Generous cheers
Bravissimo is the Italian way of saying not just “wow” but “wow” with exclamation points, cabaret lights and fireworks. It’s a fitting name for downtown’s newest trattoria, Bravissimo Wine Bar Cafe, which is set in the former Union City Tavern location. At its best, Italian food is about celebration, indulgence and comfort. And that’s what…
Trade possibilities
Let’s cut the pretense, shall we? Christmas “gift guides” are nothing more than a thinly veiled excuse for newspapers to suck up to advertisers in an attempt to rake in a few more bucks during the holiday season. There’s always a conceit: the “hot” gift guide, the “practical” gift guide, the “what-to-buy-your-jerkwad-boss” gift guide, the…
Game display of indie cinema
“Will all of the filmmakers please stand up?” The eighth edition of the Brouhaha Film & Video Showcase began with a roll call last Saturday afternoon at Maitland’s Enzian Theater. And when nearly half the audience rose to its feet, it was apparent that this was a festival not only for and by Florida talent,…
Racism dissected
Movie: American History X
Royal intrigue
Movie: Elizabeth
Private life under bright lights
Movie: Enemy of the State
Kid’s view with adult perspective
Movie: The Rugrats Movie
Woody’s work gets no help from dim stars
Movie: Celebrity
Racism dissected
Movie: American History X
Royal intrigue
Movie: Elizabeth
Private life under bright lights
Movie: Enemy of the State
Kid’s view with adult perspective
Movie: The Rugrats Movie
Woody’s work gets no help from dim stars
Movie: Celebrity
Lights! Camera! Now what do we do?
Focus In, a trade paper for the Florida entertainment industry, recently reported that an article in the Sept. 30, 1998, Wall Street Journal appeared to sound the death knell for our state as a serious film-producing community. The Journal story was quoted as calling the area a “bargain basement” of second-rate projects — a breeding…
Send ’em PACing
State Senate President Toni Jennings this week called for campaign spending limits on contributions to political parties, drawing praise from good-government groups but putting her at odds with the Republican leadership. “We would be delighted to work with her,” said Sally Spencer of Common Cause. GOP chair Tom Slade, however, harrumphed, “I don’t think such…
Plane logic
Without soliciting bids, Orlando International Airport staff recommended two contractors be stripped of multi-million-dollar jobs in favor of less experienced firms, one with longtime airport ties. The Orlando Business Journal reports that URS Greiner, of San Francisco, and Parsons Brinkerhoff, of Cincinnati, may lose $10 million each if the recommendations are adopted. The winners would…
Beauty pageant?
Drive into the city and the sign says “Welcome to Orlando, The City Beautiful.” Unless you come in through Parramore or north on Orange Blossom Trail. That’s because the city’s predominately African-American neighborhoods just aren’t beautiful enough for the signs. “We only put them in places where the vista was in keeping with the message,”…
No health, no care
Time for today’s Hog Report! These big snorters are HMOs — the corporations that now control America’s medical system. That huge one there is Aetna U.S. Healthcare, which has been a leader in squeezing the “care” out of our health-care system, pocketing prodigious profits by cutting back on the treatment it allows its doctors to…
Celebrity jeopardy
According to a Times of London report in October, 45 people (celebrities and prominent executives) have had low-power microchips surgically implanted in their bodies in order to make it easier for police to track them by global satellite in the event they are kidnapped. The Sky-Eye chip, made by the GenEtics company, consists of organic…
Women’s work?
These days, even among women who consider themselves feminists, the hot topic of discussion is how profoundly different men and women are — in their biology, in their styles of communication, in their core values. This exploration is converging on the professional world. Television watchers are going nuts for Ally McBeal, a high-powered lawyer whose…
Crybaby Bill
When Bill McCollum spoke, it was with the voice of a cool-headed statesman. “In essence, we prosecuted this summer,” he said. “The way that people came and had their lives displayed before the public were sanction enough for the misdeeds if there were misdeeds.” It was the kind of bipartisan, live-and-let-live statement that makes government…
The city hopes secret’s a success
The last time Orlando’s elected leadership popped a surprise on the cultural community, the result was the deservedly maligned Tower of Light outside City Hall — proof that one man’s art (in that case, former Mayor Bill Frederick’s) is another man’s atrocity. That’s less likely to happen this time. The donated paintings and sculpture of…
Review – In an Expression of the Inexpressible
Artist: Blonde Redhead
Review – Rialto
Artist: Rialto
Review – Gran Tourismo
Artist: Cardigans
Review – Wormwood
Artist: Residents
Review – Rialto
Artist: Rialto
Review – Gran Tourismo
Artist: Cardigans
Review – In an Expression of the Inexpressible
Artist: Blonde Redhead
Review – Wormwood
Artist: Residents
Review – Rialto
Artist: Rialto
Review – Gran Tourismo
Artist: Cardigans
Review – Wormwood
Artist: Residents
Review – In an Expression of the Inexpressible
Artist: Blonde Redhead
Review – Rialto
Artist: Rialto
Review – Gran Tourismo
Artist: Cardigans
Review – Wormwood
Artist: Residents
Explorations by two 20th-century masters
British artist Henry Moore has been hailed as the greatest sculptor of the 20th century, best known for large-scale abstract human figures. The exhibition at the Cornell Fine Arts Museum, though, features his small bronze maquettes (models for full-sized sculptures), lithographs and drawings, allowing a glimpse into his creative process. The exhibit runs simultaneously with…
Will the devil make you do it?
You may not believe this, but I get a fair amount of mail. I don’t mean coupon books and solicitations to buy X-rated videos. (Man, you buy one “porn bloopers” tape and they’re after you for life. And FYI, if you were thinking of buying a porn bloopers tape, don’t. Maybe it’s just my Three…
Louisiana flavor on Thanksgiving
Can’t wait for Thanksgiving turkey? If you want to break out of the box for this year’s dinner menu, try an alternative: deep-fried Cajun turkeys. Some restaurants are selling them as pickup catering orders. Leo’s Deli in Winter Springs (5934 Red Bug Lake Road) injects the turkeys with a Cajun-spiced citrus marinade, then deep-fries them…
Neglect thy neighbor
It’s now clear why Scientology’s David Miscavige gave that warm, fuzzy newspaper interview: An indictment was imminent. State’s Attorney Bernie McCabe charged the Church with criminal neglect and practicing medicine without a license in the 1995 death of member Lisa McPherson, who died in isolation at the Church headquarters in Clearwater. It was the first…
