Not Much of a 'Marvel': Brie Larson Seems Lethargic in the Decidedly Ho-Hum 'Captain Marvel'

Mar 14, 2019 09:30  |  Bob Grimm

It looks like somebody forgot to tell Brie Larson to have fun and let loose in Captain Marvel . Her turn as the title character, aka Carol Danvers, is laced with lethargy and bizarre line deliveries.

Samuel L. Jackson and an orange tabby fortunately seem to be enjoying themselves, but Larson is stiffer...

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Home Video Review: 'Instant Family' Is More Than Just a Run-of-the-Mill Family Comedy

Mar 12, 2019 10:00  |  Bob Grimm

While Instant Family might have the look of a routine family comedy, it is anything but: This movie is funny from start to finish, and it packs a couple of emotional punches, too.

Couple Pete and Ellie (Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne), might, just might, want kids, so they decide to look into adoption. T...

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Psycho-Stalker Fun: 'Greta' Isn't Groundbreaking, but Great Performances and Some Scares Make It Worthwhile

Mar 07, 2019 10:30  |  Bob Grimm

Isabelle Huppert goes bonkers in director Neil Jordan’s Greta , a silly, standard psycho-stalker film made somewhat fun by Huppert’s commitment to nuttiness, as well as co-star Chloe Grace Moretz’s excellence at playing freaked out.

Moretz is Frances, a young woman living in New York City with her best...

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Executions Halted: Gov. Gavin Newsom Places a Moratorium on Executions, Even Though Voters Recently Affirmed the Death Penalty

Mar 14, 2019 16:00  |  Laurel Rosenhall, CALmatters

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order on Wednesday, March 13, putting a moratorium on the death penalty in California and shuttering the execution chamber at San Quentin—a move that overrides a decision the state’s voters made in 2016 to maintain capital punishment.

While campaigning for govern...

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Mental Health-Care Struggles: Families Across California Say Their Loved Ones Aren't Getting the Treatment They Need

Mar 14, 2019 11:05  |  Jocelyn Wiener, CALmatters

Elizabeth Brown’s bedroom holds a trove of evidence of her fight to save herself.

Preserved among Twilight novels, posters of Korean pop singers and cameras she used for her budding journalism career are clues about the Santa Rosa teenager’s agonizing struggle with the mental illness that claimed her...

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The Foilies 2019: Recognizing the Year's Worst in Government Transparency, in Honor of Sunshine Week

Mar 12, 2019 08:50  |  the Electronic Frontier Foundation

The cause of government transparency finally broke through to the popular zeitgeist this year.

It wasn’t an investigative journalism exposé or a civil rights lawsuit that did it, but a light-hearted sitcom about a Taiwanese-American family set in Orlando, Fla., in the late 1990s.

In a January episode ...

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A Tragedy, Not a Triumph: Coverage of an Encounter Between a Runner and a Small Mountain Lion Perpetuates Unwarranted Fear

Mar 14, 2019 11:45  |  Beth Pratt, High Country News

I split my time between living outside of Yosemite National Park and in Los Angeles. The fact that I have the chance to see mountain lions in both places provides me with unending awe, and with hope: If a mountain lion can live in the middle of Los Angeles, wildness and wild things just might have a...

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The Weekly Independent Comics Page for March 14, 2019!

Mar 14, 2019 07:00  |  Staff

On this week's college-rejected weekly Independent comics page: Apoca Clips watches as Li'l Trumpy signs Bibles; Red Meat tries to maintain the telepathic link with the fish; This Modern World ponders the "extreme" nature of the Green New Deal; Jen Sorenson offers a field guide to bad-faith social-jus...

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Savage Love: My Grandfather Sexually Abused Me, as Well as My Mom and Others—and I Just Found Some Pictures of Him and My Mom. What Should I Do?

Mar 13, 2019 11:00  |  Dan Savage

My grandfather was a pillar of the community and beloved by his family. He was also sexually abusive. He died when I was a child. I remember only one incident happening to me—during a cuddle session, he encouraged me to put my mouth on his penis, and then told me to let it be our little secret.

I hea...

