We already knew that the outdoor Dallas Music District Festival had an enviable list of bands playing at its inaugural edition on May 16 and 17 along the Trinity River. But now the festival has become an even bigger draw thanks to the just-released list of vendors that will be on hand.
And we're not talking about hot dogs, popcorn and T-shirts here. Instead, festival organizers have lined up a slew of local artisan vendors to sell you things like jewelry, leather goods, clothing, pottery and more.
Among the 26 vendors are brands such as Artigianale, Far Fetched Imports, Hari Mari, Mistura Timepieces and Sunshine Tienda. To sate your hunger and thirst, you can turn to Jazzy Fat's Cajun Classic, Steel City Pops, This City's Best Italian Ice and others.
"The goal of DMD Fest 2015 is to highlight the best of what Dallas has to offer," said DMD Fest Jerry Su in a release. "We are so proud that DMD Fest will be able to provide a little something for everyone, including a truly beautiful outdoor setting right on the Trinity River."
The festival also will have a strong art aspect, as organizers have teamed up with the nonprofit Music Is Our Weapon to create various interactive art installations. Among those will be a graffiti wall where local artists will create new works throughout the weekend, and a massive art wall installation at which attendees will be encouraged to write directly on the wall and finish the sentence "Music is My ... " so festival-goers can express what music means to them.
Sunshine Tienda is bringing vacation-inspired goods to Dallas Music District Festival.
Photo courtesy of Sunshine Tienda
Sunshine Tienda is bringing vacation-inspired goods to Dallas Music District Festival.
Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney in The Housemaid.
Both Amanda Seyfried (the upcoming The Testament of Ann Lee) and Sydney Sweeney (Christy) are starring in movies with Oscar ambitions this year. By sheer coincidence, the two actors are also co-starring in The Housemaid, a thriller coming out within weeks of their more ambitious works, one that is likely to be seen by many more people than those prestige plays.
Sweeney is given top billing as Millie, a down-on-her-luck ex-convict looking to land any type of job so as not to break her parole. She finds a too-good-to-be-true lifeboat with Nina (Seyfried), who hires her to be a housemaid for her large house on Long Island, where she lives with her husband, Andrew (Brandon Sklenar), and daughter, Cecilia (Indiana Elle).
After a warm interview, Nina almost immediately becomes highly erratic, whipping back-and-forth between happy-go-lucky and rageful. It seems clear that Nina is suffering from mental health issues, as she’ll often accuse Millie of misplacing or stealing items that she didn’t take. Andrew, apparently used to Nina’s tirades, tries to protect Millie from the worst, something that grows increasingly difficult as Nina ups the ante.
Directed by Paul Feig (A Simple Favor) and adapted by Rebecca Sonnenshine from the bestselling book by Freida McFadden, the film is likely the trashiest mainstream movie to come out in 2025. The first half of the movie relies not on story but on moments as Nina embodies the word “hysterical” to an unbelievable extent. The resigned acceptance of the abuse by Millie, as well as the saintly patience of Andrew, make almost every scene laughable, as nobody seems to be acting anywhere close to how a person would normally react to such extreme situations.
The scenes and the performance of Seyfried are so over-the-top, in fact, that it’s clear that the filmmakers are in on the joke. It’s next to impossible not to have a little bit of fun while watching the actors react to outrageous incidents as if nothing is out of the ordinary. The worse Nina acts, the more Millie and Andrew retreat into their chosen roles, and the funnier the film becomes.
Fans of the book will know that the story changes course, eventually turning into a more stereotypical thriller that also has some relatively gnarly visuals to offer. But the trashiness continues, with Sweeney’s, um, assets repeatedly on display in both clothed and unclothed ways. The sex appeal of the R-rated movie makes it an outlier, as recent studio films have shied away from asking their big stars to disrobe completely.
Both Seyfried and Sweeney are far from their Oscar hopeful roles here. Seyfried is given free rein to act as brazenly as she pleases, and she takes full advantage of that ability. Sweeney seems to have been told to be much more reserved, and unfortunately that results in too many wooden line readings. Sklenar continues his breakout streak (It Ends with Us, Drop) with a role that allows him to show more range than either Seyfried or Sweeney.
The Housemaid is an unusual type of movie to be released at a time of year when most films are either those aiming for awards or more family-friendly fare. Despite its many flaws, it’s still an enjoyable watch that features a variety of crazy scenarios not typically seen in movies nowadays.
