PAGE 17WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2018

THE HERALDEntertainment: Weekend

Just before advance showings of certain films, the stars and/or director will appear onscreen to share their passion for the project

and to express their hopes we’ll enjoy the movie.

Such was the case with the screening for “Instant Family,” starring Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne as a childless couple who foster three siblings. In a straight-to-camera message, director and co-writer Sean Anders explained the story was inspired by his own experiences when he and his wife, Beth, adopted three siblings some seven years ago.

It was the hardest thing they’ve ever done, said Anders, but also the most wonderful thing ever to happen to them.

No doubt. Huge respect to An-ders and his wife for taking on such an enormous responsibility and providing a home for three children.

Of course I was rooting for “In-stant Family” to deliver as a heart-warming comedy with elements of poignant drama. Alas, despite winning performances from the adults and the young ones — and yes, some lump-in-the-throat mo-ments — “Instant Family” is a disappointing and uneven mix

of broad comedy and sometimes heavy-handed melodrama.

Further lessening the emotion-al impact: momentum-stopping scenes that feel like lectures about the foster care system, a strange cameo by a celebrated actress that takes us right out of the story, and a raunchy subplot better suited to previous Anders screenplays for R-rated films such as “We’re the Millers” and “Horrible Bosses 2.”

Mark Wahlberg’s Pete and Rose Byrne’s Ellie are a happily mar-ried couple who have reconciled themselves to never having chil-dren, until Rose clicks on a foster care website filled with pictures of adorable kids hoping one day

to be adopted. Pete sneaks a look at Rose’s laptop after she’s gone to bed, and they decide it couldn’t hurt to attend just one meeting to learn about the process of foster-ing kids.

Octavia Spencer and Tig No-taro play the good-cop-bad-cop social workers presiding over the introductory session, where they tell the enthusiastic and naive pro-spective foster parents no matter how difficult they think it might be, it’s going to be WAY tougher than that. (In addition to Pete and Ellie, the attendees include a gay couple, a religious couple who say they’re following God’s plan, and a Caucasian woman with a specif-

ic and unsettling mission: to take in a physically imposing, African-American teenage male with un-tapped athletic potential. This prompts Ellie to point out: “That’s the plot of ‘The Blind Side.”’)

Without thinking it through, Pete and Ellie opt to host THREE siblings who have bounced around foster care: the surly Lizzy (Isa-bela Moner), a cynical, bedroom-door-slamming teenager; the sen-sitive and sweet Juan (Gustavo Quiroz), who curls up in a ball and cries, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry” whenever he makes the slightest mistake, leading us to believe he’s been abused; and the adorable but clearly troubled Lita (Julianna

Gamiz), who is prone to intense fits in which she hurls things around and screams with rage.

And let’s not forget, not only are Pete and Ellie learning how to be guardians on the fly, they’re not exactly versed in Hispanic culture.

Still, against all odds, as the weeks and months pass by, there’s a chance they can become a per-manent family, but of course, that’s when the real setbacks and challenges surface.

In the aforementioned story thread that pushes the boundar-ies of the film’s PG-13 rating, El-lie catches Lizzy as she’s about to send naked selfies to a guy. This leads to a bizarre series of events featuring graphic language about male genitalia, a very pub-lic humiliation of a character who doesn’t deserve it, and Pete and Ellie behaving like reckless idiots.

Meanwhile, Margo Martindale (as Pete’s mom) and Julie Hagerty (as Ellie’s mother) play potential-grandma characters straight out of a second-tier sitcom, making the tonal change all that more abrupt when the focus shifts to a courtroom drama, with the chil-dren’s birth mother (Eve Harlow), a recovering drug addict recently released from prison, petitioning to regain full custody of the kids.

And then there’s the late-in-the-story, utterly unnecessary and truly baffling appearance by the wonderful Joan Cusack as an apparently unhinged woman who lives around the block from Pete and Ellie and becomes a weirdly distracting observer of some life-changing moments involving a number of people she has just met.

“Instant Family” has heart and good intentions. It’s a shame the journey is such a bumpy ride as it takes us all over the map.

Couple, foster kids become a weighty bunchR I C H A R D R O E P E R

Instant Familyêê

Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Rose Byrne, Isabela Moner, Gustavo Quiroz, Julianna GamizRating: PG-13 for thematic elements, sexual material, language and some drug references.

HOPPER STONE/PARAMOUNT PICTURES/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Mark Wahlberg, left, Rose Byrne, Gustavo Quiroz, Isabela Moner, and Julianna Gamiz star in “Instant Family.” The family is showing at Jasper 8 Theatres.

All times are Eastern unless otherwise noted.

Current cinemaNew ReleasesGreen Book êêê½ Viggo Mortensen plays a thick-headed lunk from the Bronx and Mahershala Ali is the musician he’s driving through the South in 1962, and both are nothing but believable. This is a friendship story, and one of the best times I’ve had at the movies this year. (Comedy drama, PG-13, 2 hrs. 10 min.)

