TUESDAY, MARCH 5 2013 >>>

1. Well over a decade in the making, Holy Motors arrives at The Grand for a brief moment, today for a mere two showings. Much like director Leos Carax’s style of storytelling or rather his revealing, the film is minimal and profound. The chameleonic Denis Lavant stars as Monsieur Oscar, traveling from place to place in the back of a white stretch limo, donning some shockingly good prosthetic makeup as he moves from "appointment" to "appointment" - dropping in for brief scenes as different characters in various movies belonging to wildly disparate genres. Later on, there will be some discussion with an agent, as Oscar laments the shrinking of the cameras and digital diaspora. Nothing is like it used to be. It's rare to find a film so gripping as it whirls you through sudden twists and jarring imagery with such a void in established character development and dialog. This rarity, typically an honor bestowed upon Terry Gilliam or even that of the ever visually appealing Michael Gondry, is what elevates Carax's film Holy Motors into the alluring and all too unyielding nonsensical wonderment of the word - surreal. Catch it at 2 and 6:35 p.m. at The Grand Cinema. Read Lisa Fruichantie's full feature on Holy Motors in the Weekly Volcano's Arts section.

2. The Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium will be offering free admission to anyone who shows up with picture ID or other proof of residency. That's awesome.

3. A nationally touring performance poet and teaching artist Lauren Zuniga is ranked among the top five female poets in the world. Her works include two poetry collections: The Nickel Tour, published in 2009, and The Smell of Good Mud, published in 2012. Tacoma Community College's Student Life department hosts Zuniga at 11:30 a.m. in the Student Union Building to discuss current events and other topics of interest.

5. Ricky J's Restaurant and Sports Lounge in Puyallup doesn't exactly sound like the name of a meat market haven. But in fact, Ricky J's has some of the most reasonably priced meat in town. Every Tuesday night Ricky J's offers a bar steak special for $4.95. That's a heaping pile of meat for under $5. Other specials include a buy one burger receive a second at half price at 8 p.m. poker. But what's that you say? What about the chicks? Jeez, here we mention cheap meat and you're still concerned about chicks. ...

5. Every Tuesday night at Stonegate Pizza on South Tacoma Way Leanne Trevalyan hosts an acoustic open mic at 8 p.m. Tonight, many special guests join her as Tacoma artist Teddy Haggarty celebrates his 60th birthday.

LINK: Tuesday, March 5 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympi aarea