Thursday
What: “The Uninvited” (1944)
Where: The Heights Theatre, 3951 NE Central Ave., Columbia Heights
When: 7:30 p.m.
Cost: $8
Take-Up Productions is an amazing asset to the Twin Cities film community. Usually operating out of the cozy Trylon cinema in Longfellow, every so often this non-profit group of cinephiles takes their show to the larger screen, as they will with this week’s screening of “The Uninvited,” part of Take-Up’s “Universal Horrors: Monsters, Murder & Madness” series. Shown in its original 35mm format, the “The Uninvited” is wartime America’s escape to a haunted seaside English manor by a young and attractive couple. You’ve got your gypsies, your séances, your ghosts, your mysterious villagers and I think there’s a love story wrapped up in all of this too. “The Uninvited” is a fun break from the Hollywood maxim now that you must poo your pants in fright in order to make a good scary movie.
Friday
What: E.L.nO. (All-Star E.L.O. Tribute)
Where: Lee’s Liquor Lounge, 101 Glenwood Ave., Minneapolis
When: Show starts at 9 p.m., E.L.nO. on at 11:30 p.m.
Cost: $10
The Electric Light Orchestra took the music world by storm in the ‘‘70s and early ‘‘80s through a scientifically proven combination of slick tunes and big fluffy hair. Thanks to new wig technology, local cover bands have been able to faithfully recreate the feel of a jivin’ show in sort-of semi-seedy bars ever since. Seriously, this E.L.nO. cover band is a heck of a lot of fun. E.L.nO. is the perfect feel-good music, and this monthly gig at Lee’s Liquor Lounge attracts a cast of regulars, who are alone worth the cost of admission. Farcical as the premise is, E.L.nO. isn’t joking when it says they’re an All-Star tribute. Dave Campbell, from MPR’s “The Local Show” is one of the band’s leaders. Opening for E.L.nO. is MPR’’s Jill Riley and another Bob Dylan cover band. Like we said, star-studded.
Saturday
What: Ghost Trolley
Where: Como-Harriet Streetcar Line, 42nd & South Queen Avenue, Minneapolis
When: 6-9 p.m.
Cost: $4
Ghosts are all that remain of the Twin Cities’ once vibrant trolley and streetcar line. This weekend, you can experience what was a big part of life for a lot of now-dead Minneapolitans and take a ride on the Como-Harriet Streetcar! Organized by the Minnesota Streetcar Museum, a group that runs a corral of wonderfully maintained streetcars, the rides include a warning that the activity may not be appropriate for kids, so we’ll take that as a good sign. Make a spooky day of it and tour the nearby Lakewood Cemetery, nestled in between the Harriet and Calhoun Lakes.
Check this: The Somali Artifact & Cultural Museum
Unless you’re planning to visit to the lovely beaches of Mogadishu anytime soon, the Somali Museum at 1516 E. Lake St. in Minneapolis may be your only other option to examine artifacts of Somali culture. The museum is a labor of love created by local restaurant owner Osman Ali, who personally collected over 700 artifacts over the years. Ali recently told the Star Tribune his mission is two-fold: helping Somali-Americans appreciate their heritage, and educating others about their country.
Peep this: The Twin Cities Film Festival
Make no spooky bones about it, this is a schwanky film festival at a schwanky theater — it’s got a VIP section where you can drink beer! — at a schwanky shopping center on the West side of town. But despite the red carpet events and Lexuses in the parking lot, the films at this year’s Twin Cities Film Fest are mostly unpretentious, genuinely interesting flicks. The Fest started last Thursday and runs through Saturday, so you’ve still got plenty of time to catch a show. Check twincitiesfilmfest.org for details on show times or stop by one of the Fest mixers at 9 p.m. each night this week.
Listen to: Foreigner’s “Cold As Ice”
Okay, so forgive this interpretation of a classic band and a classic song, but are you ready to sacrifice your love? Are you willing to pay the price? Are you ready to make love with a hoodie and socks on? Not Foreigner, anymore, but this is a fact of life for all of us prepping for seven months of something that people in other parts of the country call one of the four seasons. It’s getting frigid ladies and gents, so prepare yourself. It’s a proven fact that listening to this WILL un-hunch your shoulders. And it’ll hopefully inspire you to ditch the common feeling of cabin fever and get out there to do something awesome.
