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    Music Matters

    Houston's music festival grows up: The star acts of the new Free Press Summer Fest lineup are . . .

    Elizabeth Rhodes
    Feb 12, 2014 | 1:59 pm

    The much-anticipated 2014 lineup for Free Press Summer Fest is out. With everyone from folk-favorite Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros to country crooner Dwight Yoakam included this year, there really seems to be something for everyone.

    Since starting six years ago, Free Press Summer Fest has grown from an estimated 30,000 attendance in 2009 to nearly 100,000 last year. Houston's premier music festival takes place May 31 and June 1 at Eleanor Tinsley Park.

    Here are the highlights of the new lineup:

    Jack White

    Since parting ways with Meg in 2011, Jack White has been, well, rather all over the place. Going from The Raconteurs to The Dead Weather and now focusing on his solo career, White has done it all. With a blues-y type of rock-and-roll that anyone can appreciate (see: "Sixteen Saltines"), the Detroit darling is the ultimate festival headliner (you really can't afford to miss him).

    Vampire Weekend

    This indie rock four-piece band, known most widely for its 2008 self-titled album which featured hits "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa," "Mansard Roof" and "Oxford Comma," actually started at New York's Columbia University. Vampire Weekend took that initial success and ran with it, releasing two more albums in only two years, both receiving critical and popular acclaim.

    If you're headed to Summer Fest to have fun, nothing makes a better soundtrack than the pop-rock of Vampire Weekend.

    If you're headed to Summer Fest to have fun, nothing makes a better soundtrack than the pop-rock of Vampire Weekend.

    Lauryn Hill

    Perhaps best known as a member of 1990s hip-hop group, the Fugees, Lauryn Hill has had quite the solo career as an R&B singer, including the 1999 smash hit single, "Doo Wop (That Thing)" (not to mention her incredible rendition of "Killing Me Softly"). In spite of her truly one-of-a-kind vocal skills, Hill only recently returned to the stage after taking a long sabbatical from performing, so don't miss this amazing opportunity to see her live.

    Childish Gambino

    While you may know Donald Glover by his Community name, you ought to know him as Childish Gambino since he's bound for hip-hop stardom. His second studio album, Because the Internet — replete with electro-hip-hop stunners like "Crawl" and "Sweatpants" — is more than enough to convince you to check him out.

    Die Antwoord

    Ninja and Yo-landi's style may not be for everyone, but with thumping bass and spitfire lyrics, it's hard not to get on board with the South African duo's brand of hip-hop. After gaining attention with 2009's hit single "Enter the Ninja" from their $O$ album, Die Antwoord has gained a prolific following in the United States. Check out tracks "I Fink U Freeky" and "Fatty Boom Boom" from 2012's Ten$ion if you're ready to be converted to their "rap-rave" style.

    The full Free Press Summer Fest lineup:

    Jack White

    Vampire Weekend

    Lauryn Hill

    Zedd

    Pinkish Black

    Dead Roses

    Grand Old Grizzly

    Ill Liad

    Above & Beyond

    Wu-Tang Clan

    Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros

    Dwight Yoakam

    Childish Gambino

    Deftones

    Cage The Elephant

    The Kills

    Die Antwoord

    Big Gigantic

    Chvrches

    DMX

    The 1975

    tUnE-yArDs

    Laidback Luke

    Rebelution

    Washed Out

    The Naked and Famous

    Adventure Club

    Flosstradamus

    Drive-By Truckers

    Lord Huron

    Ying Yang Twins

    Sky Ferreira

    J. Roddy Walston & The Business

    First Aid Kit

    Mariachi El Bronx

    Paper Diamond

    King Khan & The Shrines

    Flatbush Zombies

    The Oh Hellos

    Shakey Graves

    Wildcat! Wildcat!

