'Beasts' at Lake Theatre in Oak Park

The Lake Theatre, which has been doing very well of late landing art and indie films for their demanding Oak Park audience, has booked one of the more noteworthy films of the year thus far. Beginning Friday, Beasts of the Southern Wild, will begin its run. Set in the bayous of Louisiana, it stars 6-year-old Quvenzhane Wallis, a "natural" who had no previous acting experience, as Hushpuppy, who lives "in a bathtub in a Southern Delta community at the edge of the world."

Meanwhile, the First Tuesday Club experiment continues to be a success. Sept. 4 at noon and 7 p.m., they will be showing Elena, a Russian drama directed by Andrey Zuyagintsen. According to the Lake's blurb, "When a sudden illness and unexpected reunion threatens a dutiful housewife and her potential inheritance, Elena must hatch a desperate plan."

The last First Tuesday Club film sold out, so get your tickets in advance or get there early. And if all that isn't enough for your Labor Day weekend viewing, Hope Springs is a hoot.