Currently playingBohemian Rhapsody ê (Jasper 8 Theatres) The greatly gifted Rami Malek is given zero chance to create a believable, in-depth portrayal of Queen leader Freddie Mercury in this shamelessly scripted biopic. What a crushing, unmitigated, stunningly inept and astonishingly tone-deaf disaster. (Music biography, PG-13, 2 hrs. 15 min.)

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald êê½ (Jasper 8 Theatres) While the performances are solid, the sequel to J.K. Rowling’s “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” sinks under the weight of too many intersecting storylines and not enough focus on the fascinating, fractured relationship of wizards Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) and Dumbledore (Jude Law). (Fantasy adventure, PG-13, 2 hrs. 14 min.)

The Grinch êê Here’s a new take on the Dr. Seuss tale/And this is quite a match:/The Grinch is voiced — just wait for it/By the man called Cumberbatch!/From time to time you’ll laugh and maybe shed a tear/But this isn’t the kind of

“Grinch” you’ll want to see each year. (Animated comedy, PG, 1 hr. 30 min.) Instant Family êê (Jasper 8 Theatres) Without thinking it through, a married couple (Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne) decides to foster three troubled siblings. The well-intentioned but disappointing result is an uneven mix of broad comedy and sometimes heavy-handed melodrama. (Comedy drama, PG-13, 1 hr. 48 min.)

Widows êêêê (Jasper 8 Theatres) Viola Davis deserves a best actress nomination for her performance as a criminal’s wife plotting a heist of her own. Even the relatively peripheral characters are unforgettable in this film — part political thriller, part family drama, part race and class commentary. This is one of the best movies of 2018. (Crime thriller, R, 2 hrs. 8 min.)

IMAXShowplace Cinemas East, 1801 Morgan Center Drive, Evansville: “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.” www.showplacecinemas.com

EventsAttractionsAngel Mounds Historic Site, 8215 Pollack Ave., Evansville. Hours (CT): 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays. www.angelmounds.org

Big Splash Adventure, Valley of the Springs Resort, 8505 W. State Road 56, French Lick. 877-936-3866 or www.bigsplashadventure.com

Falls of the Ohio State Park

Interpretive Center, at the end of West Riverside Drive, Clarksville. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and Saturdays and 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays. www.fallsoftheohio.org

Indiana Caverns, 1267 Green Acres Lane S.W., Corydon. Features a 25-minute boat ride, a waterfall, thriving cave life and Big Bone Mountain. Hours: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily April through October and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily November through March. Closed Christmas. www.indianacaverns.com

Indiana Railway Museum, French Lick. Excursion trains depart from the former Monon Railroad Passenger Station. The two-hour, 20-mile trip takes passengers though several limestone rock cuts, part of the Hoosier National Forest

and the 2,200-foot Burton Tunnel. Special events: Polar Express, Fridays-Sundays, through Dec. 23, and Thursday, Dec. 20. Museum hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, free. 800-748-7246 or www.indianarailwaymuseum.org

Jasper City Mill, 160 Third Ave. The mill features cornmeal ground on site, craft items, old-fashioned candy and local products. Exhibit (changes every six months): Dubois County Art Guild Gallery Walk, items from artisans and rustic Amish furniture available in the gift shop. Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays.

Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial,

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17 Entertainment

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THE HERALD ■ WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2018PAGE 18 ■ ENTERTAINMENT: WEEKEND

Lincoln City (all times CT). Special program: Learn about life without electricity, 5-8 p.m., Saturday. Park hours: Memorial Visitor Center, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. through March 31, 2019; farm, closed for the season; nature center, open, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays; Colonel Jones Home, noon-4 p.m. Thursdays-Sundays, June-August. www.nps.gov/libo/ or 812-937-4541

Louisville Zoo, 1100 Trevilian Way. Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily through March 15, 2019. www.louisvillezoo.org

Marengo Cave Park: The Crystal Palace walking tour features a formation-filled room and huge flowstone deposits, while the Dripstone Trail walking tour is known for its profusion of delicate soda straw formations, slender totem pole stalagmites and penny ceiling. Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. http://marengocave.com

Mega Cavern, 1841 Taylor Ave., Louisville. Historic Tram Tours, Mega Zips and Mega Quest, an underground ropes challenge. Closed major holidays. 877-614-6342 or www.louisvillemegacavern.com

Mesker Park Zoo, 1545 Mesker Park Drive, Evansville. Hours (CT): 9 a.m.-4 p.m. daily. 812-435-6143 or www.meskerparkzoo.com

Wilstem Ranch, Paoli: Grizzly, Giraffe and Kangaroo Encounters. www.wilstemranch.com or 812-936-4484

Other eventsHadi Shrine Circus, today-Sunday, The Ford Center, 1 S.E. MLK Jr. Blvd., Evansville. For tickets call 800-745-3000 or visit www.ticketmaster.com

Santa Claus Land of Lights, 5-9 p.m. CT today; Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Dec. 9; and nightly, Dec. 13-30 (closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day), Lake Rudolf Campground & RV Resort, Santa Claus. $15 per car.

