Jump on in!

Dive right in to summer: outdoor public pools opened on June 29.

Here’s a look at some of places to practice your crawl stroke in Brooklyn.

Commodore Barry Pool [N. Elliot Place at Flushing Avenue in Fort Greene, (718) 243-2593]. Open every day from 11 am–7 pm. Closed from 3 to 4 pm.

David Fox/PS 251 [E. 54th Street and Avenue H in East Flatbush, (718) 531-2437]. Open every day from 7:30 am to 7 pm. Closed from 3 to 4 pm.

Double D Pool (pictured) [Douglass Street between Third Avenue and Nevins Street in Boerum Hill. (718) 625-3268]. Open every day from 11 am to 7 pm. Closed from 3 to 4 pm.

Glenwood Houses [Farragut Road and Ralph Avenue in Flatlands, (718) 531-2480]. Open every day from 7:30 am to 7 pm. Closed from 3 to 4 pm.

Lindower Park [E. 60th St, Mill Rd. and Strickland Avenue in Mill Basin, (718) 531-4852]. Open every day from 11 am to 7 pm. Closed from 3 to 4 pm.

Red Hook Pool [Bay Street between Clinton and Henry streets, (718) 722-3211]. Olympic sized. Open every day from 11 am to 7 pm. Closed from 3 to 4 pm.

Sunset Park Pool [Seventh Avenue between 41st and 44th streets, (718) 965-6578]. Olympic sized. Open every day from 7:30 am to 7 pm. Closed from 3 to 4 pm.

Read more...

Mars returns

Spike Lee’s “She’s Gotta Have It” is coming full circle.

Filmed in Fort Greene, the 1986 film is coming back to the neighborhood on July 5, screening as part of the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s “Contraband Cinema” series.

The filmmaker’s feature debut follows Nola Darling, a sexually liberated Brooklynite who juggles three less-than-perfect men, among them an immature bicycle messenger played by Lee. Shot in black and white, the subversive film was seen as a rival to the indie sex comedies of Woody Allen, appropriating the genre to address a topic that at that point was absent from the big screen — black sexuality.

The film also put a spotlight on Brooklyn, specifically Fort Greene as a vibrant cosmopolitan community.

More than 20 years later, Lee hasn’t stopped making the film world take notice, thanks to “joints” such as “Do the Right Thing,” “Malcolm X” and “25th Hour.”

But here’s the chance to see Spike Lee in all his raw, edgy ambition — before the Nike commercials, before the celebrity, before the vodka tie-ins.

“She’s Gotta Have It” at BAM Rose Cinemas [30 Lafayette Ave. between Ashland and St. Felix streets in Fort Greene, (718) 636-4129], July 5 at 2 pm. Tickets $12. For info, visit www.bam.org.

Read more...

Sound walk

Thinking of heading south to Coney Island this summer? Veer a little bit east and check out Brighton Beach with your very own tour guide.

Todd Shalom leads a walk through the neighborhood that focuses as much on sound as sights, keeping with Ukranian-born Futurist Aleksei Kruchenykh's poetic ideal of Zaum, where the sounds of words are holier than the things they represent.

What does that mean? Using a variety of techniques pioneered by acoustic ecologists as well as experimental poetry exercises, you'll listen to sounds often tuned out and create your own poetry in motion.

While this is all about the aural, you're encouraged to bring a camera.

Brighton Zaum walk (starting point at Brighton Beach Avenue and Brighton 7th Street), July 10 at 6 pm, July 22 at 7 pm, July 24 at 6 pm, July 29 at 7 pm, and July 31 at 6 pm. $25.

Read more...

'Knight and Day' a snoozefest

"Knight and Day"

One and one half stars

By Gary Buiso

“Knight and Day” is a romantic thriller with all the appeal of a spent bottle rocket on the Fifth of July.

The film plays like the B-side version of stars Tom Cruise's and Cameron Diaz's better films: “Collateral” meets “Charlie’s Angels” — and it’s not nearly as good as either.

Sure, there’s something that could pass for chemistry between the pair, but it is an impossible mission to make the disposable story seem fresh.

Roy Miller is a wise-cracking-but-deadly special agent who may have gone rogue in an effort to stop a really powerful battery from falling into the wrong hands, in this case a swarthy Spanish arms-dealer with bad intentions.

On a flight to Boston, Miller scopes out June Havens (Diaz), a feisty innocent who gets caught up in the high stakes world of international battery-smuggling.

It’s risky business for June: she’s not sure if Roy’s a fugitive or just misunderstood. But he’s far and away the most exciting gent to safely land a airplane in a cornfield she’s ever met.

The film, directed by James Mangold (“Walk the Line”) and written by Patrick O’Neill, takes an episodic approach, going through the motions at one exotic locale to the next, tossing in cookie-cutter villains and stampeding bulls for good measure.

