weekend event planner

Here are the top 8 things to do in Houston this weekend

Celebrate Galentine's Day at Karbach Brewing Co.

Photo by Getty Images

As film fans know, it's Oscar weekend.

If you are planning to see a bunch of movie stars give shiny, gold statuettes to everything except the 10-or-so good movies that came out last year, you might want to check out the nominated live-action, documentary, and animated shorts that will be screening this weekend at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and Alamo Drafthouse LaCenterra (Alamo is only screening live-action and animated shorts).

Also at Alamo Drafthouse, multiple Oscar nominee Parasite will be shown — in black-and-white. That certainly seems more interesting than watching Joker for the umpteenth time, doesn't it?

Apart from cinema, there are plenty of activities you can star in:

Thursday, February 6

"Double Rainbow" opening reception at Dimmitt Contemporary Art
"Double Rainbow" is more than the name of one of the most consistently hilarious, viral videos ever. It's also the name of a new, joint art exhibition from artists Sarah Ferguson and Mallory Page. The artists are focusing on the concept of the rainbow, providing an immersive experience shared by all. Ferguson and Page decided to approach the exhibition as an installation; boldly juxtaposing their distinct styles, yet uniting them through color. Runs through March 19. 6-8 pm.

Brittney Palmer and Arianny Celeste at Little Woodrow’s Midtown
All you UFC fans might want to head over to Little Woodrow’s and say what’s up to some beloved, bodacious Octagon Girls. Brittney Palmer and Arianny Celeste are a couple of veteran ring girls and models who both have just as much of a rabid fanbase (their Instagram followers are in the millions) as the MMA bruisers who step in the ring. Come hang out and take photos with them before they take part in UFC 247 on Saturday night. 8-10 pm.

Friday, February 7

Sesame Street Live: Make Your Magic
Sesame Street will be coming to H-Town this weekend — and it'll be super-sized. This show will have life-size versions of all those furry Muppets as they go on a journey filled with surprising and spectacular illusions. Ticket options include the Elmo & Friends Meet & Greet, with the opportunity to meet & greet with Elmo and two of his friends, walk on-stage and experience the neighborhood, participate in a theater-wide scavenger hunt and more. Runs through February 9. 11 am and 3 pm (10 am, 2 and 6 pm Saturday).

Color Me Badd at The Rustic
Man, for all you '90s kids out there, do we have a treat for you! R & B boy band Color Me Badd is coming to town! Actually, it's just one guy from Color Me Badd: Mark Calderon. He's pretty much been the whole group ever since Kevin Thornton left to be a minister in 1998, Sam Watters moved on to be a producer, and Bryan Abrams became a drunk who shoved Calderon to the ground during a show a couple years back. Anyway, it'll be Calderon and two backup dancers — so enjoy. 9 pm

Saturday, February 8

The Houston Roughnecks XFL Season Opener at TDECU Stadium
You gotta hand it to Vince McMahon — the man just refuses to let certain things die. Nearly 20 years ago, the WWE honcho's down-and-dirty version of a football league crashed and burned in a spectacular fashion. But guess what? The XFL is back, and we have our own team: The Houston Roughnecks. The team will play a total of 10 games during the regular season, with five at home. The first one right here is a matchup between the Roughnecks and the Los Angeles Wildcats. Be sure to check out Gow Media's John Granato and Raheel Ramzanali in the broadcast. 4 pm.

5th Annual Houston Whiskey Social at The Citadel Houston
Houston whiskey drinkers — your day has come. The largest whiskey tasting in Texas is back — the only event in this state where you'll find vintage spirits going back decades. There will be hundreds of whiskies and spirits from around the world, select single-barrel offerings and fine food to match. We're talking Glenfiddich, Tomatin, The Balvenie, Bruichladdich, Four Roses, Laphroaig, Elijah Craig, Jack Daniel's, etc. Man, it's almost enough to bring a tear to your eye. 6-9 pm.

Sunday, February 9

Galentine's Day at Karbach Brewing Co.
Thanks to a little show called Parks and Recreation, people are now celebrating a day known as Galentine's Day. And even though it won't officially happen until February 13 — the day before Valentine's Day — Karbach Brewing Co. will be getting in Galentine spirit with a special market and movie presentation. Support local female businesses in the Biergrarten (curated by the Hustlin' Honeys) and cap it all off with a screening of that '90s teenage witch fest The Craft at 6 pm. Noon-8 pm.

Crawfish Boil for the Q's at Poison Girl
Since every bar in town will be having crawfish boils in the coming weeks, here's one you can attend that's for a very good cause. Poison Girl will be holding a boil for the Quinonez family, whose home was destroyed by the Watson Grinding & Manufacturing explosion. The shock wave was enough to shift their house from its foundation and force them to leave their home. So come, stuff your face with crawfish and help them piece things back together. (You can also donate here.) 3-6 pm.

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Movie Review

Daniel Craig shines in Queer, an unapologetic tale of love and loss

Photo courtesy of A24

Drew Starkey and Daniel Craig in Queer.

As recently as the late 2010s, if a movie was made about an LGBTQ+ character, it was more than likely about their coming out experience. Romance, if it existed, was typically chaste, and actual sex was almost completely out of the question. Things have changed dramatically in the 2020s, to the point that a major movie star has no issue starring in a film called Queer.

Based on the 1985 novella by William S. Burroughs, the film features William Lee (Daniel Craig), whom everyone calls just Lee, a writer living in 1950s-era Mexico City who spends most of his time haunting local bars with friends like fellow writer Joe Guidry (Jason Schwartzman) and hitting on younger men. His early interactions in the film seem to indicate that Lee has a bad reputation within the local gay community, as multiple people avoid him or give him odd looks.

Lee senses an opportunity when he encounters a newcomer, Eugene Allerton (Drew Starkey). Despite some awkward interactions, the two of them start spending time together, although Lee has much more invested in the relationship than Eugene does. Their hit-and-miss bond continues until Lee, who’s starting to get into drugs in addition to the booze, convinces Eugene to accompany him on a trip to South America.

Directed by Luca Guadagnino and written by Justin Kuritzkes (making their second straight film together after Challengers), early on the film seems to be mostly about the divide between an older person who’s grown comfortable in his ways and a younger person who’s living a relatively carefree life. The introduction of drugs into the plot changes things, though, with Lee searching out more ways to open his eyes to what the world has to offer.

Guadagnino and his team use some interesting visual storytelling techniques to introduce ideas that may not be present in the actual script. The most successful, demonstrated in multiple scenes, is the superimposition of movements by Lee over what’s actually taking place in the scene. The subtle overlay gives the audience insight into Lee’s true feelings, showing what he can’t or won’t say out loud.

Music also plays a big part in how the plot is perceived, with the use of anachronistic songs from Nirvana and Prince serving to heighten certain moments. The score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is not as in-your-face as the one they did for Challengers, but it complements the film well, especially when the plot starts to get trippy in its final half hour.

Craig, who appears sweaty and disheveled for much of the film, is about as far from the suaveness of James Bond as you can get in this role. He takes multiple risks with his performance and almost all of them pay off. Starkey’s character is subdued by comparison, but still comes off well. Schwartzman and Lesley Manville are given showy roles, with both using altered appearances that make them nearly unrecognizable to deliver memorable performances.

Queer is not as accessible as Challengers was storytelling-wise, but the fact that it tells a story about gay men living their lives as they see fit with no interference or questions shows how far the film world has come in a short period of time. It also continues Guadagnino’s streak of making audacious films in a way that few other filmmakers are willing or able to approach.

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Queer is now playing in theaters.

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