weekend event planner

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

Have a bubbly good time at a'Bouzy's special champagne brunch.

Photo by Becca Wright

There is a lot of sweetness going on this weekend: This Saturday is National Cupcake Day. So, if you're in the mood for some mini-baked goods, Crave Cupcakes will give a free cupcake to anyone who spends $25 at any of their three Houston locations.

On Sunday, Fathom Events will give multiplex audiences a sweet blast-from-the-past with showings of two retro-TV specials, Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas and The Bells of Fraggle Rock, both starring Jim Henson's ever-adorable Muppets.

Here are some more sweet things — both figuratively and literally — you can find and take in this weekend:

Thursday, December 13

Wells Fargo Holiday Mobile Pop-Up Food Bank
However you feel about Wells Fargo, the bank enterprise has found a unique way to make sure people stay fed this holiday season. Wells Fargo is teaming up with Feeding America and hosting a four-day, holiday mobile pop-up food bank at Discovery Green, as part of its second annual, Holiday Food Bank Program. Community members can stop by the pop-up to donate non-perishable food items that will benefit the Houston Food Bank. 11 am (10 am Friday).

That's a WRAP! (A short film festival) at The Secret Group
If you like to see independent cinema done by independent filmmakers — but cinema shown in only brief increments — may we direct you to this short film festival. It will feature films from filmmakers both local and elsewhere, including clips by Mike Judge (King of the Hill) and the late Houston comic Harris Wittels. Houston Film Commission deputy director Alfred Cervantes will also do a discussion with actor/comedian/dancer Nathan Barnatt, who's premiering his film Neutral. 7 pm.

Friday, December 14

Soul Filling Podcast Live
Known as "a healthy dose of #blackgirlmagic," the Soul Filling Podcast features three ladies of color — Tiffany Malone, Jasmine Charles & Jasmine (Colby) Colbert — using their voices to improve the spiritual, emotional and mental health of their listeners. They will be bringing their live show to the Buffalo Soldier National Museum's BLCK Market Houston, complete with live music performances, poetry and, of course, soulful, stimulating conversation. 6-10 pm.

Project Row Houses presents Cocktails in the Ballroom
We can't get enough of places that serve hot chocolate this time of year, and Project Row Houses will be throwing a shindig that'll hopefully have fountains of that stuff. Oh sure, since it's called Cocktails in the Ballroom, there will also be some alcoholic beverages served. There will also be cool live music, sweet treats and a one-year PRH membership for ticketholders. But we'll be there for the hot chocolate, which we hear will be very, very adult. 6:30 pm.

Saturday, December 15

Frame Dance presents METROdances: The Holiday Edition
Riding any form of public transportation can usually be a monotonous experience, which is why France Dance Productions is looking to bring some holiday cheer to local, light-rail riders. The company will host a pop-up winter performance at METRORail stops, which is meant to spark creativity and inspire the community as they gather in public spaces. The performance will include two stops on the red line (Ensemble/HCC and McGowen), live music, community caroling and dance. Noon.

Monrovia, Indiana at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
The Filming America film series starts this weekend at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, running through January 6. This collection of two features and two documentaries shows distinctive perspectives of contemporary American life. The first movie out the gate is Monrovia, Indiana, the latest documentary from acclaimed filmmaker Frederick Wiseman. As you can guess from the title, this movie offers a very candid look at a very small town. 1 pm (5 pm Sunday).

Burly Q Lounge: Ho Ho Ho-liday Show
It's the holidays, so you just knew the fine striptease performers over at KiKi Maroon's Burly Q Lounge had a yuletide-themed burlesque show up their sleeves — or their lack of sleeves. This show will have visiting vets like Austin's Christine Laylon, Chicago's Vivi Valens, and Arizona's Taryn Garters (get it?) doing naughty/nice routines, along with the regular roundup of stand-up comedy, live music, and showgirls. 8 pm.

Sunday, December 16

a'Bouzy's Madame Clicquot Birthday Brunch
In honor of Madame Clicquot's birthday, a'Bouzy is hosting a special brunch. Who the hell is Madame Clicquot, you ask? She is considered one of Europe’s first female entrepreneurs after taking over the Veuve Clicquot champagne house, following the death of her husband. There will be many bottles of Veuve ready to pour, and for every bottle purchased, guests will receive raffle tickets for a chance to win some fun prizes. 10 am-3 pm.

