cinematic celebration

Take a chance and a drive for Holy Motors, the best film of the year

While attending Fantastic Fest in September, I overheard a conversation in the bathroom that went something like this:

Attendee One: Dude...Have you seen Holy Motors yet?
Attendee Two: No, I’m not sure what it’s all about, really.
Attendee One: Perfect, you don’t want to know anything about it, just go see it, immediately.

The confidence and urgency with which Attendee One spoke of Holy Motors, directed by French auteur Leos Carax, aligns with the positive press the film receiving since opening.

Earlier in the year, the French production won the esteemed Palme d’Or at Cannes Film Festival, and it has since received an overwhelmingly positive critical response.

The film follows Monsieur Oscar, played by longtime Carax collaborator Denis Lavant, throughout his work day, which consists of moving from one life to another — an Eva Mendes kidnapping troll, a bold assassin and a motion capture actor, amongst others — and acting out events in each life, a role that seems to be fading away in importance.

Why this is Oscar’s job is less important than what each job represents; and what kind of person Oscar might be is less important than why he does what it does. The plot is a vehicle used to explore a variety of ideas about film, the past and future of the art, and what it means to society.

Knowing none of this, I took that Fantastic Fest goer’s advice and secured a ticket for the next screening, making certain to avoid any conversation — online or otherwise — about the film. And having done so, I can strongly advise any prospective viewers to not take that approach.

Not to say that Holy Motors isn’t deserving of the praise it's received or that it is anything less than a monumentally important piece of filmmaking, but it does require a different approach to viewing. The movie demands a level of attention that most Hollywood productions shy away from.

Should that sound pretentious, let me note that Holy Motors is anything but. The film is earnest in its ambition and confident in its approach, creating an oddly cohesive whole that begs for multiple viewings.

Open since November 2, Holy Motors doesn’t rely on a traditional narrative or even a conventional sense of character development — it's more a celebration of cinema.

I went in to the screening expecting a story with characters, motivations and explanations for the ideas explored within the film, but that’s not what Holy Motors is. In fact, that’s not even what Holy Motors wants to be, or even attempts to be — and really, that is a large portion of what makes the film so special.

A film similar to Synecdoche, New York in it’s complexity and ambition, Holy Motors is not a film that everyone should see, it is a film that everyone must see, because its impact will likely be felt for years and years to come.

Just don’t take any advice about going into the movie blind — learning about the film will only enhance the experience.

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Holy Motors opened in Dallas on November 2, and will be coming to Austin Drafthouse's in the near future.

High Score

Austin named the nation's pickleball capital in industry report

Other Racquet Social Club

Photo by Henry Selis Photo

Other Racquet Social Club is back after city woes.

It's no secret that Austinites love pickleball. A new study proves just how much by ranking Austin the No. 1 city for pickleball in the whole country. Dallas and Houston also made the top 10 at Nos. 3 and 8, respectively.

The report was published by TeachMe.To, an online marketplace for learning sports (and sometimes music) from private instructors. It used data from its own platform, USA Pickleball, Places2Play, local pickleball associations, and more. It also referred to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA), which named pickleball the fastest-growing sport in America, with a growth rate of 223.5 percent over three years.

Similarly, TeachMe.To ranked Austin as the fastest-growing city for pickleball, and citing this as the main reason for the overall title of "the nation's pickleball capital."

It name-checked the Austin Metro Pickleball Association (AMPA) — with approximately 3,000-3,500 members — and the Austin Pickleball League (APL), estimating that overall, "15,000-20,000 people play pickleball at least occasionally in the greater Austin area." About half of those players — about 8,000-10,000 people — play at least twice a month.

The report did not include gender data on Austin, specifically, but it did note that not only are two-thirds of pickleball players female; women's involvement in the sport is also growing 50 percent faster than men's.

New courts everywhere
This probably isn't a surprise to people who have noticed the number of courts opened around Austin in recent years. By 2024, TeachMe.To's data shows 32 dedicated courts in Austin, and thanks to with a utility rate of 92 percent it doesn't look like that'll be slowing down.

In the summer of 2023, the online booking platform Swimply noticed how many pickleball courts there were in Austin compared to such great demand, and added courts to its service. In fall 2023 and summer 2024, at least two important developments expanded that availability: Other Racquet Social Club opened as a friendly, country club-like neighborhood option, and national chain The Picklr announced it's bringing five locations to Austin and Round Rock.

Perhaps because Austin is such a food-obsessed city, there seems to be some growing opportunity for food and beverage hospitality around pickleball, too. Other Racquet recently started hosting the Bill's Dips food truck, a spinoff of the popular downtown restaurant Bill's Oyster; and a pair of bars with pickleball courts, Drifters Social Coffee & Cocktails and The Pickle Pub, also opened in South Austin this year, with strong online ratings already.

The trend has even reached into real estate (see this cute house with its own pickleball court) and inspired athletes to introduce similar sports to the local market, as in the case of the padel club Paddle39. TeachMe.To's report also mentioned tech companies adding pickleball to their campuses.

Aside from growth, the study also considered lesson activity (including information about teacher availability and diversity of clinic offerings), infrastructure, community vitality, the tournament scene.

Austin had the highest concentration of all the cities of players under 40 (65 percent), as well as the highest share of national lesson bookings. At 16.90 percent, that means about one in six of the pickleball lessons contracted through this platform were in Austin. Lesson demand, the report says, is growing 125 percent year-over-year.

Elsewhere in Texas
Dallas was No. 3 thanks in part to its "central location" according to the report.

"The city's 45 dedicated courts and 85 [percent] public accessibility rate have fostered one of the most active competitive scenes in the country, with 8,500 registered league players," it says. "The combination of strong tournament presence, extensive infrastructure, and a 112% growth in lesson bookings solidifies Dallas as a powerhouse in the national pickleball landscape."

Houston made No. 8 with an emphasis on integrating pickleball with other sports.

"The city's 22 dedicated courts have seen a 92% increase in lesson bookings, driven by innovative programming that includes the nation's first corporate league system," it says. "Houston's success in integrating pickleball into existing sports infrastructure while maintaining 72% year-round utilization demonstrates a sustainable model for rapid growth."

Overall predictions
After laying out data about the top cities in pickleball, the report made some predictions. As the Austin newcomer mentioned above believes, the report also thinks padel is the next big thing. It also guesses more cities will act like Houston by focusing on hybrid facilities.

It also expects to see an expanded professional circuit and mainstream coverage, more technology used on the court, a rise in the prevalence of young players, and more opportunities in corporate wellness and real estate. "Dedicated pickleball facilities will become as common as swimming pools in luxury developments," it says. Texans will be the judge of that one.

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