We should get the elephant in the room out of the way first. “Ghostbusters” 2016 is a reboot of the classic 1984 film and the less classic 1989 sequel (plus numerous video games and an animated series). The four new Ghostbusters are also women played by Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon. […]
Jared Rasic
Film critic and author of food, arts and culture stories for the Source Weekly since 2010.
High Desert Hilarity
The Old Stone Church has been many things over the years; at times, it was actually a church. But for the most part, Bendites know it as a concert venue, stand-up comedy spot, film shoot location and just about any other type of event you can imagine. Recently it has become the Old Stone Performing […]
Swingers
Sometimes it’s easy to describe a movie as a “throwback:” something that would have worked if it had been released in a bygone era with different cultural standards and practices. For example: “Raiders of the Lost Ark” was a throwback to the film serials of the 1930s and 1940s that George Lucas grew up watching. […]
Camping and Dancing
After the rousing success of 4 Peaks Music Festival, the fine people of Central Oregon and its surrounding environs have a few more multi-day music shows to look forward to. In fact, two festivals are slated for the next two weekends. Powell Butte will host the 9th Annual Crawfest Music Festival July 15-17, and La […]
Midnight Sounds
Grace Potter has had a wide and varied career so far, and she’s only 33. Whether it is her solo career, her work with The Nocturnals, or her collaboration with The Flaming Lips, Potter is a dynamic and powerful vocalist and multi-instrumentalist. The most surprising thing about Potter, though, is how different her sound is […]
Twice as Happy on Half as Much
The English Beat have had a long and storied career since their 1978 debut, when they burst forth on the ska-punk/reggae scene in England. Technically, the band is called The Beat, but in North America they’re known as The English Beat, and in Australia they’re The British Beat. Consisting of Dave Wakeling on vocals and […]
Giant Country
I don’t remember much detail about Roald Dahl’s 1982 children’s book “The BFG,” but I remember how it made me feel. I know that after I put that book down, the world seemed like a much larger place: a world filled with mysteries I would never understand or even discover. For moments throughout “The BFG” […]
Irreverent Commentary Makes Bad Movies Hilarious
Bendites who miss Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K) are in for a real treat. For those few unfortunate individuals who have never seen the cult classic television show, it starred Joel Hodgson as a janitor trapped on The Satellite of Love by a couple of mad scientists who wanted to rule the world. Along with […]
Behind the Mask
Writing a story about Buckethead is like trying to do an expose on the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot. People know Buckethead exists and that he has a real name, but he hasn’t done an interview in a decade and doesn't talk to many people in general. I knew a phone or Skype interview would […]
Murder Party 2016
You had one job, “The Purge: Election Year,” just one. You either needed to be a schlocky gorefest that painted America as a candy-colored nightmare of xenophobia and fear or a smartly satirical look at the worst case scenario of Trump’s America. You failed at both, “Purge,” and I hope you feel bad about it. […]

