Weekend Event Planner

Here are the top 9 things to do in Houston this weekend

This upcoming weekend is full of events that will kick off the celebratory holiday season, as well as take advantage of the cooler weather we are finally experiencing.

The Houston Cinema Arts Festival, The Cellar Classic, and and the GR8 Taco Challenge are just a few of the events highlighted in this round-up. Our CultureMap Events Calendar has a full list of other events that you can sift through when planning out your weekend.

Thursday, November 10

Houston Ballet Nutcracker Market

"The 12 Days of Christmas" is the theme for the 2016 Houston Ballet Nutcracker Market. This yearly market, which continues through Sunday, plays hosts to over 280 vendors from across the country selling unique goods, gifts, food, jewelry, home decor and more. This year will see new vendors at the ,arket, but loyal visitors can expect to see mainstays like Toffee To Go and decorations from Clutter Yule Love.

Houston Cinema Arts Festival

Honky Tonk Heaven: Legend of the Broken Spoke is the opening night film for the 2016 Houston Cinema Arts Festival with a live performance by Dale Watson following the screening. This eight-day festival features a wide array of films and other events at various locations like The Menil Collection, The Museum of Fine Arts, the Asia Society Texas Center, and the Museum of Natural Science.

Friday, November 11

Children's Museum of Houston presents Mission After Dark

Kids take on their R.I.V.A.L. as agents on a special task force, S.E.C.R.E.T., at the Children's Museum. The covert mission gives these undercover agents the opportunity to collect intel, shoot down security bots, track down and block subsonic emitters, and so much more as well as offering a entertaining, learning experience.

Saturday, November 12

AIA Houston Heights Bicycle Tour

This bicycle tour will explore the Houston Heights from a point of view that many may not have stopped to experience yet. The Heights is home to 120 of the 215 National Register of Historic Places that can be found in Houston and is the first mixed-use community in Texas. Historic and contemporary architecture and how it fits into the fabric of the Heights will also be explored on the tour.

Hermann Park Conservancy: Run in the Park

Run in the Park at Hermann Park starts at the Molly Ann Smith Plaza and circles the park on the Marvin Taylor Trail. This annual run is for the entire family, with a 5k walk/run and a 1k kids fun run. After you've finished the race, while being cheered on by family and friends, join in the post fun party with music, food, and drinks.

2016 Genesys Works Houston Cellar Classic

The 2016 Houston Cellar Classis features samples from over 100 of the finest wines from around the world and food provided by some of Houston's most popular restaurants. While you wine and dine, keep in mind that 100 percent of the net proceeds will benefit Genesys Works Houston, a non-profit that offers skills training and internships to disadvantaged high school students. CultureMap food editor Eric Sandler is one the judges to decide the Media Favorite and there will be a People's Choice, too. To keep the evening rolling, The Revelators will provide live entertainment.

The Galleria Tree Lighting and Ice Spectacular

No holiday season in Houston is complete without the lighting of the 55-foot tall Christmas tree at The Galleria ice rink. Houston-raised Mary Sarah, finalist from Season 10 of The Voice, will perform for guests as they watch the tree illuminated with over 450,000 lights. A skating Santa, fireworks, face painting, and other in-store retailer activities will also entertain shoppers.

Sunday, November 13

EaDo Vintage Fest

Selected local vendors will be featured for a day of vintage fashions at the EaDo Vintage Fest. Vistiors will find everything, ranging from '50s to '90s vintage streetwear, as well as music, food, and beer.

GR8 Taco Challenge

Some of the city's top restaurants, including State Fare, Americas, and Bernie's Burger Bus, will battle it out to produce the best "taco" in H-Town using 8th Wonder beer as an ingredient. Tickets include 4 beer tokens, a souvenir pint glass, 1 taco sample from each challenger, and access to a premium Michelada bar (what goes better with tacos than a great Mexican beverage of beer, lime juice, and assorted sauces, spices, and peppers?). A portion of the proceeds will benefit Kids Meals, Inc.

Have fun this weekend at this events around town! And let us know about your experiences.

Sample over 100 wines at the Houston Cellar Classic.

2016 Genesys Works Houston Cellar Classic

Photo courtesy of Genesys Works Houston

Sample over 100 wines at the Houston Cellar Classic.

event-planner

Movie Review

New thriller Crime 101 majors in cool with Hemsworth at the wheel

Photo courtesy of Amazon Content Services

Chris Hemsworth in Crime 101.

The career of actor Chris Hemsworth is a curious one, as it feels like he’s a huge star (mostly from playing Thor in Marvel movies) and not at the same time, with most of the non-MCU movies featuring him in a lead role failing to become big successes. But he still has a certain presence about him, which is why he’s being given another chance to prove his star power in the new thriller, Crime 101.

Hemsworth plays Davis, a talented thief who knows how to get what he wants without resorting to violence. When a job early in the movie turns slightly sideways, it makes him think twice about working with his handler (Nick Nolte), who seems to prefer someone with a stronger touch, like the up-and-coming Ormon (Barry Keoghan).

Davis is the main character, but two others who come into his orbit get their own subplots. Lou (Mark Ruffalo) is a slightly schlubby LAPD detective who’s convinced he knows the pattern of an unknown thief that likes to hit places close to Highway 101. Sharon (Halle Berry) works for a high-end insurance agency known for working with ultra-wealthy clients, the types who might be a great target for a thief like Davis.

Written and directed by Bart Layton, the film has a decent propulsion to it that comes with most crime thrillers. Davis and Ormon represent the yin and the yang of criminal approaches, and and it’s interesting to see the juxtaposition between the two as their simmering rivalry heats up over the course of the film. When the film commits to actually showing its crimes, it has an excitement that’s worth watching.

Unfortunately, Layton displays a real lack of focus, taking the audience into subplots with each of the three main characters that prove unnecessarily distracting. Lou’s marriage problems may explain his disheveled appearance, but there’s no need to see him deal with them with wife Angie (Jennifer Jason Leigh). Sharon’s troubles with her male-dominated company prove slightly pivotal, but still don’t merit the time put into exploring them.

The most baffling subplot is Davis pursuing a relationship with Maya (Monica Barbaro), a woman he randomly meets. At different points in the movie, including many of his interactions with Maya, Davis seems like the most uncomfortable, antisocial person in the world. And yet he somehow morphs into a suave smooth-talker who’s able to convince anyone to do what he wants at other key points, making it unclear exactly what kind of person he really is.

Hemsworth does relatively well in the lead role, but he’s still missing that certain something to make his character, and therefore the movie, truly compelling. The rest of the cast is fine, too, but each of them seem to be putting in just the minimal amount of effort to make the film watchable. Ruffalo and Barbaro come off the best, but with the talent in the cast (11 Oscar nominations and one win), they could have been used better.

Crime 101 has most of the ingredients to be another great entry in the genre, and it succeeds when it actually decides to deliver on its promise. But too much of the film is spent on things that have no real bearing on plot or character development, leaving the movie in the middle of the pack.

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Crime 101 is now playing in the theaters.

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