One of the first things that appalled me about Florida was the inescapability of chain store shopping. Plazas bleed into strip malls and cast a sort of all-encompassing gentrification over the state. Over the years, I’ve softened. I don’t particularly like seeing Marshalls looming over Circuit City near Target. But…
Y’all buy my book now, y’hear? As daylight dawned Thursday, hundreds lined up in front of Books & Books in Coral Gables hoping for a quick glimpse of former President Bill Clinton. “Bring Bill back!” North Miami Beach resident Ileana Rodriguez laughed as she patiently queued, waving a copy of…
The events of September 11, 2001, seem to have become Debra Holt’s obsession. Cynics might even say she’s trying to cash in on the tragedy. Since 9/11, the artist and owner of Abba Fine Art has been squirreling away newspaper clippings, photographs, and memorabilia she associates with the event —…
Work!: An exhibit featuring paintings, sculptures, installations, videos, and photography, “Work!” was created by the Popopstudios co-op. The show’s title stems from a colloquialism describing the futility of a pointless action. The highlight is Blue Curry’s Like Taking Sand to the Beach, a ton of sand carved out of Yamacraw…
There have already been critical rumblings about the extreme violence in Shoot ‘Em Up, but it’s difficult to get too worked up about a film whose very title announces its maker’s intent, and which opens by raking the New Line Cinema corporate logo with machine gun fire (a gesture long…
Huffing and puffing to resuscitate a long-moribund genre, James Mangold imbues a 50-year-old western with the semblance of life. Mangold’s remake of 3:10 to Yuma isn’t as startling a resurrection job as his Johnny Cash biopic, but it does send a saddlebag full of western tropes skittering into the 21st…
Rob Zombie’s Halloween isn’t quite a remake of John Carpenter’s 1978 slasher masterpiece. The first hour, which vividly and viciously imagines the dirtbag childhood of an abject little psychopath named Michael Myers (the exquisitely wormy Daeg Faerch), might be considered a prequel. Yet even when it kicks in on familiar…
The Black Donnellys: The Complete Series (Universal) Chill Out Scooby-Doo! (Warner Bros.) City of Violence (Weinstein) Delta Farce (Lionsgate) Desperate Housewives: The Complete Third Season (Buena Vista) Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (Disney) Georgia Rule (Universal) Gumby Essentials (Classic Media) It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Seasons 1 &…
The Office: Season Three (Universal) After a shaky first season and a better-with-every-episode second, The Office proved itself one of the most consistent comedies in the history of the medium. The show has long since escaped the shadow of its BBC forebear and boasts an ensemble from which you could…
Funny how gaming’s most epic genre — the role-playing game — often feels the most limited in scope. After all, how many ways can we traverse a medieval land, defeat the orcs, rescue the girl, save the world, and level up along the way? Never enough times would be the…
Nothing makes you throw your hands up and say “I deserve a good meal, an inviting atmosphere, and maybe some good lovin’” like a daunting workweek. By Thursday, your body is probably screaming for a pick-me-up. Tonight Touch Restaurant and Lounge provides just that. Beginning with a complimentary cocktail reception…
Cast your mind back to your childhood. In memories, the colors of your old home are brighter, more vivid than in reality. The scent trigger is even stronger — the smell of food that once wafted from your mother’s kitchen is guaranteed to transport you to more innocent times. For…
The Irish greet tragedy with a smile and a beer. Throughout a history rife with difficulty — from the potato famine to occupation to a less-than-friendly welcome at Ellis Island — the good people of the green isle have survived and prospered, thanks mostly to their unmatched penchant for merriment…
Science-fiction and fantasy fanatics of Miami, have you been feeling a little cut off from the world? Alone? Listless? Sick of communicating only with your proudly geeky friends online, separating yourself from your beloved memorabilia collections only to head up to the latest comics convention in Fort Lauderdale? Hope is…
What product better illustrates the importance of presentation than wine? Set a bottle of Château Margaux next to some fine china and it’s the pinnacle of taste and civility, but wrap up a jug of Carlo Rossi in a paper bag and it’s the liquid scepter of your local Dumpster…
If you’ve been paying attention to our Bike Blog (blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/bike_blog), you know we think traveling on two wheels is supercool. Sure, the helmet can kind of kill the wind-in-your-hair buzz you get from riding in the car, but an awesome bell and some tassels on your handlebars more than make…
Last year the seminal American progressive-house duo Deep Dish put the brakes on its collective work to pursue solo projects — leaving fans to wonder how the heck they’d pop it and lock it to both Dubfire’s and Sharam’s divergent beats at the same time. While that’s a feat for…
Linguists, scholars, writers — hellfire, even crackers — have attempted to pin down the provenance of the term Florida cracker. Some wrestle the word’s etymology to the mat of Middle English and its idioms — “one who boasts or talks too much,” which traces also to “crack a joke” –…
If you haven’t gotten your art flu shots, hurry! A rash of new shows and spaces suggests that local dealers are feverish with visions of a painting in every pot and a gallery on every block. Tonight at 7:00, at the freshly erupted Sacco Gallery (6444 Biscayne Blvd., Miami), “Ladies…
Whether you want to gaze at some amazing ballerinas or you simply enjoy seeing people jump around in leotards, be sure to sashay over to the International Young Ballet Medal Winners showcase at the Manuel Artime Theater. This event is just one of the many scheduled for this year’s International…
Like any good Miamian, you probably have a healthy curiosity about and enjoyment of all things Cuban. We’re not talking just extra-strong coffee and kicked-up ham-and-cheese sandwiches. You’ve often wondered about son music, and during late nights on the couch, you’ve wished you could speak español fluently and flipped to…
Tonight you might notice hordes of well-dressed men heading to Bird Bowl. The attraction? It’s the beginning of the Gay Bowling League’s season! The evening kicks off with an organizational meeting at 7:00, when teams will be divvied up into groups of three bowlers each. “Practice” bowling starts at 8:00;…
