Dear Fellow Cinephiles:

• Best Picture
• Best Actor (Jean Dujardin)
• Best Supporting Actress (Berenice Bejo)
• Best Director (Michael Hazanavicius)
• Best Original Screenplay (Michael Hazanavicius)
• Best Original Score, Best Cinematography
• Best Art Direction,
• Best Film Editing and…
• Best Costume Design

What’s It about? The silent, black-and-white feature follows Jean Dujardin as George Valentin, a silent movie star, who — after the premiere of his latest film — has a serendipitous run-in with a beautiful fan named Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo). Soon after, Valentin discovers that studios are no longer interested in financing his beloved silent flicks, opting instead for the futuristic “talkies.” And the new, up-and-coming star of these films? The aforementioned Peppy. Valentin spends the rest of the film trying to reclaim the stardom he once held with help from Peppy.

Why should you see it? Unless you were born at the turn of the 20th century, you will be told by people less sophisticated than you, that you should be uninterested in seeing a silent movie. However, don’t let that D.O.B. get in the way; after all, what makes this movie Oscar-worthy isn’t its lack of sound, but the compelling performances and terrific story. If that doesn’t sound good, perhaps you will be interested in the scene-stealing Jack Russell terrier (played by Uggie the dog).

The Artist
Directed by: Michel Hazanavicius
Starring: Jean Dujardin, John Goodman, Bernice Bejo
(PG-13)(100 min)
TRAILER

The Artist (PG-13)
Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo
- 100 minutes
Fri: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Sat: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Sun: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Mon: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Tue: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Wed: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Thu: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com
All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00
Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

Longfellow Days 2012 is scheduled for February 4 through February 26. A wide range of activities will take place including community poetry, lectures, tours, dining and film events, and much, much more.

Come share and join in the conversation about Longfellow Days by becoming a Fan on Facebook!

Now in its ninth year, Longfellow Days is a celebration inspired by the life and works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow who studied and taught at Bowdoin College. This year we explore the loving connectedness that enriches our personal and public lives.

Longfellow Days 2012 kicked-off this past weekend in Brunswick. Events continue through February!

Wednesday, February 8, 12:15 PM ▪ WHAT’S LOVE GOT to do WITH IT? CHANGING PATTERNS for DATING & MARRIAGE Do people still date? Are fewer getting married? Does marriage mean what it used to? An illustrated lecture by Wendy Christensen, Ph.D., answers these questions and more by examining historical trends and their meanings. Christenson, is a Visiting Professor of Sociology & Anthropology at Bowdoin College and holds a Ph.D. from The University of Wisconsin, Madison. Her research interests include the sociology of war, the military, new media technologies, and feminist theory with an emphasis on mothers of members of the U.S. Armed Forces. We launch the program with a brief reading from The Courtship of Miles Standish. Free. Morrell Room, Curtis Memorial Library (a Winter Wisdom Lecture)

Saturday, February 11, Noon to 3 PM ▪ TOUR LONGFELLOW’S HOME Visit as guests of the Pejepscot Historical Society. Tours begin each hour on the hour. Free. Joshua Chamberlain Museum, Maine and Potter Streets

Sunday, February 12, 1:00 PM ▪ THE COURSEN READINGS Poets Robert Farnsworth, David Moreau, and Alice Persons read from their work. Mr. Farnsworth has published three collections of poetry including Rumored Islands with Harbor Mountain Press. His poems have appeared in U.S., Canadian, and UK periodicals. He is a National Endowment for the Arts Fellow, has served as poet-in-residence at The Frost Place, and teaches at Bates College. Mr. Moreau works in Lewiston with developmentally disabled adults. He is the author of two books of poetry, You Can Still Go To Hell…and Other Truths About Being A Helping Professional, and Children Are Ugly Little Monsters (But You Have To Love Them Anyway. Ms. Persons founded Moon Pie Press, a publisher of 62 books by poets all over the U.S. She has had 8 poems featured on NPR’s Writers’ Almanac. She has authored three chapbooks and a full length collection, Thank Your Lucky Stars. Ms. Persons teaches at SMCC and USM. She lives with 4 cats and a dog and volunteers for animal welfare. Free. Fireplace Room, Curtis Memorial Library

Longfellow Days is a program of the Brunswick Downtown Association & Bowdoin College with support from the Nathaniel Davis Fund of Brunswick, the Senter Fund, Maine Humanities Council: Power & Pleasure of Poetry, Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance, and the Association of Bowdoin Friends. Longfellow Days receives in-kind support from Art Forms/Cool as a Moose, Brunswick Inn, the Inn at Brunswick Station, Bohemian Coffee House, and Curtis Memorial Library.

Click HERE for More Information.

If you haven’t done so already, please take a moment and “Like” The Valley Voice on Facebook. Thank You!

Dear Fellow Zinephilezzz:

I have zee good newzzz and I have zee bad newzzz. Firzt – Zee Artist  (aka The Artist) izz definitely comink to Eveninkzztar Zinema. Tied for zee mozt Ozcar nominationz, includink Bezt Actor, Bezt Zupporting Actrezz, Bezt Director and Bezt Picture (I predicted back in Zeptember that it would take Bezt Director and Bezt Picture), Zee Artist, a gorgeouz, black and white love letter to the era of zilent films, (not to mention mustachioed leading men who most likely said things like “Zis is a lovely boudoir, mademoizelle!”) is a must see (zee).

Now, the bad news. Due to its sudden huge popularity, I was told by The Artist’s distributor that I had to start playing it Friday, February 10th or lose it to Regal (that’s another movie chain that, you know, isn’t me). That means this is the FINAL WEEK (insert echoing voice saying “FINAL FINAL FINAL…” for The Descendants. Now obviously, this film is no slouch, having garnered Oscar nominations for Best Actor (George Clooney), Best Director (Alexander Payne) and Best Picture. I hate to take it off screen after just two weeks, but I would hate it even more if I lost The Artist.

So chock this up to another reason why I MUST be able to build a 4-screen facility. We both deserve one!!

February 3-February 9, 2012
The Descendents
Friday, Saturday
1:30, 4:00, 6:30 & 8:50
Thursday-Sunday
1:30, 4:00 & 6:30

Directed by Alexander Payne
Starring: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Beau Bridges, Robert Forster
(R) (110 min)
TRAILER

Eveningstar Cinema

Schedule for Friday, February 03, 2012 until Thursday, February 09, 2012

The Descendants (R)
George Clooney, Judy Greer
- 115 minutes
Fri: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 8:50
Sat: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 8:50
Sun: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Mon: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Tue: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Wed: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Thu: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com

All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00
Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

A Peek at the Week!

January 30-February 2

Welcome to A Peek at the Week!

We hope you find this new communication tool from People Plus useful for planning the week ahead. (We’d hate for you to miss anything that is going on at the Center!)

Whether you stop in for a class, a craft or to share a cup of coffee, we hope that this peek, so to speak, of the week ahead helps you discover all that is available at People Plus, the Center that Builds Community!

Monday, January 30th

9:00 AM -   Crafters
Yoga w/ Ruth

10:00 AM - Table Tennis
Chair Yoga w/ Ruth

12:00 PM -  Bridge
Pilates for Grownups
w/Dennis Kimmage

1:15 PM -   Laughter Club

6:00 PM -   Belly Dancing
w/ Josephina Gasca

Click here to see Jan 30 online!

Tuesday, January 31st

9:00 AM -   Loosen Up w/Suzanne Neveux

10:00 AM – Table Tennis
Art w/Connie Bailey

3:00 PM -   Teens First

4:30 PM -  Math Enrichment
w/Christina Fedolfi

Click here to see Jan 31 online!

Wednesday, February 1st

8:45 AM -  Cribbage
9:00 AM -  Table Tennis
12:00 PM – Choreo Lab w/Peg Brightman
1:00 PM -   Write On!
1:30 PM -   Tai Chi w/Suzanne Neveux
4:30 PM -   Math Enrichment
w/Christina Fedolfi

Click here to see Feb 1 online!

Thursday, February 2nd

9:00 AM -  Loosen Up
w/ Suzanne Neveux

10:00 AM -  Table Tennis

10:00 AM -  Art w/ Connie Bailey

  1:00 PM -  AARP Tax Help

  3:00 PM -  Game On!

  3:30 PM -  Yoga for Mobility
w/ Ann Kimmage

  6:00 PM -  Course in Miracles

  6:00 PM -  Yoga w/ Ruth Vogel

  7:15 PM -  Line Dancing
w/ Janice McLaughlin

Click here to see Feb 2 online!

Friday, February 3

9:00 AM -  Loosen Up w/ Suzanne Neveux

1:30 PM -  Qigong w/ Suzanne Neveux

Click here to see Feb 3 online!

Frank’s Two Cents

Ah-h-h, February!  Our shortest (and sometimes cruelest) month!  If you watch the degree days, or believe in groundhog, you know we’re on the right side of winter, and spring is just a few weeks (or months) away.  Anyway, we hope by now you have realized that People Plus should be part of your survival plan.

Remember, besides our wide selection of classes, the coffee is always on, there’s a puzzle table in our Cafe, and we have four, FOUR! computers awaiting your needs in our Cyber Cafe.  Spring will be here before you know.

I’d love to know what you think!

Call, email or stop by to see me anytime!  I would love to hear from you and welcome all comments & suggestions!

Rebecca Banks
Programming/Outreach
People Plus

rebecca@peopleplusmaine.org
(207) 729-0757

Hot off the Presses!!

Check out the February edition of People Plus News Online or on Newstands all over town.

FREE!

www.peopleplusmaine.org

Did You Know?

Members can sample any class once for free!

So come try something new this month at People Plus!

Contact Us

Printer-friendly version

Do you have a question? Do you have an idea for a new program or service at People Plus? Do you need information for yourself or for someone you love?  Do you have a concern you’d like to express?

Contacting us at People Plus is easy.  You can:

• Pay us a visit.  Click here for directions, or check the Explorer bus schedule.
• Call us at  (207) 729-0757,  Monday – Thursday between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
• Send us a Fax at (207) 729-0672.
• Send regular mail to: People Plus, PO Box 766, Brunswick, ME 04011-0766.
• E-mail us directly by filling out our on-line contact form.
• E-mail one of our staff members personally:

People Plus, Inc.
35 Union Street,
Brunswick, ME  04011
(207) 729-0757.

Longfellow Days 2012

Longfellow Days, the month long celebration honoring Henry W. Longfellow in Brunswick, will take place in February. This year’s theme will be Poet of the Heart, celebrating the loving relationships that enhance our personal and public lives. A wide range of activities will take place including community poetry, lectures, tours, dining and film events, and much, much more. Check out and ‘Like’ the Longfellow Days Facebook Page and visit www.brunswickdowntown.org/longfellowdays for complete details on all the planned events and offerings.

Brunswick in the News

Of course, we all know how wonderful Brunswick is and now the word is spreading. Our great town has been getting some fabulous press! If you haven’t already seen these recent articles, you should check them out.

• Maine Magazine 48 Hours in Brunswick

• Boston Globe Brunswick, Maine Doesn’t Feel Like a Tourist Town

Baxter in the Blaine House Book Signing – February 11

The Visitor Center at Brunswick Station will host a Book Signing for Baxter in the Blaine House, a dog’s account on life in the Blaine House. Baxter, the Governor’s lively Jack Russell terrier mix, offers young readers a tour of the mansion that has been home to Maine’s governors and their families since 1920. In the book, Baxter guides children through his daily schedule, while pointing out historic objects and his favorite places including, of course, his special spot in the kitchen. Sales from Baxter in the Blaine House will benefit the “Friends of the Blaine House,” which helps to preserve the Governor’s Mansion. Baxter himself will be available at the signing to greet his fans. FMI call 721-0999 or email paula@brunswickdowntown.org.

Visitor Center Blood Drive – March 6

The Visitor Center at Brunswick Station will host a blood drive in conjunction with the American Red Cross, Tuesday, from 10 am – 2 pm.  All donors will receive a Cumberland Farms Free Lunch Pack Coupon, (includes a freshly prepared sandwich, any size fountain soda or frozen beverage, and a 1.5 oz. bag of Cumberland Farms chips) plus a $5 certificate for Byrne’s Irish Pub, and a chance to enter a raffle for 1 round trip train ride to Rockland on Maine Eastern Railroad during May – October 2012 season (a $49 value!). To make an appointment, visit www.redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED-CROSS.

