july on the rooftop

Houston's rooftop and drive-in cinema reveals scorching July lineups

This pandemic summer is more horror than comedy, but one Houston-area movie purveyor is doing its best to salvage July entertainment during COVID-19 and social distancing.

Rooftop Cinema Club has unveiled its summer lineup at its original rooftop venue at BLVD Place in Uptown Houston and the popular Drive-In at Sawyer Yards. The new listings extend the summer schedule through August 2. Meanwhile, Sawyer Yards now features $20 “Late Night Date Night” tickets on weekdays.

The movie club will continue to host its $5 Community Screenings for those impacted by COVID-19 and also those in support of Black Lives Matter. All proceeds from its first film every Monday will be donated directly to the Houston Food Bank and to the Black Lives Matter organization, according to a press release.

Guests can check the film program online for the “Community Screening” banner to find those events and book tickets.

Tickets for the Drive-In at Sawyer Yards start at $28 per vehicle, regardless of occupancy. New for July, Rooftop Cinema is offering “Late Night Date Night” tickets for $20 per vehicle (maximum 2 people) for the second screenings on Sunday through Thursday. Guests have the option to bring their own snacks, choose to order concessions from Rooftop Cinema Club, or food from on-site food trucks all done online for a safe, contactless, experience.

Doors open at 7:15 pm, with the first of two showings each night starting at 8:30 pm. Here is the complete July schedule for Sawyer Yards.

July 1 - Shrek; Pretty Woman
July 2 - The Lego Movie; Boyz N the Hood
July 3 - Jurassic Park; The Terminator
July 5 - Grease; Girls Trip
July 6 - The Muppets (Community Screening); Rocketman
July 7 - Toy Story 4; If Beale Street Could Talk
July 8 - Stand By Me; The Shining
July 9 - The Sandlot; Do the Right Thing
July 10 - The Goonies; Friday
July 11 - Jurassic Park; Con Air
July 12 - Poetic Justice
July 13 - Moana (Community Screening); Grease
July 14 - The Breakfast Club; Bridesmaids
July 15 - How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World; A Nightmare on Elm Street
July 16 - The Princess Bride; Knives Out
July 17 - The Lost World: Jurassic Park; Casablanca
July 18 - The Lion King (2019); Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind
July 19 - Grease; Pretty Woman
July 20 - Sister Act (Community Screening); What's Love Got to Do With It
July 21 - The Sandlot; Crazy, Stupid, Love
July 22 - Hocus Pocus; Poltergeist
July 23 - Finding Dory; Grease
July 24 - Friday
July 25 - Love Jones
July 26 - Up; Breakfast at Tiffany's
July 27 - Beauty and The Beast (Community Screening); Purple Rain
July 28 - Grease; Set It Off
July 29 - Friday the 13th
July 30 - Frozen II; Poetic Justice
July 31 - Space Jam; Fight Club
August 1 - The Goonies; Beverly Hills Cop
August 2 - The Sandlot; Dirty Dancing

New for July, Rooftop Cinema at BLVD Place has added a second screening after 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Tickets start at $17 per person for a one-person lounge seat. Tickets for couples, or anyone looking for a roomier loveseat, plus large popcorn, are $24 per person. Student discounts are also available starting at $15.30 per ticket, with valid I.D. required the night of the event.

Here is the full July schedule for the BLVD Place Rooftop venue:

July 6 - Breakfast at Tiffany's
July 7 - Do the Right Thing
July 8 - Hustlers
July 9 - You've Got Mail
July 10 - If Beale Street Could Talk; The Rocky Horror Picture Show
July 11 - Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood; A Nightmare on Elm Street
July 12 - The Breakfast Club
July 13 - Armageddon
July 14 - Jaws
July 15 - The Great Debaters
July 16 - The Notebook (Open Caption)
July 17 - Love Jones; Raising Arizona
July 18 - Grease; The Craft
July 19 - Clueless
July 20 - The Farewell
July 21 - Selena
July 22 - Hustle & Flow
July 23 - Dirty Dancing
July 24 - When Harry Met Sally; The Room
July 25 - The Great Gatsby; Friday the 13th
July 26 - The Wood
July 27 - Sweet Home Alabama
July 28 - The Sandlot
July 29 - Pulp Fiction
July 30 - Grease (Sing-Along)
July 31 - Dazed and Confused; Friday
August 1 - Love and Basketball; Death Becomes Her
August 2 - Pretty Woman (Open Caption)

