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Movies & TV
Posted inMovies & TV

Review: The Super Mario Bros. Movie Is a Dazzling Journey as Hollow as a Big, Green Pipe

While it may have exceptional CGI, Nintendo fans are dragged along on a mediocre journey.
Avatar photo Sam Machkovech

Before I take you to the bummer circus that is a critical review of a children’s movie, I want to talk about something Nintendo is typically good at: protecting its plumber pal Mario. Look at Nintendo’s history as a game maker, and you’ll find very few Mario-centric games per decade. They’re rare, and they’re typically […]

Posted inCulture

Workers at Portland’s Living Room Theaters Vote to Form an Independent Union

Following an unfair labor picket in January, the movie theater staff voted to form United Cinema Workers.
Avatar photo Jeremiah Hayden

Employees at Portland’s Living Room Theaters voted Wednesday to form a new independent union, United Cinema Workers (UCW). Workers won the election 6-4.  “Did you hear? We won,” Audra Sweetland asked the Mercury, as she poured drinks for a handful of moviegoers. Sweetland is a server at the movie house and also president of the […]

Posted inMusic

FREE TICKETS THURSDAY: Win Free Tix to See G. Love and Special Sauce and the HUMP! Film Fest!

Avatar photo Wm. Steven Humphrey

Who’s ready to see some shows? Well, the Mercury is here to help with FREE TICKETS to see some of Portland’s best concerts—our way of saying thanks to our great readers and spread the word about some fantastic upcoming performances! (Psst… if you want to say thanks to the Mercury, please consider making a small […]

Posted inMovies & TV

Somebody I Used to Know Is a Polyamory Bait Switch

Also swapping, Oregon plays Washington in this charming romantic comedy.
Avatar photo Chase Hutchinson

Ah, weddings. We all remember them fondly, right? They provide the chance for loved ones to come together, unexpected reconnections between former flames, nude sprints through golf courses, and the potential collapse of the engagement entirely. Well, those last few might just be something that could happen in the charming, Oregon-filmed romantic comedy Somebody I […]

Posted inMovies & TV

Audrey Hepburn Before the Death of the Rom-Com

Cinema 21 celebrates the romantic comedy with Hepburn films all February.
Avatar photo Rose Wong

The state of modern romantic comedy is something of a disgrace. Hollywood and the larger cinema-making world have forgotten how to make rom-coms, still serving up holiday-themed set-ups and the Lifetime hometown hunk formula. Yet romantic comedy, done well, examines one of the most delicate strains of human experience: laughing with someone until you start […]

Posted inMusic

FREE TICKETS THURSDAY: Enter to Win Free Tix to See the HUMP! Film Festival and Lacuna Coil!

Avatar photo Wm. Steven Humphrey

Who’s ready to see some shows? Well, the Mercury is here to help with FREE TICKETS to see some of Portland’s best concerts—our way of saying thanks to our great readers and spread the word about some fantastic upcoming performances! (Psst… if you want to say thanks to the Mercury, please consider making a small […]

Posted inMovies & TV

Portland EcoFilm Festival Reckons with Climate Crisis

Opening weekend takes us deep into the lives of people and animals on the front lines of a changing climate.
Avatar photo Chase Hutchinson

The 10th anniversary season of the Portland EcoFilm Festival kicks off this weekend, at the Hollywood Theatre. Like the previous two years, the 2023 festival films will be presented across months—rather than a single weekend—and will include a variety of documentaries, shorts, and more. The fest’s spacious schedule is built around a principle of “increasing […]

Posted inNews

Living Room Theaters Employees Picket in Downtown Portland

Staff say they were told not to discuss a coworker’s termination at work or outside of work.
Avatar photo Suzette Smith

Workers have picketed Living Room Theaters in downtown Portland since Saturday, as part of an Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) strike, alleging that the company had violated labor laws in management’s behavior towards staff. Employees said that seven of the company’s nine non-managerial staff members joined the four-day strike, which is expected to conclude Tuesday at […]

Posted inMovies & TV

The Mercury’s Favorite Films of 2022

The cannibalism movie, the broke millennial gay Pride and Prejudice, and the instant Internet classic all made the list.
Avatar photo Mercury Arts Crew

Here in the pre-awards season, there are plenty of good movies in theaters. But some of our favorite films of 2022 didn’t even grace those buttery halls. Here are a few gems that the Mercury’s culture crew particularly enjoyed. We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, dir. Jane Schoenbrun If we’re being honest, most films […]

Posted inMovies & TV

Film Review: Avatar: The Way of Water Is Peak Immersive Filmmaking

Will a post-pandemic audience be invested in a story from 13 years ago and, furthermore, devote three hours of their time for it?
Avatar photo Jas Keimig

“You know my favorite thing about the movie is, like, it feels like a movie. It feels like, a real, like, go-to-the-theater film movie.” That vibey-ass Harry Styles press junket quote bounced around my brain while watching Avatar: The Way of Water, James Cameron’s much-anticipated follow-up to the highest-grossing movie of all time. The Way […]

Posted inMovies & TV

It Took a Village (of Portland Animators) to Raise Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio

Our city is home to some of the world’s most talented animation staff, and they’re the ones who built Pinocchio’s bones.
Avatar photo Chase Hutchinson

When the credits roll at the end of Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, some of the first names you’ll see after the film’s co-directors—del Toro and Mark Gustafson—are those of the many craftspeople who brought it to life. This is for good reason, though their contributions often go overlooked. Everything seen in front of the camera […]

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