Upcoming eventsO’Tannenbaum Days, Nov. 30-Dec. 2, Jasper.

Bourbon & Bites, 8 p.m. Nov. 30, Atrium, West Baden Springs Hotel. Reservations required. 812-936-5579

Christmas Celebration, weekends, Dec. 1-16, Santa Claus.

Will Read and Sing For Jasper Endows Today and Tomorrow (JETT), 7 p.m. Dec. 1, Calumet, Jasper. Zion, Shawn Needham, Kyle Lueken (with Chip Morris and Danny Carr), The Gatwoods, Andy Hagedorn, Trina Severson, Greg Eckerle and Scott Saalman.

Treemendous Christmas in the Village, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. CT, Dec. 1, Lincoln Pioneer Village & Museum, 928 Fairground Drive, Rockport.

Will Read and Sing for Jasper Endows Today and Tomorrow, 7 p.m. Dec. 1, The Calumet, Jasper.

Mixology Class: A History of Cocktails, 5 p.m. Dec. 2, West Baden Springs Hotel. Reservations required. 812-936-5579

Festival of Lights, 5-9 p.m. CT Saturdays, Dec. 8-15, Christmas Lake Village, Santa Claus.

Will Read and Sing for the Jasper-Dubois County Public Library, 7 p.m. Dec. 11, Sultan’s Run Golf Club, Jasper.

Wine & Dessert Soirée, 9 p.m. Dec. 14, Atrium, West Baden Spring Hotel. Reservations required. 812-936-5579

Candlelight Walk, 4:30-8 p.m. CT Dec. 15 and Jan. 19, 2019, Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial, Lincoln City.

Will Read and Sing for Food: The Last Chicken Dance, final show, 7 p.m. Dec. 21, Astra Theatre, Jasper.

Wine Pairings, 8 p.m. Dec. 28, Atrium, West Baden Spring Hotel. Reservations required. 812-936-5579

Cirque Du Soleil: Corteo, Jan. 23-27, 2019, The Ford Center, , 1 S.E. MLK Jr. Blvd., Evansville. For tickets call 800-745-3000 or visit www.ticketmaster.com

Frozen on Ice, April 4-7, 2019, The

Ford Center, , 1 S.E. MLK Jr. Blvd., Evansville. For tickets call 800-745-3000 or visit www.ticketmaster.com

ExhibitsKrempp GalleryExhibits: Barb McCullough and Nancy Gerber, through Nov. 28,; Visual Arts Committee, Dec. 3-26; volunteer reception 5-7 p.m. Dec. 7. Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursdays and noon to 3 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays.

Saint MeinradArchabbey LibraryHours: Call 357-6401 or 800-987-7311 or visit www.saintmeinrad.edu/library/hours/

Other galleriesIvy Tech Bower-Suhrheinrich Visual Arts Center, 3501 N. First Ave., Evansville. Hours (CT): 1-6 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays. Closed major holidays. www.ivytech.edu/southwest

Flame Run Glass Studio and Gallery, 815 W. Market St., Louisville. Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Closed major holidays. 502-584-5353 or www.flamerun.com

The Green Building Gallery, 732 E. Market St., Louisville. Hours: 9-5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Fridays and 4-9 p.m. Saturdays. Closed major holidays. www.thegreenbuilding.net/gallery/index.html or 502-561-1162

New Harmony Gallery of Contemporary Art, 506 Main St. Hours (CT): 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Closed major holidays. 812-682-3156 or www.nhgallery.com

Dubois County MuseumMembership: 2019 memberships are available. Purchase a membership and receive free admission into the museum from the day the membership is purchased through Dec. 31, 2019.

Kinder Karneval, 1:15 p.m. Sunday.

Singing Seniors: Christmas Carols, 3 p.m., Sunday; Refreshments.

Storytime for Kids, 10:30 a.m., Saturdays, Dec. 8, Jan. 12, Feb. 9, March 9, April 13, and May 11.

O’Tannenbaum Days, Saturday-Sunday, Dec. 1-2: Breakfast with Santa, 9 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, reservations required by Saturday Nov. 24 sending an email to csermersh@hotmail.com; Strings Inc. concert, 2 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 1; and Lisa Hoppenjans on violin, 2 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 2, Log House front porch.

Cookie Walk, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 8, and 1-3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 9.

Dubois County Country Cloggers, 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 9; refreshments will be served.

Christmas Lego Train, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 15.

Movie and popcorn, 12:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 15.

Blake Buechlein and his Patoka River alligator, snakes, lizards and turtles, 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 16.

