weekend event planner

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

Eat, drink, and enjoy the weekend at the Sugar Land Wine & Food Affair, plus other foodie events.

Photo courtesy of Sugar Land Wine & Food Affair

The weather is gearing towards perfection, and the Astros are dominating to-do lists. But there are plenty of events around town, some that will only cost you your presence. We've rounded up 10 great events to make the most of your weekend.

Thursday, April 5

Hot cars at the Mecum Auction
For the seventh consecutive year, Mecum Auctions returns to Houston and will hold a three-day auction where cars will be put up for auction. And what a selection of automobiles they will have on the block. An estimated 1,000 cars will be on display — from muscle cars to Corvettes to hot rods. And if you can’t make it in person, a live stream of the entire auction will be held on Mecum’s website. (NBC Sports Network will broadcast 20 hours of the auction, including 15 hours of live coverage.) Doors open at 8 am. and the auction starts at 11 am. (10 am. on Friday and Saturday.)

The Sugar Land Wine & Food Affair
Even though the 15th annual Sugar Land Wine and Food Affair has kicked off, with a $125 “One if by Land, Two if by Sea” dinner, and there are still many food and wine events going on in Sugar Land this weekend. There’s a “Grand Tasting” at the Marriott Town Square on Friday, a “Sip & Stroll” at Brazos River Park on Saturday and a “Bistro Brunch” also at Brazos on Sunday. For Thursday, there is a “Bar Fight! Street Food Bites & Bartenders Challenge” at 2110 Town Square Place (across from Perry’s Steakhouse). It starts at 7:30 pm.

Three plays in three nights at MATCH
For its third-annual Intercultural Play Reading Series, the Next Iteration Theater Company has found three potent, culturally-charged plays. First up on Thursday, Augusto Amador’s Atacama tells of two Chilean strangers searching for buried loved ones in the titular desert. Next, we have Aditi Kapil’s post-colonial journey Shiv on Friday. Finally, there’s In the Continuum on Saturday, by Danai Gurira (yes, Okoye from Black Panther!) and Nikkole Salter, which focuses on two women — one living in South Central LA and the other in Zimbabwe. All shows starts at 8 pm.

Friday, April 6

Dr. Strangelove at Landmark River Oaks
Can you think of a more apt movie to watch during these paranoid, jittery times than Stanley Kubrick’s classic 1964 satire Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb? Written by Kubrick, Peter George (whose Red Alert novel the movie is based on) and Texan man of letters Terry Southern, the film has the great Peter Sellers playing three roles: the U.S. President, a British RAF officer, and the titular mad scientist — and shows the insanity that ensues when a madman launches a nuclear attack. It starts at midnight on both Friday and Saturday.

Saturday, April 7

The Heartmade Art Market at Main Street District
You won’t find an art market out here in these streets with a more delightful name than the Heartmade Art Market. Presented by the Houston Downtown Management District (Downtown District) — along with Tracy Carlson Photography and Crush Design Co. — this third-annual, free outdoor event will feature the work of over 55 local artists, crafters and creatives. The event also benefits Hoof Prints and Heart Beats, an organization that offers free equine therapy to children and adults with special needs. It starts at 11 am.

Giada De Laurentiis at Highland Village
Giada De Laurentiis is unquestionably one of the most recognized celebrity chefs out there. For years, the telegenic, Daytime Emmy-winning culinary queen has been wowing audiences with the desirable dishes she has served up on such Food Network shows as Everyday Italian and Giada at Home. She’s also the author of eight, New York Times-bestselling books, and she’ll be in Houston promoting her latest book, Giada’s Italy. If you buy a $30 ticket to this event, you’ll get a copy of the book. It starts at 1 pm.

The “Merchant Ivory in India” series
With the news of filmmaker James Ivory, who just won an Oscar for writing Call Me By Your Name, disclosing he had a decades-spanning love affair with his longtime, dearly-departed partner Ismail Merchant, now might be a good time to check out some of the duo’s early work with the MFAH’s “Merchant Ivory in India” series, starting this weekend. First up is 1965’s Shakespeare Wallah, about a troupe of British actors who perform Shakespeare in India, and the love affair which blossoms between a Brit actress and an Indian man. The movie starts at 7 pm. (6 pm on Sunday).

Sunday, April 8

Cecile Richards at Bayou Place
Cecile Richards has been known as a lot of things: daughter of the late Governor Ann Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, a “heroine of the resistance” (that last one came from Vogue). But this weekend, thanks to the fine folks at Brazos Bookstore, she’ll be in Houston as a writer, discussing her new memoir Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out and Finding the Courage to Lead – My Life Story. If you buy a $30 ticket to this event, you’ll get a copy of the book. It starts at 3 pm.