Badass B-Day Biscuits Boozy Brunch + Bazaar
When you get an email containing a press release for a brunch/bazaar for "Monica Pope's boobies," you're inclined to read on. It turns out this event is a benefit for chef Monica Pope, who was diagnosed with breast cancer three months ago. The brunch will go down at Pope's new Cookshop in Montrose. The bazaar will have clothing, accessories and jewelry from such vendors as Kimono Zulu, Haute Mother Vintage and Stella Rose. 10 am-3 pm.

Fat Cat Creamery's Fifth Anniversary Party
Fat Cat Creamery will be celebrating its fifth anniversary with ice cream and beer. Quite honestly, we could end it right there. But we gotta fill up space, so let's mention that the beer will come courtesy of Saint Arnold and Brash Brewing. There will also be a live performance from Body Fat, coffee from Boomtown Coffee, and Fat Cat’s famous hot cocoa served from the cart. And kids who come dressed as cats will get a free scoop of ice cream. 1-5 pm.

event-planner

Movie Review

Avatar: Fire and Ash returns to Pandora with big action and bold visuals

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios

Oona Chaplin in Avatar: Fire and Ash.

For a series whose first two films made over $5 billion combined worldwide, Avatar has a curious lack of widespread cultural impact. The films seem to exist in a sort of vacuum, popping up for their run in theaters and then almost as quickly disappearing from the larger movie landscape. The third of five planned movies, Avatar: Fire and Ash, is finally being released three years after its predecessor, Avatar: The Way of Water.

The new film finds the main duo, human-turned-Na’vi Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and his native Na’vi wife, Neytiri (Zoë Saldaña), still living with the water-loving Metkayina clan led by Ronal (Kate Winslet) and Tonowari (Cliff Curtis). While Jake and Neytiri still play a big part, the focus shifts significantly to their two surviving children, Lo’ak (Britain Dalton) and Tuk (Trinity Jo-Li Bliss), as well as two they’ve essentially adopted, Kiri (Sigourney Weaver) and Spider (Jack Champion).

Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), who lives on in a fabricated Na’vi body, is still looking for revenge on Jake, and he finds help in the form of the Mangkwan Clan (aka the Ash People), led by Varang (Oona Chaplin). Quaritch’s access to human weapons and the Mangkwan’s desire for more power on the moon known as Pandora make them a nice match, and they team up to try to dominate the other tribes.

Aside from the story, the main point of making the films for writer/director James Cameron is showing off his considerable technical filmmaking prowess, and that is on full display right from the start. The characters zoom around both the air and sea on various creatures with which they’ve bonded, providing Cameron and his team with plenty of opportunities to put the audience right there with them. Cameron’s preferred viewing method of 3D makes the experience even more immersive, even if the high frame rate he uses makes some scenes look too realistic for their own good.

The story, as it has been in the first two films, is a mixed bag. Cameron and co-writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver start off well, having Jake, Neytiri, and their kids continue mourning the death of Neteyam (Jamie Flatters) in the previous film. The struggle for power provides an interesting setup, but Cameron and his team seem to drag out the conflict for much too long. This is the longest Avatar film yet, and you really start to feel it in the back half as the filmmakers add on a bunch of unnecessary elements.

Worse than the elongated story, though, is the hackneyed dialogue that Cameron, Jaffa, and Silver have come up with. Almost every main character is forced to spout lines that diminish the importance of the events around them. The writers seemingly couldn’t resist trying to throw in jokes despite them clashing with the tone of the scenes in which they’re said. Combined with the somewhat goofy nature of the Na’vi themselves (not to mention talking whales), the eye-rolling words detract from any excitement or emotion the story builds up.

A pre-movie behind-the-scenes short film shows how the actors act out every scene in performance capture suits, lending an authenticity to their performances. Still, some performers are better than others, with Saldaña, Worthington, and Lang standing out. It’s more than a little weird having Weaver play a 14-year-old girl, but it works relatively well. Those who actually get to show their real faces are collectively fine, but none of them elevate the film overall.

There are undoubtedly some Avatar superfans for which Fire and Ash will move the larger story forward in significant ways. For anyone else, though, the film is a demonstration of both the good and bad sides of Cameron. As he’s proven for 40 years, his visuals are (almost) beyond reproach, but the lack of a story that sticks with you long after you’ve left the theater keeps the film from being truly memorable.

---

Avatar: Fire and Ash opens in theaters on December 19.

movies film