Share The Blast

If you enjoy all the helpful information that you receive in The Brunswick Blast, please share the wealth by Forwarding it to a Friend.

Upcoming Events in Downtown Brunswick               January 27, 2012

Tour St. John’s Catholic School – January 29th

St. John’s Catholic School will join 5,774 other Catholic elementary schools to celebrate National Catholic Schools Week January 29th thru February 5th. Stop by on Sunday from 12-2 pm for refreshments and a tour of the school. It’s not too early to enroll for the 2012-2013 year. FMI call 725-5507.

CREA Community Nature Program – January 31

Tuesday at 6:30 pm, join The Cathance River Education Alliance (CREA) in hosting Mt. Ararat and Brunswick High students as they present their long-term research findings on projects throughout the Cathance River Preserve. Students chose a topic to research in small groups and collected data weekly. Lab reports, digital poster presentations, and iMovies served as culminating final products. Topics include terrestrial insect sampling, forest inventory growth data, mammal study, underwater cameras, Cathance River water level and quality, habitat holes, butterflies, mushrooms, and dragonflies. The event will be held at the Topsham Public Library. FMI click here or call 798-1913.

Open Conversation About the Reality of Prejudice – January 31

Tuesday evening, from 5-7 pm, Steve Wessler, former Director of the Portland Center for Preventing Hate, will guide an evening of facilitated small group discussions among clergy, educators, business people and interested residents aimed at deepening understandings of the reality of prejudice in our community. The evening is sponsored in part by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Brunswick. Held in the Morrell Room at the Curtis Memorial Library, the discussions will be followed by a pot luck supper. Multi-cultural dishes welcomed! FMI call 729-8515 or email uubruns@gwi.net.

Free Interactive Living Will Presentation – February 1

Wednesday at 1 pm, join Brunswick Area Respite Care and CHANS Home Health Care for a FREE interactive and informative seminar that will walk you through the process of completing your own Living Will. The presentation will be held at the United Methodist Church, 320 Church Road in Brunswick. Living Wills allow you to detail your wishes for medical and personal care should you be unable to advocate for yourself due to medical reasons, the advancement of dementia or other progressive illness. Other topics covered will be end-of-life care issues, choosing a medical proxy or decision maker, as well as how to use and update a Living Will. Refreshments and blank copies of the Living Will document will be provided. FMI and to RSVP call Nancy Herk-Bott, Executive Director of Brunswick Area Respite Care at 729-8571.

Regional Wine Dinner at Trattoria Athena – February 2

Thursday at 6 pm, Trattoria Athena will be hosting a regional wine dinner focusing on classic dishes from Piemonte including Peperoni con Bagna Caoda (salted anchovy and garlic “spread” served hot on roasted red peppers), Vitello Tonnato (Eastern Cattle Co. veal loin simmered in broth, then cooled, sliced, and served with a tuna and caper sauce), Agnolotti al Plin (pasta filled with ground local veal and pork, rice, onion and herbs; served in a white truffle cream sauce), and Bunet (amaretti cookie and chocolate flan). These tasty offerings will be paired with wines from Devenish Wines. Four courses for $40. FMI call 721-0700.

Thorton Oaks Resident Artists’ – February 9

Thursday from 4 – 5:30 pm, Thorton Oaks at 25 Thornton Way in Brunswick, will host a Resident Arts Exhibit and Reception. All are welcome! FMI email thoaks@gwi.net.

First Annual Ice Martini Bar and Luge – February 10 – 11

The Tavern at the Inn at Brunswick Station and Cold River will be hosting the First Annual Ice Martini Bar and Luge, Friday and Saturday, starting at 4:00 pm. With seating inside and out, staff and guest bartenders will be serving from the Ice Bar situated on the outdoor patio adjacent to the Tavern, featuring Cold River Vodkas and Gin, as well as draft beer, Ice Wine, hot toddies and signature cocktails. Their full menu will be available, as well as a BBQ pulled pork sandwich special with baked beans and blue cheese coleslaw. FMI click here or call 837-6565.

“Sweets for the Sweet” Valentine Bake Sale – February 10

The Mid Coast Hospital Café Corridor at 123 Medical Center Drive will host a Valentine Bake Sale Friday, from 8 am – 1 pm featuring coffeecakes, pies, cookies, breads, cinnamon rolls, tarts, and of course, fudge! The event is sponsored by MCH Auxiliary to benefit health career scholarships. All items packaged for gift giving. FMI call 373-6015 or email mstewart@midcoasthealth.com.

Valentines at The Tavern at Brunswick Station – February 10 – 14

Plan on celebrating Valentines at The Tavern at the Inn at Brunswick Station. Single, Dating, or Married join in this special event that spans over the weekend and into Valentine’s Day. A prix fixed menu will be served by candlelight. FMI or reservations call 837-6565 or click here.

Artist Reception for Hati Modr – February 11

Summer Island Studio Gallery of Fine Artisans in the Tontine Mall at 149 Maine Street, will be hosting an artist reception for Hati Modr Saturday, from 4-6pm. Wine, cheese, and hors d’oerves will be served. FMI call 373-1810 or email patti@sisgallery.comcastbiz.net.

MSMT Valentine Benefit – February 11

Saturday at 7:30 pm, Maine State Music Theater will host a Valentine’s Benefit including a reception at Bowdoin College’s Moulton Union, a fundraising auction, and a concert featuring the stars of MSMT’s upcoming production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard. Attendees will be transported back to the Golden Age of Hollywood. Tickets: $100 ($75 is a tax deductible donation). FMI call 725-8760 x15 or visit www.msmt.org.

In a State of Becoming: Inuit Art from the Collection of Rabbi Harry Sky – Opens February 14

This new exhibit will highlight Inuit transformation carvings recently donated to The Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum and Arctic Studies Center by Rabbi Harry Sky, former head of the Temple Beth El, Portland. The exhibit will focus on the parallels Rabbi Sky sees between his own teachings, that people are constantly changing and transforming themselves as they live their lives, and Inuit carvings of human/animal transformations. The museum is located in Hubbard Hall at Bowdoin College. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10 am – 5 pm; Sunday, 2-5 pm; closed Mondays and national holidays. Admission is FREE. FMI visit www.bowdoin.edu/arctic-museum.

Heart Ball – February 16

Parkview Adventist Medical Center will host the first annual Heart Ball on Thursday from 7-10 pm at the Inn at Brunswick Station. All proceeds will benefit the local chapter of the American Heart Association. There will be heavy appetizers, a cash bar, and a band playing great dance music! There will also be drawings for amazing, local prizes, including overnight stays at local B&Bs, restaurant gift certificates, and more. FMI visit www.heartballbrunswick.eventbrite.com.

February Freeze-out for Hunger – February 18 – 19

Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program‘s fund raiser and hunger awareness event will find hardy volunteers braving the cold from 10 am Saturday, until 10 am Sunday, at Cook’s Corner Mall. Like to join them? Be one of their incredible volunteers! FMI call Mary Turner at 729-8647, emailmt@mchpp.org, or visit www.mchpp.org.

Second Annual Winter Antique Show – February 26

Sunday, 10 am – 3 pm, Fort Andross, at 14 Maine Street, will be hosting the Second Annual Winter Antique Show with 54 plus dealers selling an assortment of antique furniture and accessories including: 18th & 19th century primitives, folk art, art, pottery, nautical, jewelry, pewter, textiles, and much more! Early buying 8-10 am $5 admission fee. FREE General Admission Starting at 10 am. FREE parking/food available. Local and nationwide shipping on premises provided by Touch of Grey, Inc. FMI call 607-4514, email cabot@waterfrontme.com, or visit www.cabotiques.com.

Second Chance Wildlife Bear Rehabilitators – February 28

The Cathance River Education Alliance presents this CREA Community Nature Program as part of their Winter/Spring 2012 schedule. FREE and open to the public, programs are held at the Topsham Public Library from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. Come hear bear rehabilitator, Dawn Brown from New Sharon, Maine explain how bears live their lives in the wild after rehabilitation, why they are often orphaned, and how they are released and then tracked. Bears at Second Chance Wildlife, Inc. are placed in a natural habitat, and human presence is kept to a minimum, which has proven to be effective for returning them to the wild. Hear about data gathered from bears during rehabilitation, and again when living in the wild. FMI email crea@creamaine.org.

Did You Know?

Sunday Brunch Buffet is back at the Captain Daniel Stone Inn (CDSI) beginning January 22nd. Also, Sundays and Monday is ½ price pizza and 50 cent wings. They have MUSIC – your refuge from winter, every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Enjoy mellow acoustic guitar and easy vocals from Katie Daggett, Dan Merrill, Brian Curtis Johnson, and Ray DeMarco. Last but not least, you can get a Salsa or Swing Dance lesson and Dinner at the CDSI, as well as enjoy a little Mystery Dinner Theatre. FMI visit www.captaindanielstone.com or call 373-1824.

It’s All Good Consignment Shop has moved to a new location at 212D Maine Street, between the former Bacari’s Restaurant and Caesar’s Salon. The beautifully remodeled shop offers a fabulous selection of new-with-tags clothing and accessories as well as many excellent-condition, previously-owned items. They’ve just taken in two beautiful wedding gowns perfect for the eco-chic fashion-minded bride. Consignment shopping is a great way to help reduce your carbon footprint. You never know what treasures you’ll find, so stop by and experience It’s All Good and you’ll never feel the need to head to the mall again. FMI visit www.shopitsallgoodconsignment.com or call 798-5500.

Jai Yoga offers Family Yoga Mondays 4:15-5 pm. Cost is only $10 family. Practicing yoga as a family cultivates healthy habits as you learn and grow together. All ages welcome, no experience necessary. Located in the Fort Andross building at 14 Maine Street, Suite 314. FMI call 725-7874 or visit www.JaiYogaHome.com.

The Brunswick Business Center has a ready-to-work conference room, small meeting rooms, and office space available on a drop-in, virtual, part-time, or full-time basis that can accommodate up to 32 people comfortably, board room style. Amenities include wireless high speed internet, A/V, and administrative support. FMI stop by the Brunswick Business Center at 18 Pleasant Street, click here, or call 373-9300.

ChiroCare, located in Suite 215 at Senter Place, 124 Maine Street, is hosting FREE talks and demonstrations the first five Saturday mornings in 2012. Learn to relieve, relax and restore your health, naturally. Programs run from 10-11 am. All participants are placed in prize drawings! FMI call 729-4645.

• January 28, Acupuncture – Catherine Allen, LAc from White Peony, PC
• February 4, Yoga – Audrey Palma from Maine Street Yoga

Bowdoin College President Barry Mills and Curtis Memorial Library Director Elisabeth Doucett have joined forces in supporting a “Brunswick-Bowdoin Community Read” on the subject of class and economic differences. A planning committee with representatives from the College and the Brunswick community selected Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich. Copies of the book are available for checkout at Curtis and Bowdoin libraries and can be purchased at area bookstores. Discussion groups and special events begin on Friday, January 27. FMI click here.

Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program is asking for your support in the Bangor Savings Community Matters More Voting 2012. Through this special program, a total of 68 grants will be awarded. The top vote-getting organizations in each region will each receive $5,000. The remaining 60 organizations will each receive $1,000. Just click here and write in Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program under the Midcoast heading.

What’s New?

The Brunswick Inn announces that Wendy Flynn has been named Director of Inn Services. Wendy will take on increased responsibility for Front Desk Services, Event Planning, and House Management. FMI call 729-4914.

The Theater Project‘s Professional Ensemble presents Circle Mirror Transformation, a simple play about the transformative power of theater, and Winter Cabaret, a lively evening featuring hilarious sketch comedy, live music and delectable desserts. The shows will run on alternate evenings (and Sunday matinees) through February 19. All tickets are Pay-What-You-Want with a suggested price of $18. FMI visit www.theaterproject.com or call 729-8584.

February at People Plus can’t be missed. Valentine’s Day with the Center Street Players, 2-4 pm. Author’s chat with Janet Freeman Baribeau and her book A Bailey Island Girl Remembers, on the 15th, 2-4 pm. Social Club kickoff with entertainment and snacks on the 29th, 2-4 pm sponsored by Scott Lemieux and Amerprise Financial. FMI  www.peopleplusmaine.org or call 729-0757.

