All Tracks Lead to Grapevine

Grapevine's nonstop schedule of fun promises a 'dino-mite' summer

Come face to face with Grapevine's fossil-filled past.

Photo courtesy of Visit Grapevine

This summer, Grapevine transforms into a playground of prehistoric beasts, musical beats, lakeside leaps, and more.

Whether you're in town for a weekend or settling in for a season of fun, Grapevine offers a dizzying array of adventures for every kind of explorer, from fossil-hunters to wine-sippers, art lovers to escape-room sleuths.

Here’s a roundup of the biggest events lighting up Grapevine in June and beyond.

Prehistoric playground: All tracks lead to Grapevine
Dinosaurs are making a comeback in Grapevine, which has been the site of exciting dinosaur discoveries since 1974.

From now through August 31, Historic Main Street is dotted with dino tracks leading to themed treats, hands-on exhibits, and full-sized fossil fun.

Kids (and their grown-ups) can pilot simulation pods at the Be the Dinosaur exhibit, devour chocolate dinosaur lollipops from Dr. Sue’s Chocolate, bite into dino cupcakes at Main Street Bistro & Bakery, make your own colorful dino egg at Vetro Glassblowing Studio, contribute to an eight-foot chalk mural at Holder Dane Gallery & Art Studios, and board the Grapevine Vintage Railroad for Dinos on the Tracks, a Jurassic joyride featuring friendly dinos.

Grapevine train All aboard for adventure.Photo courtesy of Visit Grapevine

For those seeking a bird’s eye view of ancient stomping grounds, the Grapevine Observation Tower offers a 150-foot-high panorama of dino territory.

At Historic Nash Farm, the action continues with a life-size dino dig garden and tales from the notorious 19th-century "Bone Wars" fossil feud. Over at the Grapevine Public Library, guest speakers bring paleontology to life through games and hands-on learning, from fossils and ancient ecosystems to local discoveries like the Ampelognathus coheni.

Each week, catch dino-themed Cartoons & Crafts at the Lancaster Theatre, and enjoy classic dinosaur flicks at the Historic Palace Theatre. Over at Peace Plaza, sunlight becomes your artistic assistant during shadow tracing sessions with massive dinosaur shapes.

Want to take your adventure outdoors? Hike the Dino Trail along the C. Shane Wilbanks and Wall-Farrar Trails, where you just might spot a fossil or two while discovering more about Grapevine’s place in paleontological history.

Kids can test their explorer instincts in Pterodactyl Wings Alley (aka Weems Alley), where flying reptiles hang overhead, and pose for a prehistoric photo opp in a safari-style dinosaur Jeep at Liberty Park Plaza.

History buffs will appreciate the hands-on activities at the Settlement to City Museums, where you can print your own dinosaur cards and see a real Hadrosaur track at the Grapevine Historic Museum’s Ice House exhibit. Meanwhile, Grapevine City Hall displays authentic bones and fossils from the region’s own prehistoric past.

Summer onstage, in the sky, and under the sun
If you prefer superheroes over sauropods, head to Gaylord Texan Resort for the brand-new Universe of Light. This glowing spectacle features 1,000 handcrafted lanterns and LED-powered tableaus of DC superheroes and villains — think Metropolis meets immersive art gallery.

Gaylord Texan Resort Universe of Light Calling all superheroes to Gaylord Texan Resort.Photo courtesy of Gaylord Texan Resort

Meanwhile, Great Wolf Lodge is cranking up the volume with live concerts handpicked by country star Gabby Barrett. Performers like Travis Denning and Tyler Farr will keep the weekends lively, while the resort’s upgraded water park ensures daytime splashing is just as exciting.

Lake Grapevine’s WhoaZone is back with inflatable slides, floating cabanas, and a seriously bouncy obstacle course that’s perfect for adventurous spirits.

And don't miss thisssss: Repticon on June 28-29. From slithering snakes to rare lizards, this exotic pet expo at the Grapevine Convention Center is for anyone curious about the creepier side of the animal kingdom.

