April 28th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Toronto-based filmmaker Alison Duke shines a light on a pioneering Jamaican recording artist and her most famous and durable song in the documentary feature “Bam Bam: The Sister Nancy Story.” Duke’s movie, which premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival, is a must-see for music fans, but the big personality of its principal subject is appealing enough to attract any curious viewer who might cross paths with the colorful and engrossing tale.…
April 21st, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Ryan Coogler goes big and bold with “Sinners,” a sweaty, bloody vampire movie set in 1932. The filmmaker stuffs this universe with enough ideas to serve a limited-series season of episodic television, but the feature format ultimately suits something that brings together Coogler’s large canvas experiences at the helm of massive Marvel hits and the more intimate contours of debut “Fruitvale Station.” Close collaborator Michael B. Jordan has…
April 14th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Given the volume of existing media material on the topic, longtime admirers of legendary documentarian Errol Morris might wonder why he would elect to become the umpteenth person to cover the horrific crimes of the Manson Family. Whether or not the fee paid to Morris by Netflix factored into the decision I cannot say, but “Chaos: The Manson Murders,” while typical in many ways of the established Morris style, never rises to the top-tier level of…
April 7th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Tracie Laymon draws from her own unbelievable-but-true life experience to shape feature directorial debut “Bob Trevino Likes It,” a well-meaning if slight comedy-drama featuring Barbie Ferreira as a young woman whose fractured relationship with her father leads to an unexpected bond with a stranger she befriends through social media. Unfolding as a slow but steady story of two friends who depend on each other to light twin pathways toward…
March 31st, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Making her feature directorial debut, Rachael Abigail Holder guides “Love, Brooklyn” to a satisfying conclusion, even if some viewers might have hoped for a different outcome for the central trio. A carefully observed romance that attempts to frame its title borough with the same kind of affection that Woody Allen applied to mythologize his favorite parts of NYC in 1979, the movie places a charismatic Andre Holland at the center of a love…
March 29th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Some of the conversations surrounding the theatrical release of “The Day the Earth Blew Up” (tagged offscreen in promotional material with the subtitle “A Looney Tunes Movie”) address the hard-to-believe fact that director Peter Browngardt’s film is the first entirely original animated feature using the legendary Warner Bros. cartoon characters. The designation disqualifies Joe Pytka’s 1996 “Space Jam,” Joe Dante’s 2003 “Looney…
March 27th, 2025
By Tylar Frame
Photo by Tylar Frame, Brent Brandt outside the Fargo Theatre, March 19, 2025
Over the past few years, Brent Brandt, a local teacher and lover of cinema, has welcomed a number of well-known actors to the stage of the Fargo Theatre. Most recently he served as emcee for the screening of The Breakfast Club with actress Molly Ringwald to close out the 25th annual Fargo Film Festival.
On Friday, March 28, Brandt will bring a familiar face to the theater…
March 17th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
The opening night showcase of the 2025 Fargo Film Festival is Jennifer Tiexiera and Guy Mossman’s excellent documentary feature “Speak.” The movie premiered during the Sundance Film Festival as part of the U.S. Documentary Competition section and now seeks wider distribution while it screens in select festivals. Many locals already know of the film’s special community connection. One of the five central subjects is current Moorhead High…
March 10th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Bong Joon-ho’s highly anticipated follow-up to the game-changing Oscar-winner “Parasite” was set to arrive in theaters last year, but the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike pushed the date. Was the wait worth it? Longtime Bong fans and admirers — the sort who groove on “The Host,” “Snowpiercer” and “Okja,” in particular will find much to love in the imaginative filmmaker’s adaptation of Edward Ashton’s 2022 novel “Mickey7,” upgraded…
March 4th, 2025
By Greg Carlson
Writer/director/performer Katarina Zhu’s feature debut “Bunnylovr” premiered to mixed reviews in the U.S. Dramatic Competition section of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Despite the lack of critical consensus, the movie succeeds as a portrait of loneliness and isolation intensified by our reliance on the technology that is supposed to facilitate connection, but only alienates us from the warmth and intimacy we desire and need. Several of the…
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By Bryce Vincent Haugen By his own account, Edwin Chinchilla is lucky to still be in the United States. As a 12-year-old Salvadoran, he and his brother were packed into a semi with a couple dozen other people and given fake…
By Michael M. Miller Rev. Salomon Joachim, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church, Beulah, North Dakota., delivered an address to the Western Conference of the Dakota District of the American Lutheran Church in 1939. His presentation was…
Wednesday, March 25, Group lesson 7 p.m., Dance 9 p.m.Sons of Norway, 722 2nd Avenue North, FargoCare to dance? If you don’t already know how to dance, the Northern Lights Dance Club can show you a thing or two about social…
By John StrandDisclaimer: This editorial is the work of someone who’s spent most of his adult life working in the media — most of those years co-owning this very entity, the High Plains Reader, since 1996. The notion that folks…
By Ed RaymondBernie Sanders is on the world’s longest and oldest walkaboutAdolescent Australian Aboriginal males often volunteer to challenge the transition to adulthood by performing well (that means staying alive) in a…
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 GionFor those folks with busy lives who can’t afford or attend culinary school, community cooking classes are a good way to learn new tips and tricks in the kitchen. Cookbooks, instructional online videos and watching…
The Slow Death at The AquariumSaturday, March 21, doors at 7:30 p.m. The Aquarium above Dempsey’s, 226 N. Broadway, FargoThe Slow Death is a punk supergroup led by Jesse Thorson, with members and collaborators that include…
By Greg Carlson A number of critics and media outlets have already noted the variety of cinematic antecedents that have influenced writer-director Amy Wang’s movie “Slanted,” pointing out how the story of a frustrated…
Saturday, March 7, 4-8 p.m.Swing Barrel Brewing, 814 Central Ave., MoorheadEmpty Bowls is a nationwide, grassroots, artist-led movement to support hunger related organizations in their communities. On March 7, prepare to fill your…
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 January 2026, the 2026-2030 dietary guidelines for Americans were released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. They are supposed to be revolutionary and a “reset” from the previous ones.…
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 Vern Thompson Benjamin Franklin offered one of the most sobering warnings in American history. When asked what kind of government the framers had created in 1787, he replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.” Few words…
