April 20th, 2016
At the Sundance Film Festival, writer-director Todd Solondz described drawing his inspiration for “Wiener-Dog” from an unlikely pair of cinematic hallmarks: Robert Bresson’s “Au Hasard Balthazar” (1966) and Joe Camp’s “Benji” (1974). Solondz’s movie, as dark, hilarious, and observant as any of the features in his deeply impressive filmography, does indeed borrow from those two movies, aligning with Bresson’s unflinching examination of life’s cruelties and Camp’s…
April 13th, 2016
Following its Locarno Film Festival premiere in August of 2015, the great Chantal Akerman’s final work, “No Home Movie,” now makes its way to limited theatrical release and digital platforms in the United States.
Currently viewable on Fandor – a fitting small-screen residence – the nonfiction meditation featuring Akerman’s mother Natalia in her twilight takes on new shades of meaning and acute pangs of melancholy in light of Akerman’s October 2015 suicide. Natalia died in…
April 7th, 2016
For those who were unable to make it to this year’s Fargo Film Festival, two movies released to Blu-ray March 8 by Kino-Lorber Video should prove satisfying. Both had little theatrical play beyond the rounds of film festivals last year.
Sebastian Schipper’s rather audacious slice-of-life heist thriller “Victoria” is most impressive for its concept, the logistics needed to carry it out, and its sustained performances without a single cut. It hopes to involve the viewer as a…
April 6th, 2016
Werner Herzog shares another meditation on humanity in “Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World.” Lit with the master filmmaker’s blazing curiosity, the fascinating documentary ponders a wide variety of digital-era conundrums and curiosities via ten chapters.
Bouncing from topic to topic, “Lo and Behold” accomplishes the showman’s trick that leaves the audience salivating for more – many of the sections could sustain feature-length examinations on their own.
From…
March 30th, 2016
At 63 years of age, Paul Reubens completes a minor miracle with the return of beloved, iconic manchild Pee-wee Herman, the eccentric creation whose appeal to grown-ups and children hit the bullseye in Tim Burton’s feature directorial debut “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” and on television in “Pee-wee’s Playhouse.”
“Pee-wee’s Big Holiday” fails to top the 1980s incarnation of the character, but longtime fans will smile at several of the movie’s colorful gags. Produced by…
March 30th, 2016
Sports fans of the Upper Midwest may have special interest in a classic film released to Bluray this month, since the title is “The Vikings” and one of the sequences features fighting hawks. The Norse setting also depicts the ancient heritage and culture of many North Dakota-Minnesota-Wisconsin families.
Serious analysts might identify some interesting subtext in the 1958 film “The Vikings,” dealing with class, gender, religion, and tribal/cultural relationships to compare…
March 24th, 2016
Craig Cobb, the white supremacist who purchased properties in Leith, North Dakota as part of a warped plan to establish a community for like‐minded racial separatists, takes center stage in “Welcome to Leith,” recipient of the Bill Snyder Award for Documentary Filmmaking at the 2016 Fargo Film Festival.
Principally examining the period during which Cobb’s actions and publicity‐seeking behavior ran afoul of the townspeople (depending how you count, not more than two dozen souls)…
March 18th, 2016
by Greg Carlson
Producer Matt Myers and writer‐director Joe Maggio, along with many cast and crewmembers from “Supermoto” will attend the Fargo Film Festival for a special screening of the narrative feature. “Supermoto” will be shown on Saturday, March 19 at 3:15 p.m. at the Fargo Theatre. HPR’s Greg Carlson talked to Myers about the film.
HPR: Tell me a little bit about “Supermoto.”
Matt Myers: “Supermoto” is Joe Maggio’s sixth feature film. It’s about a young woman…
March 9th, 2016
Filmmakers, actors, award-winning works, more than 100 films
by Kaley Sievert
It’s that time again, when the Fargo Theatre attracts flocks of moviegoers and a variety of directors and actors who have submitted their films to the 16th annual Fargo Film Festival.
Pounds of popcorn will be munched as film fans come to enjoy the beautiful stories that adorn the theatre’s screen. Laughter, sniffles, crunching and applause will come from the darkened auditorium as the movies capture the…
March 7th, 2016
WARNING: The following review reveals key plot information. Read only if you have seen “The Witch”
Near the thrilling, ecstatic conclusion of first-time feature director Robert Eggers’ “The Witch: A New-England Folktale,” our young protagonist Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy), having endured unspeakable horrors, demands that family goat Black Phillip, a possible vessel for the Devil himself, converse with her. The resulting exchange, a pulse-quickening negotiation that maneuvers…
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By Winona LaDukewinona@winonaladuke.com The business of Indian Hating is a lucrative one. It’s historically been designed to dehumanize Native people so that it’s easier to take their land. ‘Kill the Indian, save the man,”…
By Winona LaDukewinona@winonaladuke.comThere’s not really a word for reconciliation, it's said in our language. There’s a word for making it right. To talk about reconciliation in terms of the relationship between Indigenous…
December 16, 18-20, 12 p.m.Fargo Theatre, 314 Broadway N., FargoDon’t miss an annual Fargo Theatre holiday tradition. The Red River Theatre Organ Society presents (almost) a full week of holiday concerts on the Mighty Wurlitzer…
By Jim Fugliejimfuglie920@gmail.com Okay, so last month I promised you a woman President of the United States. So much for my predictability quotient. Lesson 1: Never promise something you can’t control. And nobody, not even…
By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comWill God Ever Text Margaret Back and Answer Her Prayers?More than 50 years ago a young Judy Blume wrote about 13-year-old Margaret Simon in a contemporary realistic novel titled “Are You There,…
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 Gionrickgion@gmail.com In this land of hotdish and ham, the knoephla soup of German-Russian heritage seems to reign supreme. In my opinion though, the French have the superior soup. With a cheesy top layer, toasted baguette…
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By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.com Local band Zero Place has been making quite a name for itself locally and regionally in the last few years. Despite getting its start during a time it seemed the whole world was coming to…
By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com Writer-director Nicole Riegel’s sophomore feature “Dandelion” is now playing in theaters following a world premiere at South by Southwest in March. The movie stars KiKi Layne as the…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comIn 1974, the Jamestown Arts Center started as a small space above a downtown drugstore. It has grown to host multiple classrooms, a gallery, performance studio, ceramic studio and outdoor art park.…
By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comHigh Plains Reader had the opportunity to interview two mysterious new game show hosts named Milt and Bradley Barker about an upcoming event they will be putting on at Brewhalla. What…
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 Josette Ciceronunapologeticallyanxiousme@gmail.com What does it mean to truly live in a community —or should I say, among community? It’s a question I have been wrestling with since I moved to Fargo-Moorhead in February 2022.…
Rynn WillgohsJanuary 25, 1972-October 8, 2024 Rynn Azerial Willgohs, age 52, of Vantaa, Finland, died by suicide on October 8, 2024. Rynn became her true-self March 31, 2020. She immediately became a vocal and involved activist…
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By Curtis W. Stofferahn, Ph.D.Curtis.stofferahn@email.und.edu In June, two events markedly contrasted the difference between two different visions of agriculture: precision agriculture and regenerative agriculture. The dedication…
