Weekend Event Planner

These are the 9 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

Music fans will be in heaven this weekend, as four separate events will highlight songs from the past and bring back plenty of retro good feelings. They include a musical based on a '90s movie and three concerts headlined by big-name singers or bands. Also on tap is a big boat sale, a celebration of a new way to date, late-night art events, a huge soccer tournament, and a chance to be part of a world record.

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

Thursday, July 20

2017 DFW Summer Boat Expo
Summer has long been underway, but it's never too late to find a boat at the DFW Summer Boat Expo, the largest boating event in North Texas. This show, taking place through Sunday at Dallas Market Hall, features more than 450 boat and watercraft models from over 20 North Texas boat dealers. Attendees can find their next boat or the accessories needed to better enjoy the on-water lifestyle.

Dallas Summer Musicals presents The Bodyguard
Based on the smash hit film, the award-winning musical The Bodyguard stars Grammy Award nominee and R&B star Deborah Cox. The musical, playing at the Music Hall at Fair Park through July 30, features a host of irresistible Whitney Houston classics, including “So Emotional," “Saving All My Love," “I Have Nothing," “I Wanna Dance with Somebody,” and, of course, “I Will Always Love You.”

Friday, July 21

Bracket Dating App Launch Party
Bracket is a recently launched dating app that matches 16 users in tournament-based brackets based on profile preferences and a user-generated rating scale. To celebrate its launch, Bracket is hosting an exclusive launch party at Community Beer Company, featuring an open craft-beer bar, tasty bites from Abe’s Flavor Flave food truck, a DJ spinning jams all night, photo booth, swag, giveaways, and more. Use the code “CultureMap” for a $10 ticket discount.

Late Nights at the DMA / Nasher Sculpture Center presents 'til Midnight
Both the Dallas Museum of Art and Nasher Sculpture Center are offering some late night fun on Friday. The DMA's event is themed around its "Iris van Herpen: Transforming Fashion" exhibit, with visitors encouraged to dress up like Lady Gaga to get in for half price. The Nasher has concerts by Bryce and Sudie, followed by a screening of the great 2016 movie, Sing Street.

Saturday, July 22

2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup Semifinals
All has gone as the home fans had hoped, and the U.S men's soccer team, following a 2-0 win over El Salvador, will be in the Gold Cup semifinals taking place at AT&T Stadium, facing off against Costa Rica. The winner of the match on Saturday will then go on to the Gold Cup final, taking place on July 26 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

2017 World's Largest Super Soaker Battle
The 2nd Annual Super Soaker Battle at Maverick Stadium in Arlington is going for a world record. The current record held in the Guinness Book of World Records for “largest water pistol fight” is 3,875 participants. The goal for this event, which includes food, fun, games, giveaways, and more," is to get over 4,000 participants, but the actual number could be much larger. A portion of the proceeds from the event will be donated to Hope for the Warriors.

The Righteous Brothers in concert
With a string of No. 1 classics, including the most-played song in radio history, "You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’," the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame duo of Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield topped the charts for four decades. Although Hatfield died in 2003, Medley has kept The Righteous Brothers alive with new member Bucky Heard. The two will sing The Righteous Brothers' biggest hits at Arlington Music Hall.

Don Henley in concert
Legendary singer Don Henley is doing a special concert at American Airlines Center in celebration of his 70th birthday. The once-in-a-lifetime event will feature songs spanning Henley's entire career, from the Eagles and his vast solo catalog. Henley will be joined by several very special guests throughout the night.

Sunday, July 23

Earth, Wind & Fire in concert with CHIC ft. Nile Rodgers
Two of the most successful and critically acclaimed bands — Earth, Wind & Fire and CHIC ft. Nile Rodgers — will co-headline 2054 The Tour at American Airlines Center. 2054 The Tour features a guest DJ and a specialized seating configuration toward the front of the stage, where seats will have additional space between them to encourage audiences to dance the night away.

Deborah Cox stars in The Bodyguard at Music Hall at Fair Park through July 30.

Deborah Cox as Rachel Marron and Company in The Bodyguard

Photo by Joan Marcus

Deborah Cox stars in The Bodyguard at Music Hall at Fair Park through July 30.

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Movie Review

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck team up for Netflix crime thriller The Rip

Photo by Claire Folger/Netflix

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon in The Rip.

For as closely tied together as Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are, it might come as a surprise how few times they’ve led a movie together. They’ve appeared alongside each other in Good Will Hunting, The Last Duel, and Air, but the only time they were on equal footing in a story was Kevin Smith’s Dogma. So the fact that they are the two true stars of the new Netflix movie The Rip makes it a rare opportunity for the longtime friends to square off against each other.

Damon and Affleck play Lt. Dane Dumars and Detective Sgt. J.D Byrne, respectively, the two highest ranking members of a Miami police department squad that specializes in drug and drug money raids. A tragedy to begin the film already has the team - which includes Detectives Mike Ro (Steven Yeun), Numa Baptiste (Teyana Taylor), and Lolo Salazar (Catalina Sandina Moreno) - on edge, with the FBI and DEA breathing down their neck.

Going off a tip, Dumars gathers the team to raid a house in nearby Hialeah that is supposed to have a stash of a relatively small amount of money. But when they get to the house occupied only by Desiree Molina (Sasha Calle), they soon discover that there’s close to $20 million there instead. The team, required by law to count the money on site, must not only fight the urge to skim a little off the top for themselves, but also worry about the Cartel and other agencies that might want a slice of the pie.

Written and directed by Joe Carnahan, the film is a surprisingly effective crime thriller made even better by its high-quality cast, which also includes Kyle Chandler as a DEA agent. The story is designed for the audience to not know who’s trustworthy until the last possible second, and the various twists and turns it takes are well done, with barely a hint of narrative cheating.

Taking place entirely at night, the mood is set right from the start, with the only surprise being that Carnahan didn’t add in rain for extra effect. He keeps things tense with a number of subtle elements, including having the house located in a seemingly deserted cul-de-sac. This allows for the characters to remain on high alert at all times, with anything out of the ordinary - an unexpected noise, a flashing light, etc. - adding to the stress of the situation.

The only element that could have used a bit more of a punch-up is the characterization. The story is set up to cast suspicion on almost everybody, making it tougher to understand exactly what type of person each of them is. As the two leads, more time is spent with Dumars and Byrne, leaving everyone else with slightly underwhelming arcs. It’s to the credit of the actors that everyone else below Damon and Affleck is still compelling.

Damon and Affleck play their sometimes friendly, sometimes adversarial roles well, showing an ease together that’s a result of their friendship and the acting skills they’ve honed over 30+ years. Taylor, an Oscar hopeful for One Battle After Another, and Oscar nominee/Emmy winner Yeun have a pedigree that elevates their supporting roles. Chandler, Moreno, and Calle each get just enough to demonstrate why they were cast in their respective roles.

Damon and Affleck have had their individual ups and downs throughout their careers, but when they choose to work together, the results are usually good-to-great, as they are in The Rip. It’s a different take on a crime thriller that features a story that will keep viewers guessing until the very end.

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The Rip is now streaming on Netflix.

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