Summer Lager, marking the first time the company will…
The Deep Blue Sea
Viewers have five chances to see last year’s The Deep Blue Sea this weekend at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Don’t confuse it with Deep Blue Sea, the 1999 action movie about sharks. Based on a stage play, this is the film that could use some sharks. Written and directed by Terence Davies —…
Once upon a time on Paseo
John Belt Mark Hancock Nestled between N.W. 28th Street and N. Walker Avenue, to N.W. 30th Street and N. Dewey Avenue and encompassing an elegant, curving street and fanciful Spanish Revival architecture, The Spanish Village shopping center made its debut in 1929 on the cusp of the Great Depression. In those early days, Nichols couldn’t…
Making ‘Sense’
Sense & Sensibility centers on the lives and loves of the Dashwood sisters: reserved Elinor and passionate Marianne. Upon their father’s death, the girls — along with their mother and younger sister — must move from their lavish country estate into a meager cottage, where they encounter love, heartbreak and requisite life lessons. Erin Woods,…
Turnpike Troubadours — Goodbye Normal Street
The 11 tracks traverse complex and emotionally rich terrain — Robert Earl Keen would approve — and so vividly that you can almost smell, as the first song coins it, “cheap perfume and gin and smoke and lies.” A definite honky-tonk sensibility is at work here, from Kyle Nix’s raggedly effective fiddle work to Evan…
Mag wheels
Writing her own material since middle school, one of the Norman native’s original songs, “Good Morning and Good Night,” will be featured in its entirety during the opening credits of the motion picture Cowgirls n’ Angels, which was shot in Oklahoma and is scheduled to open Friday in limited release. “My song is one of…
Light it up
Few weren’t charmed by The Darkness’ ubiquitous single “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” when it hit stateside in 2003. The honest-to-God rock ’n’ roll stylings recalling the likes of Thin Lizzy, Queen and Kiss were hard not to appreciate. Even Lady Gaga counts herself as a fan, hand-picking the British glam band to…
OKG 7 light eats for the summer
Cafe Antigua 1903 N. Classen Blvd. 602-8984 If at all possible, get the special. It’s usually a creative collaboration of regular menu items and the freshest daily ingredients. The cuisine is chiefly Guatemalan and the breakfast dishes are incredibly tasty. The mosh breakfast combo ($6.49) is a plate full of migas-style eggs, fresh fruit, toast…
Love me tender
Please, help yourself to some salt. I cannot guarantee an unbiased review of Steve’s Rib, because I know for a fact that I am biased. What I’ll try to do here is be fair and accept your critique of that fairness. No, I don’t hold a financial stake in Steve’s Rib, nor do I have…
Qualifications be damned
Brad Gregg Back in September, Gov. Mary Fallin appointed five members to the state Election Board. State law requires the governor appoint two members and one alternate from one political party, with the third member and second alternate from the other party. Fallin’s appointees must be confirmed by the Republican-controlled Senate before the legislative session…
When newspeople make news
Brad Gregg Former Oklahoman, Tulsa World and Oklahoma Gazette reporter Scott Cooper recently resigned his position as treasurer-secretary of the Oklahoma Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists after a preliminary review of SPJ’s bank account showed $40,000 in unauthorized withdrawals, according to an SPJ media release. Cooper, who founded the online oklegalnews.com and…
RIP, GCB
Brad Gregg Chenoweth took to her Twitter account to announce how “saddened” she and her fellow GCBs were. GCB, if you’ll recall, stood for Good Christian Bitches, the novel it was based on, but in some press interviews, Chenoweth, a Christian herself, said the initials stood for Good Christian Belles. (If that were the case,…
Funny people
Brad Gregg After President Obama voiced support for gay marriage, the Oklahoma Senate wasted little time passing what Tim Matheson in Animal House would have termed “a really futile and stupid gesture.” A resolution authored by Sen. Clark Jolley, R-Edmond, and overwhelmingly passed by the Senate on May 14 reaffirmed that the Senate supports marriage…
The Russians are coming, the Russians are coming!
