Interesting and unexpected Pina pays tribute to German dancer Philippina Bausch, a visionary among the contemporary dance community who recently passed in 2009. Bausch, the artistic director of Tanztheater Wuppertal, was known for blending art forms, provoking her dancers with enigmatic statements and abstract questions, and brought dirt, water, and rocks onto the stage.

Directed by Wim Wenders, and creatively captured in 3-D, Pina is a collage of dance, unconventional interviews, archival footage and words that manage to describe Bausch and her very essence. Though the 3-D aspect of Pina may seem easy to dismiss, once engaged it soon seems like the only logical way to showcase each dance performance by creating depth so the dancers can fully inhabit the onscreen world. In turn we no longer simply observe but are embedded in Bausch's imagination.

Arresting, spectacular, heart rending and thrilling. This film is one that just begs to be experienced.

The most anticipated restaurant opening of the season takes place today: it’s Lincoln Ristorante, part of the newly redesigned Lincoln Center complex.

This restaurant has been eagerly awaited for several reasons. Lincoln has major design impact; it is covered by a sloping lawn roof and overlooks the reflecting pool and the Henry Moore sculpture in front of the Vivian Beaumont Theater (design by Diller Scofidio + Renfro). It has an impeccable culinary pedigree; the head chef is Jonathan Benno, who was the chef de cuisine at Per Se for five years. And, last but not least, it cost $20 million; it is ambitious, to put it mildly.

We ate there last night, as part of the friends and family tastings that took place over the last couple of weeks. The experience was extraordinary, and I expect Lincoln to have a major impact on the restaurant culture of this city (big statement, I know).

The creators of Lincoln thought big from the start, and they have made a restaurant that is decidedly not a neighborhood place, but a destination for New Yorkers and visitors alike. So far, they seem to be doing everything right.

FUEGO / THE FILMS OF ISABEL "COCA" SARLI
AT / FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER
THROUGH / AUGUST 6-8 2010

“Isabel Sarli squeezes more sexual frisson into the space between breathing in and breathing out than most of us could spread over a lifetime of ordinary love-making,” wrote The New York Times of the Argentine actress and celebrated sex symbol. This extraordinary selection presents her sultry, funny, and censored films from the 60s and 70s — a wham-bam sampling of 100% Coca that’s nearly impossible to see anywhere else.