MidCoast Pilates has added more classes at a variety of times to help you start the New Year right. Check out the schedule at midcoastpilates.com. Maurine will also be teaching the Bowdoin College winter Pilates mat series beginning Tuesday, January 31st. Classes will be held every Tuesday and Wednesday at 1:30 and 2:30 pm. FMI call 373-0872.

Byrnes Irish Pub is hosting an Irish-American Sing-Along with John & Cyndi 6-8 pm every Friday followed by Jud Caswell 9-Midnight! Good Food, Good Drink and Always a Good Time! Check out their Daily Specials at www.facebook.com/ByrnesIrishPub2 or call 729-9400.

Frontier For a full listing of current movies, music, and events, visit www.explorefrontier.com/schedule.

Eveningstar Cinema Now Showing The Descendants. Runs Friday, January 27 – Thursday, February 2. Friday and Saturday 1:40, 4:00, 6:30, 8:50 pm. Thursday 1:30, 4:00, 6:30 pm. FMI visitwww.eveningstarcinema.com or call 729-5486.

Specials and Discounts – Not to be Missed!

The Captain Daniel Stone Inn wants you to Frolic this February! Enjoy overnight accommodations for two, a $50 gift certificate to the dining room/tavern, 2 tickets to the Eveningstar Cinema, and a one pound box of chocolates or a fruit and cheese platter for two in your room anytime you book during the month of February. All for just $199! FMI call 373-1824.

Pura Vida Day Spa is offering 10% off all body waxings now until Saturday when you mention this Blast! They also have an exciting Valentines Package coming up in February, which includes: Chocolate Cherry Massage, 24 Karat Gold Collagen Facial, & a choice of either Rose Petal Pedicure or Chocolate Cherry Footsoak. Comes with complimentary sparkling beverage, chocolates and hot paraffin hand treatment. FMI call 725-1233.

Goodwin Chevrolet Mazda is offering a Facebook Special. Like them on Facebook and receive $10 off an oil change! FMI click here.

The College Store is offering special January Savings! All clearance 60% off. Current clearance includes books, notecards, candy, sweatshirts, and t-shirts. FMI call 798-4344 or visitwww.store.bowdoin.edu. Like them on Facebook to learn more about their sales and events.

Agren Appliance & Television, at 90 Maine Street, is running a Start-of-the-Year Mattress Sale. Agren’s new showroom features 50% OFF Serta® Bellagio® mattress sets-with Queen Sets starting at $699. King and Queen Sets over $799 receive a FREE, plush Bellagio robe: a $150 value. Serta Smart Choice® mattresses start at an unbelievable $99 for Twins, $299 for Queens. FMI click here, visit www.agrenappliance.com, or call 725-0644.

Luxe Salon is offering Valentine’s Day Specials. Book an appointment for yourself or buy a gift card for the one you love! Pick any 3 for $100 or pick 4 for $125 * Shampoo/Cut/Style * Scalp Massage/Shampoo/Style * Color Retouch * Express Facial * 30 Minute Massage * Spa Pedicure * Spa Foot Reflexology * Make-up Application with Free Shadow or Lip Gloss. FMI stop by or call 729-2700.

Register for Sista’s BBQ Birthday Club and receive $2 off any Pork Plate Meal just for entering. You will receive a FREE meal of your choice on your birthday. FMI stop by Sista’s at 154 1/2 Pleasant Street (formerly Udder Place) or call 841-5202.

White Sale at Park Row Interiors: 25% off all in-stock rugs, blankets, pillows and custom sheeting. Hurry sale ends January 31st. FMI visit www.parkrowinteriors.com and www.parkrowaccents.com.

Shear Body Hair Studio & Spa is offering 2012 Specials including a 60-minute body massage for just $55. Add a full body steam treatment for an additional $20, a mani/pedi combo for $50, add a paraffin treatment for just $5.00. FMI call 721-9393.

Employment Opportunity

A BDA member business needs a part-time clerical worker (9-12 hours/week) in their Topsham office. $8.5 hourly. Must have ability to spell, type and be familiar with word processing. Job would entail providing business support, updating online spreadsheet data, filing, organizing, and shipping/mailing small packages. Tasks may include scanning, enhancing and saving photos. Willing to train for these skills if the right person has the right “old fashioned” clerical/secretarial capabilities. Office uses full suite of Adobe Creative Suite. Great opportunity for right person. If interested, send email with cover letter and resume to mainestbiz@gmail.com.

Member Spotlight

Join us in welcoming a new local business and BDA member, Toby Sifton, MS, L.Ac., who is practicing acupuncture from his new office, Sifton Acupuncture, in the Six Cumberland building. He takes appointments from 8 am – 7 pm Monday through Friday, and Saturday 11 am – 4 pm. Toby practices Traditional Oriental Medicine, meaning not just acupuncture, but herbal medicine (classical formulas), dietary counseling, orthopedic massage, medical Qi Gong exercises, moxibustion, cupping, and more. He has been practicing for more than decade, and has been studying Eastern philosophy and martial arts for for two decades. As a general practitioner, he treats everything from asthma to herpes zoster. He specialized in orthopedics and sports medicine after graduate school, but has extensive experience with neurological, gastrointestinal, respiratory and gynecological complaints. An avid runner, reader, meditator, and sailor, Toby grounds his practice in the belief that abundant energy is available in nature to balance our body and life, through simple things and simply being. FMI visit www.siftonacupuncture.com or call 841-0949.

Stay up-to-date on what’s happening in Downtown Brunswick.

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The Brunswick Blast? Contact tracy@brunswickdowntown.org.

Stop by the Brunswick Visitor Center located at Brunswick Station. We have a full array of Downtown business brochures and maps. It is THE spot for information about Brunswick! Come in to take the bus or just to pick up brochures! FMI call 721-0999.

Brunswick Downtown Association
85 Maine Street Station / PO Box 15
Brunswick, Maine 04011
207-729-4439
www.brunswickdowntown.org

If you haven’t done so yet, please take a few seconds and “Like” The Valley Voice on Facebook.

The EB Trio is a high quality, up beat, acoustic based cover band, that draws it’s chops from Rock, Folk, Blues and R&B – Lead singer and guitarist Eric Bettencourt has been getting regional notoriety for his solo singer/songwriter work. Drummer Seth Kearns, a USM music graduate, has played steadily with well known acts such as Emilia Dahlin and This Way. Chris Chasse, also a USM music grad, is best know for his bass work with Giraffe Attack and Velourosaurus.
No Cover!!!

MyTie Lounge
94 Maine St.,
Brunswick, ME 04011

View Map · Get Directions

If you haven’t done so yet, please take a few seconds and “Like” The Valley Voice on Facebook.

I’ve been a fan of director Alexander Payne since I say his first film – the dead-on political satire/comedy Citizen Ruth (not about Ruth Gordon FYI) followed by the equally satirical (and relevant today) Election (Reese Witherspoon’s best and most hated role). He then coaxed a nuanced performance out of Jack Nicholson (like THAT’S easy) in About Schmidt, and then he did the wonderful Sideways with personal fave, the drunken Paul Giamatti.

Most of you are familiar with the odyssey it’s been to bring his current film The Descendants to The Eveningstar Cinema. Actually it’s been The Odyssey, The Iliad, The Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost combined in terms of epic poems (I’d even throw in The Prelude by Wordsworth ‘cause, believe me, this was an ORDEAL!!!). But GLORY OF GLORIES the wait is finally over! This is a film that I’ve had my eye on (along with The Artist) since last September and I am soooooooooooo (that’s 12 “o’s” BTW) happy to say that it’s here. It won Golden Globes for best actor (George Clooney) and Best Picture. For all of you who have been waiting as long as I to see this at The Eveningstar Cinema (and for those of you who “cheated” on me by going to Portland’s Nickelodeon to see it – I forgive you – but your 2nd viewing MUST be here), let’s celebrate together.

January 27-February 2, 2012
The Descendents
Friday, Saturday
1:30, 4:00, 6:30 & 8:50
Thursday-Sunday
1:30, 4:00 & 6:30

Directed by Alexander Payne
Starring: George Clooney, Shailene
Woodley, Beau Bridges, Robert Forster
(R) (110 min)

Eveningstar Cinema

Schedule for Friday, January 27, 2012 until Thursday, February 02, 2012

The Descendants (R)
George Clooney, Judy Greer
- 115 minutes
Fri: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 8:50
Sat: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 8:50
Sun: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Mon: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Tue: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Wed: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Thu: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com
All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00
Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

Eveningstar Cinema

I am extending Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy another week. The attendance is simply much too strong to take it off screen now. So once again, I must ask for your patience and understanding concerning the next two films which we are all clamoring for (including me), The Descendants and The Artist. I’ll get them for you if I have to act them out myself in the lobby for your amusement.

COMING SOON:
The Descendents
Directed by Alexander Payne
Starring: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Beau Bridges, Robert Forster
(R) (110 min)
TRAILER

After a five-year wait since Sideways, Alexander Payne has made his best film yet with The Descendants. Ostensibly a study of loss and coping with a tragic situation, this wonderfully nuanced look at a father and two daughters dealing with the imminent death of his wife and their mother turns the miraculous trick of possibly being even funnier than it is moving.  George Clooney is in very top form in a film that will connect with any audience looking for a genuine human story, meaning Fox Searchlight should be able to give this a very long ride through the holid daughter Scottie (Amara Miller), and when they go to fetch saucy 17-year-old Aleley) from her boarding school on the Big Island, they are confronted by a drunken girl spouting obscenities on the beach after curfew.

Despite his shortcomings as a father and, very likely, a husband, Matthew can’t help but stir viewer sympathy, especially when the smart-mouthed Alex insists upon bringing along stoner boyfriend Sid (Nick Krause) wherever they go and when confronted by his father-in-law (Robert Forster), a military type who deals with his grief over his beloved daughter by abusing everybody in his vicinity.

But the monkey wrench in the already fraught situation turns up when Alex informs her clueless dad that his wife had been cheating on him. As he so often does, Payne finds a way to augment the impact of a dramatic revelation with out-of-left field humor; in this case, he has Matthew put on some sandals and go running to the home of his wife’s best friend, his determined rush to learn the truth made giddily humorous simply by the sight of his awkward dash. Payne repeats this technique at equally critical moments, such as the denouement of the scene when Matthew finally tracks down the man who has cuckolded him.

Backgrounding the medical and emotional drama—with no hope of recovery, Elizabeth will be let go—is an expressive layer of Hawaiian history; Matthew’s family’s presence on the islands dates back to 1860 and a decision is due to be made within days about selling 25,000 acres of stunning waterfront property in Kuau’i, said to be the largest remaining such undeveloped parcel.  Income from a sale would deliver a fortune to Matthew and his many relatives (including a yokel very nicely played by Beau Bridges), and a trip taken to the site by the endearingly conflicted quartet of Matthew, his girls and Sid plays a role in the resolution of this meaningful issue.

A major key to the film’s success are the nuances, fluctuating attitudes, loaded looks and tonal inflections among the main characters; the ensemble work is terrific. Despite her father’s admonitions, Alex continues to fling around dirty words, something then picked up by Scottie. Sid starts off seeming like a total dufus, always saying exactly the wrong thing, but even he gets a significant scene later on that completely changes the way he can be regarded.

The audience does get the satisfaction of Matthew’s fine confrontation with the man who screwed his wife, but this is made legitimately richer by a wonderful follow-up scene involving his wife, indelibly etched by Judy Greer.

But it’s Clooney who carries it all with an underplayed, sometimes self-deprecating and exceptionally resonant performance. He’s onscreen nearly all the time (and narrates as well) and makes it easy to spend nearly two hours with a man forced to carry more than his fair share of the weight of the world on his shoulders for a spell.

Similarly essential to the venture’s success is Woodley, who transforms convincingly from a girl who is reflexively condescending toward her father to one who becomes his eager accomplice and staunchest defender. Miller and Krause are excellent as the other members of what becomes the inner circle, and Patricia Hastie will, one hopes, one day have the opportunity to make a more expressive impression on the big screen than she does in the dramatically thankless but somehow still memorable role of the inert, bedridden Elizabeth (well, she does get a kissing scene with George Clooney, even if her character can’t feel it).