Permanent exhibits: Our Eldest Daughter, The Cold War (1945-1991), Black Heritage in Dubois County, Grand Army of the Republic, A Bicentennial Remembrance: The Story of German Immigration to Dubois County, Safari Room, The Story of Bill Schroeder and the Jarvik Heart; Main Street Dubois County (a model town from the 1900s featuring 17 businesses, including Stewart Hotel, Schutz’s Shoe Service and a funeral home, doctor’s office, jail, barbershop, church, bank, surveying office and bar), Grand Army of the Republic, Little Pioneer Children’s Play Area (includes one-room schoolhouse, book nook, toy area and dress-up area), Lewis and Clark keel boat, The Law in Dubois County, Honoring the Military, The Civil War Diary of William C. Benson, Model Trains, Dubois County in World War I, The Spanish-American War and Dubois County, Huntingburg Wagon Works, Girl Scouting in Dubois County, People of the Woodlands, Trace the Buffalo,

Pioneer Area, Germans, Land Owners Map, Early Settlers of Dubois County, Cheering our Champions, Furniture, Civil War Flag, Prisoners of War, The Mills of Dubois County. Also, Heidet Blacksmith Shop, depicts the original shop from Ferdinand; Lindauer Sandstone Quarry and Grindstone Works of St. Henry, displays days of sandstone manufacturing; Eckert Log Home, assembled log home inside the museum shows building material and home life inside a German-style log home; Women’s Work is Never Done, choreographs the daily work week of pioneer women; History of Coal Mining; Meyer Planing Mill of Haysville; Ferdinand Sawmill; Huntingburg Buggy Works wagon; History of Boy Scouting; Antique Farm Machinery, featuring more than 75 pieces, including a binder, reaper, corn shredder and 1879 Buckeye hoe wheat drill; Tinker the Horse, represents the contribution of animals to the history of the area; silver smelter from Buck Shoals in Haysville; giant fruit press; threshing machine belted to a Kitten engine, one of five working steam engines; cane press and evaporator pan like the one used to make Birdseye molasses; and murals of Zoar, Birdseye, Celestine, Dubois, Duff, Ferdinand, Huntingburg, Portersville/Boone Township, St. Henry/Johnsburg, St. Anthony/St. Marks, Holland, Haysville, Ireland, Jasper and Schnellville.

Hours: The museum, 2704 N. Newton St., is open from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays and 1-4 p.m. Sundays. Admission charged. Can be found on Facebook and at www.duboiscountymuseum.org. 812-634-7733

Huntingburg MuseumOn exhibit: Commercial, manufacturing, military, school and social club memorabilia; the Geiger bedroom, family Bible and other belongings; a dollhouse inside a grandmother clock; a pony cart; and a 1950s kitchen.

The museum is in Huntingburg City Hall, 508 E. Fourth St. Hours: 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays unless City Hall is closed and by appointment. Closed major holidays. 683-2211.

Santa Claus Museum & VillageVillage: 1880 Santa Claus Church, the original Santa Claus Post Office and 1935 Santa Claus Statue.

Museum: exhibits on the history of Santa Claus, including the beginnings of the town, its post offices, Candy Castle and the evolution of Santa Claus Land to Holiday World and free letters to Santa. The museum is at 69 N. State Road 245.

Gift shop, museum and village hours (CT): 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturdays and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays, through November. 812-544-2434 or www.santaclausmuseum.org

Other museums Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum, 311 W. Second St., Owensboro. bluegrassmuseum.org

Evansville African American Museum, 579 S. Garvin St. Hours (CT): 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and noon-5 p.m. Saturdays. Closed major holidays. 812-423-5188 or www.evansvilleaamuseum.org

Evansville Museum of Arts, History & Science, 411 S.E. Riverside Drive. Hours (CT): 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and noon-5 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays. 812-425-2406 or www.emuseum.org

Frazier History Museum, 829 W. Main St., Louisville. Exhibits: The Lewis & Clark Experience, through 2018. Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and noon-5 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays. 502-753-5663 or www.fraziermuseum.org

Henager Memories & Nostalgia Museum, 8837 S. State Road 57, Elberfeld. Hours (CT): 8 a.m.-5 p.m., weekdays and 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays. Closed major holidays. 812-795-2230 or www.henagermuseum.com

Koch Family Children’s Museum of Evansville, 22 S.E. Fifth St. Hours (CT): 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays through

Thursdays, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and noon-5 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays. 812-464-2663 or www.cmoekids.org.

Owensboro (Ky.) Museum of Fine Art, 901 Frederica St. Hours (CT): 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Fridays and 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. 270-685-3181 or www.omfa.us

Owensboro Museum of Science and History, 122 E. Second St. Hours (CT): 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 1-5 p.m. Sundays.

