Twin Cities Real Estate Blog

Movie Review -- 'Welcome to Marwen' Disappoints Despite Being Based on a Compelling True Story

Not too long ago, I was driving up north at night to work on a project the following morning. I was tired and disillusioned, and was going through a Caribou drive thru to be able to make the journey. It was then I heard Mark Hogancamp on NPR, talking about his town of Marwencol, what happened to him and his recovery, and the photos he took of his town that made him famous enough to get a movie about him starring Steve Carell. Maybe it was the way he spoke about his work that struck a chord with me, or maybe I was emotionally raw and extra receptive to his story, but I was fascinated and wanted to know more. A month later, the first trailer...

Movie Review -- 'Mary Queen of Scots' Has the Right Pieces, But Never Fully Develops

Sometimes I wonder if the renaissance of high budget narrative TV shows has spoiled us media consumers. The ability to stretch a story out to better flesh out side characters and give story arcs more of an emotional heft when they come to a climax has been wielded well in shows like Game of Thrones. And attracting A-list talent has fully removed the medium gap that kept movies prestigious yet brief and television cheap yet better developed.

This comes to mind after seeing Mary Queen of Scots. There’s a lot to like about it -- the 16th Century world is...

Your Oscar Movie Favorite: Brother Where Art Thou?

With a sense of alarm, I read that the new Coen flick The Ballad of Buster Scruggs will see a very limited theatrical run in just a handful of cities -- with bookings as short as two weeks. Netflix bankrolled the picture and is carefully guiding distribution alongside its live streaming launch. As a devoted Coen brothers fan, there was no way I was going to miss the movie on the big screen. Alright, a quick search to locate where Buster Scruggs is showing and oddly only the Landmark Lagoon Cinema is popping up? Why wouldn’t they put such a hot property from our hometown icons in the modern...

5 Down Payment Assistance Programs to Consider in Minnesota

While the path to home ownership may be clear on paper, coming up with a down payment and figuring out proper financing is a whole different story. But as a potential first time home buyer who may be looking to make that long-awaited transition from renting to owning, what you might not realize is that Minnesota has over 70 different down payment assistance programs that are specifically designed to help people just like you realize the dream of owning a home, regardless of situation or circumstance.

So if you ever find yourself wondering how you’ll ever save enough money for a down payment, here’s a brief overview of just...