Weekend events planner

Here are the top 10 things to do in Houston this weekend

You’ve been working hard all week, and now that the weekend is near, it’s time to let loose. From some amazing concerts to a beer tasting, an art tour, a free movie, and more... here are the top 10 things to do in Houston this weekend.

For more options, check out the full CultureMap Events Calendar.

Phone home
Thursday, June 8
Break out your shoulder pads and hair scrunchies, plus your blankets and lawn chairs, and make your way to The Square at Memorial City for a free showing of 1982 hit film, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. PS The popcorn is also free. (7 pm; tickets: free)
303 Memorial City; 713-464-8640

Step right up
Friday, June 9-Sunday, June 11
Society for the Performing Arts presents family-friendly show, Circus 1903, at Jones Hall. Puppets and special effects transport you to the golden age of the circus. (Various times; tickets: $33-$93 per person)
615 Louisiana St.; 713-227-4772

Art pop-up
Friday, June 9
They had us at free pancakes, but then they added works by more than 100 emerging local artists, live body painting, live art battles, and beer, and we’re all in for the Pancakes and Booze Art Show at Warehouse Live. (8 pm; tickets: $7-$13 per person)
813 St. Emanuel St.; 310-555-5555

Shop away
Saturday, June 10-Sunday, June 11
Shop ‘til you drop at the Pop Shop Houston Summer Festival featuring handmade and vintage fashions, art exhibitions, craft workshops, live music, and more, all at Silver Street Studios. (Various times; tickets: $8 per person)
2000 Edwards St.

Art tour
Saturday, June 10
Take a guided stroll of the buildings on the Sawyer Yards Creative Campus, located in Houston’s historic First Ward, via the Winter Street Studio Tour with Fresh Arts event. Spend the afternoon wandering through five re-purposed warehouses, home to more than 300 artists in residence, filled with unique items including paintings, sculptures, jewelry, photography, and textiles. (3-4 pm; tickets: free when you register here)
2101 Winter St.

Book signing
Saturday, June 10
Actor and comedian Kevin Hart heads to Katy Mills Mall for a book signing session at retailer Books-A-Million. His inspirational memoir, I Can’t Make This Up, hits shelves June 13. Hart's film credits include the Scary Movie franchise, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Death at a Funeral, and Little Fockers. (2 pm; tickets: $29.22 per person)
5000 Katy Mills Cir., Katy; 281-644-2665

Six degrees
Saturday, June 10
Actor Kevin Bacon and his film-scoring brother Michael Bacon, who together make up The Bacon Brothers rock band, hit the stage at Heights Theater. The duo have produced seven albums between 1997 and 2014, including Forosoco (1997), New Year’s Day (2009), and 36 Cents (2014), with tunes spanning rock, soul, folk, and Americana. (8:30 pm; tickets: $34-$52 per person)
339 W. 19th St.; 214-272-8346

Cheers
Sunday, June 11
The Special Rare Cellar Tasting event at Saint Arnold Brewing Company boasts samples of one-of-a-kind and aged brews. (2-4:30 pm; tickets: $60 per person)
2000 Lyons Ave.; 713-686-9494

Enter Sandman
Sunday, June 11
In support of their tenth studio album Hardwired... To Self-Destruct, released in November 2016, heavy metal rockers Metallica make a stop at NRG Stadium as part of their The WorldWired Tour. This marks the band’s first worldwide tour since the World Magnetic Tour in 2008–2010. (6 pm; tickets: $71.50-$342.90 per person)
8400 Kirby Dr.; 713-629-3700

Honey of a Film Series
Sunday, June 11
Houston film buff Maggie Schutza is launching a free outdoor summer movie series Sunday night with a showing of the 1989 Hal Hartley film The Unbelievable Truth. It will be shown in the driveway of a house near the Menil Collection, with tailgate-style chairs and light refreshments. The under-the-stars event, called the Houston Honey Summer Film Series, continues on Sunday nights through August 13. (8 pm; tickets: free)
1502 Sul Ross St.

Catch a free showing of E.T. at The Square at Memorial City.

Houston, weekend event planner, June 2017, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

Courtesy of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial/Facebook

Catch a free showing of E.T. at The Square at Memorial City.

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Movie Review

Ben Affleck cooks the books in chaotic sequel The Accountant 2

Photo by Warrick Page/Prime

Jon Bernthal and Ben Affleck in The Accountant 2.

In this Hollywood era of franchises, finding one to call their own is a priority for many movie stars. Over 30 years into his career, Ben Affleck had yet to find one; he did star as Batman in multiple movies, but that role has been interchangeable. He seemed to get a prime action hero role with 2016’s The Accountant, but somehow it’s taken nine years for The Accountant 2 to come out.

Affleck’s character of Christian Wolff is a high-functioning autistic man whose abilities to comb through mounds of data quickly and efficiently are matched only by his fighting skills. When Ray King (J.K. Simmons), a former Treasury agent who had previously hunted Christian, is murdered, King’s replacement, Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson), calls on Christian to help figure out what happened and track down his killer.

The search quickly finds multiple criminal conspiracies, including a hitman ring, a scheme to abduct migrants, and more. Naturally, Wolff claims to need help in the endeavor, so his mercenary brother Braxton (Jon Bernthal) soon joins in on the quest. The two brothers work together to figure out the puzzle while also stopping to have some fun every now and then.

Directed by Gavin O’Connor and written by Bill Dubuque (both returning from the original), the film feels like it is missing many connective scenes. It often starts down one road and seems to be making good progress when it suddenly veers into another storytelling lane with no explanation. This happens multiple times throughout the film, to the point that it becomes almost impossible to tell what the main story is supposed to be.

In the first film, the oddity of having an autistic math genius also being a world-class marksman and fighter somehow made sense. This film leans much more into Christian’s physical skills, with the autistic side of things showing up in his (mostly) emotionless demeanor. While that works to a certain degree, the choppiness of the story undercuts the character traits that Affleck does his best to impart.

The best examples of the messiness of the film come in the multiple scenes that serve as nothing more than comic relief, with not even an attempt at connecting them to the main plot, such as it is. Two of them involve Christian proving himself to be a ladies man despite his lack of conversational skills, both of which fall flat as they seem to be making fun of his autism rather than highlighting positive aspects of it. Each of the comic scenes is so disparate in tone from the rest of the film that they essentially bring the story to a screeching halt.

Affleck is fine in the part, although he’s much better when Christian turns toward action hero mode than when he has to display the character’s autistic traits. Bernthal is great at being an over-the-top macho guy, and he gets to indulge that side of him throughout the film. Addai-Robinson is disserved by a role that doesn’t give her character any autonomy despite her high-powered position.

Affleck’s career has been one of the most up-and-down ones of any supposed A-list actor, and The Accountant 2 marks another down moment for him. He may have finally gotten his first sequel for a film in which he’s the main character, but don’t expect there to be a third installment.

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The Accountant 2 opens in theaters on April 25.

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Movie Review

Ben Affleck cooks the books in chaotic sequel The Accountant 2