Big Taste of Houston
If you're jonesing for another food event after Tastemakers, Big Brothers Big Sisters — Lone Star is hosting the 6th Annual Big Taste of Houston. The much-anticipated food and beverage extravaganza showcases more than 25 of Houston’s most diverse restaurants, bars, and talented chefs all competing for the prestigious “Judge’s Choice”, “Best Overall”, and “People’s Choice” awards. Delicious food, premium beverages, lively entertainment, and an incredible silent auction make this event one of Houston’s best. Look for celebrity judges Bun B, Chester Pitts, DJ Mr. Rogers, and Tray tha Truth. Event takes place at Audi Central Houston – 2120 Southwest Freeway. Tickets are $125. Event starts at 4 pm.

Tacos over Texas
And, The Ninfa Laurenzo Scholarship Fund will hold its first fundraising event, Tacos Over Texas, at The Original Ninfa’s on Navigation (2704 Navigation Blvd.). The event brings together top Houston chefs to share their cooking skills in a friendly taco competition honoring the legacy of “Mama Ninfa” Laurenzo, who paved the way for Tex-Mex cuisine with her famous Tacos al Carbon. Tacos Over Texas guests will enjoy a specialty taco from each chef, along with beer, margaritas and live music. Event runs from 12 to 4 pm. Tickets are available online from $40 to $200.

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Movie Review

Star TV producer James L. Brooks stumbles with meandering movie Ella McCay

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios

Emma Mackey in Ella McCay.

The impact that writer/director/producer James L. Brooks has made on Hollywood cannot be understated. The 85-year-old created The Mary Tyler Moore Show, personally won three Oscars for Terms of Endearment, and was one of the driving forces behind The Simpsons, among many other credits. Now, 15 years after his last movie, he’s back in the directing chair with Ella McCay.

The similarly-named Emma Mackey plays Ella, a 34-year-old lieutenant governor of an unnamed state in 2008 who’s on the verge of becoming governor when Governor Bill (Albert Brooks) gets picked to be a member of the president’s Cabinet. What should be a happy time is sullied by her needy husband, Ryan (Jack Lowden), her agoraphobic brother, Casey (Spike Fearn), and her perpetually-cheating father, Eddie (Woody Harrelson).

Despite the trio of men competing to bring her down, Ella remains an unapologetic optimist, an attitude bolstered by her aunt Helen (Jamie Lee Curtis), her assistant Estelle (Julie Kavner), and her police escort, Trooper Nash (Kumail Nanjiani). The film follows her over a few days as she navigates the perils of governing, the distractions her family brings, and the expectations being thrust upon her by many different people.

Brooks, who wrote and directed the film, is all over the place with his storytelling. What at first seems to be a straightforward story about Ella and her various issues soon starts meandering into areas that, while related to Ella, don’t make the film better. Prime among them are her brother and father, who are given a relatively small amount of screentime in comparison to the importance they have in her life. This is compounded by a confounding subplot in which Casey tries to win back his girlfriend, Susan (Ayo Edebiri).

Then there’s the whole political side of the story, which never finds its focus and is stuck in the past. Though it’s never stated explicitly, Ella and Governor Bill appear to be Democrats, especially given a signature program Ella pushes to help mothers in need. But if Brooks was trying to provide an antidote to the current real world politics, he doesn’t succeed, as Ella’s full goals are never clear. He also inexplicably shows her boring her fellow lawmakers to tears, a strange trait to give the person for whom the audience is supposed to be rooting.

What saves the movie from being an all-out train wreck is the performances of Mackey and Curtis. Mackey, best known for the Netflix show Sex Education, has an assured confidence to her that keeps the character interesting and likable even when the story goes downhill. Curtis, who has tended to go over-the-top with her roles in recent years, tones it down, offering a warm place of comfort for Ella to turn to when she needs it. The two complement each other very well and are the best parts of the movie by far.

Brooks puts much more effort into his female actors, including Kavner, who, even though she serves as an unnecessary narrator, gets most of the best laugh lines in the film. Harrelson is capable of playing a great cad, but his character here isn’t fleshed out enough. Fearn is super annoying in his role, and Lowden isn’t much better, although that could be mostly due to what his character is called to do. Were it not for the always-great Brooks and Nanjiani, the movie might be devoid of good male performances.

Brooks has made many great TV shows and movies in his 60+ year career, but Ella McCay is a far cry from his best. The only positive that comes out of it is the boosting of Mackey, who proves herself capable of not only leading a film, but also elevating one that would otherwise be a slog to get through.

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Ella McCay opens in theaters on December 12.

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