Film
'Nothing funny is happening here'
This comment from a disappointed viewer of Shallow Hal says it all. The biggest laugh? The idea that the movie pretends to offer an intelligent handling of love and obesity.

Dialogue steals the show
Even when the plot of Heist falters, inspired exchanges raise David Mamet's latest film to the level of art.

Family Movie Guide
The Family Movie Guide should be used along with the Motion Picture Association of America rating system for selecting movies suitable for children.

Top five movies and upcoming releases
Top Five

Indie flix
Boy meets boy in this romantic comedy

Video
Upcoming video/DVD releases and rankings
UPCOMING VIDEO/DVD RELEASES

'Blonde' was never more fun
VIDEO

Fans will love this two-disc 'Doctor Zhivago'
DVD

Pop
Playing the Palace
After years as an opening act, Lonestar is enjoying top billing at venues such as Tampa's Ice Palace.

Pop: Ticket Window and Down the Road
Spyro Gyra, 8 p.m. Jan. 11, Mahaffey Theater, St. Petersburg. Tickets ($29-$40) on sale 10 a.m. Friday at Ticketmaster (813) 287-8844 or (727) 898-2100.

Team pop trivia
This week's winner: Annette Perez of New Port Richey knew that the Isley Brothers in 2000 successfully sued singer Michael Bolton for plagiarizing their 1961 hit Love Is a Wonderful Thing.

Pop: Hot Ticket
Christian rock act pumps up melody

Get Away
There's a mouse in the house
Lilly, the mouse with the purple purse, whose life is a lot like ours, plays out her adventures on stage for children on Saturday.

Festival's sure to be a rib-tickler
St. Petersburg's Ribfest pairs the culinary treat with classic rock this weekend on the waterfront.

Get Away: Down the road
Events to watch for; details in future editions of Weekend.

Art
Turning over a new leaf
"Book Arts: A Juried Exhibition," featuring the interpretive works of 30 Tampa Bay area artists, merges the visual and literary arts.

Art: Best bets
Art critic Mary Ann Marger's recommendations for this weekend. Please refer to the Art Calendar for details.

Art: Hot Ticket
An artful holiday walk

Dine
Chain-style comfort food
Cracker Barrel has built an interstate-exit empire on grits, gravy and prepackaged nostalgia. At its first St. Petersburg location, some dishes taste like what Mom used to make -- and some don't.

Side dish
NEW RECIPES

Second helping
A true bistro: sophisticated food, everyday prices

Stage
Consoling through culture
When the Moscow State Symphony plays at Ruth Eckerd Hall on Saturday, it will be expressing shared sorrow with the United States over the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

A celebration of patriotism
The Master Chorale's director chose the music for Saturday's Veterans Day concert before Sept. 11, not realizing how relevant his choices would turn out to be.

Stage: Ticket Window
Harry Connick Jr. and His Big Band, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 10, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Tampa. Tickets ($29.50-$65) on sale at noon Saturday at the box office, (813) 229-7827, or Ticketmaster, (813) 287-8844 or (727) 898-2100.

Stage: Hot Ticket
Coming to America

Stage: Down the road
Orchestra -- Thomas Wilkins leads the Florida Orchestra in a "Blue Jeans Classics" concert Nov. 16 at the Coliseum. $16.

Shop
Harvest some fall touches
Pumpkins will be long gone before frost appears in these parts, but Floridians who long for reminders of autumn farther north need not fret. Find them quickly; retailers are bringing out the holiday decor.