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It All Adds Up: Desert Ensemble's 'Proof' Is a Well-Acted Play—and You Don't Need to Like Math to Enjoy It

Mar 18, 2019 10:05  |  Valerie-Jean (VJ) Hume

It’s about math.

Oh no! Math was my worst subject in school, and here we are confronted with Proof , a play about real mathematical geniuses—the kind you see standing in front of an entire blackboard filled with incomprehensible squiggles. The Desert Ensemble Theatre Company has brought Proof to the Pear...

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Checkmate! CVRep Opens Its Stunning New Playhouse With a Fantastic Production of the Musical 'Chess'

Mar 17, 2019 12:50  |  Bonnie Gilgallon

There is only one word to express the feeling one gets when entering Coachella Valley Repertory’s new digs: awe.

Artistic director Ron Celona and his board of directors have completely transformed the old IMAX theater in Cathedral City into a live playhouse worthy of Broadway. From the impressive “Wa...

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The Making of a Gay Icon: Charles Busch Brings His Personal Cabaret Show to the Purple Room

Mar 14, 2019 16:30  |  Dwight Hendricks

How do you get the best roles written for you, both onstage and onscreen?

In the case of the great Charles Busch, you write the roles yourself.

The gay/drag icon—who also found mainstream success with his Tony Award-nominated play The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife —will bring his cabaret show Native New Y...

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All About Making Music: Longtime Local Hip-Hop Artist Willdabeast Is Finally Ready to Release Recordings of His Music

Mar 14, 2019 14:00  |  Brian Blueskye

Willdabeast is one of the best-known hip-hop artists in the Coachella Valley—even though he has not released any music or done any interviews.

However, thanks to a nudge from friend and collaborator Provoked, Willdabeast (William Randal) is now working to put himself out there more—including an upcom...

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The Lucky 13: Josh Heinz, Open-Mic Host and Member of Blasting Echo, 5th Town

Mar 04, 2019 19:50  |  Brian Blueskye

Josh Heinz is originally from Tennessee, but he's now a pillar in the Coachella Valley local music scene. He is the frontman for Blasting Echo, the guitarist for 5th Town, the founder of the Concert for Autism, and the host of Open-Mic Night at The Hood Bar and Pizza every Wednesday. See Blasting Ec...

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The Blueskye Report, March 2019: Rob Lowe, Michael McDonald, Los Temerarios, Cold Cave—and a Whole Lot More!

Feb 28, 2019 14:00  |  Brian Blueskye

March brings both the revelry of St. Patrick’s Day and increasingly warmer weather—which, given the relatively cold February we had, will be even more welcome than normal.

Oh, and March is also bringing a lot of great shows, too!

The McCallum Theatre has plenty going on in March. At 8 p.m., Friday, Mar...

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The Indy Endorsement: The Famous Truffle Tots at Heirloom Craft Kitchen

Mar 14, 2019 15:40  |  Jimmy Boegle

What: The famous truffle tots

Where: Heirloom Craft Kitchen, 49990 Jefferson St., No. 100, Indio

How much: $6; $4 when added to an entrée

Contact: 760-773-2233; heirloomcraftkitchen.com

Why: The crispiness, the seasoning and the sauces.

Andie Hubka is one of the valley’s most talented restaurateurs. More than ...

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Caesar Cervisia: Due to the Craft Boom, Some Defunct Historic Beer Styles Have Made Comebacks

Mar 13, 2019 10:15  |  Brett Newton

For the casual craft-beer drinker, it’s difficult enough to simply keep up with all of the different IPAs that keep sprouting up. Is it a New England IPA or a milkshake IPA? What is a brut IPA? Or a Southwest IPA? What’s the difference between a hoppy sour ale and a sour IPA?

Thankfully, I’m here to ...

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The Indy Endorsement: The Reuben at Wexler's Deli at the Arrive Hotel

Mar 07, 2019 16:10  |  Jimmy Boegle

What: The Reuben

Where: Wexler’s Deli at Arrive Palm Springs, 1551 N. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs

How much: $17

Contact: 760-507-1640; wexlersdeli.com/wexlers-arrive-palm-springs

Why: It’s a top-notch sandwich.

When it was announced that Wexler’s—a Jewish-style deli with three popular Los Angeles-area loca...

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