rakemag Fans of Nick Cave and his band, the Bad Seeds, recognize that Cave has something of an obsession with murder and the torment that so often leads to it. So it’s not so surprising that, with his first screenwriting effort, the Aussie rock icon should focus on some other bad seeds—the gunslingers and thugs who … Read more
Al Gore’s book Earth in the Balance was a relatively early, mostly ignored, and extremely prescient look at global warming and the fate of our planet. Thirteen years after its publication, we’re still waiting to see the kind of widespread social and political awareness that could bring about change and slow the planet’s demise. So … Read more
Spawned by the success of Brooklyn Noir, Akashic Books, the tiny New York City publishing house, launched a series of noir anthologies, each pegged to individual cities and their neighborhoods, and featuring all-new stories by local writers. With seventeen titles either in print or in the works, stories from the series are racking up a … Read more
The sins of the father are visited upon just about everyone when a disturbed young man, recently discharged from the military, tracks down his birth father. However, Dad (played by William Hurt) wants nothing to do with his half-Mexican love child (Gael García Bernal, best known to Americans for his roles in The Motorcycle Diaries … Read more
The upside of a miserable school experience: It might help you become a great artist. Take French director Jean Vigo. His traumatic years in a substandard boarding school helped turn him to a life in art; in his 1933 film Zero for Conduct, he draws upon those years for inspiration. In the film, the students … Read more
Andy Garcia was five years old when his family moved from Cuba to Florida, but the memories of his birthplace left an indelible impression on the actor, who makes his directorial debut with this film. Equal parts love song to Cuban culture and critique of the political events that ended Havana’s brief reign as the … Read more
Clock-watchers in the St. Louis Park area can’t wait to get over to Best of India’s stellar lunch buffet. There’s a palpable feeling of escape, as diners sample a spread that encompasses more than twenty items. The non-buffet menu is also stacked with winners, including nine different kinds of buttery tandoori breads. The beef vindaloo … Read more
Pondering the beauty of Minnehaha Falls is so much sweeter when munching on a fish taco. Before Sea Salt Eatery set up shop in the park, a trip to the falls was like, “OK, pretty. Let’s go.” Now, with a crab cake sandwich or oyster po’ boy in hand, visitors can slow down to appreciate … Read more
She’s extracted feminist themes from Wagner babes and Grand Ole Opry theatrics; and now Shawn McConneloug enters the world of peg legs, planks, and swashbucklers, injecting some of her own pistol-slinging flair. In 2003, this ultra-modern local choreographer immortalized Tammy Wynette in Stand On Your Man, a yodel-heavy piece incorporating dance, music, film, and rhinestone … Read more
Summertime is getting to be synonymous with outdoor, site-specific performance pieces—and we’re not talking music in the park here. Last August we witnessed the monumental LANDMARK: 24 Hours at the Stone Arch Bridge, which rolled music, dance, theater, and literature together into one colossal, daylong experience that nudged onlookers to remember how beautiful that historic … Read more