Drive up and chill at Sawyer Yards.

Photo courtesy of Rooftop Cinema Club

Drive up and chill at Sawyer Yards.

movies

Movie Review

Sheriff Bob Odenkirk is back in over-the-top new action movie 'Normal'

Photo courtesy of Magnolia Pictures

Bob Odenkirk in Normal.

Screenwriter Derek Kolstad, who wrote the first three John Wick movies, has essentially had a blank check to do what he wants in the movie landscape since 2014. In recent years that has meant writing the action series Nobody for Bob Odenkirk, who has turned from a comedian into an unlikely action star in his sixties. Kolstad and Odenkirk are teaming up again in Normal.

A film that tries to evoke Fargo in multiple ways, Normal finds Ulysses Richardson (Odenkirk) serving as a temporary sheriff for the small town of Normal, Minnesota after the previous sheriff died. Knowing he’s just a steward until a new sheriff is elected, Ulysses takes a live-and-let-live approach to the job, letting the deputies (Ryan Allen and Billy MacLellan) do the grunt work and trying to stay out of everyone’s way, including Mayor Kibner (Henry Winkler).

A bank robbery attempt by two non-citizens upsets his best-laid plans in more ways than he can imagine. Not only is he forced to confront a crime not often seen in a town like Normal, but the robbery uncovers secrets that turn the film into an all-out bloodbath. Soon, almost everyone in town becomes involved in what comes to resemble a war, along with — you guessed it — Yakuza henchmen from Japan.

Directed by Ben Wheatley and written by Kolstad, the film is a slight twist on the everyman-turned-hero character Odenkirk played in the two Nobody films. While Ulysses is in law enforcement, he prefers to use words instead of weapons, and it’s only when he’s pushed to the brink that he crosses that line. Naturally, his skills are beyond what anyone would expect of him, allowing him to match up well with people half his age.

The film is not a comedy in the traditional sense, but instead aims for laughs by catching the audience off-guard with its ultraviolence. Some characters are dispatched in shockingly unexpected ways, with one of the only natural reactions to the jarring nature of their deaths being laughter. That’s not necessarily the case for other killings, which range from blasé to sadistic, and the only reason they count as entertainment is because the filmmakers have primed the audience to accept them as such.

After a relatively solid setup, where Wheatley and Kolstad seem to take their time getting to know the main characters, the second half of the film is pure action that dispenses with good storytelling. Like many action movies, there are double crosses, surprise revelations, and more, but the filmmakers don’t seem to care about making sense of any character arcs. All they care about is delivering mayhem, and they succeed on that front.

Odenkirk has perfected the mild-yet-intimidating nature of his action characters, and it is satisfying to see him get the better of those who have done him wrong. He doesn’t run or jump like fellow 63-year-old Tom Cruise, but — with the help of fast-paced editing — he still makes for a credible action hero. The only other actors of any note in the film are Winkler, who’s a nice presence with his sardonic personality, and Lena Headey, whose small role doesn't match up with her experience.

You have to have a certain mindset to enjoy a film like Normal, but if you can abide its over-the-top bloodiness, it’s a serviceable action film. Few would have expected Odenkirk to take on these kinds of roles at this late stage of his career, but he’s making the most of his opportunities.

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Normal opens in theaters on April 17.

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Movie Review

Sheriff Bob Odenkirk is back in over-the-top new action movie 'Normal'