Movies Under the Stars

The 7 best outdoor movies around Dallas-Fort Worth in summer 2018

No matter your age, there's something fun about watching a movie on a big screen, outdoors, on a lazy summer night. Families have multiple opportunities to do just that around Dallas-Fort Worth this summer, from rooftop venues to parks, plazas, and even water parks. Bonus that many are free.

Here are seven of the best places to watch a favorite movie under the stars in DFW in coming months.

Sundown at Granada presents Rooftop Movie Nights
Sundown at Granada presents free Rooftop Movie Nights on Wednesday nights through June 20. Guests can enjoy a movie while sipping on some tasty treats from the rooftop bar and enjoying food off of the bar bites menu. Films coming up include Clueless (May 30), The Big Lebowski (June 6), Labyrinth (June 13), and Empire Records (June 20).

Downtown Dallas Movie Series
After presenting a series of kids movies in May, Downtown Dallas, Inc. will age up a little with their free outdoor movies in June. Taking place at various locations in the Dallas Arts District, the films will be shown on a giant inflatable screen. Guests can bring a blanket and chair, grab some food from one of the nearby restaurants, and enjoy the movies. Screenings include Chicago (June 11 on the lawn at Moody Performance Hall), Sister Act (June 18 next to Meyerson Symphony Center), and Hairspray (June 25 at Sammons Park).

Sundance Square presents Movie Nights
Sundance Square Movie Nights in Fort Worth will feature five movies that are celebrating special anniversaries, as well as a current release. Sundance Square’s new digital screen should make for an enhanced outside movie experience. Featured free movies include The Great Escape (June 7), American Graffiti (June 14), Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (June 21), You've Got Mail (June 28), Bottle Shock (July 5), and Peter Rabbit (July 12).

Levitt Pavilion presents Movies Under the Stars
Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts in Arlington mainly hosts weekend concerts during the summer, but they'll also host a variety of free movies every Thursday night through July 5. While they'll host regular screenings of recent movies like Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 (June 14), Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (June 21), and Early Man (June 28), they'll also put on sing-a-long versions of Frozen (June 7) and Mamma Mia (July 5).

Hawaiian Falls presents Dive-In Movies
Hawaiian Falls, which has four locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, is now open for the summer. In addition to the fun you can have swimming in the wave pool, lounging in the lazy river, or riding the water slides, the area parks will take turns hosting a Dive-In Movie night. Garland will show Moana on June 15, Mansfield will show The Lego Ninjago Movie on June 21, Roanoke will show Wonder on June 22, and The Colony will show Sherlock Gnomes on June 26. All are free with park admission.

NRH2O presents Dive-In Movie Series
There's only one location of NRH2O in, wouldn't you know it — North Richland Hills — so you won't have to hop around to catch its Dive-In Movie Series. Taking place almost every Friday night starting on June 22, it will feature screenings free with park admission: The Wizard of Oz (June 22), Despicable Me 3 (July 6), Jaws (July 13), Coco (July 20), Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (July 27), and Black Panther (August 3).

Coyote Drive-In
Okay, so technically Coyote Drive-In, which has locations in Fort Worth and Lewisville, has a never-ending movie series since it's an actual movie theater. However, going to the drive-in is a time-honored summer tradition, so you can't leave it off the list. Plus, it has the biggest screens, the ability to watch in the comfort of your car, and double features showing all the big summer movies. What more could you want?

Hawaiian Falls will host Dive-In Movies at each of its four area locations on various dates in June.

Photo courtesy of Hawaiian Falls

Hawaiian Falls will host Dive-In Movies at each of its four area locations on various dates in June.

families movies

Movie Review

Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney go off in trashy film The Housemaid

Photo courtesy of Lionsgate

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.

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The Housemaid is now playing in theaters.

movies film

Movies Under the Stars

The 7 best outdoor movies around Dallas-Fort Worth in summer 2018

Hawaiian Falls will host Dive-In Movies at each of its four area locations on various dates in June.

Movie Review

Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney go off in trashy film The Housemaid

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