The film notably provides a most welcome untouristy view of Hawaii and everyday life on the islands, amplified by diverse weather (heavy clouds, mist and rain offset the expected sunny vistas). The soundtrack is also exceptional, consisting almost entirely of local tunes used in apt and expressive ways.

Eveningstar Cinema

Schedule for Friday, January 20, 2012 until Thursday, January 26, 2012

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (R)
Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman
- 127 minutes
Fri: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 9:00
Sat: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 9:00
Sun: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Mon: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Tue: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Wed: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Thu: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com
All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00
Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Friday, January 20 through
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Friday, Saturday
1:30, 4:00, 6:30 & 9:00
Thursday-Sunday
1:30, 4:00 & 6:30

The Descendents

The Artist

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (R)
Rated for violence, some sexuality/nudity and language
Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman – 127 min.

An intelligence officer is recalled from retirement when there are signs that one of the top-ranking officers of the British Secret Intelligence Service is a Soviet mole.

Official Site Trailer

The Descendants (R)
George Clooney, Judy Greer – 115 min.

A newly widowed father – and one of the richest men in Oahu, Hawaii – takes off with his two rebellious daughters to track down his wife’s lover on the island of Kauai.

Official Site Trailer

The Artist (PG-13)
Rated for a disturbing image and a crude gesture
Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo – 100 min.

A silent movie star loses his career to the rise of “talkies,” and his lover, a rising movie star, saves him from alcoholism and poverty by encouraging him to make a comeback as a dancer.

Official Site Trailer

My Fellow Cinephiles:

Turns out that all you needed to return to the cinema in droves was a good, old-fashioned 70′s style, Cold War spy thriller. My favorite (and frequent) comment coming from you as you left the theater, “My goodness, that was so hard to follow, but I absolutely loved it!” And what’s not to love about an adaptation of a BBC TV show, adapted from a John LaCarre’ book, starring Gary Oldman, Colin Firth and John Hurt?

But here’s the rub – I was prepared to say that this will be the FINAL WEEK of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, b ut now I CAN’T.. Why? Because sell outs are rare, and you have to ride the wave as long as you can when you’re a single screen. look, you have called me, e-mailed me and told me in person that you absolutely, must see The Descendants and I want nothing more than to capitulate. But as the Black Widow Motorcycle gang told Clint Eastwood In Any Which Way You Can, “personal is personal but business is business.” So you spoke volumes about Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, and I am listening. So feel free to yell at me and call me names. I will continue to do my best in bringing you what you want to see. But please understand why I make some of the moves I do. And together, we shall have a great movie experience!

Friday, Jan. 13 – Thursday, Jan. 19
Fri & Sat
130 400 630 900
Sun – Thurs
130 400 630

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Directed by: Tomas Alfredson
Starring: Gary Oldman, Colin Firth
(R)(127 min)
TRAILER

Eveningstar Cinema

Schedule for Friday, January 13, 2012 until Thursday, January 19, 2012

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (R)
Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman
- 127 minutes
Fri: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 9:00
Sat: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 9:00
Sun: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Mon: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Tue: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Wed: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Thu: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com
All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00
Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

BDA Happenings

2012 Brunswick Map – Two Spots Left

The 2012 Brunswick Map is nearing production. If you want to be included, you must contact Tracy Coughlin at tracy@brunswickdowntown.org or 729-4439 immediately.

BDA Annual Meeting – “Back to Business: Successful Strategies for the New Year”

The theme for the BDA Annual Meeting is “Back to Business: Successful Strategies for the New Year.” The meeting will be held Thursday, January 19, at Bowdoin College’s Daggett Lounge from 7:30 to 9 am. The public is invited to attend. The featured speaker will be Deb Neuman, the Deputy Commissioner of the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development. She will focus on small business success practices and strong downtowns. This meeting is generously being sponsored by The Captain Daniel Stone. Click here to register.

Longfellow Days 2012

Longfellow Days, the month long celebration honoring Henry W. Longfellow in Brunswick, will take place in February. This year’s theme will be Poet of the Heart, celebrating the loving relationships that enhance our personal and public lives. A wide range of activities will take place including community poetry, lectures, tours, dining and film events, and much, much more. In addition, Longfellow Days organizers are offering a 50% discount on Longfellow Days t-shirts. They will beavailable to local businesses for only $10 a piece, so businesses and employees can wear them proudly during the Longfellow Days festivities. Thanks to ArtForms, associated with Cool As A Moose, for producing the shirts and creating the design. FMI about the shirts and to place an order, email Rob Jarratt at rbjarratt@yahoo.com. Please submit one bulk order per business. They will be placing one combined order in the middle of January, so request your shirts today!

Upcoming Events in Downtown Brunswick               January 13, 2011

Summer Island Studio Paula Green Retrospective Show – January 14

Saturday from 4-6 pm (snow date the 15th), the Summer Island Studio, at 149 Maine Street, will host a reception and retrospective show featuring artwork by Paula Green, a very popular local artist and a founding member of the DownTown Gallery in Washington, Maine. Paula worked at the Grainery in Bath, and was also one of the first people to start the Artisans shop on the corner of Front and Centre Streets in Bath. Her most popular pieces came from the PeaGreen Card Company, as well as a line of popular t-shirts. Come view and enjoy her playful and interesting pieces. FMI call 373-1810.

Yoga Nidra, the Healing practice of Deep Relaxation – January 14

This Saturday from 2:30-4:30 pm, Jai Yoga will host a class in Yoga Nidra, a powerful yet simple deep yogic relaxation technique. As you are guided to move your awareness throughout your body, you will experience deeper and deeper states of relaxation, resulting in a sense of peace, harmony and balance. Deep healing is possible with the practice of “yogic sleep,” a true gift to the body, mind and spirit. No experience is needed. This class is offered the second Saturday of every month. Cost $22. Advance registration recommended. FMI click here or call 725-7874.

Children’s Celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. – January 16

This annual Bowdoin College Library event will be held from 10:30 am to noon in Daggett Lounge, Thorne Hall. Children’s authors Charlotte Agell and Rohan Henry, and musician Josephine Cameron will be on hand for “illustrated storytelling,” music, and activities in remembrance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Ages five and up, open to the public. Admission is FREE. FMI click here or call 725-3280.

Brunswick Author Carla Maria Sullwold at Curtis Memorial Library – January 18

Award-winning author, Carla Maria Sullwold of Brunswick, will be at Curtis Memorial Library on Wednesday at 7:00 pm to discuss her new novel Raising Rufus: A Maine Love Story, a tender and tragic semi-autobiographical love story about an older couple, their Newfoundland dog, and their passion for the coast of Maine. This FREE event is sponsored by Curtis Friends. Refreshments will be provided and books will be available for purchase and signing. FMI call 725-5242 x213, e-mailfriends@curtislibrary.com, or visit www.curtislibrary.com.

Live Music Upstairs at The Bistro – January 19

Thursday, Cumberland Crossing will be playing great bluegrass music upstairs at The Back Street Bistro starting at 7 pm. The Bistro will also be hosting a wine tasting starting at 6 pm the same evening with Crush Distributors featuring three wines from Camas Winery in Limoux, France. The music is FREE and the wine tasting is $5 for the three wines (chardonnay, syrah, and pinot noir). FMI call 725-4060.

Spindleworks Trunk Show at T.P. Perkins – January 20

Come to T.P. Perkins at 53 Maine Street on Friday from 5-8 pm for a festive evening mingling, eating, drinking and viewing new work by Spindleworks. It’s a great way to ward off the post holiday/mid-winter doldrums and maybe find something special for your Valentine. Make an evening of it and support the local economy in the process! FMI call 373-0300 or visit www.vintageperkins.com orwww.spindleworks.org.

The Robert Burns Supper – January 25

In honor of poet Robert Burns birthday, The Tavern at The Inn at Brunswick Station will host a Burns Supper starting at 6:30 pm. This traditional Scottish evening will feature Bagpipes, Toasting of the Haggis, Recitations of all the favorite Robert Burns poems, a Scottish buffet, and a great selection of single malt scotches. Cost is $35 per person (not including tax gratuity or alcohol). FMI and reservations for your Clan Table call 837-6565.

CREA Community Nature Program – January 31

Tuesday at 6:30 pm, join The Cathance River Education Alliance (CREA) in hosting Mt. Ararat and Brunswick High students as they present their long-term research findings on projects throughout the Cathance River Preserve. Students chose a topic to research in small groups and collected data weekly. Lab reports, digital poster presentations, and iMovies served as culminating final products. Topics include terrestrial insect sampling, forest inventory growth data, mammal study, underwater cameras, Cathance River water level and quality, habitat holes, butterflies, mushrooms, and dragonflies. The event will be held at the Topsham Public Library. FMI click here or call 798-1913.

Open Conversation About the Reality of Prejudice – January 31

Tuesday evening from 5-7 pm, Steve Wessler, former Director of the Portland Center for Preventing Hate, will guide an evening of facilitated small group discussions among clergy, educators, business people and interested residents aimed at deepening understandings of the reality of prejudice in our community. The evening in sponsored in part by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Brunswick. Held in the Morrell Room at the Curtis Memorial Library, the discussions will be followed by a pot luck supper. Multi-cultural dishes welcomed! FMI call 729-8515 or email uubruns@gwi.net.

Free Interactive Living Will Presentation – February 1

Wednesday at 1 pm, join Brunswick Area Respite Care and CHANS Home Health Care for a FREE interactive and informative seminar that will walk you through the process of completing your own Living Will. The presentation will be held at the United Methodist Church, 320 Church Road in Brunswick. Living Wills allow you to detail your wishes for medical and personal care should you be unable to advocate for yourself due to medical reasons, the advancement of dementia or other progressive illness. Other topics covered will be end-of-life care issues, choosing a medical proxy or decision maker, as well as how to use and update a Living Will. Refreshments and blank copies of the Living Will document will be provided. FMI and to RSVP call Nancy Herk-Bott, Executive Director of Brunswick Area Respite Care at 729-8571.

Regional Wine Dinner at Trattoria Athena – February 2

Thursday at 6 pm, Trattoria Athena will be hosting a regional wine dinner focusing on classic dishes from Piemonte including Peperoni con Bagna Caoda (salted anchovy and garlic “spread” served hot on roasted red peppers), Vitello Tonnato (Eastern Cattle Co. veal loin simmered in broth, then cooled, sliced, and served with a tuna and caper sauce), Agnolotti al Plin (pasta filled with ground local veal and pork, rice, onion and herbs; served in a white truffle cream sauce), and Bunet (amaretti cookie and chocolate flan). These tasty offerings will be paired with wines from Devenish Wines. Four courses for $40. FMI call 721-0700.

Heart Ball – February 16

Parkview Adventist Medical Center will host the first annual Heart Ball on Thursday from 7-10 pm at the Inn at Brunswick Station. All proceeds will benefit the local chapter of the American Heart Association. There will be heavy appetizers, a cash bar, and a band playing great dance music! There will also be drawings for amazing, local prizes, including overnight stays at local B&Bs, restaurant gift certificates, and more. FMI visit www.heartballbrunswick.eventbrite.com.

February Freeze-out for Hunger – February 18

Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program‘s fund raiser and hunger awareness event will find hardy volunteers braving the cold from 10 am Saturday, February 18, until 10 am Sunday, February 19, at Cook’s Corner Mall. Like to join them? Be a part of our incredible volunteers! Call Mary Turner 729-8647, email mt@mchpp.org or visit www.mchpp.org.

Did You Know?

CHANS Home Health Care is offering the following FREE community-based blood pressure clinics.FMI call 721-1278.

• January 18, 10:00 am – 11:30 am, at Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program, 84A Union St
• January 19, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm, at People Plus, 35 Union Street
• January 27, 9:30 am – 10:30 am, at Pejepscot Terrace, 36 Pejepscot Terrace

The Brunswick Business Center has ready-to-work conference room, small meeting rooms, and office space available on a drop-in, virtual, part-time, or full-time basis that can accommodate up to 32 people comfortably, board room style. Amenities include wireless high speed internet, A/V, and administrative support. FMI stop by the Brunswick Business Center at 18 Pleasant Street, click here, or call 373-9300.

ChiroCare, located in Suite 215 at Senter Place on 124 Maine Street, is hosting FREE talks and demonstrations the first five Saturday mornings in 2012. Learn to relieve, relax and restore your health, naturally. Programs run from 10-11 am. All participants are placed in prize drawings! FMI call 729-4645.

