October 28th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Noémie Merlant, working from a script she wrote with Pauline Munier and her “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” collaborator Celine Sciamma, directs herself in “The Balconettes” (the clever/cheeky English-language retitling of the original French “Les femmes au balcon”). An antic and frantic feminist horror-comedy thriller, “The Balconettes” nods to Hitchcock’s classic “Rear Window” by way of Pedro Almodovar’s many candy-colored…
October 20th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Now available on Amazon Prime following its world premiere last month as the opening night selection of the Toronto International Film Festival’s golden anniversary, “John Candy: I Like Me” is a heartfelt and star-studded appreciation of the late actor, who died in 1994 at the age of 43. The movie’s director is actor/filmmaker Colin Hanks, and his connections prove most valuable in attracting a phenomenal gallery of household-name talent who…
October 13th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Dream-factory documentarian Alexandre O. Philippe connects with a Hollywood legend in “Kim Novak’s Vertigo,” the latest in a series of features exploring the filmmaker’s many movie-related passions and obsessions. In my 2022 review for the fascinating and accomplished “Lynch/Oz,” I wrote, “Philippe has continued to develop a confident storytelling voice somewhere between the accessibility of Laurent Bouzereau and Jamie Benning and the…
October 6th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
The multiple meanings of the title location in Mercedes Bryce Morgan’s “Bone Lake” cover the sex and death spectrum that will flummox Diego (Marco Pigossi) and Sage (Maddie Hasson) as soon as they discover their well-appointed getaway rental has been double-booked to Will (Alex Roe) and Cin (Andra Nechita). Well before the age of Airbnb and Vrbo, storytellers have enjoyed toying with the possibilities of frustrated travelers who must figure…
September 29th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
“One Battle After Another,” the brilliant new masterwork from Paul Thomas Anderson, joins Wes Anderson’s “The Phoenician Scheme” on the short list of the year’s best films. Along with the shared directorial surname and the perfect casting of Benicio del Toro, the two movies balance rich text/subtext with vital father-daughter narratives (not to mention huge laughs and several tears). The films make a handsome double feature. The…
September 23rd, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Filmmaker Melanie Oates follows 2019 feature debut “Body and Bones” with another thoughtful and well-observed drama in which the challenges and limitations of the small town put pressure on a young woman yearning for something greater than provincial dead-ends. In “Sweet Angel Baby,” which premiered last year in the Toronto Film Festival’s Centerpiece program, Eliza (Michaela Kurimsky) hides two significant secrets from the close-knit…
September 15th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
As a follow-up to “The Whale,” a raucous adaptation of the first novel in Charlie Huston’s Henry Thompson series was a good choice for eclectic auteur Darren Aronofksy, whose bold visions have attracted a devoted following. Since the mentaculus mania and stark monochrome of “Pi” announced the arrival of an ambitious artistic voice in 1998, Aronofsky has frequently interwoven themes of mysticism and questions of meaning and existence into…
September 8th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Now available on HBO after a theatrical debut earlier this year at Tribeca in the Spotlight Documentary section, “Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print” considers the groundbreaking impact of the famous feminist magazine through the lenses of three talented moviemakers. Each of the episodes dives into a different topic with as much sophistication and contemplation as might be possible in an anthology feature, although one could easily imagine three…
September 3rd, 2025
By Greg Carlson
“Misericordia” premiered at Cannes in 2024 and is now available to see in the United States on the Criterion Channel and other streaming services. In the sharp and thought-provoking thriller from “Stranger by the Lake” writer/director Alain Guiraudie, the viewer is introduced to Jérémie (Félix Kysyl), a mysterious and inscrutable prodigal who returns to his hometown village of Saint-Martial to mourn the death of his mentor. Guiraudie,…
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…
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By Bryce Vincent Haugen By all accounts, Democratic-Farmer-Labor U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar — first elected in 2006 — is the most popular active politician in Minnesota, whether she’s judged by polling or by her four electoral…
Saturday, June 13, 10 a.m.- 5 p.m.Paradox Comics-N-Cards, 814 Main Ave., FargoCalling all nerds: it’s time to get down and nerdy with vendors aplenty, who are selling comics, toys, video games, board games, various collectibles…
June 6-7StatewideYou grab a line and I’ll grab a pole — and if you’re a North Dakota resident, you can head on down to your favorite fishing hole, no license needed (for this weekend, anyway). All other rules still apply…
By John Strand It took us over 30 years for us to reach out and ask for your help. The High Plains Reader has always been subscription free and paywall free. Our content has — and always will be — free to access for all of our…
By Ed RaymondWere women created to do the work of God?One of the first requests made by new Pope Leo XIV was to invite an expert on the alt-right conservative Catholic organization known as Opus Dei to brief him about its…
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 GionThe scarfing of canned fish and seafood products by online food influencer types is hard to miss on social media these days. Some of the consumed morsels range from exquisite to downright nasty. However, there are many…
By Bryce Vincent Haugen The curtain has come down on Jade Presents. Fargo-Moorhead’s largest event promoter has brought thousands of shows — more than 150 per year — and hundreds of artists to the area over the past 36 years. On…
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By Greg Carlson Steven Spielberg, who will turn 80 this December, returns to the subject of aliens among us in “Disclosure Day,” his first feature since “The Fabelmans” in 2022. Now closer to the end than the beginning of…
By Jacinta Zens I recently sat down for a chat with ceramicist Louie Albertson, Clay and Studio Program Manager at the Plains Art Museum. Before the interview, I had the pleasure of getting to know him a bit as a colleague when I…
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 Eli Liverani Cholesterol is probably one of the first molecules I have ever heard of in my childhood. Most of the relatives on my mother's side had high cholesterol in their blood, and apparently, levels above a certain range…
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…
Chris M. Stoner I was recently dismissed from my role as drag show director and emcee for Dakota OutRight, a role I had been fulfilling for more than two decades. The reason given? My political commentary during shows, while…
