MOVIES
If you go to the movies only to feel uplifted or to lose yourself in a fantasy, “The Weather Man” may be a hard sell. But missing it would be a shame, because multitalented director Gore Verbinski has crafted a wonderful piece of melancholy and humanity. Nicolas Cage restrains himself to play a TV weather reader who can’t decide if his life really is falling apart, or if he just needs to change his expectations. Michael Caine offers another warm performance as his accomplished father.
– MICHAEL BOOTH
VISUAL ARTS
In the ever-changing work of Steve Altman, abstraction can morph from a series of simple, quiet marks to a turbulent, multilayered composition with crudely collaged sections of painted canvas and black felt. A survey continuing through Nov. 6 handsomely showcases the past decade or so of this veteran Denver artist, who remains strangely little known and underappreciated. The free show can be seen at the Singer Gallery in the Mizel Center for Arts and Culture at the Jewish Community Center, 305 S. Dahlia St. 303-316-6360 or mizelcenter.org.
– KYLE MACMILLAN
POPULAR MUSIC
Few would pay the big bucks to see Paul McCartney on a Wings-music-only tour. That’s why the former Beatle plays it all when he’s on the road, including his date at the Pepsi Center on Tuesday. Count on hearing “Yesterday” – a staple at his solo shows – and also material from his new disc “Chaos and Creation in the Backyard.” Tickets aren’t cheap. But many will argue they’re worth it at $45.50-$250. They’re available at Ticketmaster outlets.
– RICARDO BACA
STAGE
The Kent Thompson era is off to a flying start, but alas, we’ve already neared the end of the new Denver Center Theatre Company artistic director’s first two productions here. Arthur Miller’s poignant family drama “All My Sons” and the hilariously updated French farce “A Flea in Her Ear” could not be more different save that they are exquisitely executed. Both plays’ final performances are at 6:30 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 8 p.m. Thursday-Friday, and 1:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday. Tickets $29-$45 (303-893-4100, denvercenter.org, King Soopers stores or TicketsWest, 866-464-2626).
– JOHN MOORE
CLASSICAL MUSIC
It’s sure to be one of the biggest classical events of the fall – Opera Colorado’s first production in the newly opened Ellie Caulkins Opera House in the Denver Performing Arts Complex, 14th and Curtis Streets. World-renowned mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves and up-and-comer Beth Clayton lead two casts in eight performances of one of the most popular works of all time – Georges Bizet’s “Carmen.” The run opens at 8:30 p.m. Thursday and continues through Nov. 13. Tickets are $22-$157. 303-357-2787 or operacolorado.org.
– KYLE MACMILLAN
NIGHT LIFE
Tonight The Walnut Room, 3131 Walnut St., hosts the latest in a series of artful, counterculture events. This one, dubbed “Flick or Treat,” is tailor-made for anyone who’s recovering from too much Halloween party punch, or just plain sick of all the gore without substance dished up in this year’s lot of Hollywood slasher flicks. Here, local independent filmmakers Scott Banning, Chad Smith, Don Vasicek, Ryan Policky and dBom screen quirky, experimental horror-film shorts. 8:30 p.m. $5.
– ELANA ASHANTI JEFFERSON
