Weekend Event Planner

College football and classic movies top best Labor Day weekend events in Dallas

Labor Day weekend in Dallas-Fort Worth is full of great options, even if none of them stands out as the one you must attend. Love music? We have a couple of throwbacks and an indie festival for you. Movies? Classics are popping up everywhere. And, of course, there's the return of college football, even if the big game isn't really local.

Below are the best options for your precious free time Thursday through Sunday. Don't like what you see? Lucky for you, we have a much longer list of the city's best events.

Thursday, August 28

Mockingbird Station Dive-In Movie: Wet Hot American Summer
The beginning of September marks the end of summer, so enjoy one last hurrah with this free screening at The Lofts pool at Mockingbird Station. This cult classic features an all-star cast who were a long way from being stars when the movie came out, including Paul Rudd, Janeane Garofalo, Bradley Cooper, Amy Poehler and Molly Shannon.

Friday, August 29

2014 LEGO KidsFest
Kids of all ages will rejoice in this celebration of all things LEGO at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. The three-day event, which also has two sessions on both Saturday and Sunday, includes a LEGO Model Museum, the LEGO Club & Master Builder Academy, a screening of the recent The LEGO Movie and more.

Maze featuring Frankie Beverly in concert with Patti Labelle and Ruben Studdard
Fans of Maze featuring Frankie Beverly have had no issue seeing them recently, as they've appeared four times in the Dallas area since March 2013. The fun part is that each concert has featured a series of other big names, including Patti Labelle and former American Idol winner Ruben Studdard for this one at Gexa Energy Pavilion.

Lone Star Film Society presents ArthouseFW: Psycho
If you love Alfred Hitchcock movies, this is your weekend as the Lone Star Film Society is presenting six of his classic films at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. The highlight for most is this screening of Psycho, but there are also showings of Blackmail, The 39 Steps, Notorious, The Lodger and Rear Window at different times Thursday through Sunday.

Saturday, August 30

2014 Clearfork Music Festival
The inaugural edition of the Clearfork Music Festival took place last year on a ranch just off the Clear Fork branch of the Trinity River. Organizers are moving downstream this year to the Panther Island Pavilion, but they promise another great day of music from Texas bands, including performances by The Black Angels, The Bright Light Social Hour, The Burning Hotels, Larry G(ee), Spoonfed Tribe, The Effinays and others.

Alamo Drafthouse Rolling Roadshow: Raiders of the Lost Ark
The Alamo Drafthouse in Richardson has had plenty to offer onsite since it opened last summer, so it had shelved its popular Rolling Roadshows — until now. They're bringing out the inflatable screen for a special showing of Raiders of the Lost Ark outside Irving Convention Center, complete with whip demonstrations, live snakes, food trucks and more.

Advocare Cowboys Classic: Florida State vs. Oklahoma State
It's been a long seven months, but college football is finally back. Unfortunately for fans of local teams, both SMU and UNT are on the road, and TCU is facing off against lowly Samford. If you want to feel some real buzz, head to AT&T Stadium as the defending national champion Florida State Seminoles face off against Oklahoma State. You can also show your fandom at Sundance Square on Saturday morning as it hosts ESPN's College GameDay.

Sunday, August 31

2014 Dallas DanceFest
The inaugural Dallas DanceFest, taking place Friday through Sunday at Dallas City Performance Hall, features some of the area's most notable dance troupes showing the excellence and diversity they have to offer. Among the groups performing are Texas Ballet Theater, Bruce Wood Dance Project and Dallas Black Dance Theatre. Sunday's performance is preceded by the annual Dance Council Honors.

Chicago and REO Speedwagon in concert
Chicago is best known for the years in the early '80s when Peter Cetera was the lead singer with hits like "Hard to Say I'm Sorry," "Hard Habit to Break" and "You're the Inspiration." But 45 years after the group's first album, they're still putting out new music, including Chicago XXXVI: Now earlier this summer. They are joined at Gexa Energy Pavilion by fellow throwback band REO Speedwagon.

Chicago plays alongside REO Speedwagon at Gexa Energy Pavilion on August 31.

Photo by David M. Earnisse

Chicago plays alongside REO Speedwagon at Gexa Energy Pavilion on August 31.

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Movie Review

Rose Byrne fights for her life and car in new movie 'Tow'

Photo courtesy of Roadside Attractions

Rose Byrne in Tow.

Actor Rose Byrne had a banner year in 2025, getting her first Oscar nomination for her starring role in If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You. Although she came up short in that race, she’s getting another chance to prove her acting bona fides in the new film, Tow.

In the “inspired by a true story” movie, Byrne plays Amanda, a down-on-her-luck woman who lives in her car and can’t find a job. Living in Seattle, she tries to stay in touch with her daughter, Avery (Elsie Fisher), who lives with her dad in another city, but circumstances sometimes limit their communications, especially when her car is stolen.

The good news is that her car is found relatively quickly. The bad news is that the tow company is charging her to get her car back, money she can’t afford. Now truly homeless, she does everything in her power to right the wrong, even taking the company to court. Without much luck, she has to start staying in a women’s shelter run by Barbara (Octavia Spencer), where she makes friends with Nova (Demi Lovato) and Denise (Ariana DeBose), among others.

Directed by Stephanie Laing and written by Jonathan Keasey and Brent Boivin, the film has relatively low stakes going for it and never really tries to make the story feel deeper than it is. The situation Amanda finds herself in is clearly a tough one, and any empathetic person would feel for her and want her to overcome her plight. But the filmmakers keep things light and never try to up the drama in any significant way.

The issue Amanda is dealing with, being price gouged by a predatory towing company, is one with which many people can relate. But aside from helpfully underscoring Amanda’s frustration by showing the increasing number of days she is without a car, they never establish why they felt this particular story was one worth telling. Her personal issues, including a growing estrangement with her daughter, fail to conjure any big emotions.

The filmmakers are very loose with their storytelling, especially when it comes to side characters. The presence of the women she meets at the shelter, and Kevin (Dominic Sessa), the young lawyer who offers to help her, never makes full sense other than a need for her to have other people with whom to interact. A tighter focus on what Amanda was going through would’ve helped both her and people around her feel more important.

Byrne is a dynamic performer who’s shown great skill at both drama and comedy, but there’s nothing special about her performance here. Hampered a bit by a blonde wig and false teeth, she feels out of sorts for much of the film. The unusually high-powered supporting cast - both Spencer and DeBose are Oscar winners - makes things interesting on first blush, but none of them outside of Sessa is given much to do, so they’re mostly wasted.

Tow will be a disappointment for anyone hoping to see more great stuff from Byrne. While she remains a fine actor, her performance and the story as a whole are nowhere near the level shown in her previous film. The real life predicament shown in the film also never rises to the level of being of something worth showing to the masses.

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Tow is now showing in theaters.

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