Red Skelton Museum of American Comedy, 20 Red Skelton Blvd., Vincennes. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and noon-5 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays. 812-888-2105

Reitz Home Museum, 224 S.E. First St., Evansville. Hours: 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m. CT Tuesdays through Sundays. Closed major holidays. 812-426-1871 or www.reitzhome.com

Speed Art Museum, 2035 S. 3rd St., Louisville. Exhibits: American Story book: The Imaginary Travelogue of Thomas Chambers, through Jan. 6; Picasso to Pollock: Modern Masterwoks from the Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University, through Jan. 13; and Keltie Ferris: •O•P•E•N•, through Feb. 3. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. 502-852-5555

Science CentersKentucky Science Center, 737 W. Main St., Louisville. Hours: 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 9:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and noon-6 p.m. Sundays. Closed major holidays. 800-591-2203 or www.kysciencecenter.org

Night LifeDancesAmerican Legion Post 147, Jasper: 7-9 p.m. Tuesdays, line and couples dancing. $5, 482-5426 for information.

Orange County Senior Citizens Center, 8497 W. Main St., French Lick: 7-9:30 p.m. Fridays, dance with live band.

William Tell Center, 1301 11th St., Tell City, 7-10 p.m. CT Saturdays. Open to all ages; smoke and alcohol free. $5, includes snacks. Sponsored by the William Tell Senior Citizens.

BarsGaslight, Huntingburg: Open Mic Night, 8-11 p.m. Thursdays.

CasinosTropicana, Evansville: Thrown the Horns, Friday-Saturday; Dance Floor Riot, Nov. 30-Dec. 1; The Brat Pack, Dec. 7-8. www.tropicanacasinos.com

French Lick Casino: Casino Lounge (8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.) — Dean Heckel, Saturday; Moonshine @ Sunrise, Dec. 1; DJ Rishi, Dec. 8; Southern Sirens, Dec. 15; DJ Charlie, Dec. 22; and WildWood, Dec. 31. Event Center

— Gaither Vocal Band and Holiday Homecoming Show, 7 p.m. Saturday. 888-936-9360 or www.frenchlick.com/entertainment/concerts

On stage Actors Community TheatreDinner theatre: “The Dinner Party,” April 4-6, 2019. Dinner theatre patrons must be 18 or older.

Plays: “Into the Woods,” July 25-28, 2019.

All of the shows will be performed at the Jasper Arts Center. Season tickets and two-event packages are available at ActorsCommunityTheatre.com.

Historic Astra TheatreConcerts: Rodney Crowell, The Why Store, 6:30 p.m., Dec. 8.

Movies: “Elf,” 7 p.m. Dec. 1; and “Christmas Vacation,” 7 p.m., Dec. 15.

Tickets for all events available at www.AstraTheatre.Eventbrite.com.

Jasper Arts CenterMain Stage Series — “A Christmas Carol,” 7:30 p.m., Dec. 14; Mark Chesnutt and Joe Diffie, 7:30 p.m., Jan. 19; and Forever Young: You Life/Your Music, 7:30 p.m., Feb. 9.

Backstage Series — The Poulenc Trio, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 27; and Matt Beilis, 7:30 p.m., March 8.

Family Fun Series — The Amazing Max, 3:30 p.m., Feb. 24.

Live at The Astra! — The Good Humor Men, 7:30 p.m., March 15.

Tickets are available by calling the arts center at 482-3070.

Area concertsAbbeydell Hall at the Legend of French Lick, 7328 W. County Road 100 W, West Baden Springs: Christmas Treasures, Tuesday and Dec. 1, 8, 14-15 and 22. www.legendoffrenchlick.com/abbeydell-hall

Huntingburg Music Hall, 312 N. Main St.: The Shotgun Red Show and Opry Family Christmas Show, 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 15; doors open at 6:15 p.m. Free shuttle available at Opry entrance. $20 in advance by calling Nina at 812-893-1570.

Other concertsCorydon Live (formerly Corydon

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18 Entertainment

SHOW TIM ES FOR N OV EM B ER 2 1-N OV EM B ER 2 3 ALL TIM ES AR E EST * N O PASSES

2 5 6 B R U C K E S T R A S S E • JA S P E R M o vies And Sho w Tim es M a y V a ry Thea tre B o x O ffic e: 8 12 -4 8 2 -9 3 8 8

