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    weekend event planner

    Here are the top 14 things to do in Houston this weekend

    Craig Lindsey
    Oct 4, 2018 | 6:25 am
    Houston Greek Fest
    Opa! The Original Greek Festival returns this weekend.
    Photo courtesy of St. Basil the Great Christian Orthodox Church

    Fall is here, and that means festivals (Greek Fest), fashion (Fashion X), and...depressed cakes (?). We're curious about that last one too. Look forward to a weekend packed with fun, can't-miss events.

    Thursday, October 4

    Eat and be merry at the 52nd Houston Original Greek Festival
    The Original Greek Festival, held at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral has been around for 52 years, hipping Houston folk to the delicious food (did someone say moussaka), festive dancing, and other fascinating facets of Greek culture. This year, there will be tours of the newly expanded Cathedral, live music from the Golden Greek ensemble, and an Athenian playground for the younger set. 5-10 pm (11 am-10 pm Saturday; Noon-6 pm Sunday).

    The runway rocks at Fashion X Houston
    Fashion X Houston is back, style-savvy, fashionista friends. For three nights, models will be walking the runway, decked out in duds from emerging and established Houston-based fashion designers, including winners and all-stars from that do-or-die reality competition Project Runway. Proceeds from each night will be donated to the event's VIP Style Setters' local Houston nonprofits of choice. 6:30 pm

    Learn just how much damage humans can do in this new exhibit
    Whether you want to accept it or not, humanity just has a knack for picking off species one after the next. Houston-based multidisciplinary artist/anthropologist Lina Dib is here to remind people of that with her new exhibit, aptly titled Like There is No Tomorrow. Created in collaboration with Taylor Knapps at Main Street Projects Gallery, this large-scale, interactive video instillation examines the decline of species caused by human interactions. 7-10 pm.

    Friday, October 5

    Join in on the jam-band love with ElectroLuv 2018
    ElectroLuv 2018 may sound like a music festival where you'd hear nothing but EDM coming out of every nook and cranny of the place and see people dancing in one spot forever, zonked out of their minds on some substance. But this two-day live-a-palooza is actually devoted to jam bands and the fans who love them. You'll get groups with names like Drum Circle, Hell in a Bucket, Heights Funk Collective and — our favorite — PotRoast. 6:30 pm.

    See the theatrical side of Snoop Dogg in his new show
    Snoop Dogg has taken some odd detours in his life. You can currently see him on television, co-hosting the VH1 cooking show Martha & Snoop's Potluck Party with Martha Stewart and as host of the rebooted game show The Joker's Wild. But this weekend, you can actually catch him on stage — not at a live concert, but as the star of the stage show, Redemption of a Dogg. Not only will Snoop perform some of his classics, but he'll drop some tunes from his gospel album Bible of Love. 8 pm (3 pm Saturday and Sunday; 7:30 pm Sunday).

    Saturday, October 6

    Sip on wine and buy some art at the Texas Wine & Art Festival
    Here at CultureMap, we love to attend art-exhibit opening receptions where you can look at art while drinking. So, of course, we're glad to hear that the Texas Wine & Art Festival is back. This two-day fest will highlight 15 Texas-based wineries, while artisan booths will be selling hand-crafted artworks, photography, fashion, crafts, and so much more. 10 am-6 pm (11 am-5 pm Sunday).

    The MFAH has some kicks off its latest, royal-themed exhibit
    The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston is going all out for its Tudors to Windsors: British Royal Exhibits from Holbein to Warhol exhibit, starting Sunday. But, before that, there will be a screening of The Queen, the 2007 movie that won star Dame Helen Mirren an Oscar. After that, there's a lecture, "Kings and Queens: Royal Portraiture at the National Portrait Gallery, Houston," presented by Louise Stewart, the gallery's curator of 16th-century to contemporary collections. 1 pm.

    Return to David Lynch's strange world with Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me
    David Lynch wasn't done with Twin Peaks when his ultra-weird-but-buzzworthy nighttime soap was cancelled in 1991. The following year, he made Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, a prequel that fizzled at the box office mainly because it was even more baffling & strange than the original show. Now that Lynch gave us that Peaks reboot that aired on Showtime last year, it turns out this cult fave serves as the haunting bridge between these two shows. It's still weird though. 10 pm.

    Stand-up comedy and rap join forces for The Krunk Komedy Tour
    The Krunk Komedy Tour promises to be an evening of Southern-fried rap along with downright ignant (not "ignorant" — ignant) stand-up comedy. On the comedy side, look for headlining comedians Donnell Rawlings (Chappelle's Show) and Red Grant (Def Comedy Jam, Comic View), along with several other funny folk. And over on the rap side, expect the Ying Yang Twins, Lil Scrappy, Yung Joc, Travis Porter, Young Dro, and Houston's very own Trae tha Truth. 8:30 pm.

    Sunday, October 7

    Bike and learn about the city at this bike rally/scavenger hunt
    The 13th Annual Houston Heights Bicycle Rally and Scavenger Hunt once again seeks out kids and families to have some heart-pumping fun, while also hipping them to local history along the way. The heart-pumping will happen during the bicycle rally, where riders can select from a five-mile, 20-mile or new stroller-and-bike parade. As for the hunt, it will highlight historical and notable landmarks throughout the ride. Prizes will be awarded during the after-party. 8 am-5:30 pm.

    Sample baked goods at The Depressed Cake Shop
    Okay, this sounds interesting. This sixth-annual event showcases donated cakes and desserts that could also double as art pieces. These baked goods are usually decorated in somber colors that "signify the gray cloud that can descend over a beautiful world when someone is struggling with mental issues." But don't worry — slices of these goodies will be available for purchase, as the proceeds will go to NAMI Greater Houston and The Montrose Center. Noon-4 pm.

    Learn about Houston neighborhoods with Cigna Sunday Streets
    Now in its fifth year, the monthly Cigna Sunday Streets returns to spotlight Houston's most unique neighborhoods, with a focus on hyping up alternative transportation as well as supporting neighborhood economies and a sense of community. This combination bike/walking tour will focus on three parts of town: Near Northside, Rice Village and Downtown Houston. First up is Near Northside, part of Mayor Turner's Complete Communities initiative. Noon-4 pm.

    Feast on delicious meats at The Woodlands BBQ Festival
    This has us salivating all over our keyboards. The third-annual barbecue throwdown will have a diverse collection of pitmasters grilling up a storm and serving all-you-can-sample portions. With all this artery-clogging goodness ready to go down, it's kinda ironic that this fest is also benefitting pulmonary hypertension. 1-4 pm.

    Pets get blessed at St. Luke's Blessing of the Animals
    Is there anything you wouldn't do for your dog? If you would like your dog to be welcomed into the kingdom of Heaven when he or she passes on, you can take your mutt to this special service, where people can bring their pets to be blessed. If all dogs truly go to heaven, this event is out to make sure of it. 4-5:30 pm.

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    Movie Review

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

    Alex Bentley
    Dec 12, 2025 | 2:30 pm
    Emma Mackey in 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.

    ---

    Ella McCay opens in theaters on December 12.

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