September 21st, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
Many films have used the unsettling revelation of tattoos as a device to startle the viewer with a visual roadmap to a deeper understanding of character. The “love” and “hate” lettering across the knuckles of Robert Mitchum’s Reverend Harry Powell in “The Night of the Hunter,” in the context of the character’s chilling speech, still inspires nightmares. In “Cape Fear,” Mitchum’s Lieutenant Elgart quips of Robert De Niro’s Max…
September 17th, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri play best pals PJ and Josie, woebegone nerds hot for cheerleaders Brittany (Kaia Gerber) and Isabel (Havana Rose Liu) in a high school caste system that looks and feels quite familiar to fans of the durable teen sex comedy.
In “Bottoms,” directed by Emma Seligman – who co-wrote the screenplay with her “Shiva Baby” star Sennott – the satire, the visual gags, the gross-outs, and the gusto combine to form one…
September 3rd, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
In Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner “Scrapper,” her feature debut as writer and director, Charlotte Regan establishes a much more whimsical tone than the darker notes sounded by Charlotte Wells in her masterful “Aftersun.” There are more than enough stories exploring difficult father-daughter relationships to chalk up the similarities between the two movies as a fluke of timing, but Regan’s film faces the unenviable challenge of premiering…
August 27th, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
In Sundance standout “Fremont,” the outwardly mundane and inwardly tumultuous experiences of a young woman from Afghanistan are spun by filmmaker Babak Jalali into gold.
Donya (Anaita Wali Zada) has left her home country for the California community of the title after spending time as a military translator. Hiding, repressing, or simply refusing to deal with complex emotions and likely PTSD (though she would deny it), Donya takes up residence in…
August 21st, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
Ruth Beckermann’s “Mutzenbacher” invites viewers to consider the traditional dynamics of the erotic novel – and subsequent filmic depictions of eroticism – by rearranging the visual furniture most closely associated with the voyeuristic gaze privileging the straight, white, male producer/consumer.
The filmmaker uses “Josephine Mutzenbacher or, The Story of a Viennese Whore as Told by Herself,” the anonymously published 1906 book, as a…
August 18th, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
Randall Park, making his feature directorial debut, convincingly adapts Adrian Tomine’s excellent 2004-2007 graphic serial “Shortcomings.”
Tomine wrote the screenplay, which comes as a relief to longtime “Optic Nerve” fans worried that a movie wouldn’t adequately capture the particularities of the author’s beautifully minimalist lines and the mood contained in the spaces within and between the panels. The collaborators are so obviously…
August 6th, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
Available on Hulu following a world premiere at Sundance and a spring release date in the U.K., director Raine Allen-Miller’s feature debut “Rye Lane” is an ebullient drop of sunshine with more than enough charm to match its fresh and earnest spin on the romantic comedy. Even the rom-com averse will find plenty to like in the story of a meet-cute (or, given the initial sobbing, meet-pitiful) between two twenty-something Londoners reeling from…
July 31st, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
Corbijn Covers Hipgnosis in ‘Squaring the Circle’
Dutch photographer, music video creator, and film director Anton Corbijn – now in his late 60s – brings his artistic insider touch to “Squaring the Circle: The Story of Hipgnosis,” an engaging and entertaining documentary examination of the massively influential team responsible for some of the most recognizable album covers of the 1970s.
Suited to the likes of rock fans and graphic design…
July 26th, 2023
By Annie Prafcke
annieprafcke@gmail.com
A bold white title card reads, “New York 1987.” Wide shots of the glimmering nighttime NYC skyline appear before we move into a lively neighborhood. Upbeat music kicks in. People are out. They’re dressed up, dancing in the street, laughing.
We follow an elegant Black drag queen, covered head to toe in sparkly, shiny gold. She struts into a dimly lit dance hall. It’s not a place of wealth but it conveys O-P-U-L-E-N-C-E opulence. Red velvet…
July 23rd, 2023
By Greg Carlson
gregcarlson1@gmail.com
As fans dress up and Warner and Mattel executives celebrate box office returns, Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” finally arrives – along with Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” – to jolt attendance and launch thousands of essays on everything from the film’s use of the Old Testament creation myth to its mockery of male fragility and the stranglehold of the patriarchy.
A rainbow-colored fantasia not aimed at the intellectual capacity of the…
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By Winona LaDukewinona@winonaladuke.comIt’s been eight years since the Water Protectors were cleared off the banks of the Cannonball and Missouri Rivers. It was a bitter ending to a battle to protect the water; and for most of us…
By HPR Staff We’re all a part of building strong, healthy and inclusive communities. But the region’s non-profit organizations do a lot of the heavy lifting. Now it’s time for these organizations to step into the spotlight.…
Saturday, March 15, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County, Hjemkomst Center202 1st Avenue N., MoorheadLet’s be real, Irish culture is on everyone’s mind in mid-March, so why not expand your horizons and…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com 2025 marks us halfway through the roaring 2020s. Boy, am I glad I didn’t bob my hair for this go-around. It feels like we’re off to the wrong roar, opening Pandora’s box of what-the-Fox…
By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comLennon: “Imagine no possessions, I wonder if you can!”On January 8, 2025, Timothy W. Rybeck of “The Atlantic" magazine published “How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy in 53 Days” with the…
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 As a food enthusiast, there’s nothing better than attending a local event featuring hotdish. And as far as hotdish events go, no place does it better than the fine folks at Brewhalla and Drekker…
Mooncats and Pert Near Sandstone play Empire TheatreBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comThe MoonCats describe themselves as “Americonscious Campfire Folk.” They have a clear acoustic folk sound with a sense of whimsy — think…
By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.comBong 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…
By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.com Everyone has heard the adage, “a picture is worth a thousand words.” However, it is safe to say there are far more than a thousand in Mickey Smith’s photographs. When one hears…
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.…
By Faye Seidlerfayeseidler@gmail.com On Dec 5, the Turning Point USA chapter at North Dakota State University hosted an event called BisonFest. This event featured Chloe Cole, a former trans kid, known for detransitioning and…
By Gilbert Kuipersgilbertkuipers@outlook.com I live in North Dakota District 24 and have been challenging the district Republicans about their understanding of climate science for years. There has been no serious response to my…
