Heavyweight Champions

A Pittsburgh doctor and a lawyer may be professional wrestling's real champions. But why do some people think the fix is in?

• by Charlie Deitch

Welfare Taxed

With more people needing the system, the system is in need of more people

• by Kate Giammarise

Mural Obligation

Latino youth bringing Dream Act debate to the public spotlight

• by Emily DeMarco

Undocumented Work

Police have anti-profiling policy, but no way to make sure it's effective

• by Shawn Klocek

Mio Pizza

This Aspinwall eatery offers pizza, calzones and hoagies that rise above the humdrum of ordinary storefront fare.

• by Angelique Bamberg and Jason Roth

The Saloon

• by Chris Potter

Raw Blow's single, "Purple Haze," samples without so much as a "'scuse me"

Though T. Glitter is conceptually influenced by the copious amounts of hip-hop he listens to, the record sounds like it belongs at a really wild sock-hop.

• by Margaret Welsh

Girl Talk opens Stage AE this weekend, kicking off a month heavy on local talent

Stage AE's opening programming couldn't be more different from CONSOL's: Instead of global stars, the venue is loading up on homegrown talent.

• by Aaron Jentzen
• Tags: Music Features, Girl Talk, Wiz Khalifa, The Clarks

Nellie McKay brings her music -- and Doris Day's -- to the Warhol

McKay combines the lyrical charm of a cabaret performer with the sass normally heard from coffeehouse singer-songwriters.

• by Mike Shanley

The Wood Brothers share a musical identity, while giving a nod to their pasts

A shuffling, gritty folk-blues, navigating a ragged soul-ache reminiscent of The Band.

• by Chris Parker

Burlesque

The actors in Steve Antin's movie are also beautiful; unfortunately, that's all singing needs to be. I realize that Antin, a former actor, made Burlesque as an excuse for the music, but would it have killed him not to insult us with the rest of it? Our plucky heroine Ali (Christina Aguilera) leaves Iowa for L.A., where she finds sequins and success at a nightclub run by tough ol' Tess (Cher.)The acting in Burlesque is pretty bad -- I mean, Showgirls bad at times -- and the hackneyed script is even worse. As a director, Antin robs the grave of Bob Fosse, but also, with his jerky camera and orange hue, the visual oeuvre of Tony Scott. Call it Sweet Charity Cabaret meets Top Gun. By the way, Burlesque isn't a musical. It's a drama about people who sing and dance. We're left only to appreciate some lavish dance numbers and a few torch songs, all performed well by the two reedy ladies. (Harry Kloman) [2 out of 4 stars]

• by Harry Kloman

Enter the Void

I was frequently guarded, bored, impressed, bemused or perplexed. But upon reflection, the audacity of this hyper-sexual, hyper-kinetic vision -- glowing genitals, really? -- made me laugh.

• by Al Hoff

Faster

This meaningless death spree from George Tillman Jr. is really complicated only by terrible plotting. An ex-con -- known here as "Driver" (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) -- sets out to avenge his brother's death by tracking down the hombres who killed him, and killing them. Meanwhile, "Killer" (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), a hitman, is stalking Driver. In another corner is "Cop" (Billy Bob Thornton), a junkie detective, who lands the case of Driver's first kill. Bang, bang, bang. Everybody's shooting at everybody else, and despite their bad-ass reps, half the time they're missing the targets. It's utter nonsense, stretched out with lots of loving shots of Driver's Chevy SS. The story feels like discarded scraps from The Shield, and the ending is obvious and unsatisfying. The biggest mystery, really, is why The Rock is back to this violent drive-in-movie junk after successfully carving out a new career as the star of kid-vid and comedies. Johnson can be a funny and engaging actor, but all he does here is glower. Feel free to glare right back. (AH) [1 out of 4 stars]

• by Al Hoff

Tamara Drewe

An attractive young woman named Tamara Drewe (Gemma Arterton) moves back to her small village in the English countryside, and causes all manner of domestic strife in Stephen Frears' comedy of manners. Most of the impact is felt at a local writers' retreat, run with breezy efficiency by the long-suffering wife (Tamsin Grieg) of a supremely pretentious mystery scribe (Roger Allam). Sympathetic denizens of the writers' lodge include its dishy handyman (Luke Evans) and an American (Bill Camp) working on a book about Thomas Hardy. Circling nearby are a pair of bored high school girls, and a rock star (Dominic Cooper), with a badly behaving dog. A roundelay of hook-ups and betrayals ensues over the course of a year. The humor is mostly droll, trading on such staples as class anxiety, celebrity culture, man's capacity for serial infidelity and the ability to turn a sharp phrase. While the plot obviously relies on contrivance to get everybody in and out of the right beds, Tamara manages to feel largely natural, anchored with low-key performances and appropriate dashes of bittersweet. It's not as achingly charming as the writers' retreat -- with organic garden! -- presented here, but two hours spent with Tamara Drewe is quite pleasant and amusing company. Starts Fri., Dec. 3. Manor (Al Hoff) [2.5 out of 4 stars]

• by Al Hoff

An aviary renovation is for the birds -- and their visitors -- in the best sense.

While the appropriate placement of wings may always be obvious on birds, the same cannot necessarily be said for buildings.

• by Charles Rosenblum

This Just In: December 2 - 9

Highlights from the local TV news: Get Tanked and Give Thanks!

• by Frances Sansig Monahan

Camino Real

It's three acts of Tennessee Williams completely lost inside his own head, and I don't think any production could ever make this script work.

• by Ted Hoover

The old and the new mingle as Dance Alloy marks 35 years.

"He had us breaking sticks over another dancer's head, or trying to shove our own fist into our mouths."

• by Steve Sucato

Short List: Week of December 2 - 9