Archives: March 2012
We Need to Talk About Kevin
We Need to Talk About Kevin, talented director Lynne Ramsay’s adaptation of Lionel Shriver’s novel, is a hard film to pan. This is because the movie seems exceedingly complex, and objections raised against it might seem like reactions against cinema that mean to challenge. And, boy, does Ramsay want to challenge us. But calling Kevin a disappointment doesn’t adequately convey…
The Hunger Games
The Hunger Games, based on the first of the hit young-adult novels by Suzanne Collins, posits a dystopian future where teenagers must fight to the death for the entertainment of the masses. It’s an altogether more nihilistic proposition than the Anglophilic derring-do of Harry Potter or the sub-Harlequin torment of Twilight, but it’s also a fairly common trope (remember The…
American Heartland Theatre gets Oscar
If it were up to me, Kansas City would celebrate Oscar Wilde every year, on the occasion of some U.K. national holiday. Given my bias, then, I had high hopes for the American Heartland Theatre’s new production of The Importance of Being Earnest. The works of the 19th-century poet, novelist and playwright have endured, though many may not be familiar…
John Velghe, somewhere between Minneapolis and Austin on Don’t Let Me Stay
Austin, Texas, lays claim to being the live-music capital of the world. And if there were a governor of such a province, few would argue that the title belonged to singer-songwriter Alejandro Escovedo. Last week, at South By Southwest, Escovedo’s likeness graced the cover of the weekly Austin Chronicle, he shared a stage with SXSW 2012 keynote speaker Bruce Springsteen,…
Andrew Bird on stage fright, the Lusitania and his latest, Break It Yourself
If you count the records with his former band, Bowl of Fire, Andrew Bird has released nine studio albums, six live albums and six EPs, all in the span of 14 years. That feat doesn’t include appearances on dozens of other recordings, including discs by Charlie Louvin and My Morning Jacket; a recent art installation at the Museum of Contemporary…
The origin stories of some of the biggest names in the comic-book industry start in KC
Forgotten dreams are often packed in cardboard boxes. That might explain a woman’s white-knuckled grip as she approaches Elite Comics’ counter on a Thursday afternoon in March. “She thinks I’m selling her childhood,” the woman says of her teenage daughter. The woman places a box on counter, where Star Wars action figures are piled like lobsters in a fish tank….
Music Forecast March 22-28
Mac Lethal with Astronautilus and Busdriver Hot off his 15 minutes of Web fame — as of press time, 22 million YouTube views of “Nerdy white kid KILLS ‘Look at Me Now’ ” — KC’s own Mac Lethal stops in at the Riot Room to sate his fervent fanbase with an evening of emo raps. Love him or hate him,…
Pandolfi’s is ready for a little respect
One of the questions people ask me most is, “Where did Kansas City gangsters eat back in the heyday of the mob?” Even Anthony Bourdain asked me, during his visit to town last December. If any of those spots still existed, I’d have driven the chef to one myself. The places popular with mobbed-up Kansas Citians in the 1940s and…
Woman found dead in backyard at 40th and Olive; man shot to death in Budd Park
KCMO homicide detectives were investigating two homicides on Monday. Before yesterday’s homicides, Kansas City, Missouri’s total homicide count for 2012 stood at 22. That total was equal to this time in 2008 (that year ended with 126 homicides). The homicide count was also ahead of 2011 and 2011 (15 and 18 homicides at this time, respectively). Monday saw two more…
Restaurateur Pete Peterman is back in the restaurant business
Heatherrose and Ray “Pete” Peterman will turn the former Amor Picante space into a “Missoura”-focused restaurant this spring. After weeks of negotiations, chef Ray “Pete” Peterman signed a lease yesterday with developer Greg Patterson to take over the venue at 900 West 39th Street — the location of the former Pangea, Caliente Grill and Amor Picante restaurants. It’s been five…
USA Today names Manifesto to its list of ’10 great places to have a drink underground’
After seeing the Cave, you’ll be rethinking your post-apocalyptic accommodations. For a little while, Kansas City had Manifesto all to itself. But the secret is out, and the cocktailerati? cocktailians? drinkers of renown? are all clued into the idea that you can get a spirited spirit right below the Rieger Hotel Grill & Exchange. USA Today is the latest entity…
Pig In: The bourbon and jalapeno bacon from Local Pig
Your meat gets it own box like a meat-based pastry shop. The beauty of a pig is all in the eye of the bacon holder. And the prettiest sow in town might just be the Local Pig (2618 Guinotte). The brand-new butcher shop in the East Bottoms has a case that keeps being bought out, and after only two weeks,…
What’s the worst food promotion you’ve ever seen?
She Knows Would you drink these three if the fourth was free? Free food does something to a person. It switches off the reasoning portion of our brain and replaces it with sweet and fat. It’s why people wait two hours for a free custard from Sheridan’s or go for the vasectomy that gets you a free pizza. There’s an…
Listen Before the Show: Psychic Ills
If you took R.E.M.’s “Pop Song 89,” added a shitload of reverb and organ, then smoked enough pot to keep you couchbound, you might have something approaching the sounds of New York’s Psychic Ills. Their recent Sacred Bones release, Hazed Dream, is a refreshingly laid-back wash of fuzz that manages to pique your interest without rendering any details obscure. They…
Colby Garrelts of Bluestem a James Beard finalist (again)
Garrelts at Bluestem Bluestem’s Colby Garrelts is one step closer to victory. This afternoon, the James Beard Foundation announced its award finalists, and Garrelts — named a semifinalist alongside Room 39’s Ted Habiger last month — is still in the running. Garrelts is one of five finalists in the Best Chef: Midwest category. He’s no stranger to the contest, having…
The dream is over: ESPN reports Peyton Manning will sign with the Denver Broncos
The Chiefs were never really in the running to land Peyton Manning, but fans were still holding out hope that there was a slim chance the quarterback would land here. It’s time to give up the dream. ESPN is reporting that the four-time NFL MVP will sign with the Denver Broncos. So, at least we’ll get to see him come…
Missouri Republican Senate candidates don’t know the minimum wage; vow to not increase it
As we’ve covered in the past, the GOP really wants to unseat Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill this fall. Conservative super PAC American Crossroads has already put up a billboard reminding voters of Planegate, and made ads about the senator’s votes that sound like news reports. Other times, nonpartisan groups have dinged McCaskill for less-than-hot-button issues, like being too soft on…
The Blue Line takes center ice in the Rivermarket
Facebook: Blue Line If you order a Smirnoff Ice at the Blue Line, is that considered icing? Kansas City might not be getting a pro hockey franchise, but at least hockey fans now have a place to debate the issue. The Blue Line (529 Walnut), a hockey-themed sports bar, has opened in the River Market. The sports bar had its…
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