Sip, savor, and solve
Wine lovers, rejoice: Grapevine’s Summer Solstice Wine Trail on June 21 invites you to sip through seven winery tasting rooms along Historic Main Street, each offering curated pairings and a commemorative glass. For a tropical twist, Messina Hof is pouring summer-inspired wines paired with flavors like coconut and pineapple at their Tropical Tastes & Perfect Pairings evening on June 28.

Grapevine wine Cheers to the longest day of the year.Photo by Kevin Brown

If you're up for a challenge, step inside the Enchanted Cottage escape room at The Grapevine Escape, where Clarence the Wizard has left a mess of magical proportions. Your mission? Clean up the chaos before he returns.

A city that sings
Every Friday night in June, Grapevine Main LIVE! brings Peace Plaza to life with tribute concerts. From '70s disco to Fleetwood Mac and Bryan Adams celebrations, each evening promises high-energy fun under the stars.

For a performance with purpose, don’t miss The Longest Day 12-hour Concert on June 21. Musician Joshua Ingram will play from sunup to sundown as part of a global Alzheimer’s Association fundraiser. Bring $12, 12 friends, and your best dance moves for a cause worth supporting.

Whether you’re grooving to live music, floating through a neon-lit Gotham City, or digging for dino bones, Grapevine’s summer calendar is anything but ordinary. Start planning your adventure at GrapevineTexasUSA.com.

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Movie Review

Jessica Chastain drama Dreams stumbles through steamy romance

Photo courtesy of Teorema

Isaac Hernández and Jessica Chastain in Dreams.

The opening scenes of the new drama Dreams are bracing, fictional sequences that call to mind real-life scenarios. In them, a young Mexican man named Fernando (Isaac Hernández) goes through a somewhat harrowing journey from the back of a semi truck in South Texas all the way to San Francisco. It’s a familiar immigrant story that seems to set the stage for a film with something interesting to say.

It turns out, however, that Fernando has not made the long and arduous trek for a job. Instead, it’s to be with Jennifer McCarthy (Jessica Chastain), a rich woman who helps lead a foundation dedicated to multiple things, including funding dance academies. Fernando, a talented dancer, and Jennifer have been in an off-and-on affair for years, with Jennifer wanting to keep their relationship a secret.

Although both are drawn to each other in an inexplicable, lustful way, their bond is tenuous, with each of them dissatisfied for different reasons. Fernando clearly sacrifices much more of himself than Jennifer, who wants for nothing except maybe more affection from her father, Michael (Marshall Bell), and brother, Jake (Rupert Friend).

Writer/director Michel Franco seems to try to inject tension into Fernando and Jennifer’s relationship from the start, an attempt that is only halfway successful. It’s clear from the way they greet each other - not to mention a steamy sex scene shortly thereafter - that they have known each other for a good length of time. Franco is able to get across this familiarity with an economy of scenes, and the intensity of their bond holds for a while.

But as the film progresses and both of them grow disenchanted with their arrangement, Franco starts taking the story in some odd directions. The biggest issue is that it’s never clear at what point in time the story is taking place. Fernando ends up making multiple trips back and forth across the border, with Jennifer doing the same at one point, and Franco’s use of flashbacks muddies the waters, wrong-footing the audience when he should be trying to draw them further into Fernando and Jennifer’s complications.

Revelations in the final act make the story even more confusing, as both main characters start saying and doing harsh things that seem to come out of nowhere. That would be all well and good if Franco actually committed to their changes of heart, but he keeps things wishy-washy for most of the final 15 minutes, resulting in an ending that makes little sense for either character.

Despite the story issues, both Chastain and Hernández give compelling performances. Chastain has been a little under the radar since winning an Oscar for The Eyes of Tammy Faye, but she keeps this character interesting longer than it should have been. Hernández has limited credits and appears to have been cast for his dancing ability, but he goes toe-to-toe with Chastain on more than one occasion and acquits himself well.

Dreams had all of the ideas to explore a more in-depth story about the complicated immigration policies between Mexico and the U.S., or how wealthy people take advantage of those less fortunate. But Franco never finds the right footing, settling instead for a titillating and somewhat mystifying relationship story that feels half-baked.

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Dreams is now playing in select theaters.

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