THURSDAY 2/24
Jean-Luc Godard
(FILM) Godard’s 1995 For Ever Mozart boils life down to two activities-creating art and making war-and then, wittily and tragically, mourns the inability of the first to in any way affect the second. In the film, a legendary filmmaker takes a vacation before shooting his latest opus; meanwhile, his beloved granddaughter goes to Sarajevo to mount a play. But no two-line synopsis could do justice to the film’s surreal meandering. The visuals are as lovely and the editing as razor-sharp as all of Godard’s work in the ’90s; a series of films, I’m convinced, that will eventually be regarded as even better than his groundbreaking work in the ’60s. BRUCE REID
The Little Theatre, 610 19th Ave, 675-2055, Thurs-Sun, Feb 24-27, call for show times, $7.
FRIDAY 2/25
History of Anime
(FILM) We call them cartoons, and our Saturday morning TV lineups of them are littered with crappy production and poor writing. Things are different in Japan. Cartoons are an art form there. Heck, they even have a fancy name for them: anime. Self-styled experts Isaac Alexander and Daniel Harrison will give a lecture and media presentation on the history of anime, including the stuff that has been imported (from Speed Racer to Princess Mononoke), and much that hasn’t. Looks like an interesting presentation of an interesting subject. ANDY SPLETZER
911 Media Arts, 117 Yale Ave N, 682-6552, 8 pm, $5/$3 for members.
Fire on the Kitchen Table
(THEATER) He usually wrote about off-kilter little non-events in the lives of average people, but something about Raymond Carver’s short stories is palpably vast and important-they keep expanding inside you. Most of his work slips deceptively away after a reading, then sneaks up on you when you’re involved in your own tiny traumas and reminds you where you stand. Seattle Mime Theatre has previously performed its interpretation of Carver’s “Cathedral,” and though I think the adaptation gave too-solid form to his elusiveness, the troupe excels in catching detail, something that should make Fire on the Kitchen Table an engaging evening. Fire includes Seattle Mime’s take on “Cathedral,” as well as four other Carver gems, all presented with the company’s physical and verbal dexterity. STEVE WIECKING
Chamber Theater, 915 E Pine St, Fourth Floor, 324-8788, opens tonight, runs Feb 26-27 and March 3-5 at 8 pm, $15.
SATURDAY 2/26
Found in the Basement
(FILM) As anyone who’s ever moved can tell you, it’s amazing what you’ll find when going through old boxes of what is presumably crap. Well, somebody went through a bunch of old boxes at the Grand Illusion and dug up a bunch of treats, which will be on display in their late-night slot. From anti-Commie newsreels to trailers for favorite films (Gummo, Our Man Flint, Reefer Madness), this is sure to be a fun time for those with a short attention span. Oh, and word on the street has it that the pro-liquor industrial film is nothing short of a masterpiece. ANDY SPLETZER
Grand Illusion, 1403 NE 50th (at University Way), 523-3935, Fri-Sat Feb 25-26 at 11:15 pm.
Green Lady
(ART) T-shirts, posters, pillows, stickers-the design team of Green Lady makes art that looks more like fashion, but is not to be confused with it. Their work features smart takes on technological futurism, isolation, and information, made in exceedingly marketable forms. ERIC FREDERICKSEN
Houston, 907 E Pike, 860-7820, Tues-Sat, 12-7 pm, through March 15.
SUNDAY 2/27
Ikiru
(FILM) For many, Kurosawa was a great director due to the effortless sweep and grandeur of his epics. But for those of us who treasure him for his pained, sincere humanism-his ability to see how every side in an argument has its own wounds to hide-Ikiru will stand as his supreme achievement. Takashi Shimura gives a lovely, sad performance as a fearful bureaucrat desperate to truly live before his stomach cancer eats him up. Wise beyond compare about our desperate, inconsolable need to justify ourselves, to show we matter, Ikiru is one of the very greatest of films. BRUCE REID
Grand Illusion, 1403 NE 50th (at University Way), 523-3935, Fri-Thurs Feb 25-March 2 at (Sat-Sun 3), 6, 8:45 pm.
