John Ervin flickr/lloydletta **While there are scores of bloggers out there committed solely to Fringe Festival reviews, The Rake is striving to offer you a unique, insiders’ perspective. We won’t tell you, "Be sure not to miss…!" What we will provide is a behind the scenes glimpse of life as a local actor, director, everyday- theater-goer. The … Read more
Located on a hellish strip of University Avenue in St. Paul, the utilitarian structure sports the name of the candidate – a name which sparks equal amounts of love, hatred and a lot of stuff in between. The drab walls within, like those for any campaign headquarters, are sprinkled here and there with images of … Read more
"I’m probably more middle of the road than most people I went to film school with," says Dan Orozco, host of Butter City, the hottest talk show to cover filmmaking since Siskel and Ebert ruled the airwaves, "I like movies that I can eat a whole thing of popcorn and drink a whole can of … Read more
Two men. Father and son. One dead, one living. Both entertainers, choosing different paths in show business to make their mark. The father was Mel Jass, television ad man without peer, best remembered as the host of Matinee Movie and the Wonderful World of Movies with Mel Jass on WTCN Channel 11 (later KARE-11). The … Read more
The way it looks now, it’s hard to imagine that Hennepin Avenue was once a Great White Way of cinematic wonder, each downtown block blessed with at least one tempting marquee adorned with blinding lights. In my own early years of moviegoing, I was able to take my pick of many single screen palaces on … Read more
Chuck & Buck, a somewhat underrated 2000 film that was one of the first major releases shot on digital video, revolves around Buck, a 27-year-old man (Mike White) who, for all intents and purposes, is an 11-year-old boy. He perpetually sucks on Blow Pops, fills his room with toys, wears ill-fitting windbreakers, and speaks to … Read more
For the Bible Tells Me So, Daniel Karslake’s 2007 documentary on the history of the religious right’s hate-hate affair with the gay community, begins with news footage of a celebrity who was once a household name, but is now long forgotten … and yet, thanks to Minnesota 6th District Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, she is not … Read more
The European sun shines on James Coburn, his lean frame in a white Mod jacket with red turtleneck. Putting on enormous sunglasses and flashing his classic chops, he sidles out of the palm-tree fringed villa, where he has just spent the night with Monica Vitti, and slips into his silver Ferrari. Bound for another criminal … Read more