Tickets for Texas

The Plaza Classic Film Festival in El Paso, Texas, comes to an end this weekend. If you haven’t bitten the bullet and bought the gas to get down there yet, you might want to consider it this weekend. On Saturday, Aug. 14, legendary director Peter Bogdanovich will be there to introduce his 1971 film The Last Picture Show (based on the book by Larry McMurtry). Bogdanovich will give a free filmmaker’s talk beginning at 6 p.m. at the Oasis Lounge (located inside downtown El Paso’s historic Plaza Theatre). The screening itself will start at 7 p.m. at the Plaza’s Kendle Kidd Performance Hall. Tickets for the screening are $8 and may be purchased through ticketmaster.com. Log on to plazaclassic.com for a complete list of films and events happening through Sunday.

French fantasist gives us an abundance of shenanigans

Is there such a thing as oppressive whimsy?

A lighthearted style so heavy-handed that it threatens to overwhelm the senses? If such a thing is possible, French filmmaker Jean-Pierre Jeunet certainly embodies the oxymoron. That’s not a criticism of the man, mind you, but a testament to his single-minded ability to create films that are simultaneously bright and dark, cheerful and cruel, ugly and gorgeous.

“Big Lake” on Comedy Central

Given its impressive pedigree (Will Ferrell, Chris Henchy and Adam McKay of the website Funny or Die are among the creators/producers), viewers might reasonably expect big things from Comedy Central’s new sitcom “Big Lake.” What they’ll get for their anticipation is a weekly dose of standard sitcom fare.

Week in Sloth

The Week in Sloth