MONDAY 2/28
Dave Eggers
(READING) Dave Eggers is the man of the hour, the kid on the street, the gotdamn Popeye of popular literature. His book A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius (which indeed, as Rick Moody asserted, “does not need a blurb”), is the story of Eggers’ relationship with the brother he raised after their parents’ death-and it’s winning over critics like Rohypnol. Eggers is also the editor of McSweeney‘s, the literary magazine that’s the coddled babe of contemptuous irrelevance. Canned food donations will be accepted. TRACI VOGEL
Elliott Bay Books, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free (advance tickets recommended).
TUESDAY 2/29
Two Dollar Guitar
(LIVE MUSIC) Sonic Youth drummer Steve Shelley may be the initial draw, but anyone who’s heard Train Songs or Weak Beats and Lame Ass Rhymes knows that $1.99 of Two Dollar Guitar is Tim Foljahn. Foljahn is a master of mood, picking out the most plaintive tunes on your heartstrings and striking chords you didn’t know you had. They’ve found the perfect openers in Kinski, whose hurricane warning songs come complete with the calm from the eye of a storm. Beautiful stuff. ERIN FRANZMAN
Graceland, 109 Eastlake Ave E, 381-3094, 8 pm, $7.
Paul Eggert
(LECTURE) Missing a crucial piece of paper? Needing a PoMo fix? Solve both your problems at the upcoming free lecture by visiting UW professor Paul Eggert, entitled “The Golden Stain of Time: The Forgery of Historical Documents.” Beyond the obvious, practical value of this lecture, Eggert promises to broach the topic of postmodern perspectives on authorship in his talk, thereby providing an alibi for those of you who plan to put Eggert’s research into actual practice. DAVID KAUFFMAN
UW Faculty Club conference room, University of Washington campus, 7:30 pm, free.
What Could Be Queerer?
(COMEDY) Capitalizing on the razor-sharp riposte and cutting witticism commonly developed for survival during tortured gay adolescence, the hee-sterical queers of the comedy troupe Three Dollar Bill celebrate their second anniversary at the Comedy Underground with What Could Be Queerer?. If Ellen is the yardstick by which you measure queer humor (ugh), rest assured that the poovey little buggers of Three Dollar Bill are more than capable of delivering a laff-filled evening of stand-up. Queers and not-so-queers alike are encouraged to attend. C’mon! You can miss Will and Grace just this once! ADRIAN RYAN
Comedy Underground, 222 S Main St, 8 pm, $6.
WEDNESDAY 3/1
Amsterdam
(THEATER) Lauren Weedman can be so funny it’s almost embarrassing. It’s as though by laughing at her, you’re admitting to things you’d rather pretend you don’t understand. Her solo work is charged with a gallery of characters who represent the heights of various dysfunctions, usually due to their complete lack of a healthy sense of self-awareness. Amsterdam, her latest piece, lets Weedman run amok as a naive American among several oddball Dutch folk, in a show that she says will be “more of a full-blown play than anything else I’ve written.” The Empty Space world premiere happily reunites her with directors Shawn Belyea (If Ornaments Had Lips) and Eddie Levi Lee (Wuthering! Heights! The! Musical!), as well as James Palmer, the Lips musician who here serves as composer for songs he wrote with Weedman. STEVE WIECKING
Empty Space Theatre, 3509 Fremont Ave N, 547-7500, March 1-25, times vary, $18-$26.
Reality Check
(LIVE MUSIC) Some days-especially ’round this time of year-you need a little reality check that tells you, no, you’re not a crazy, untalented, prostituted freak. For most of us, Wesley Willis is that reality check. Here’s a man who’s turned a diagnosis of schizophrenia into a cult-status musical career without being the least bit talented or creative. He may have better luck (and drugs) than you do, but at least you’re not a freak show. KATHLEEN WILSON
The Breakroom (with Today Is My Superspace Out Day and Raft of Dead Monkeys), 1325 E Madison, 860-5155, 10 pm, $7.