• January 14, Therapeutic Massage Cassandra Therrien and Hillary Belanger, Licensed Massage Therapists from Brunswick Massage & Wellness
• January 28, Acupuncture – Catherine Allen, LAc from White Peony, PC
• February 4, Yoga – Audrey Palma from Maine Street Yoga

Bowdoin College President Barry Mills and Curtis Memorial Library Director Elisabeth Doucett have joined forces in supporting a “Brunswick-Bowdoin Community Read” on the subject of class and economic differences. A planning committee with representatives from the College and the Brunswick community selected Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich. Copies of the book are available for checkout at Curtis and Bowdoin libraries and can be purchased at area bookstores. Discussion groups and special events begin on Friday, January 27. FMI click here.

BDA Membership isn’t just for businesses. Our membership is open to all who enjoy Downtown Brunswick, including individuals, families, community members and non-profit organizations. Join today to invest in Downtown Brunswick’s future. FMI visit www.brunswickdowntown.org/join.

What’s New?

January is BUSY at People Plus! Author Chats kick off with Angus King, Yoga for Mobility and Pilates For Grown Ups starts with Ann and Dennis Kimmage, Tai Chi Easy begins as does the Laughter Class. We are also starting the monthly Women’s breakfast, “A Week in Review”, and an Excel Intro Class. FMI visit www.peopleplusmaine.org or call 729-0757.

The Theater Project‘s Professional Ensemble presents Circle Mirror Transformation, a simple play about the transformative power of theater, and Winter Cabaret, a lively evening featuring hilarious sketch comedy, live music and delectable desserts. The shows will run on alternate evenings (and Sunday matinees) from January 20 – February 19. For a full schedule of performances and times, visit www.theaterproject.com. All tickets are Pay-What-You-Want with a suggested price of $18, and are available online or at 729-8584.

MidCoast Pilates has added more classes at a variety of times to help you start the New Year right. Check out the schedule at midcoastpilates.com. Maurine will also be teaching the Bowdoin College winter Pilates mat series beginning Tuesday, January 31st. Classes will be held every Tuesday and Wednesday at 1:30 and 2:30 pm. FMI call 373-0872.

Byrnes Irish Pub is hosting an Irish-American Sing-Along with John & Cyndi 6-8 pm every Friday followed by Jud Caswell 9-Midnight! They’ll also host a Patriots Playoff Party this Saturday at 8 pm and an Irish Breakfast Menu served until 2 pm Saturday & Sunday featuring Byrnes’ Homemade Corned Beef Hash. Good Food, Good Drink and Always a Good Time! Check out their Daily Specials at www.facebook.com/ByrnesIrishPub2 or call 729-9400.

Frontier For a full listing of current movies, music, and events, visit www.explorefrontier.com/schedule.

Eveningstar Cinema Now Showing Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy runs Friday, January 13 – Thursday, January 19. 1:30, 4:00, 6:30. On Friday and Saturday they also have a 9:00 pm show. FMI visitwww.eveningstarcinema.com or call 729-5486.

Specials and Discounts – Not to be Missed!

Pura Vida Day Spa is offering a special Vitamin C Anti-Aging Facial for the month of January. This unique preventative and youth-enhancing facial treatment combines powerful anti-oxidants with soothing botanicals, to render your skin refreshed and rejuvenated while providing the ultimate relaxing experience. Especially designed to hydrate, tone, brighten, and revitalize skin damaged by the sun, environmental changes and hormonal imbalances. $75 FMI call 725-1233.

Goodwin Chevrolet Mazda is offering a Facebook Special. Like them on Facebook and receive $10 off an oil change! FMI click here.

Agren Appliance, 90 Maine Street, will be featuring Big Box Buster Sale throughout January. Start 2012 with a new HDTV or kitchen/laundry appliances at prices guaranteed to keep you on budget. Visit their new Serta®Mattress Showroom and get great January deals on mattresses (Smart Choice® Twins for as low as $99 and Bellagio® mattress sets at HALF OFF with Queens starting at $699). FMI stop by Agren at 90 Maine Street, click here, or call 725-0644.

Timeless Cottage is offering a Special Mid-Winter Event January 20th and 21st with 20% off everything in the store! Welcome 2012 with ‘One of a Kind Decorating’ – creating a sensational room like nobody else. Complete your New Year’s Decorating Project with the help of Timeless Cottage! Patricia can help you find that special item (mirror, table, lamp or vase) to complete the look you are trying to accomplish. FMI call 725-5057.

Register for Sista’s BBQ Birthday Club and receive $2 off any Pork Plate Meal just for entering. You will receive a FREE meal of your choice on your birthday. FMI stop by Sista’s at 1541/2 Pleasant Street (formerly Udder Place) or call 841-5202.

Luxe Salon and Spa is now offering $15 Men’s Haircuts on Tuesdays and $25 Women’s Haircuts on Thursdays! Call today to schedule your appointment! 729-2700.

White Sale at Park Row Interiors: 25% off all in-stock rugs, blankets, pillows and custom sheeting the entire month of January. FMI visit www.parkrowinteriors.com and www.parkrowaccents.com.

Shear Body Hair Studio & Spa is offering 2012 Specials including a 60-minute body massage for just $55.00. Add a full body steam treatment for an additional $20, a mani/pedi combo for $50.00, add a paraffin treatment for just $5.00. FMI call 721-9393.

Great savings for social media lovers at the Comfort Inn in Brunswick. Check-in with Foursquare for the first time and receive 20% off the best available rate! FMI call 721-9393.

Stay up-to-date on what’s happening in Downtown Brunswick.

  Click here to join our mailing list today:

Do you have an event or business announcement that you would like to have included in

The Brunswick Blast? Contact tracy@brunswickdowntown.org.

Stop by the Brunswick Visitor Center located at Brunswick Station. We have a full array of Downtown business brochures and maps. It is THE spot for information about Brunswick! Come in to take the bus or just to pick up brochures! FMI call 721-0999.

Brunswick Downtown Association
85 Maine Street Station / PO Box 15
Brunswick, Maine 04011

207-729-4439

www.brunswickdowntown.org

REGISTER NOW:  BDA Annual Meeting January 19th 

Please register now to attend the Brunswick Downtown Association’s (BDA) Annual Meeting “Back to Business: Successful Strategies for the New Year” on Thursday, January 19th, at the Daggett Lounge on the Bowdoin College campus.

The agenda includes:

• Presentation of Volunteer and Member of the Year Awards
• BDA 2011-2012 State of the Association Report and 2012 plans
• Featured speaker:  Deb Neuman, Deputy Commissioner of the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development, providing her insights on successful business strategies and strong downtowns.

Breakfast service will begin at 7:30 am with the meeting starting at 7:45 and ending at 9 am. Pre-registration is required. The cost for the breakfast is $12 per person. Payments can be processed online at www.brunswickdowntown.org, mailed to the BDA, PO Box 15, Brunswick, ME 04011 or paid at the door. For more information, please visit www.brunswickdowntown.org or call 207-729-4439 .

The meeting is sponsored by The Captain Daniel Stone Inn, a historical inn, restaurant and banquet facility located on Water Street in Downtown Brunswick. Now managed by Lafayette Hotels, one of New England’s premier hotel companies based in Bangor, Maine, the Inn has a AAA four-diamond ranking, twenty-four well appointed guest rooms and suites, the No. 10 Water Restaurant and Fireside Tavern, meeting facilities for up to 150 people, a state of the art fitness center, as well as a hot tub and sauna. For more information on The Captain Daniel Stone Inn, visit www.captaindanielstoneinn.com.

Brunswick Downtown Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Stay up-to-date on what’s happening in Brunswick.

  Click here to join our mailing list today:

Do you have an event or business announcement that you would like to have included in

The Brunswick Blast?  Contact us at info@brunswickdowntown.org.

Brunswick Downtown Association
85 Maine Street Station
PO Box 15
Brunswick, Maine   04011

207-729-4439
http://www.brunswickdowntown.org/

My Fellow Cinephiles:

What better way to celebrate the coming of a brand, new year then to hearken back to the Cold War days with a ripping good spy yarn? Of course, I spent my new year’s eve watching The Twilight Zone marathon on the Sci-Fi Channel, so that tells you all you need to know about me. If you watched the BBC TV adaptation of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy with Sir Alec Guinness and liked it, then I believe that you will absolutely adore this version. So I am delighted to bring this exceptional film, starring two of my favorite actors – Gary Oldman and Colin Firth.

January 6, 2012-January 12, 2012
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Directed by: Tomas Alfredson
Starring: Gary Oldman, Colin Firth
(R)(127 min)
TRAILER

Director Tomas Alfredson came to prominence with Let the Right One In, a story about vampires, but his instinctive, even passionate sympathy for the undead was never better displayed than here. This is a skin-crawlingly atmospheric, uncompromisingly cerebral and austere account of John le Carré’s cold war espionage novel, adapted for the screen by Peter Straughan and the late Bridget O’Connor. Gary Oldman plays the melancholy agent George Smiley, brought out of his humiliating retirement and charged with rooting out a Soviet mole in the upper reaches of the secret service.

Could it be Alleline (Toby Jones), Haydon (Colin Firth), Bland (Ciarán Hinds), Estherhase (David Dencik) – or someone else? Like Michael Corleone contemplating Fredo’s duplicity, Smiley’s face is a mask of icy determination. He is also suppressing emotional agony. One of these men has betrayed him personally.

When the BBC television adaptation with Alec Guinness was on the air in 1979, this was contemporary drama. Now it’s a 70s period piece. Distance lends yet more disenchantment to the view. We are miles away from Bond glamour: defeating the clearly defined bad guy, getting the girl, and so on. This is an arena of shabby compromises enacted by anxious middle-aged men who feel, to quote Kathy Burke’s research agent Connie Sachs, “seriously under-fucked”. It is a tatty, nasty, shabby and stiflingly male world of beige and grey, seen through a dreary particulate haze – fag-ash and dandruff. The interiors and government offices are lit with a pallid, headachey glow. Every room looks like a morgue, and the corpses are walking around, filling out chits, wearing ill-fitting suits, having whispered conversations, giving and receiving bollockings and worrying about loyalty.

The movie brilliantly conjures up the heavy weather of Le Carré’s spy game: it involves nothing like derring-do, but a ritual of humiliation and a ballet of shame in which the security services play their part in managing decline and managing denial, and the Brit spooks try to rebuild their reputation with the Americans – the only people with secrets worth keeping – in their calamitous post-Philby world. Alfredson shows how the profession of secrets meshes with sexual shame, heterosexual and homosexual: perhaps because married womanizers and in-the-closet gay men are good at pretence and doublethink, and perhaps because they yearn for a world which makes a virtue of deceit. In his visit to Moscow this week, David Cameron regaled his hosts with an ingenuous anecdote about being approached as a fresh-faced teenager during a Russian trip in his 1985 gap year. Two men encountered him on a beach, then took him to lunch, then dinner, and flatteringly asked him about politics. Cameron laughingly says it was a “KGB interview”. Well, yes. But were they to collaborate on a film version, Le Carré and Alfredson might give us a clearer hint about the subtexts to this predatory encounter.

The somnambulist gloom of Tinker, Tailor is animated by two chillingly realized setpieces: in one, an agent named Prideaux (Mark Strong) is summoned by the spy-chief Control, played by John Hurt, and ordered to go to Budapest where he is to bring in a Hungarian general who wants to come over to the west and reveal the mole’s identity. His initial meeting with a third party at a far-from-innocuous cafe takes place in circumstances crackling with unease, an almost Truman Show theatre of paranoia. A droplet of sweat from the waiter’s brow lands on the table, like the first sign of a thunderstorm. The meeting ends in calamity, and is to trigger the forced resignation of Control and Smiley, an unjust humiliation they accept like the good chaps they are.

The second setpiece takes place in Turkey, and involves the young hothead Ricki Tarr, played by Tom Hardy, the nearest thing this drama has to a Bond figure. Tarr is an other-ranks figure in his blue denim shirt, not a member of the Smiley officer class, spying on a louche military attache. Alfredson creates a tremendous Rear Window tableau of sex and violence in the distant lighted windows of grim apartment buildings. Romantically, in the middle of this bloodbath, Tarr is to fall in love with this man’s beautiful wife Irina (Svetlana Khodchenkova), who is in a position to give him far more important intelligence than the man he is following. At a crucial stage in the proceedings, Tarr promises to help Smiley, but makes him give a vital promise in return, and the consequent betrayal colours the drama with yet more dishonesty and bad faith.