Reserve tickets online: w w w .jasper8theatre.com

BOHEM IA N RHA PS ODY (PG-13) W ED: 11:30 • 2:20 • 6:30 TH U RS: 4:25 • 7:15 FRI: 11:30 • 2:20 • 6:30 • 9:25

CREED II (PG-13) W ED: 11:30 • 2:05 • 4:35 • 7:05 TH U RS: 4:35 • 7:05 FRI: 11:30 • 2:05 • 4:35 • 7:05 • 9:35 * FA N TA S TIC BEA S TS : THE CRIM ES OF GRIN DEL W A L D 2D (PG-13) W ED: 2:15 • 6:45 TH U RS: 4:30 • 7:25 FRI 2:15 • 6:45 • 9:30 * FA N TA S TIC BEA S TS : THE CRIM ES OF GRIN DEL W A L D 3D (PG-13) W ED: 11:25 * IN S TA N T FA M IL Y (PG-13) W ED: 11:25 • 2:00 • 4:35 • 7:10 TH U RS: 4:40 • 7:20 FRI: 11:25 • 2:00 • 4:35 • 7:10 • 9:45 * RA L PH BREA K S THE IN TERN ET 2D (PG) W ED: 2:10 • 4:45 • 7:15 TH U RS: 4:45 • 7:15 FRI: 2:10 • 4:45 • 7:15 • 9:40 * RA L PH BREA K S THE IN TERN ET 3D (PG) W ED: 11:40 FRI: 11:40

ROBIN HOOD (PG-13) W ED: 11:50 • 2:20 • 4:50 • 7:20 TH U RS: 4:50 • 7:35 FRI: 11:50 • 2:20 • 4:50 • 7:20 • 9:50

THE GRIN CH (PG) W ED: 11:55 • 2:15 • 4:25 • 6:40 TH U RS: 4:25 • 6:40 FRI: 11:55 • 2:15 • 4:25 • 6:40 • 9:10 * W IDOW S (R) W ED: 11:45 • 2:30 • 6:35 TH U RS: 4:45 • 7:30 FRI: 11:45 • 2:30 • 6:35 • 9:20

ENTERTAINMENT: WEEKEND ■ PAGE 19THE HERALD ■ WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2018

Jamboree), 320 Hurst Lane, north of town square: Lloyd Wood Comedy and Country Music Show, Dec. 1; Christy Miller, Kelly Casey and Mike Boughey, Dec. 8; Clinton Spaulding, Brandi Anderson and Josh McMillen, Dec. 15; and Billy Keith and Greg Perkins, Dec. 29. 812-734-6288 or www.corydon.live

Derby Dinner Playhouse, Clarksville: 812-288-8281 or www.derbydinner.com.

The Ford Center, 1 S.E. MLK Jr. Blvd., Evansville: Luke Combs, Feb. 13, 2019. For the complete schedule, visit www.thefordcenter.com. For tickets call 800-745-3000 or visit www.ticketmaster.com

KFC Yum! Center, Louisville: Bob Seger, Dec. 8. For the complete schedule, visit www.kfcyumcenter.com. For tickets call 800-745-3000 or visit www.ticketmaster.com

The Kentucky Center, 501 W. Main St., Louisville: Mannheim Steamroller Christmas, Sunday; and Jim Brickman: A Joyful Christmas, Dec. 12. www.kentuckycenter.org

Louisville Palace Theater, 625 S. Fourth St.: Kansas, March 23, 2019. For a complete schedule, visit www.louisvillepalace.com. 800-745-3000 or www.ticketmaster.com

Owensboro Convention Center, 501 W. Second St.: A Rockin’ Country Christmas, Dec. 15. OwensboroTickets.com

Victory Theatre, 600 Main St., Evansville (all times CT): Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra: Peppermint Pops, 7 p.m. Dec. 1 and 2 p.m. Dec. 2. www.evansvillephilharmonic.org or www.victorytheatre.com

Area playsHeritage Hills Auditorium, 3644 E. County Road 160N, Lincoln City: “Scrooge’s Christmas,” 1, 3 and 6 p.m. CT Dec. 8 and 15 and 2 p.m. CT Dec. 16. $10 adults, $5 ages 13 and younger at the door.

Other playsActors Theatre of Louisville, 316 W. Main St.: “The Santaland Diaries,” through Dec. 23; and “A Christmas Carol,” Tuesday-Dec. 23; . 502-584-1205 or www.actorstheatre.org/visit/ticketing-options/

Derby Dinner Playhouse, Clarksville: “Holiday Inn,” through Dec. 31; and “A Velveteen Rabbit Christmas,” Saturday-Dec. 22. 812-288-8281 or www.derbydinner.com.

Evansville Civic Theatre, 717 N. Fulton Ave.: “Dashing Through the Snow,” Dec. 7-9 and 14-16; “Big River,” Jan. 25-27 and Feb. 1-3; “And Then There Were None,” March 22-24 and 29-31; and “The 39 Steps,” May 17-19 and 24-26. www.evansvillecivictheatre.org or 812-425-2800.

The Kentucky Center, 501 W. Main St., Louisville: “A Christmas Story,” Tuesday-Dec. 2; and “Hamilton,” June 4-23, 2019. www.kentuckycenter.org

RiverPark Center, 101 Daviess St., Owensboro: “Wizard of Oz,” Feb. 7; “Something Rotten,” Feb. 26, 2019; and “Kinky Boots,” April 3, 2019.

