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Minivan Blues Band revs up to roll again
Since 2007, the Minivan Blues Band has been a long-distance affair. That year, Joe Schicke, group co-founder, singer, guitarist, and one of the band's chief co-writers, moved to Fort Collins, Colo., to go to graduate school. Now, without the luxury of playing together all the time, the Minivan has tightened its sound, trimmed the musical excess and fastened in on their original songs. The band plays at the Hi-Tone in Memphis tonight for a CD release party.
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Sci-fi needn't require blockbuster budget
"Avatar," "Star Trek," "District 9" -- the most familiar science-fiction movies of the past year have raised the bar for technical accomplishment, from their galaxy-spanning spacecraft to their computer-generated monsters. But science fiction is a genre of ideas more than effects, which is why clever filmmakers with limited resources continue to pursue strange visions of alternate worlds.
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Film Review: Hal Holbrook shines in 'That Evening Sun'
A tough, thought-provoking movie that could be described as a sort of Southern Gothic "Gran Torino," "That Evening Sun" was in danger of being overlooked after its successful festival run last year, which included a win for Best Narrative Feature at October's Indie Memphis Film Festival.
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People: Penn helping in post-quake Haiti
Look closely at the foreigners buzzing around a hospital tent above one of Haiti's biggest earthquake-refugee camps and a face stands out: There, carrying the box of supplies, that's Sean Penn.
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MidSouthCon is a feast for fans of fantasy, sci-fi, horror
The 28th MidSouthCon — an annual gathering of science fiction, fantasy, horror, comic book, anime and gaming aficionados — begins today and continues through Sunday at the Whispering Woods Hotel and Conference Center in Olive Branch. The convention — or "con," in fan lingo — is expected to attract up to 1,200 people from throughout the South and Midwest. "In some ways, it's a three-day costume party," said marketing coordinator Carlin Stuart.
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Movie Review: 'The Ghost Writer' an old-style intelligent thriller
The body that washes up on shore at the start of "The Ghost Writer" is not the first of many, which may surprise moviegoers accustomed to the bloodshed and chaos that characterize the modern so-called thriller. But Roman But Polanski, like Hitchcock, is better described as a master of suspense than of shock.
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'Star Wars in Concert' comes to FedExForum
Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday (March 13) for “Star Wars in Concert,” a multimedia event inspired by George Lucas’ space blockbusters. The event is scheduled for 7 p.m. May 18 at FedExForum. Narrated in person by Anthony Daniels, the actor who portrayed the “protocol droid” C-3PO in the “Star Wars” movies, the event will feature a symphony orchestra and chorus performing music by composer John Williams from all six films.
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Film Review: 'Out of My League' is way out in terms of good romantic comedy
"She's Out of My League" isn't bad enough to be a career killer, but the fact that this "frank" gross-out (don't ask about the grooming sequence) with delusions of thoughtfulness will live forever in Spike TV/USA Network limbo alongside "The New Guy" with DJ Qualls and "Corky Romano" with Chris Kattan isn't likely to boost star Jay Baruchel's curriculum vitae.
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Movie Review: Pleasant 'Wedding' coasts along on likable characters
"Our Family Wedding" is a modest culture-clash ensemble comedy that distinguishes itself from the formula pack by protecting the integrity of its story and treating its characters with respect. These are qualities that distinguish the work of director Rick Famuyiwa.
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Movie Capsules: Now showing
Capsule descriptions and starred mini-reviews by The Commercial Appeal movie writer John Beifuss.
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And the Oscar winners are: 13 beat Beifuss
According to a press release from Mednikow Jewelers in Memphis, Leigh Anne Tuohy, the real-life mom of "The Blind Side," complemented her Oscar-night gown of black lace-with-champagne underlay by wearing "a pair of 18-karat rose gold and oval rock crystal French wire earrings by Pomellato ... with a coordinating Rebecca necklace of 41 square-set faceted rock crystals designed by Alessandro Testi." I forgot to even wear my lucky Three Stooges watch.
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Commentary: The two sides of race at the Oscars
What does it mean that a virtually all-black movie made the final cut of 10 for the best picture Oscar this year and would surely have made the traditional cut of five? “Precious’’ has no white stars. Its nominated director and screenwriter are black, as is the author of its source material (in case you haven’t heard, it’s “based on the novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’’). The movie tells the story of an overweight, illiterate teenager, pregnant with her second child (both of which are her missing father’s). It’s grim and, up to a point, sad.
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Bullock wins best actress Oscar for portraying Memphian Tuohy in 'Blind Side'
Sandra Bullock paid her dues in Hollywood for more than 20 years. She was rewarded Sunday, winning the Best Actress Oscar for playing Leigh Anne Tuohy, a tough white Memphian who adopted a black child in “The Blind Side.” Bullock had repeatedly said she didn’t think she was going to win, although the 45-year-old actress was a heavy favorite. “Did I really earn this, or did I just wear y’all down?” she said after accepting the golden statue from Sean Penn.
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Oscar night: 'Blind Side' role suits Memphis actress well
A lot of Memphis women have a rooting interest in "The Blind Side," which tonight vies for Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actress.
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Beat Beifuss at the Oscars: Will this critic be thrashed?
If front-runner Sandra Bullock wins the Oscar tonight for Best Actress, as expected, will she be the first performer in Academy Awards history to be rewarded for portraying a Memphian? That seems to be the case, according to local Academy expert Charlie Lambert, a cinephile who has seen each of the 1,214 movies that has been nominated for one of the "big six" Oscars since the "Academy Awards of Merit" first were presented in 1929.
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'Elvis,' again: Hit made-for-TV biopic now out on eagerly awaited DVD
Long-sought by fans, "Elvis", the first movie about the king of rock, made its overdue DVD debut Tuesday, on the Shout! Factory label. The sympathetic ABC made-for-TV movie became one of the highest-rated films ever when it aired on Feb. 11, 1979, less than 18 months after the singer's shocking death at the age of 42. The disc (list-priced at $19.98) offers the full 148-minute "theatrical" version, and includes a commentary track.
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Filmmaker Spike Lee to speak at University of Memphis
Producer, director, writer, actor and provocateur Spike Lee will give a free public talk on the image of black America and the politics of film and media at 7:30 p.m. March 17 in the Michael D. Rose Theatre at the University of Memphis. Lee’s Oscar-aftermath talk is perfectly timed for a movie season that has seen much debate about the portrayal of black characters in three of this year’s Best Picture nominees, “The Blind Side,” “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” and “District 9.”
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Movie Capsules: Now showing
Capsule descriptions and starred mini-reviews by The Commercial Appeal movie writer John Beifuss.
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