Entertainment

We have officially hit October and “spooky season.” Yes, that’s an actual phrase. Our last review was a FANTASTIC horror film called Barbarian and I highly recommend you see it if you haven’t already. However, we are onto a sequel of a cult classic for Halloween and October. The original Hocus Pocus came out in 1993 and followed the Sanderson sisters (three witches attacking the town of Salem) and a young group trying to rid the city of them. It was fun, cheesy, but dear to a lot of people’s hearts. I remember watching it growing up and having the biggest crush on Vinessa Shaw in the film. Unfortunately, the original heroes aren’t in this what, but we do have the rest of the cast returning. Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy all return and this obviously caused a lot of excitement and feeling of nostalgia. Would this sequel live up the original or this too little too late?

The Southern Ohio Museum and Cultural Center’s 2022 Prehistory Lecture Series continues on Thursday, September 29, at 6pm in the museum’s Hopkins Theatre. Jeffrey Wilson, Researcher, Author, Publisher, and President of the Friends of Serpent Mound non-profit organization, will present, “Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley: The Expanded Edition.”

The Vern Riffe Center for the Arts (VRCFA) at Shawnee State University will host Broadway’s “Legally Blonde, the Musical” Thursday, Oct. 27. The performance will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will be held in the Eloise Covert Smith Theater of the VRCFA.

I spoke a few weeks ago about the company A24 and how they have been producing a lot of really good movies lately. I should have also labeled them as unique and interesting…. this is definitely what I can see about the movie Pearl. The production on this film is also something that is unique. Earlier this year a horror movie called X came out. It had the same director and the same lead Mia Goth. The film is a homage to 70s horror movies (think The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) and I thought it was good but not great. HOWEVER, there is an end credit scene that shows the lead Pearl (Goth) and we realize the story is not over. We then learned that the director and our lead filmed a whole other movie while they filmed X. Whereas X was an homage to 70s slasher horror, Pearl was supposed to be an homage to films of the 20s and 30s ( think Wizard of Oz and Oklahoma) with a horror twist. I did not know what to expect going in but my brother Aaron was a huge fan so off we went to see Pearl.

The Vern Riffe Center for the Arts (VRCFA) at Shawnee State University will present HarpOhio, a harp ensemble for pre-college and college-age students, on Sunday, Oct. 16. The group’s performance will begin at 3:00 p.m. and will be held in the Eloise Covert Smith Theater of the VRCFA. This concert is part of the VRCFA’s 2022-2023 Performing Arts Series.

Wait…. this isn’t a movie? As my readers know we normally go to the movies for each week, however in the past there have been special occasions. This is one of them! The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit trilogy are without a doubt some of the best films ever made (mainly the original trilogy) I can remember watching them over and over as a child and throughout the years since. Several years ago, Amazon had a press release that came out indicating they would be producing a Lord of the Rings television show. I groaned. I was worried this would be a money grab, or a pale comparison to the films. However, on September 1st, 2022, at 9:00 pm the first two episodes were released. For this week’s review, I want to discuss the first episode and when the first season ends in October I will come back and discuss the whole season. Spoiler alert…this is VERY GOOD.

The Southern Ohio Museum and Cultural Center (SOMACC) recently opened its Cream if the Crop exhibit with a successful reception, welcoming happy guests and great selections of art.

River Days wouldn’t be itself without a lineup of music, and the Friends of Portsmouth brought entertainment to thousands over the weekend with a series of acts that had people singing along in true River Days fashion.

Watersports returned to River Days with jet ski racing and freestyle events performed by Typhoon Tommy (Thomas Nuttall) and the USA Freestyle team. This is the second year Nuttall has appeared at River Days, this time bringing the Great Lakes Watercross team to participate in the racing aspects of the weekend. Watersports have been a key part of River Days since the beginning, and this season was no different.

As people enjoyed the riverfront and downtown activities for Portsmouth River Days, Friends of Portsmouth volunteers and staff were working tirelessly to not only directly manage the event and make sure things run smoothly, but also working on fundraising efforts to make the $100,000 event possible.