August 25th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
There are so many memorable moments in the short life of musician Jeff Buckley that filmmaker Amy J. Berg could easily have gotten lost in an endless highlight reel. The veteran documentarian, whose feature debut “Deliver Us From Evil” (2006) received an Oscar nomination, focuses instead on the core relationships in her fascinating subject’s orbit, constructing a detailed portrait that will satisfy longtime fans and make believers out of the…
August 19th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Shortly following its world premiere in January, first-time feature filmmaker Kate Beecroft’s “East of Wall” won the NEXT section’s audience award at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. A persuasive blend of nonfiction and fiction elements, the movie’s stunning South Dakota setting serves as an additional character in the ensemble. Populated by a number of newcomers and nonactors who in many cases inhabit versions of their real-life selves,…
August 13th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
The wildly talented and ambitious Zach Cregger drags us back to the basement in “Weapons,” one of the year’s most satisfying and enjoyable films of any genre. While fans of “Barbarian” know to expect the unexpected when it comes to the filmmaker’s investment in horror and comedy, Cregger’s latest feature will expand his audience to waves of newcomers eager to see what the hype is about. Opening weekend performance at the box office has…
August 4th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
When I first heard the premise for “Oh, Hi!” — which has been described as a “romantic comedy” if you imagine a twisted sense of the term — visions of two Stephen King novels popped into my head. In “Misery,” a writer is held captive by an obsessed fan. And in “Gerald’s Game,” a woman must figure out how to survive after finding herself handcuffed to a bed. King’s two stories exist principally in the space of the psychological…
July 29th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Cinephiles and fans of classic midcentury Hollywood biography will find much to appreciate in Mariska Hargitay’s insightful documentary “My Mom Jayne.” As protagonist Olivia Benson on NBC’s “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” Hargitay holds the record for playing the longest-running primetime character on network television. Many also know her as the daughter of iconic sex symbol Jayne Mansfield. Hargitay’s feature directorial debut…
July 21st, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Ari Aster’s political satire “Eddington” premiered in competition for the Palme d’Or at Cannes in May, where Jafar Panahi’s “It Was Just an Accident” received the prize. A frequently laborious mash-up of genres including flashes of the filmmaker’s horror comfort zone (“Hereditary” and “Midsommar” remain the best films he has made) and slow-burn American Western/noir touches that aspire to the blending of violence and comedy…
July 15th, 2025
By Sabrina Hornung
Photo by Sabrina Hornung
Wing, North Dakota is a town of 132 located about an hour northwest of Bismarck on Highway 36. There’s a shiny new Cenex on the intersection of the highway and the high school marks the end of Main with six smiling senior portraits affixed to the building. It’s a quiet community with a few small businesses in town, including the staples such as a bar and a cafe.
One that particularly caught my eye was the movie theatre,…
July 15th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
With “Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything,” director Jackie Jesko takes on the legacy and legend of the late journalist extraordinaire. One of the year’s many solid, feature-length biographical documentaries, Jesko’s movie premiered at the Tribeca Festival in June before making its way to Hulu. The director highlights career accomplishments and off-camera alliances, avoiding total hagiography by looking at a handful of the transactional…
July 7th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Filmmaker Matt Wolf, whose lovely “Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell” suggests he would be the perfect director to construct the definitive biographical account of the wholly original Paul Reubens, mostly makes good on that promise with the two-part “Pee-wee as Himself.” The story, now on HBO following a Sundance world premiere, has been identified somewhat disappointingly as a kind of “coming out” revelation, even though…
July 1st, 2025
By Greg Carlson
As we continue to deal with the ongoing horrorshow of racism, misogyny and transphobia embraced by the current administration, films like “Sally” can serve as an important reminder that love triumphs over hate time and again. News broke just this month that the Pentagon had officially renamed the John Lewis-class oiler USNS Harvey Milk for World War II officer Oscar V. Peterson. National Public Radio reported that “Under [Secretary of Defense…
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By Bryce Vincent Haugen There are three Fargo Park Board seats up for election June 9. Park Board President Vicki Dawson and long-time member Dr. Joe Deutsch announced their reelection bids, but board member Aaron Hill is vacating…
By Michael M. Miller Francie M. Berg, native of Hettinger, N.D., edited an impressive book, “Ethnic Heritage in North Dakota,” published in 1983. She grew up on a ranch near Miles City, Montana. Her son, Richard Berg, is…
Thursday, April 23, 7 p.m.Fargodome, 1800 University Dr. N, FargoHeralded as "The Nicest Man in Stand-Up" by The Atlantic, Nate Bargatze is also one of the top-grossing comedians, breaking both streaming and attendance records. Now…
By Sabrina Hornung In the last week of March, we heard about an AI education droid visiting the White House as the first lady made a pitch to replace teachers with androids. In an interview with conservative commentator Benny…
About the leader who sits so far-right from God he can’t see Him I have been reading Harvard PHD Heather Cox Richardson for more than a decade because she knows how important Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is in the study…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…
By Rick Gion A brand new food event called the "ONE BITE Challenge" will launch in downtown Fargo on May 23. Rocky Schneider, executive director of the Downtown Community Partnership told us more. HPR: Hi Rocky. Thank you for…
By John ShowalterAs hip-hop started to make its way into the national spotlight in the late 1980s and early 1990s, it was largely split into two camps, “East Coast” and “West Coast”. Not content to be left out of a…
By Greg Carlson Veteran documentary filmmaker Marina Zenovich has chronicled a number of powerful men in entertainment, politics and popular culture, including Roman Polanski (twice), Richard Pryor, Robin Williams, Lance Armstrong…
Friday, May 8 - Sunday, May 10, 2-8 p.m.Brewhalla, 1702 1st Ave. N., FargoAmarok Tattoo is working with our pals at Drekker Brewing/Brewhalla to celebrate ink and everything odd and a little macabre. See some of the best in the…
Saturday, January 31, 6:30-9 p.m.Transfiguration Fitness, 764 34th St. N., Unit P, FargoAn enchanting evening celebrating movement and creativity in a staff-student showcase. This is a family-friendly event showcasing pole, aerial…
By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…
By Ellie Liverani In November 2025, the FDA initiated the removal of the “black box” warning from Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). The “black box” warning is a FAD safety warning for healthcare providers and patients…
January 31, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.Viking Ship Park, 202 1st Ave. N., Moorhead2026 marks 10 years of frosty fun! Enjoy sauna sessions with Log the Sauna, try Snowga (yoga in the snow), take a guided snowshoe nature hike, listen to live…
By Jim Fuglie Okay, here I go again, warning (whining? complaining?) about another threat to the North Dakota badlands. Sorry. Please put up with me for a few hundred more words. Now, some folks I don’t think want to put a…