This Tinker Tailor is a weightless, slo-mo nightmare taking place in what looks like an aquarium filled with poison gas instead of water: I found it more gripping and involving than any crash-bang action picture, and it is anchored by Gary Oldman’s tragic mandarin, a variation on Alec Guinness which transfers the emphasis away from George Smiley’s wounded feelings to his cool capacity for unconcern in the face of violence, a hint of a daredevil past, long mummified by bureaucratic self-control and a schoolmasterly scorn for his victim’s weakness and disloyalty, while seeing how easily any agent could give the wretched Judas kiss. What a treat this film is, and what an unexpected thrill.

Eveningstar Cinema

Schedule for Friday, January 06, 2012 until Thursday, January 12, 2012

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (R)
Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman
- 127 minutes
Fri: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 9:00
Sat: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30, 9:00
Sun: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Mon: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Tue: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Wed: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30
Thu: (1:30), (4:00), 6:30

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com
All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00
Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

Young Adult

December 30, 2011
through
January 5, 2012
1:30, 3:45, 6:00 & 8:15



Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

The Descendents

The Artist

The Iron Lady

A Dangerous Method

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (R)
Rated for violence, some sexuality/nudity and language
Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman – 127 min.

An intelligence officer is recalled from retirement when there are signs that one of the top-ranking officers of the British Secret Intelligence Service is a Soviet mole.

Official Site Trailer

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00
Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

Description

Original rock and classic rock covers.This is an acoustic duo version of Dominic and the lucid2-acoustic guitars plus vocals, come catch this stripped down version of Portland’s acclaimed rockers, Dominic and the lucid. Dominic and Scott will play tunes from their 3 albums as well as classic covers.

About MyTie Lounge

MyTie Lounge with its upscale, fascinating and at the same time casual atmosphere is the perfect place to go for gourmets, bar visitors and night owls.

We will provide you with a perfect mixture of easy musical atmosphere, Jazz and Blues early-on in the evening, progressively evolving into some dancing tunes as the evening turns into night.
With metropolis around the world as a concept our multicultural staff will provide you the best atmosphere you can have in New England.

Our bartenders are known for their fabulous martinis and specialty cocktail creations, not in the mood for a cocktail? Try the wide range of wines and/or beers from all over the world, the staff would be happy to advise you and help you find the perfect drink for an excellent night out.

We speak English, Spanish, Italian, Turkish, Cantonese, Russian, Mandarin and Ukrainian.

An international place, which, at the same time, reflects the relaxed Maine life-style.

94 Maine St., Brunswick, ME 04011 · Get Directions
Phone: (207)406-2574

Website:
http://www.mytielounge.com

Hours

Tue – Sat:
6:00 pm to 12:30 am

About The Lucid

The Lucid combines Dominic Lavoie’s songwriting with the driving rhythm section of childhood bandmates Charles Gagne and Nate Cyr with Scott Mohler on guitar and keys. Moving from the French Canadian border towns of northern Maine and New Hampshire to Portland’s eclectic music scene in 2002.

The 3rd album from The Lucid is self-titled, and was recorded at Rocking Horse Studios in NH with Brian Coombes and Scott Mohler. Compiled from nearly all live material tracked in the studio’s large room the Lucid recorded the album over a two week span in May, 2010.

Trophies, Pins, and Merit Badges: The Lucid has been voted Best Pop-Rock Act of 2009 and Best Male Vocalist 2007, 2011 in the Portland Phoenix Best Music Poll. Their albums ‘Waging the Wage’ and ‘Season of The Sun’ were featured in the Portland Phoenix’s Top 20 Albums of 2006, 2008 lists.

They’ve shared bills with Blind Melon, Sam Roberts Band, Mother Mother, Starlight Mints, Rustic Overtones, Blue Oyster Cult, The Cave Singers, to name a few. Headlined the Alive@5 Summer Music Series in Portland’s Monument Square. They are also yearly features at the Arootsakoostik Festival. Featured at the 2010 CMJ Festival in New York City. Most recently added to the Kah-Bang festival featuring My Morning Jacket, Grace Potter, and Chromeo.

BDA Happenings

2012 Brunswick Map – Sign-Up Closing

Last chance to reserve space to have your business or organization listed in the 2012 Downtown Brunswick Map. If you want to be included, you must contact Tracy Coughlin at tracy@brunswickdowntown.org or 729-4439 by Wednesday, January 4th. After the 4th, layout work on the map will begin and no further sign-ups will be possible.

BDA Annual Meeting – “Back to Business: Successful Strategies for the New Year”

The BDA will host its Annual Meeting on Thursday, January 19, at Bowdoin College’s Daggett Lounge from 7:15 – 9 am. The public is invited to attend. The BDA will present its Volunteer and Member of the Year Awards and its 2011-2012 State of the Association report. Deb Neuman, the Deputy Commissioner of the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development, will speak to small business success practices and strong downtowns. She is uniquely qualified to address these subjects based on her experience as a former small business owner, Director of the Target Technology Incubator at UMO, and current host of the award-winning “Back to Business” radio show. She is passionate about helping small businesses and downtowns be successful. Over the years she has provided input to state leaders on the needs of small businesses andrecommended how to assist local businesses with start-up, expansion, and job creation efforts. Please join us to hear her suggestions as to what we can all do to improve Downtown Brunswick.  This meeting is generously being sponsored by The Captain Daniel Stone Inn.

Longfellow Days 2012

Longfellow Days, the month long celebration honoring Henry W. Longfellow in Brunswick, will take place in February. This year’s theme will be Poet of the Heart, celebrating the loving relationships that enhance our personal and public lives. A wide range of activities will take place including community poetry, lectures, tours, dining and film events, and much, much more. Details will be posted on the BDA website by January 6.

Upcoming Events in Downtown Brunswick            December 30, 2011

The Rumpus Room will celebrate a countdown to 12 (noon that is!) starting at 9:00 am on December 31. Enjoy FREE refreshments and every child will get a balloon! FMI call 729-0123, visit www.rumpus-room.com, or email aswanberg@rumpus-room.com.

New Year’s Eve Gala – December 31st

Ring in the New Year at The Brunswick Inn 7 pm to 1 am. Enjoy heavy hors d’oeuvres, dessert, and dancing with music provided by the Hal Ahlers Band. $25 per person through December 27th, $30 per person after. FMI call 729-4914.

Thorton Oaks Art Exhibit Opening Reception – January 5

More than 30 Brunswick High School art students will exhibit their work at Thornton Oaks Retirement Community, 25 Thornton Way. The public is invited to the opening reception on Thursday, January 5, from 4:00-5:30 pm. The exhibit will include a variety of media, including sculpture, drawings, prints, paintings, photography and mixed media, and will be on display through February 3. FMI call Marlise Swartz at 729-8033.

The Women’s Holiday Recovery Weekend – January 7

Enjoy a champagne brunch at The Brunswick Inn starting at noon, followed by a full menu of on-site spa services, then cocktails by the fire, dinner, and movies for $60 (does not include spa services). Enjoy 20% off room rates. FMI call 729-4914.

The Beer vs. Wine Pairings Dinner – January 10

Tuesday evening, starting at 6 pm, The Tavern at the Inn at Brunswick Station will host a dinner featuring beer and wine pairing with each of the five courses. Attendees will have an opportunity to debate the merits of beer and wine, while examining how each enhances the flavors of the dishes, which include pan steamed mussels, short rib potpie, chicken and dumplings, lobster risotto and individual apple tatin. Cost is $42 per person, excluding tax and gratuity. FMI call 837-6565.

Getting Ready for Income Taxes – January 11

Sharon Ross, Program Director of the Midcoast CA$H Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program at Volunteers of America will talk about basic tax concepts, provide tips to help you prepare your taxes so you can claim all the credits you’re eligible for. Bring your questions for the Q&A session. Program will take place at 5:30 pm in the Morrell Meeting Room at Curtis Memorial Library, 23 Pleasant St. FREE and open to all, refreshments served. FMI contact Ellen Hawkins at 725-5242 ext 216 orehawkins@curtislibrary.com.

Parkview’s Spirit of Women “Cancer Prevention” – January 12

Kick the New Year off right by learning how to decrease your risk of cancer Thursday, January 12th, from 6 – 8 pm. Presenters will be: Timothy Howe, MD, Lynn Howe, MPH and Mary Penner, NP-C. Enjoy food tasting, door prize and chair massage! FREE! Men welcomed. FMI call 373-2162.

Did You Know?

CHANS Home Health Care is offering the following FREE community-based blood pressure clinics.FMI call 721-1278.

• January 9, 11:00 am – noon, at Westrum House, 22 Union Street, Topsham
• January 18, 10:00 am – 11:30 am, at Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program, 84A Union St, Brunswick
• January 19, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm, at People Plus, 35 Union Street, Brunswick
• January 27, 9:30 am – 10:30 am, at Pejepscot Terrace, 36 Pejepscot Terrace, Brunswick

The Tavern at the Inn at Brunswick Station will be open throughout the holidays with regular hours and delicious holiday specials. They will also be having a special New Year’s Day Brunch with musical guests, the Jason St. Pierre jazz trio. FMI call 837-6565.

ChiroCare, located in Suite 215 at Senter Place on 124 Maine Street, is hosting FREE talks and demonstrations the first five Saturday mornings in 2012. Learn to relieve, relax and restore your health, naturally. Programs run from 10-11 am. All participants will be placed in prize drawings! FMI call 729-4645.

• January 7, Chiropractic Vance Bessey, Chiropractic Assistant at ChiroCare Center, PA
• January 14, Therapeutic Massage Cassandra Therrien and Hillary Belanger, Licensed Massage Therapists from Brunswick Massage & Wellness

Bowdoin College President Barry Mills and Curtis Memorial Library Director Elisabeth Doucett have joined forces in supporting a “Brunswick-Bowdoin Community Read” on the subject of class and economic differences. A planning committee with representatives from the College and the Brunswick community selected Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich. Copies of the book are available for checkout at Curtis and Bowdoin libraries and can be purchased at area bookstores. Discussion groups and special events begin on Friday, January 27. FMI click here.

BDA Membership isn’t just for businesses. Our membership is open to all who enjoy Downtown Brunswick, including individuals, families, community members and non-profit organizations. Join today to invest in Downtown Brunswick’s future. FMI visit www.brunswickdowntown.org/join.

What’s New?

Bayview Gallery is pleased to continue additional Monday hours through the Holiday season! They will be open on Monday, January 2, 2012 from noon until 5:00. With paintings by more than 40 artists on display and prices for every budget, they can help you begin the New Year with a special piece of art for your home. Gallery hours are now 12 – 5 pm on Monday, and 10 am – 5 pm Tuesday through Saturday. Evening hours are available; just call to schedule. FMI call 729-5500.

2012 will be the year you achieve your fitness goals for life. Join the Tri-City Fitness Challenge for 12 weeks to get on the right path to healthy living. Kick-off is Saturday, January 7, 2012 from 1-3 pm at the Mid Coast Hospital Cafe in Brunswick. Pre-registration available at www.getfitwithida.com. FMI call Maine Pines at 729-8433.

January is BUSY at People Plus! Authors’ Chats kicks off with Angus King, Yoga for Mobility and Pilates For Grown Ups starts with Ann and Dennis Kimmage, Tai Chi Easy begins as does the Laughter Class. They are also starting the monthly Women’s breakfast, “A Week in Review”, and an Excel Intro Class. FMI visit www.peopleplusmaine.org or call 729-0757.

MidCoast Pilates has added more classes at a variety of times to help you start the New Year right. Check out the schedule at midcoastpilates.com. Maurine will also be teaching the Bowdoin College winter Pilates mat series beginning Tuesday, January 31st. Classes will be held Tuesday and Wednesday at 1:30 and 2:30 pm. FMI call 373-0872

Frontier For a full listing of current movies, music, and events, visit www.explorefrontier.com/schedule.