    Poolside

    Robert Delong

    The Orwells

    Anamanaguchi

    Venomous Maximus

    Wild Party

    Carnival Talk

    Driver Friendly

    Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors
    The Chain Gang of 1974
    William Fitzsimmons
    Destruction Unit
    White Sea
    Uh Huh Her
    Jana Hunter
    The Tontons
    Syd Arthur
    Lizzo
    Benjamin Booker
    Bagheera
    Wild Moccasins
    Ishi

    Feathers
    A Fistful of Soul
    Yung Slutty
    Eagle Claw
    BLSHS
    The Caldwell
    Pleasure 2
    Children of Pop
    Los Skarnales
    New York City Queens
    De'Wayne Jackson
    Make
    Another Run
    Gracie Chavez

    Jack White

    Free Press Summer Fest 2014 Jack White
      
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    Movie Review

    Houston native Wes Anderson shows off comedic side in The Phoenician Scheme

    Alex Bentley
    Jun 6, 2025 | 4:00 pm
    Benicio Del Toro, Mia Threapleton, and Michael Cera in The Phoenician Scheme
    Photo courtesy of TPS Productions/Focus Features
    Benicio Del Toro, Mia Threapleton, and Michael Cera in The Phoenician Scheme.

    If you were to do a poll of the best comedy filmmakers of the 21st century, writer/director Wes Anderson is not the obvious choice to come out on top, but there’s an argument to be made for him. His quirky style doesn’t yield the guffaws that more broad comedies do, but the absurd situations he creates in his films are often more consistently funny than anything else.

    Anderson’s inimitable approach is once again on full display in The Phoenician Scheme. At its center is Zsa-Zsa Gorda (Benicio Del Toro), a much-hated businessman who’s looking to complete a number of big projects in the fictional country of Phoenicia. As he seems to be the target of multiple assassination attempts, he appoints his daughter, Liesl (Mia Threapleton), as his heir to try to ensure his legacy.

    Both she and his new assistant, Bjorn (Michael Cera), accompany him around the country as he tries to enact a scheme to have others cover the bulk of the cost for the various projects. Those he attempts to convince include Phoenician Prince Farouk (Riz Ahmed), brothers Leland (Tom Hanks) and Reagan (Bryan Cranston), fellow businessman Marseille Bob (Mathieu Amalric), ship captain Marty (Jeffrey Wright), his Cousin Hilda (Scarlett Johansson), and Uncle Nubar (Benedict Cumberbatch).

    Put in Andersonian terms, the film is a mix between the madcap antics from The Grand Budapest Hotel and the impenetrable storytelling of Asteroid City. If you were to try to understand every detail of what’s going on in the story of The Phoenician Scheme, it might take three or more viewings to do so. But the film is still highly entertaining because Anderson fills its frames with his typical visual delights, great wordplay, and his particular version of slapstick.

    Much of the comedy of the film derives from Anderson inserting moments that initially come as a surprise and then utilizing them as running jokes. The film features more blood than usual for the filmmaker, but each time a character gets wounded (or worse), it gets funnier. The assassination attempts get broader as the film goes along, and the matter-of-fact way in which they’re treated by Gorda and others is also hilarious.

    Of course, Anderson is the cinephile’s comedy director, so the film is also full of high-brow things like allusions to paintings, tributes to other filmmakers, and classical music. Each time Gorda has an attempt on his life, he briefly finds himself in a version of limbo, depicted in black-and-white by Anderson. The cast of characters Gorda finds there - including Bill Murray as God - could come straight out of a 1950s Ingmar Bergman movie.

    Del Toro has delivered some great performances over the years, but this one is near the top for him. This is his second Anderson film (following The French Dispatch) and he nails the deadpan method. Also great is Cera, who uses a ridiculous accent to make a big impression. Threapleton, the daughter of Kate Winslet, makes the most of her first big film role. The list of supporting actors is too deep to properly laud everyone, but they all fit in seamlessly.

    Opinions will differ, but for this critic’s money, Anderson is at his best when he fully leans into the comedy of his films. He does just that in The Phoenician Scheme, to the point that it doesn’t matter that the story is overly complex. The combination of his eye for visual detail, a witty script, and committed performances make it a success.

    ---

    The Phoenician Scheme is now playing in theaters.

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