There might be a lot of action in “Knight and Day,” but it still is a snooze.

“Knight and Day.” Rated PG-13 for sequences of action violence throughout, and brief strong language. 110 minutes. With Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz, Peter Sarsgaard, Jordi Mollà, and Paul Dano. Playing in Brooklyn at Access Digital Theatres - Pavilion Cinema in Park Slope, UA Court Street Stadium 12 in Cobble Hill, UA Sheepshead Bay 14, Bay Ridge Alpine Cinemas, Linden Boulevard Multiplex Cinemas in East New York.

Read more...

Big laughs, Littlefield

Big laughs come to Littlefield this month.

Tonight, the Gowanus venue presents “2nd Borough,” a night of comedy hosted by Kurt Braunohler, of the variety show “Hot Tub.”

The night features his usual partner in crime, Kristen Schaal (pictured), known for her hilarious turn as an obsessed fan in “Flight of the Conchords,” and as a correspondent on “The Daily Show.”

The two have spent years honing their act, which specializes in absurdist comedy that relies more on the physical — goofy dancing, usually — than quick one-liners or elaborate storytelling.

One popular bit that gets the crowd rolling involves Schaal galloping around the stage, arms flailing, with Braunohler singing, “Kristen Schaal is a horse.”

The night will also feature Brooklyn-based comedian Bradford Jordan, who forgoes his usual improv set-up for some stand-up, and the sketch groups New Excitement and Harvard Sailing Team. The latter’s videos, “Boys Will Be Girls” and “Girls Will Be Boys” — entertaining plays on gender stereotypes — have made the rounds online recently. But why sit at home when you can see the real thing live?

“2nd Borough: A Night of Comedy Hosted” at Littlefield [622 Degraw St. between Third and Fourth avenues in Gowanus, (718) 855-3388], June 28, 8 pm. Tickets are $5 (in advance). For info, visit www.littlefieldnyc.com.

Read more...

The Weekend: 6.25-6.27

Friday, June 25

Northside: The Northside Festival is in full swing, with hundreds of bands performing at venues across Williamsburg and Greenpoint. Not sure where to go? Greg Sutto of Dinosaur Feather's gives us his rundown. You also can't go wrong with Fiery Furnaces at Brooklyn Bowl tonight.

Gowanus: Get zombified at the opening night of "Zombies Attack Brooklyn" at MF Gallery.

Marine Park: Tap in to your inner Irishman with Aviator's Irish Music Festival. Also tomorrow, Black 47 close out both nights.

Williamsburg: "Edward Scissorhands" comes to Brooklyn, with a new play at the Bayard Studio.

Saturday, June 26

Williamsburg: Williamsburg Walks returns to Bedford Avenue, with a slew of outdoor fun (also tomorrow). Afterwards, grab your date and head over to Carmine's II for dinner and a movie. You can't go wrong with "Cinema Paradiso."

Carroll Gardens: Rejoice! Buttermilk Channel is now open for brunch on Saturdays.

Red Hook: After brunch, celebrate all things maritime at the Waterfront Books and Authors Festival.

Sunday, June 27

DUMBO: Thought the Takedown series conquered every food imaginable? Think again. Today, amateur chefs have a new challenge - grits - in the Grits Takedown at the Tobacco Warehouse.

Gowanus: Don't be fooled by the name; the Unfancy Food Fest is still pretty fancy. But at least there's beer. At the Bell House.

Read more...

Zombies attack Brooklyn!

MF Gallery is the death metal band of Brooklyn art showrooms — it specializes in loud pieces that would be right at home on a Harley, or as a tattoo on the rider’s arm.

There’s usually a set theme — its last exhibit was all about skulls — and this month, the gallery finds a new muse with zombies.

In “Zombies Attack Brooklyn,” the Gowanus space is covered in art inspired by the living dead, ranging from the gruesome to the comic book-esque. There’s a sculpture of a mermaid in all its bloody, grey-skinned glory — no Disneyfied vision here; another with its arms outstretched in familiar pose, with blood vessels exposed like a zombie Freddy Krueger.

Painting-wise, Brooklyn gets its own B-movie horror poster for the fictional “Brooklyn Nightmare,” “starring” Eli Roth, Angelina Jolie and Harvey Keitel.

It’s art that’s all in good fun. And tonight, the gallery will even bring in a professional zombie make-up artist to give you that special undead look.

And to cap off the perfect zombie night, Dethrace will also perform its death metal.

“Zombies Attack Brooklyn” at MF Gallery [213 Bond St. between Butler and Baltic streets in Gowanus, (917) 446-8681], June 26-July 25, with an opening night party from 7-10 pm. For info, visit www.mfgallery.net.

Read more...