Eveningstar Cinema Now Showing Young Adult 1:30, 3:45, 6:00, 8:15 (no 8:15 show on 12/31). Coming Soon Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy starts 1/6. The Descendants starts 1/20. FMI visit www.eveningstarcinema.com or call 729-5486.

Specials and Discounts – Not to be Missed!

Special Offer for All Brunswick Businesses. In conjunction with the 9th annual celebration of Longfellow Days throughout February, organizers are offering a 50% discount on special Longfellow Days t-shirts. These signature long-sleeve t-shirts will be given as a thank-you to the public with a $20 donation to Longfellow Days. However, they are making them available to local businesses for only $10 a piece so businesses and employees can wear them proudly during the Longfellow Days festivities. Thanks to ArtForms, associated with Cool As A Moose, for producing the shirts and creating the design. The inscription reads, “All those who inhabit this great earth, whatever be their rank or worth, are kindred and allied by birth and made of the same clay.” To purchase the shirts for your business, email Rob Jarratt at rbjarratt@yahoo.com. Please submit one bulk order per business. Sizes range from adult small to extra large. One combined order in the middle of January will be placed, so get your group together and request your shirts soon.

7 DAYS FOR $7 January 1-7, Jai Yoga‘s annual thank you to returning students and bright hello to new students! Come try a bunch of different yoga classes in all levels at all times and days! Only $7 for a week of unlimited yoga. FMI and registration visit www.jaiyogahome.com.

Pura Vida Day Spa is offering a special Vitamin C Anti-Aging Facial for the month of February. This unique preventative and youth-enhancing facial treatment combines powerful anti-oxidants with soothing botanicals, to render your skin refreshed and rejuvenated while providing the ultimate relaxing experience. Especially designed to hydrate, tone, brighten, and revitalize skin damaged by the sun, environmental changes and hormonal imbalances. $75 FMI call 725-1233.

White Sale at Park Row Interiors: 25% off all in-stock rugs, blankets, pillows and custom sheeting the entire month of January. FMI visit www.parkrowinteriors.com and www.parkrowaccents.com.

Happy New Year from Shear Body Hair Studio & Spa! Start 2012 with a 60-minute body massage for just $55.00. Add a full body steam treatment for an additional $20, or a mani/pedi combo for $50.00, add a paraffin treatment for just $5.00. FMI call 721-9393.

Great savings for social media lovers at the Comfort Inn in Brunswick. Check-in with foursquare for the first time and receive 20% off the best available rate! FMI call 721-9393.

Stay up-to-date on what’s happening in Downtown Brunswick.

Click here to join our mailing list today:

Do you have an event or business announcement that you would like to have included in

The Brunswick Blast? Contact tracy@brunswickdowntown.org.

Stop by the Brunswick Visitor Center located at Brunswick Station. We have a full array of Downtown business brochures and maps. It is THE spot for information about Brunswick! Come in to take the bus or just to pick up brochures! FMI call 721-0999.

Brunswick Downtown Association
85 Maine Street Station / PO Box 15
Brunswick, Maine 04011

207-729-4439

www.brunswickdowntown.org

My Fellow Cinephiles:

“Why does the calendar never have dates? Why does your phone message and web site only show Friday-Thursday?”
These are the questions I hear every day and now is a good time to answer them. Young Adult will be continuing through Thursday, January 5. It is a great film and your response has been tremendous. But the film is handled by a major distributor – something rare for the Eveningstar Cinema, and we were one of only 16 theaters to get it last week when  it opened – another rarity. So the distributor called and strongly recommended that I hold it over for another week. I understood what they implied. This is the opposite of what happened with My Week with Marilyn when the distributor promised me the film twice, and then pulled it back, as they decided, last minute, not to make any new prints. These are just a few of the things that we deal with on a weekly basis regarding film scheduling. So all I can do is list the films a week at a time as I figure out what is going to happen next. So thank you for your patience. Believe me, I don’t like to be ambiguous but it’s a occupational hazard when your a one-screen, independent theater. So enjoy Young Adult and have the happiest, safest, cinematic New Year!!!

Young Adult
December 30 through January 5, 2012

1:30, 3:45, 6:00 & 8:15
New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2011
1:30, 3:45 & 6:00
Directed by: Jason Reitman

Starring: Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt
TRAILER

Synopses:

Young Adult

When it’s done right, as it is in Young Adult, there is something absolutely mesmerizing about watching a train wreck unfold on screen. When the wreck in question is a narcissistic beauty played to scheming, sour, downward-spiraling perfection by Charlize Theron, cringing is definitely called for, but so is laughter.

In fact that’s exactly the reaction director Jason Reitman and writer Diablo Cody are going for. Paired up for the first time since their 2007 knockout punch Juno, the two ironists have switched sides in a sense. While Juno celebrated an acerbic, outsider pregnant teen, in Young Adult they are interested in the prom queen — still pretty, still mean and now a decade into life on her own. It’s not going well.

This is comedy extracted from pain start to finish, with its through-a-shot-glass-darkly story starting in Minneapolis — or Mini-Apple, as her small hometown friends call it. Mavis (Theron) spends her days writing young adult novels, basically high school in-crowd pulp, and her nights making the club scene, binge-drinking, sleeping around and surprised to find happiness eluding her.

The self-absorbed stream of consciousness of a teenager that she needs for the books comes easily for her, which seems like a gift until you realize that is how she still thinks. The time she spends writing in front of the computer, working through issues for her characters, also serves as a handy voice-over device to let us in on just how much growing up Mavis still has to do.

That journey begins in earnest when she heads back home to pick up things with her high school sweetheart, football star Buddy Slade (Patrick Wilson). That he’s married and has just had a baby doesn’t alter her resolve. But things take an unexpected turn when she encounters Matt Freehauf, the high school geek she’d forgotten about. Comedian Patton Oswalt (King of Queens, Big Fan) is exceptional playing a sarcastic devil’s advocate, forever prodding Mavis toward her better self.

Their friction and their friendship, their brush with romance, is what gives the film its humor and its heart. Young Adult needs a lot of that to soften the outrage as Mavis sets about seducing Buddy, who looks as fresh-scrubbed and outdoorsy as if he just walked out of an L.L. Bean catalog. Elizabeth Reaser plays Beth, very likable as the new mom, the patient wife, a wannabe rocker who jams with a bunch of other new mothers. She represents a nice bit of smart tartness added to what is more typically a throw-away character. But Buddy and Beth are really just on the edge of the storm being whipped up by Mavis and Matt.

Theron and Oswalt turn out to be a terrific odd couple. Not easy because Cody’s screenplay calls for, and Reitman demands, that they both reveal a great deal, and a great deal of what they reveal is exceedingly ugly. In Mavis, it is her unintentional drive to destroy everything and anyone who comes close and for this Theron uses her statuesque beauty as if it is just something else in life to be squandered. Though Mavis is creating a different sort of mayhem than the murdering Aileen that earned Theron an Oscar for Monster in 2004, the actress has taken as much care in creating all of the character wrinkles — the heaviness of an alcoholic getting started the morning after, the strands of hair she pulls when she can’t drink away the nerves.

Eveningstar Cinema

Schedule for Friday, December 30, 2011 until Thursday, January 05, 2012

Young Adult (R)
Charlize Theron, Patrick Wilson
- 94 minutes

Fri: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Sat: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00
Sun: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Mon: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Tue: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Wed: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Thu: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com
All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00
Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

Boyd Gallery

This fall, Bowdoin College Museum of Art offers visitors a rare glimpse into the artistry, rituals, and beliefs of Bronze Age China. The exhibition features approximately sixty magnificent bronze vessels and monumental bells that were cast in southern China in the period between 1300 B.C.E. and 221 B.C.E.

This is the first exhibition ever to focus on the regional characteristics of Hunan bronzes. Artisans in Southern China adapted with great skill the types of vessels from the Chinese Great Plains, some of which were traded to Hunan during the Bronze Age. But they did no feel restricted by their models. Animal-shaped bronzes and bells were a specialty of the south. Decoration sometimes specifically related to local animal life, as in the case of the elephant shaped wine vessel, or was made to serve regional tastes and ritual needs. A food-heating vessel for ritual that is decorated with human facemasks is unique in all of China and belongs to a small group of ancient objects classified as Chinese National Treasures.

This exhibition includes both, imported northern vessels that defined highbrow taste and the original and sometimes even odd creations of the regional bronze-makers of the South. Many of these unusual bronzes were only recently brought to light in excavations. They radically alter our contemporary perspectives on the art and culture of one of the cradles of the Chinese civilization.

The China Institute of New York organized the exhibition with loans from the Hunan Provincial Museum, the premier repository of archeological finds from the middle banks of the Yangzi River in southern China. Besides the China Institute, Bowdoin College Museum of Art will be the only other venue for this extraordinary show.

PHOTO: Rectangular Ding with Human-face Design, Late Shang period, 12th-11th century BCE, Hunan Provincial Museum

All Current Exhibitions | Museum Calendar

Bowdoin College Museum of Art · 9400 College Station, Brunswick ME 04011-8494 · 207-725-3275 · artmuseum@bowdoin.edu

My Fellow Cinephiles:

I would like to wish everybody a Merry Christmas, a Happy Chanukah, a Quintessentially Quality Quansa, and whichever other holiday you celebrate this time of year. And thank you for making Scooter and my first calendar year so memorable and fantastic (Scooter says “Woof” by the way). From The King’s Speech, Midnight in Paris and The Way, we had a great year of movies, but we’ll mostly remember you, my incredible customers, for your patronage and kindness in welcoming us to this great town.

And now, from the words of Mandy Patinkin’s Inigo Montoya from The Princess Bride: “Let me explain. No, there is no time. Let me sum up:”

Young Adult
You came in  droves. It’s sticking around.

December 23 through December 29, 2011
1:30, 3:45, 6:00 & 8:15
Christmas Eve: 1:30 & 3:45 Only
Christmas Day: 6:00 & 8:15 Only
Directed by: Jason Reitman
Starring: Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt

My Week with Marilyn
I am still having a dickens (seasonal humor) of a time getting a print from the distributor. I’m working on it, but I have no news right now.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
A new entry (and not about career decision-making as the title implies). I might get this after Young Adult if Marilyn continues to be as elusive as a picture of Bigfoot. Scroll down for its synopsis.

The Descendants
Slated to start January 13, 2012.

The Iron Lady

Should follow A Dangerous Method. No relation to Iron Man by the way.

Eveningstar Cinema

Schedule for Friday, December 23, 2011 until Thursday, December 29, 2011

Young Adult (R)

Charlize Theron, Patrick Wilson
- 94 minutes

Fri: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Sat: (1:30), (3:45)
Sun: 6:00, 8:15
Mon: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Tue: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Wed: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Thu: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com
All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00

Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

BDA Happenings                                                 

2012 Brunswick Map
Don’t miss your chance to have your local business or organization listed in the 2012 Brunswick Map. If you want to be included, you must reserve your space by contacting Tracy Coughlin attracy@brunswickdowntown.org or 729-4439. Space is now limited. Contact us today!

BDA Annual Meeting – Save The Date! Jan 19th

The theme for the BDA Annual Meeting will be “Back to Business: Successful Strategies for the New Year.” The meeting will be held Thursday, January 19, at Bowdoin College’s Daggett Lounge from 7:15 to 9 am. The public is invited to attend. The featured speaker will be Deb Neuman, the Deputy Commissioner of the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development.  She will focus on small business success practices and strong downtowns.  More information will be available in January.

Longfellow Days 2012

Longfellow Days, the month long celebration honoring Henry W. Longfellow in Brunswick, will take place in February. This year’s theme will be Poet of the Heart, celebrating the loving relationships that enhance our personal and public lives. A wide range of activities will take place including community poetry, lectures, tours, dining and film events, and much, much more. Details will be posted on the BDA website in January.

Brunswick Holiday Lighting and Decorations

The BDA still needs your support for this year’s decorations and lighting in Brunswick’s Downtown for the 2011 holiday season! All decorations are privately funded. Please help us continue to bring the spirit of the holidays to Downtown by making a secure, tax-deductible donation by clicking here or mail a check to the BDA at PO Box 15, Brunswick, ME 04011. Thank you for investing in your community!

