City Week

Still Relevant

Screening of Akira Kurosawa's Stray Dog

7 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 19

Loft Cinema

3233 E. Speedway Blvd.

795-0844;

www.loftcinema.com

Certain movies hearken back to the days when life seemed simple—when there was little more on your mind during a movie than the softness of your jammies, a bowl of popcorn and the shenanigans of your favorite actor.

But when you revisit such movies later on in life, you may discover that these movies have lost their spark. This is no doubt due to the sad fact that many movies are crap—crap that serves to condescend to pop culture, make a ton of money and fizzle out.

And then there are the films of great artists like Akira Kurosawa.

"He's the foreign-language director for people who think they don't like classic films," said Jeff Yanc, program director for the Loft Cinema. "People who think they're not going to like older films, especially subtitled, from other countries ... when they see Kurosawa, they realize that his films are something they can relate to. They feel very contemporary, the way they're shot and edited and paced."

In celebration of the late Kurosawa's centennial (he was born in 1910), the Loft is playing four of his films over the course of the month.

"We tried to pick films that represented different aspects of his career," said Yanc. "There's a Samurai film, a comedy, a detective thriller, and there's a drama."

The aforementioned detective thriller is Stray Dog. It was one of many post-World War II movies that earned him worldwide critical acclaim.

"It's a mix of film noir and realist drama. It's intense ... fast-paced and exciting," said Yanc. "It was his first detective movie and probably his best one."

Tickets are $9 general admission, $7 for students and military members, $6 for seniors and children, and $5 for Loft members. —E.A.


All You Can Responsibly Drink

The Great Tucson Beer Festival

6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 16

Hi Corbett Field

3400 E. Camino Campestre

296-2400;

www.azbeer.com/tucson.htm

Sun Sounds of Arizona, a nonprofit organization that provides audio information to the visually impaired and blind, hit the nail on the head more than 20 years ago when it held the first Great Tucson Beer Festival.

Let's face it: A gathering organized around tasting beer is sure to get a huge turnout.

"It started in Phoenix, and it just became a huge deal. People love to sample beer. It's fun for people, but it is also safe. That's why we also have food there," said Mitzi Tharin, manager of Sun Sounds in Tucson. "... Theirs probably started close to 27 or 30 years ago."

The festival will feature plenty of entertainment alongside the grub and grog. Live music will be supplied by Blazing Edisons and Chronical Gone; there will be stage giveaways, and outdoor games like horseshoes and steer-roping (not a real steer, of course). The beer samples are included in the ticket price, along with snacks and food samples from Tucson eateries. Ticket prices vary, depending on whether you plan on drinking, are filling the ever-so-important designated driver role, or want VIP access at 5 p.m. General admission is $40.

The Sun Sounds fundraiser has taken place at several different venues in Tucson over the years, but Tharin said it has spent the most time at Hi Corbett, and thinks the baseball field is a great space for the event.

"It is great because the vendors can get their product out, and it is also a great fundraiser for us," Tharin said.

For more information on ticket prices, or to see a list of vendors and beer offerings, visit www.azbeer.com/tucson.htm. —E.B.

Photos from last year's fest:

Conspiracy + Wine

Richard Buyer discusses Why the JFK Assassination Still Matters

5 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 20

CataVinos

3063 N. Alvernon Way

323-3063;

www.catavinoswines.com

We can probably rule out the "cigarette smoking man" from The X-Files as an assassin in the shooting of President John F. Kennedy. But how far off from the truth are other conspiracies?

In his new book, Why the JFK Assassination Still Matters: The Truth for My Daughter Kennedy and for Generations to Come, Dr. Richard Buyer attempts to re-write the history of the 1963 tragedy on the grassy knoll.

Dr. Buyer practices medicine here in Tucson, and according to event director Bonnie Lewis, he has always had a fascination with the controversy surrounding the JFK assassination.

"When all of this happened, whatever the media told us, we believed," Lewis said. "Things have changed, and people are questioning now. ... He's (Buyer) pinpointed a lot of loopholes in the investigations."

In his book, Buyer states that the primary reason that questions surrounding the case haven't been resolved involves the discrepancies regarding the medical evidence provided by doctors at the hospital where the president was taken, versus the evidence recorded in the subsequent Warren Commission Report.

"He's written this so future generations will question ... instead of accepting everything as told," said Lewis.

Conspiracies aside, Buyer's book revisits the politics of the Kennedy administration, including the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Bay of Pigs, from an angle that probably wasn't taught by your history teacher.

According to Lewis, Buyer has plans to write future books on other controversial, historical occurrences.

Too help loosen the tongues of fellow skeptics, wine will be served by the glass for $5. Buyer will also be signing books and entertaining discussion. The event is free. —E.A.


Changing of the Season

Autumn Delight art show

Opening reception: 6 to 9 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 16

Exhibit on display 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Saturday, through Saturday, Nov. 27

Zoe Boutique

735 N. Fourth Ave.

740-1201;

www.zoestyle.com

In Tucson, we don't experience the changing of the seasons (outside of hot vs. slightly less hot). It might still seem like summer now, but autumn is upon us, and in case you forgot, Zoe Boutique is having an art show, Autumn Delight, to commemorate it.

Lissa Marinaro, owner of Zoe Boutique, handpicked the artists—who are all female, except for one.

"Except for one person, they are all artists who have shown here before. So I just picked people's work that I thought complemented one another," Marinaro said.

The show will showcase artwork from local artists KoKo Bellows, Nina Axan, George Belcher, Amy Hagemeier, Lisa Kanouse, Andrea Peterson and Lauren Russell.

Guests can expect works in varied mediums—from comic-strip art to a large installation piece in the front window, as well as complimentary refreshments during the opening reception. The majority of the artwork surrounds a theme of femininity and/or focuses on female subjects.

Marinaro explained: "A lot of the work is pretty feminine. ... KoKo Bellows does kind of like watercolors, and they are usually female subjects, but they are a little bit spooky. Andrea Pearson does female stuff, too, but hers are a little bit more sensual and a little bit more dreamlike, a little bit surreal."

Zoe Boutique, which functions as a clothing shop and a gallery, holds art openings on a semi-regular basis.

"We were doing them every other month, but now it is every two to three months. The last one we did was in June. We will have another one in December," Marinaro said.

Admission is free. —E.B.