AltWeeklies Wire
'Apollo': Two-Thirds Awe, One-Third Annoyancenew
Apollo, Nancy Keystone's three-part epic play about Nazi scientists, NASA and the civil-rights movement, premiered last Friday at Portland Center Stage after eight years of development.
Willamette Week |
Ben Waterhouse |
01-21-2009 |
Theater
Profiles In Caution: Half of Oregon's Democratic Lawmakers Bravely Have No Commentnew
After years complaining that the Bush administration instituted torture, lied its way into a war that killed more than 4,000 Americans, and generally treated the Constitution like toilet paper in a Taco Bell bathroom, senior Democrats now show little stomach to pursue criminal charges.
Willamette Week |
James Pitkin |
01-21-2009 |
Civil Liberties
The Story Behind Why Portland's Mayor Admitted to Lyingnew
Portland Mayor Sam Adams, contrary to his earlier denials, confessed to having had a sexual relationship with legislative intern Beau Breedlove in 2005.
Willamette Week |
Nigel Jaquiss |
01-21-2009 |
Politics
Horse Race: Portland City Bureaus Jockey for Money Amid a Grim Budget Forecastnew
City agencies in Portland must make even deeper cuts than expected, city commissioners say. In some cases, that means bureaus will be slashing more than 5 percent from their budgets for the next fiscal year.
Willamette Week |
Beth Slovic |
01-21-2009 |
Policy Issues
Getting the Lead Out Causes a Freakout for Toy Retailersnew
Like their counterparts nationwide, Portland toy makers and retailers are raising hell about the vagueness, harsh penalties and cost of adhering to a federal law set to take effect Feb. 10. Estimates for testing range from $40 to $4,000, according to the Handmade Toy Alliance, a national nonprofit.
Willamette Week |
Dan Green |
01-15-2009 |
Business & Labor
'People Of The Book': Like 'The Da Vinci Code' by Someone Who Can Actually Writenew
The two stories certainly have a lot of the same elements: a holy book with an untold story, a rare-book expert with plucky, unconventional methods who causes everyone a lot of trouble, and a whole lot of history. But People of the Book is actually for people who like books.
Willamette Week |
Michael Kimber |
01-15-2009 |
Fiction
Biopic 'Notorious' Has Biggie-Sized Moral Lessonsnew
It's not acting that makes Notorious a miss. It's that the plot lines are convoluted, the genre's cliches are in full effect (from audio flashbacks to magazine-cover montages), and the whole thing screams both "Too soon!" and "Too innocent!"
Willamette Week |
Casey Jarman |
01-14-2009 |
Reviews
Cajun Gems' Ben Whitesides Has a Long History of Bright Futuresnew
Amid false rumors of the Joggers' breakup, Whitesides recently began focusing on the Cajun Gems for the first time in years. Armed with a huge batch of songs, built from "days' worth of riffs and rifflettes" on his computer, Whitesides is now readying tracks for both the Joggers and the Cajun Gems.
Willamette Week |
Michael Mannheimer |
12-17-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Seven Pounds' is Agonizing, Incessant and Impervious to Ironynew
Will Smith continues in the vein of his last three movies by maintaining a clenched, anguished, clotted expression on his face. He has completed his transfiguration into the Fresh Prince of Airlessness.
Willamette Week |
Aaron Mesh |
12-17-2008 |
Reviews
How I Ended Up Taking My Cat in for Acupuncturenew
I've long been someone who sings popular songs to his cat, rewriting the lyrics around "kitty." But now I'm someone whose cat gets acupuncture, which I feel is an order of magnitude more ridiculous.
Willamette Week |
Ethan Smith |
12-10-2008 |
Culture
'The Day The Earth Stood Still' is Remote and Affectlessnew
Something's not right when a movie made in the aughts is cheesier than the 1950s movie it's a remake of, a movie famous for its iconic image of a Jiffy-Pop-style flying saucer settling down on the Mall in D.C. so that an alien named Klaatu can deliver a message to mankind.
Willamette Week |
Andy Davis |
12-10-2008 |
Reviews
'The Auteur' Bridges the Divide Between Porn and Comedynew
The central joke of The Auteur is the same one riffed on in Zack and Miri Make a Porno -- the absurd unsexiness of having sex on camera, made worse by the titles. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that both movies were directly inspired by the college-dorm game of making up the most ridiculous porn titles.
Willamette Week |
Aaron Mesh |
12-03-2008 |
Reviews
'Ballast': The Weight of Death in the Mississippi Deltanew
Ballast is the first film from director Lance Hammer, and it would be easy to call it one of those movies where "nothing happens," except that a lot happens -- a shooting, a car chase, several beatings. These things just happen very quietly.
Willamette Week |
Aaron Mesh |
12-03-2008 |
Reviews
Gus Van Sant Delivers the Story of Harvey Milk in His Most Political Film to Datenew
Milk, starring Sean Penn, seems to have transformed Van Sant from an aloof, apolitical outsider into a defender of gay rights.
Willamette Week |
Staff |
11-12-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Longtime Portland MC Mic Censhaw Finally Makes a Solo Standnew
Sure, his name is in the liner notes for experimental hip-hop projects Hungry Mob and Suckapunch, and more traditional beats-and-ryhmes duo the Cleveland Steamers, but Thinking Out Loud is the first full-length album the MC has ever released under his own name.
Willamette Week |
Casey Jarman |
11-12-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
