weekend event planner

Here are the top 13 things to do in Houston this weekend

Enjoy the sunshine and a good cause with Saturday's iWalk for Animals.

Photo by Getty Images

Halloween is behind us and people will most likely be celebrating Dia de los Muertos (aka the Day of the Dead) for most of the weekend. But, if you're looking for other non-holiday-themed happenings, here, as always, is our list. Be sure to take advantage of the friendly weather on Saturday.

Thursday, November 1

Chip Gaines stars in The Spirit of Excellence Gala
Chip Gaines, best known as the co-host of HGTV's Fixer Upper (a duty which he shares with his wife Joanna), will be the keynote speaker at a night of raising funds for and awareness of institutional scholarships. Along with Gaines's speech, there will also be a dinner, the presentation of award recipients, and an auction of experiences, such as a private tour and dinner in three University Museums. 6 pm.

Help out fire-damaged Presidio with Ladybird's pop-up feast
Last weekend, Heights restaurant Presidio was damaged by a fire. In an effort to raise some funds for the employees, sister bar Ladybird's will be holding a pop-up event featuring Presidio's favorite bar bites. What's on the menu? Look for 16-month-aged prosciutto San Daniele, pastured chicken wings, hydroponic bibb salad, coriander-spiced pork ribs, grilled backyard burger, cinnamon crumble coffee cake, and five leches cake. 6:30 pm.

Slurp down oysters for a good cause with Oysters, Brews and Blues
It's oyster season, which means there will be events around the area where you'll be fully able to get your shuck on. Goode Co. Armadillo Palace will be having an oyster-themed event which will also benefit the Coastal Conservation Association's Building Conservation Trust oyster reef building project. There will be plenty of oysters and oyster dishes, as well as live, Texas Gulf Coast roots music from The Mighty Orq. 6:30-9 pm.

Friday, November 2

Enjoy art and the outdoors with the Art @ Discovery Green festival
It's that time again for Discovery Green to throw its third annual Art @ Discovery Green festival. This outdoor fine art and contemporary craft market will feature more than 60 vendors from across the United States. This year’s featured artist is the iconic Houston street artist GONZO247, who will be on-site selling his studio work. The Orange Show will also be around to provide craft activities for all ages. 6-10 pm (10 am-6 pm Saturday; 10 am-5 pm Sunday).

Indulge in a collection of Luchino Visconti films
A two-week retrospective on the films of Italian filmmaker Luchino Visconti (aptly titled "Discovering the Passionate Films of Luchino Visconti") kicks off this weekend with a rare, 35mm screening of Bellissima. This 1951 film stars the late, great Italian actress Anna Magnani as a stage mother who gets an education on how the business works. Other films in this program include White Nights, Death in Venice, and historical epic The Leopard. 7 pm (5 pm Sunday).

Dine with the animals at The Houston Zoo's Feast with the Beasts
Now in its thirteenth year, the Houston Zoo's Feast with the Beasts celebration continues to be an event where people can do just that: take in food, beer, and wine while also taking in the fantastic creatures the zoo has on display. Sixty of Houston's finest restaurants will supply the grub, while the zoo will also provide special animal presentations and feedings as well as a live performance by Everclear. 7 pm.

Saturday, November 3

Walk with heart at the 2018 Houston Heart Walk
Believe it or not, you can actually get healthy by just spending most of your days walking. Those of you who are scared off by exercise can just spend 30 minutes to an hour every day just strolling around your neighborhood, and you'll be surprised how slimmer and fitter you'll feel. You can also take part in the 2018 Houston Heart Walk this weekend, where Houstonians will be able to walk to build healthier lives, free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke. 7:30 am.

Memorial Park goes mutty with iWalk for Animals
Saturday's weather already promises to be divine. Perfect time to grab your pooch and head to Memorial Park for the Houston SPCA's 2018 iWalk for Animals. This is a walk and festival that benefits the Houston SPCA's lifesaving programs like adoptions, cruelty investigations, 24-hour injured animal rescue ambulance, foster care, and more. Expect exciting demonstrations, live music, and pet-related vendors. Don't miss the Best Costume and Best Trick contests. 8 am-11:30 am.

Shake it at Latin dance collective Bombon's anniversary celebration
Bombon will be celebrating its eighth anniversary. What's Bombon, you ask? It's a collective of Latin DJs and musicians who integrate traditional Latin vibes with booming basslines and a dash of H-Town's deep-purple aura to make "screwmbia" — aka their signature sound. Since they'll be turning eight(or, as the Latinos like to refer to the number, ocho), Bombon will throw a huge party, right after they're given a Proclamation Day by Mayor Turner. 9 pm-2 am.

Yeah, baby! Alamo Drafthouse LaCenterra presents Austin Powers
It might be hard to convince people these days that Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery is a funny movie. With all the bad impressions of Mike Myers's swinging-spy protagonist we've been bombarded with over the years (not the mention the two, mediocre sequels this movie begat), it's understandable how people who haven't seen it might think it was junk. But, even after 21 years, Austin Powers is still a silly, shagadelic experience. 7:30 pm.

Get lit at the Ann & Stephen Kaufman Jewish Book & Arts Festival
This weekend marks the kickoff of the two-week, 46th annual Ann & Stephen Kaufman Jewish Book & Arts Festival, where wall-to-wall, Jewish authors will be speaking/reading/signing. The first author up on opening night is Nell Scovell, a legendary TV writer (The Simpsons and Late Night with David Letterman are a couple of her credits) who'll be promoting her book, Just the Funny Parts:…And a Few Hard Truths About Sneaking into the Hollywood Boys’ Club. 8 pm.

Sunday, November 4

It's fun and dance in Rice Village with Cigna Sunday Streets
Rice Village will be the latest spot for the monthly, Cigna Sunday Streets series to do its business. For this celebration of health and community, booths and activities will be set up throughout Rice Village inviting the community to get up and be active with family and friends. As for Cigna's booth, it will host several family-friendly activities, such as a photo booth, wellness-themed games, and dance exercises. Noon-4 pm.

Rock out with Karbach Brewing at the Foamhenge 2018 festival
When you have a name like Foamhenge, you know we have to give you a shout-out in this column. Karbach Brewing Company's rock festival has some good bands for its second-annual lineup. Australian hard-rock group Wolfmother headlines the festivities, with April Wine, Red Fang, The Sweet, and Texas Flood rounding out the bill. And, of course, there will be beer. (Our personal fave is Rodeo Clown Double IPA.) 1:30 pm.

event-planner

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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