Victory Theatre, 600 Main St., Evansville (all times CT): Noel, Dec. 7. www.victorytheatre.com

“Have you ever worked in poli-tics before?”

“No.”“Why do you want to work for

Gary?”

“I like his positions.” — Ex-change between Gary Hart’s cam-paign manager and Hart’s alleged mistress, Donna Rice, in “The Front Runner.”

It’s a different time.We keep hearing that in “The

Front Runner.” The journalists covering the 1988 presidential race and the campaign operatives deal-ing with scandalous rumors keep saying: “It’s a different time.”

In Jason Reitman’s whip-smart and funny and poignant look back at a scandal that forever changed the political landscape, famed Washington Post editor Ben Bra-dlee (Alfred Molina) initially dis-misses talk of covering the stories of womanizing by Gary Hart, the presumptive Democratic nominee.

Bradlee tells a story about Lyn-don Baines Johnson meeting pri-vately with White House reporters shortly after becoming president.

“You’re going to see a lot of women coming and going,” said Johnson, according to Bradlee. “I expect you to show me the same discretion you showed Jack (Kennedy).”

But it’s a different time, comes the argument from some of Bra-dlee’s lieutenants. The days of the press ignoring the private in-discretions of the nation’s leaders were screeching to a halt.

Favoring a docudrama style, di-rector/co-writer Reitman nails all the period-piece details — from the newsgathering technology of the time to the dominance of the print media to the chain-smoking to the wardrobe but “The Front Runner” also has the distinct flavor of a politi-cal satire, somewhere between Rob-ert Altman’s HBO series “Tanner ‘88” and “Veep.”

Sure, at times this is deadly serious stuff. But it also has ele-ments of pure farce, as two report-ers from the Miami Herald stake out Hart’s townhouse and mark the comings and goings of a young female guest, without realizing there was also a back entrance, so the assumptions they were making were just that. Assump-tions. Nevertheless, they ran with a story implying Hart was having an affair, and lives were changed.

Hugh Jackman, sporting a somewhat distracting brown hairpiece and looking vaguely

Kennedy-esque, does a solid job of capturing Hart’s impressive grasp of the issues and his unde-niable, camera-friendly charisma — but also his arrogance and his unbounding ego. (Hart once said only 50 percent of him wanted to be president, but “the 50 percent that wants to be president is better than 100 percent of the others.”)

Hart is the centerpiece of the story, but “The Front Runner” is often more fascinating when the candidate is offscreen and we’re following the journalists covering him and the campaign staffers try-ing to save him.

Reitman mainstay J.K. Sim-mons is perfectly cast as Hart’s campaign manager, Bill Dixon, a gruff and cynical veteran of the political wars prone to proclaim-ing, “I don’t give a f---,” although in fact he believes Hart is a once-in-a-generation candidate who can make a difference.

Under Dixon’s steady guid-ance, the Hart campaign is roar-ing through the country, with the candidate nailing it at every stop, from televised policy debates to stunts like grilling burgers in a diner or throwing an ax at a target

(and scoring a near bulls-eye).Hart seems certain to become

the Democratic nominee, and he has a legitimate chance of defeat-ing then Vice President George H.W. Bush, who was hardly capti-vating the nation with his dynam-ic presence.

But then a reporter at the Mi-ami Herald gets a phone call from a woman claiming her friend is having an affair with Hart. Mean-while, a New York Times reporter (Mamoudou Athie, doing excel-lent work) asks Hart about previ-ous separations from his wife, Lee (played by Vera Farmiga), and the current state of his marriage.

Hart explodes and says, “Fol-low me around. I don’t care. If anybody wants to put a tail on me, go ahead. They’d be very bored.”

Whoops.In short order, the Miami

Herald runs its damaging albeit somewhat wobbly scoop intimat-ing an affair between Hart and the visitor to his townhouse, and the dam breaks loose, with TV trucks camped outside Hart’s home in Colorado, and the candidate fac-ing a media pack that no longer cares about his platform.

Soon, Johnny Carson is crack-ing jokes about Hart partying on a yacht called “Monkey Business,” of all things, and saying there was so much activity on the boat, “the whales were watching them.”

As someone who spent a little time in a big-city newsroom right around the time period of this film, first answering the phones and then working as a news re-porter and columnist, I can vouch for the newsroom scenes at the Miami Herald and The Washing-ton Post. (I loved Kevin Pollak as the Herald’s gruff editor. He doesn’t have a bottomless reser-voir of Jack Kennedy anecdotes a la Ben Bradlee, but he knows how to run a news operation.)

The film is sympathetic to Don-na Rice (Sara Paxton), who has always maintained she didn’t have an affair with Hart. In a scene that lasts maybe a minute, “The Front Runner” depicts Rice experienc-ing a shocking burst of transition from complete anonymity to in-stant and nationwide notoriety.