Brad Gregg The latest incident came last week when Edmond City Council considered a resolution adopting Engles, Russia, as its sister city. According to The Oklahoman, the city has worked for several years for the program, which enables cultural and educational exchanges. Of course, the very idea of having a cultural exchange with anything Russian…
Purr-fect fix
That nearly 50 percent euthanasia rate is something shelter workers and animal welfare advocates hope the City Council can remedy in coming weeks. The potential solution: an ordinance that would allow the city shelter to launch a “community cats” program. Slated for a council vote Tuesday, the program is a simple one that begins with…
Raw talent
They move to the “anti-griddle,” a flattop made for freezing on contact, rather than heating, on which dollops of nut-based “butter” and “cream” are chilled into icecream “omelets.” This isn’t happening on the Food Network or in one of the exotic eateries of New York or Los Angeles. It’s happening right here in Oklahoma City,…
Counterpoint: : Real reform is still wanting
But even in its beginning, the legislation’s reforms were modest at best. In its final version, HB 3052 is a reform bill in name only — more notable for what it does not do than for what it does. There is even the potential that it could dig us deeper into our current prison crisis…
Zoo brouhaha
Howard Pollock addressed his concerns about the Zoo Amphitheatre to the OKC Zoo Trust. Mark Hancock Howard Pollack, president of Facilities Management Group (FMG), has managed the Amphitheatre off-andon since 1978. He blasted the proposed contract at the May 16 meeting, saying competitors were given an unfair advantage in the deal and that 3Horse Productions…
Point: Overhauling criminal justice
The bill funds strategic crime reduction initiatives, requires post-release supervision of all felons and initiates several strategies proven to control prison growth and reduce crime. It’s a tougher, smarter fight against crime. This new policy was developed through the Justice Reinvestment Initiative, a nine-month, data-driven review of Oklahoma’s entire criminal justice system. Among the shortcomings…
Rogue River / The Collapsed
I’ve seen enough Rob Zombie movies to know that you never should accept a ride from Bill Moseley, no matter how genuine his “aw, shucks” demeanor seems. Young Mara (unknown Michelle Page) either didn’t know this, or was simply too caught up trying to spread her deceased father’s ashes at the Rogue River. With her…
Head of the class
The magazine unveiled its annual list today, noting that the rankings are based on graduation rates, college matriculation rates, advanced placement or international baccalaureate tests taken per student, average SAT and ACT scores, average high-level test scores and AP courses offered. The Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics was ranked 35th, while the Classen School…
Dark Crimes
Among the 50 titles here — yes, 50 — are some genuine classics, such as 1950’s D.O.A., Edward G. Robinson in 1947’s The Red House and Samuel Fuller’s The Naked Kiss, but I don’t recommend picking up this massive set for those three, as much better prints can be found from, respectively, Image Entertainment, Film Chest…
The Aggression Scale
A Polaroid! Cinematically, that’s a nice touch; realistically, it’s cost-prohibitive. Besides, now that the company has stopped making the instant film, it’s increasingly difficult to find. Paid assassins, take note: It’s never too late to embrace the technological wonder of Instagram. That’s all beside the point. In this Scale, out-on-bail crime lord Bellavance (Ray Wise,…
Cinema Verite
How that came to be is depicted in the made-for-HBO film Cinema Verite, directed by the American Splendor team of Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, with Diane Lane (Secretariat) and Tim Robbins (Green Lantern) respectively starring as Pat and Bill, the heads of the Loud family. Shooting their every move — every highlight, every…
Knights of the Round Table
Directed by Richard Thorpe (The Honeymoon Machine), the new Warner Archive release is one of many retellings of the King Arthur legend, complete with the sword Excalibur and the Holy Grail. It’s neither the worst nor the best movie to tackle such rich subject matter, but for whatever reason, this production strips out all instances…
The Wizard of Gore / The Gore Gore Girls
The Wizard of Gore may not be among Lewis’ best, but it’s one of his most notorious. The title character is Montag the Magnificent (Lewis regular Ray Sager), a stage magician who maims and dismembers his hypnotized female “volunteers,” who leave appearing A-OK, only for their wounds to reappear later, this time fatally. Sherry Carson…
Water is big money
No doubt OKC and OWRB picked the fight, never acknowledging Native water rights or returning calls. The tribes file suit, and Fallin gets to play victim and defender of water rights for all Oklahomans, by which she means her well-heeled, silk-stocking Chamber buddies who covet the precious resource to fuel unwieldy generic sprawl where people…