WALES & TALES – Dec 20 – 22nd

This popular event is returning to The Theater Project for its annual holiday visit of stories and songs on Tuesday and Thursday, December 20 and 22, at 7:00 pm. Both performances of WALES & TALESwill benefit The Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program (MCHPP) in Brunswick. Monetary or food donations for MCHPP are requested. FMI call 729-8584.

Annual Holiday Story Telling – Dec 24th

The Theater Project will host their annual holiday storytelling event with Phyllis Fuchs and Al Miller at 11:00 am on Christmas Eve. Phyllis Fuchs is the former children’s librarian in Brunswick and she and Miller have been telling holiday stories for more years than they can or choose to remember. The program is especially appropriate for small children, parents and grandparents. Admission is FREE. Audience members are encouraged to bring a donation for MCHPP. FMI call 729-8584.

Ring in the “Noon” Year – Dec. 31

The Rumpus Room will celebrate a countdown to 12 (noon that is!) starting at 9:00 am on December 31. Enjoy FREE refreshments and every child will get a balloon! FMI visit www.rumpus-room.com, email aswanberg@rumpus-room.com or call 729-0123.

New Year’s Eve Gala – Dec 31st

Ring in the New Year at The Brunswick Inn 7 pm to 1 am. Enjoy heavy hors d’oeuvres, dessert, and dancing with music provided by the Hal Ahlers Band. $25 per person through December 27th, $30 per person after. FMI call 729-4914.

Did You Know?

The Tavern at Brunswick Station will be open throughout the holidays with regular hours and delicious holiday specials. They will also be having a special New Year’s Day Brunch with musical guests the Jason St. Pierre jazz trio. FMI call 837-6565.

Wild Oats Bakery has expanded their holiday menu to include quiches and coffee cakes, entrees and sides, biscuits and rolls, party ideas, stocking stuffers and, of course, desserts! FMI visit them at 149 Maine Street, call 725-6287, or check out the new menu at www.wildoatsbakery.com. Sign up for their email to receive exclusive promotions and discounts!

Bowdoin College President Barry Mills and Curtis Memorial Library Director Elisabeth Doucett have joined forces in supporting a “Brunswick-Bowdoin Community Read” on the subject of class and economic differences. A planning committee with representatives from the College and the Brunswick community selected Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich. Copies of the book are available for checkout at Curtis and Bowdoin libraries and can be purchased at area bookstores. Discussion groups and special events begin on Friday, January 27. FMI click here.

Curtis Memorial Library cardholders can visit seven different museums, from Portland to Augusta, for FREE or at deeply discounted rates. Plus, Cornerstones of Science offers a pass to the Boston Museum of Science. Click here to learn more about the museums available and how to reserve your family pass or call 725-5242 and choose menu option 4.

BDA Membership isn’t just for businesses. Our membership is open to all who enjoy Downtown Brunswick, including individuals, families, community members and non-profit organizations. Join today to invest in Downtown Brunswick’s future. FMI call Rebecca Banks at 729-4439 or visitwww.brunswickdowntown.org/join.

What’s New?

Bayview Gallery is pleased to announce additional Monday hours for your holiday shopping convenience! With works by over 40 artists on display and prices for every budget, you can find a special piece for that special someone – even if that someone is you! Gallery hours are now 10 am to 5 pm Monday through Saturday through December 31st, or can be arranged by appointment if Santa needs to be discreet. FMI call 729-5500.

Maine Street Yoga is offering a new Gentle Yoga Class for Veterans. Taught by Veteran Joe Palma, this class will take place Wednesday mornings at 9:30 am in their studio at 124 Maine Street. Donations welcome. FMI visit www.mainestreetyoga.com or call 208-8444.

Frontier has reopened after its renovations and is offering a new menu and service introducing some new dishes and flavors, as well as bringing back some favorites. Their new hours are Monday: Closed, Tuesday – Thursday 11 am – 9 pm and Friday – Saturday 11 am – 10 pm. In 2012, they will also be offering Sunday Brunch from 9 am – 3 pm. FMI, including a full listing of upcoming movies, music, and events, visit www.explorefrontier.com/schedule.

Eveningstar Cinema will be showing the very witty comedy, “Young Adult”, starring Golden Globe nominated actress Charlize Theron, from Friday, 12/16 – Thursday, 12/22. Showtimes are 1:30, 3:45, 6:00, and 8:15 pm daily. FMI visit www.eveningstarcinema.com or call 729-5486.

Specials and Discounts – Not to be Missed!

Cabot Mill Antiques is celebrating their 15-year anniversary with a storewide December Sales event.Save up to 30% off throughout December. Located in the historic Fort Andross Mill Complex, Cabot Mill Antiques features 160 quality dealer displays in its 16,000 square foot showroom. FMI visitwww.cabotiques.com or call 725-2855.

A gift certificate to the Inn at Brunswick Station would be the perfect gift over the Holidays. Whether it be a getaway for an overnight stay or for a tasting of traditional New England-inspired dishes, they have what you need. FMI call 837-6565.

Enjoy Sweet Savings at The College Store at 2 Station Ave at Brunswick Station. Now until December 24th, pick a piece a candy out of a basket and receive a discount ranging from 10-20% off one item in your purchase. (Yes, you can keep the candy too!) The College Store has it all: art supplies, Brunswick gear, books, glassware, outerwear, hats, scarves, gloves, tee shirts, sweatshirts, as well as holiday note cards and candy. Their famous clearance rack is full of surprises with something for everyone. Holiday shopping hours through December 23rd are Monday through Saturday 10 am – 8 pm and Sunday 10 am – 6 pm. FMI call 798-4344.

Looking for the perfect stocking stuffer? The Brunswick Inn has the answer. Treat yourself or someone special to The Women’s Holiday Recovery Weekend January 7th. Enjoy a champagne brunch starting at noon, followed by a full menu of on-site spa services, then cocktails by the fire, dinner, and movies for $60 (does not include spa services). Enjoy 20% off room rates. FMI call 729-4914.

Are your hands tired from wrapping Christmas presents or making cookies and candy? If so, callShear Body Hair Studio & Spa and make an appointment for a FREE paraffin dip. While you’re there, pick up a Gift Certificate and free gift. FMI call 721-9393.

Looking for last minute stocking stuffers? Give color, fun & whimsy with sweet gifts that make everyone smile. Park Row Accents is offering 10% off all holiday gifts and décor found in their store or online. Use code HOLIDAY at checkout. FMI visit www.parkrowaccents.com or call 725-4888.

Stretch your dollars further at Elizabeth Nails Spa, Voted Best Nail Salon Mid Coast Maine 2011.Buy a $50 gift, receive an extra $5 gift for yourself. FMI call 373-1826.

Stay up-to-date on what’s happening in Downtown Brunswick.

  Click here to join our mailing list today:

Do you have an event or business announcement that you would like to have included in

The Brunswick Blast? Contact tracy@brunswickdowntown.org.

Stop by the Brunswick Visitor Center located at Brunswick Station. We have a full array of Downtown business brochures and maps, it is THE spot for information about Brunswick! Come in to take the bus, see the latest train updates, or just to pick up brochures! FMI call 721-0999.

Brunswick Downtown Association                  

85 Maine Street Station / PO Box 15

Brunswick, Maine 04011

207-729-4439

www.brunswickdowntown.org

Young Adult

When it’s done right, as it is in “Young Adult,” there is something absolutely mesmerizing about watching a train wreck unfold on screen. When the wreck in question is a narcissistic beauty played to scheming, sour, downward-spiraling perfection by Charlize Theron, cringing is definitely called for, but so is laughter.

In fact that’s exactly the reaction director Jason Reitman and writer Diablo Cody are going for. Paired up for the first time since their 2007 knockout punch “Juno,” the two ironists have switched sides in a sense. While “Juno” celebrated an acerbic, outsider pregnant teen, in “Young Adult” they are interested in the prom queen — still pretty, still mean and now a decade into life on her own. It’s not going well.

This is comedy extracted from pain start to finish, with its through-a-shot-glass-darkly story starting in Minneapolis — or Mini-Apple, as her small hometown friends call it. Mavis (Theron) spends her days writing young adult novels, basically high school in-crowd pulp, and her nights making the club scene, binge-drinking, sleeping around and surprised to find happiness eluding her.

The self-absorbed stream of consciousness of a teenager that she needs for the books comes easily for her, which seems like a gift until you realize that is how she still thinks. The time she spends writing in front of the computer, working through issues for her characters, also serves as a handy voice-over device to let us in on just how much growing up Mavis still has to do.

That journey begins in earnest when she heads back home to pick up things with her high school sweetheart, football star Buddy Slade (Patrick Wilson). That he’s married and has just had a baby doesn’t alter her resolve. But things take an unexpected turn when she encounters Matt Freehauf, the high school geek she’d forgotten about. Comedian Patton Oswalt (“King of Queens,” “Big Fan”) is exceptional playing a sarcastic devil’s advocate, forever prodding Mavis toward her better self.

Their friction and their friendship, their brush with romance, is what gives the film its humor and its heart. “Young Adult” needs a lot of that to soften the outrage as Mavis sets about seducing Buddy, who looks as fresh-scrubbed and outdoorsy as if he just walked out of an L.L. Bean catalog. Elizabeth Reaser plays Beth, very likable as the new mom, the patient wife, a wannabe rocker who jams with a bunch of other new mothers. She represents a nice bit of smart tartness added to what is more typically a throw-away character. But Buddy and Beth are really just on the edge of the storm being whipped up by Mavis and Matt.

Theron and Oswalt turn out to be a terrific odd couple. Not easy because Cody’s screenplay calls for, and Reitman demands, that they both reveal a great deal, and a great deal of what they reveal is exceedingly ugly. In Mavis, it is her unintentional drive to destroy everything and anyone who comes close and for this Theron uses her statuesque beauty as if it is just something else in life to be squandered. Though Mavis is creating a different sort of mayhem than the murdering Aileen that earned Theron an Oscar for “Monster” in 2004, the actress has taken as much care in creating all of the character wrinkles — the heaviness of an alcoholic getting started the morning after, the strands of hair she pulls when she can’t drink away the nerves.

Eveningstar Cinema

Schedule for Friday, December 16, 2011 until Thursday, December 22, 2011
Young Adult (R)

Charlize Theron, Patrick Wilson
- 94 minutes

Fri: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Sat: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Sun: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Mon: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Tue: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Wed: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15
Thu: (1:30), (3:45), 6:00, 8:15

Tontine Mall
149 Maine St.
(207) 729-5486
www.eveningstarcinema.com
All children under age 12
always $6.25
All matinee shows
(before 5:00 PM)
$6.75

Evening shows
Seniors 65+: $6.75
Regular adult: $8.00

Barry Norman
Eveningstar Cinema
(207) 729-6796

Famous Franco-American Henry David Thoreau

Cafe en Francais at People Plus,
35 Union Street,
Brunswick.
Call 729-0757

Are you a French speaker, eager to share a lively hour with good company?

Have a cup of thé ou café on the 4th Tuesday of each month at People Plus.

Nous parlons of our family histories and experiences as French speakers.

Join us on Tuesday, December 27 from 2:30 – 3:30 pm when we’re pleased to have local attorney, Richard Lord as our guest. He has represented the interests of the French community for many years and will bring a selection of photos of Old Brunswick.

All are welcome.

Note: (Wikipedia)

French Americans or Franco-Americans are Americans of French or French Canadian descent. About 11.8 million U.S. residents are of this descent, and about 1.6 million speak French at home.^[2] An additional 450,000 U.S. residents speak a French-based creole language, according to the 2000 census. While Americans of French descent make up a substantial percentage of the American population, French Americans arguably are less visible than other similarly sized ethnic groups. This is due in part to the tendency of French American groups to identify more strongly with “New World” regional identities such as Acadian, Cajun, or Louisiana Creole. This has inhibited the development of a wider French American identity. The majority of Americans of French and French Canadian descent are descendants of those who first settled in Canada in the 17th century (known as New France at the time), which later became the Province of Quebec in 1763, Lower Canada in 1791, and a Canadian province of Quebec after Canadian Confederation in 1867. The majority of Americans of French descent, mostly resident in New England and the Midwest, are descendants of the Quebec Diaspora and the first Canadians, while few are of Acadian descent from the Canadian Maritime provinces. Immigration to the United States from France was much lower than from other parts of Europe, such as Ireland, Great Britain, Germany, Scandinavia, Italy, or Poland.