Event planner

Mardi Gras celebrations and John Williams tributes top the best events in Dallas this weekend

This weekend presents quite the eclectic bunch of Dallas events. Want to see a live broadcast of a national radio show? You got it. Dreamed of having some of your favorite local arts groups join forces? We've got two creative collaborations for you. Love to listen to movie soundtracks? The Dallas Symphony Orchestra is playing your favorites live.

Best of all, Mardi Gras will be celebrated early with several different events. 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, February 7

AT&T Performing Arts Center presents Wait Wait Don't Tell Me
Believe it or not, this live broadcast of the NPR quiz show may just be the only sold-out show in town this week, quite an accomplishment for a program that boasts no one more famous than panelist Paula Poundstone or host Peter Sagal. If you were one of the lucky few to snag a ticket to the show at the Winspear Opera House, you'll be treated to a hilarious rundown of the week's news (expect the blackout Super Bowl to be a big topic) and an interview with Erykah Badu.

Uptown Players and Turtle Creek Chorale present Ragtime
This unique collaboration between Uptown Players and the Turtle Creek Chorale brings the music of the early 20th century to life at Dallas City Performance Hall. Is it a musical? Is it a concert? It's both, and the talents of both arts groups are sure to provide much bang for your entertainment buck. Don't dawdle, though — the production only consists of four shows through Saturday.

Friday, February 8

House of Blues Dallas presents Ninjapalooza Pardi Gras
Mardi Gras isn't until Tuesday, but who wants to wait until then when you can party right now? Ninjapalooza says it's the biggest Mardi Gras party in Dallas, and it's hard to question that claim. The fest has concerts on literally every stage the House of Blues Dallas has to offer, featuring groups like Graceland Ninjaz and Zydeco Stingrays. Grab your beads and dancing shoes, 'cause it's gonna be a fun night.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents Tribute to John Williams and Arthur Fiedler
Millions of people know John Williams as the composer for movies like Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark and countless others, but he was also the conductor of the Boston Pops for 13 years. He was preceded by Arthur Fiedler, who conducted the orchestra for 50 years and was known for showcasing lighter classical music fare like Gershwin and Sousa. The Dallas Symphony Orchestra pays tribute to both with three concerts through Sunday at Meyerson Symphony Center. Additionally, they present Musical Magic of John Williams, a family-friendly concert on Saturday afternoon dedicated solely to Williams' movie soundtracks.

Dallas Theater Center presents Red
It's the week of artistic collaborations, as Dallas Theater Center and the Dallas Museum of Art team up to put on Red, the life story of artist Mark Rothko. Audiences get an inside look at the abstract painter's artistic process and the drama involved in his life through the intense play. The production runs through March 24 at Wyly Theatre.

Saturday, February 9

Go Oak Cliff presents 2013 OCarnivale Mardi Gras Ball
The Mardi Gras celebrations continue with this party at The Kessler in Oak Cliff. Guests are encourage to dress in their best Mardi Gras-themed attire for this event, which includes music from The Matt Tolentino Band, Club Wood and the Inner City All Stars, and, of course, Creole food and New Orleans-style Hurricanes. The only way you're getting more authentic is by actually going to New Orleans.

Fifth Annual Dallas Burlesque Festival
Anybody who goes to Ninjapalooza on Friday night gets a sneak preview of this event, but this is the main course. At least 15 different performers strut their stuff, including headliner Bettina May. If this display of sexy theatrics at House of Blues Dallas isn't enough, they also have an awards dinner on Sunday with additional performances.

Sunday, February 10

2013 Mardi Gras Oak Cliff Parade
The trio of Mardi Gras events comes to a close on Sunday with the annual Mardi Gras Oak Cliff Parade. The parade features all manner of musicians and floats and enough beads to tide you over until next Mardi Gras. The parade runs along Davis Boulevard, finishing up in the Bishop Arts District.

AT&T Performing Arts Center presents Lily Tomlin
Lily Tomlin has had one of the more consistent and enviable careers in Hollywood. She's worked steadily in both television and movies since 1966, starring with the likes of Rowan & Martin, Big Bird, and, coming soon, Tina Fey and Paul Rudd in the new movie Admission. With her broad experience, she has more than a few good stories to tell, and she gives you the lowdown at Winspear Opera House.

Mardi Gras is in full swing in Dallas this weekend with three different events.

Mardi Gras, partying, masks, drinks, New Orleans

411NOLA.com

Mardi Gras is in full swing in Dallas this weekend with three different events.

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Movie Review

Faces of Death returns with modern twist on cult horror film

Photo courtesy of of IFC Films

Dacre Montgomery in Faces of Death.

True horror fans will likely be familiar with the 1978 cult film Faces of Death, which purported to be a documentary showing real-life killings in gory detail. It didn’t, of course, but that didn’t stop rumors from continuing to spread for decades. Now, almost 50 years and multiple sequels later, comes a new version of Faces of Death, an actual movie that pays homage to the original in interesting ways.

Margot (Barbie Ferreira) works at a YouTube-like company called Kino as a content moderator, flagging videos that violate the company’s policies. This means her job often involves seeing some truly despicable things from all manner of depraved people. One day, though, she comes across a video that seems a little too real, and after seeing more similar videos, she starts to believe they’re genuine murders.

Going against her company NDA, she starts to investigate the videos on her own, which puts her on the radar of Arthur (Dacre Montgomery), who is actually kidnapping people and killing them on camera through methods seen in the original Faces of Death film. It’s not long before Arthur tracks her down, with a plan to make her one of his next victims.

Written and directed by Daniel Goldhaber (How to Blow Up a Pipeline) and co-written by Isa Mazzei, the film is not so much scary as it is creepy, with the occasional gross-out sequence. The idea of having someone emulate the killings in the cult film is a good idea, and pairing it with the modern-day attention economy - in which content creators go to increasing lengths for clicks - is a clever twist on a concept that other films have done.

The film as a whole is a commentary on how social media and video sharing sites have often decided to prioritize profits over the well-being of their users. Margot is shown allowing videos involving violence and sexual assault to stay on the site while nixing ones depicting how to use Narcan or demonstrating putting on a condom on a banana. Josh (Jermaine Fowler), Margot’s boss, is even explicit in the company mandate that outrageous videos drive views.

While Arthur has the makings of a good villain, there are few attempts to make him seem truly diabolical. His kidnappings often seem more spur-of-the-moment than calculated, and even though he has a well thought-out dungeon at home, the house’s location in the suburbs seems to make him vulnerable to easy discovery. Goldhaber and Mazzei leave more than a few unanswered questions along the way that take away from the intensity of the story.

Ferreira is yet another actor from Euphoria who’s capitalizing on her exposure from that show. She plays Margot’s increasing anxiety well, and when the action ratchets up in the final act, she meets the moment in a satisfying way. Montgomery returns to the vibe he had while playing the evil Billy on Stranger Things, and even though his character doesn’t fully live up to his potential, Montgomery sells his evil for all it’s worth.

The new Faces of Death may not be what some are expecting given the reputation of the previous films, but it’s a solid horror/thriller that uses the brand as a launching pad into something different. It doesn’t make much of a dent in the scare department, but it does give its violence and gore a degree of relevance in today’s often desensitized world.

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Faces of Death is now playing in theaters.

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