“The Front Runner” doesn’t hit us over the head with parallels to today’s political and media world. It doesn’t have to.

Hart’s story told with satire, sympathyR I C H A R D R O E P E R

The Front Runnerêêê½

Cast: Hugh Jackman, Vera Farmiga, J.K. Simmons, Alfred MolinaRating: R for language including some sexual references.

SONY PICTURES/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Hugh Jackman, center, stars in “The Front Runner.”

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THE HERALD ■ WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2018PAGE 20 ■ ENTERTAINMENT: WEEKEND

By BETHONIE BUTLERWP News Services

I was told there would be cake.Or rather, I imagined the cake,

thinking I’d find something delec-table about “Dirty John,” Bravo’s eight-episode limited series based on the gripping true-crime pod-cast and narrative series by Los Angeles Times reporter Christo-pher Goffard. In addition to draw-ing on Goffard’s riveting reporting — about Debra Newell, a wealthy Orange County businesswoman who fell for a charming and dan-gerous grifter named John Mee-han — the drama stars Connie Britton, the patron saint of one-hour dramas.

Alas, “Dirty John,” created by former “Desperate House-wives” writer-producer Alexan-dra Cunningham, leaves a lot to be desired, judging by the three episodes made available for this review. The show officially pre-mieres Nov. 25, but Bravo has al-ready made the first episode avail-able on its website in an apparent attempt to capitalize on the excite-ment around the series.

Britton (of “Nashville” and “Friday Night Lights” fame) was an obvious choice to play Debra, described in the podcast as beau-tiful and put together, with layers of “cornsilk-blond” hair. When she meets John, she’s a divorcée, four times over, with four grown children and a thriving interior design business. She continues to believe in love and endures a sequence of bad dates in an ef-fort to find it. Things feel different when she meets John, a handsome if somewhat scruffy anesthesi-ologist, who dotes on her. After a whirlwind few weeks of dating, well, you can probably guess what happens next.

Eric Bana plays Meehan with effective but rudimentary creepi-ness, and the show requisitely in-troduces us to the podcast’s major players, some of whom get name changes. By the end of the second episode, we’ve met Debra’s daugh-ter’s, Veronica and Terra (Juno Temple and Julia Garner, respec-tively), her mother, Arlane (Jean Smart) and her nephew, Toby (Kevin Zegers).

The people and places — from the penthouse apartment Debra initially shares with Veronica to the beachside house she impul-sively rents to hole up with her new beau — are all there, but the show doesn’t dig any deeper.

Bana’s sinister turn as John, whose self-described biography begins to crumble shortly after he woos Debra, doesn’t include

any charm, which puts the show in shaky territory from the very beginning. We need to be able to imagine Debra falling in love with him, even if we can see the red flags, which are aplenty.

Debra’s daughters were in-tegral to Goffard’s reporting in ways I won’t divulge here. But on-screen, they are reduced to paper dolls, acting (or, in many cases, overacting) out their podcast per-sonas. It’s a real shame, because the Newell daughters — shy, sweet Terra and feisty Jacquelyn, the clear inspiration for Veronica — present an opportunity for the show to redeem itself with just the right amount of camp. “Dirty John” so thoroughly strikes out in

this regard it’s hard to tell if the show even attempts it.

Veronica is immediately suspi-cious of John, who, she tells her mother, looks homeless and seems to be a little too interested in the expensive furnishings in their apartment. Temple so dutifully zeros in on Veronica’s edge that the character comes off as more bratty than anything else. Like Jacquelyn, Veronica has a love for designer handbags. That could be fun! Except it isn’t.

Garner, meanwhile overexag-gerates the vocal fry of Debra’s zombie-obsessed daughter, Terra, but isn’t given much else to work with. (Where have you seen Gar-ner before? “The Americans”

and “Ozark,” but she’s rendered almost unrecognizable here by straight hair).

In other missed opportunities, family tension comes to a head in a Thanksgiving scene that is over far too quickly — so quickly, in fact, that I thought I must have missed something.

“Dirty John” gets moderately interesting in the third episode, which begins to delve into John’s past and previous marriage just as Debra is beginning to see his controlling and secretive demean-or. But it’s far too little, too late.

Part of my disappointment undoubtedly stems from having seen Ryan Murphy’s “People v. O.J. Simpson,” a drama that took

a news event (albeit one that re-ceived much more coverage than John Meehan’s dirty deeds) and spun it into thoughtful and some-how timely commentary that was entertaining to boot. Murphy is a very specific type of storyteller, so it’s admittedly somewhat of an unfair comparison.

But so far, there’s little com-mentary to be found in “Dirty John,” which seems unforgivable in a year punctuated by wide-spread condemnation of toxic men.

I expected so much more. In the end, “Dirty John” only managed to spin a new con — promising dessert and delivering a plate of lukewarm leftovers.

On Bravo, a captivating podcast loses its appeal

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