THUR 6/7: Ice Cream, Film, Photos, Talk, Rock

Find cheap options through Sunday on the CTB calendar.

If you're in the mood for a bit of live comedy, look below for discounted laughs in Boston every Thursday in June (including tonight).

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THUR 6/7

Noon to 8pm
Scooper Bowl
at City Hall Plaza, Boston (Govt Center)
$8 / $4 for children ages 3 to 9

It's the last day, and the temperature is strong enough to do some damage at outdoor all-you can eat ice cream. At $10 with 37 or so flavors mean that you can sample everything at approximately 27 cents per scoop...

For around the price of a lunch, it wouldn't be bad to sample five or ten of the best flavors from Baskin-Robbins, Ben & Jerry's, Breyer's, Brigham's, Hood, Byrne Dairy, Ciao Bella Gelato, Edy's, Friendly's, and SoCo Creamery.

Proceeds benefit the Jimmy Fund/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

THUR 6/7

6pm to 8:30pm
"Fukushima 2011, Chronicles from the Heartland": Screening & Discussion
at Room 120, Bldg 6, 182 Memorial Drive (Rear), Cambridge (MIT campus)
$5 suggested donation

If it was just an earthquake, that wouldn't have been a big deal to the Japanese who seem to handle them better than the rest of the world. The footage of the tsunami that followed was harrowing. Compund the radioactive catastrophe of the Fukushima, and it may be unimaginable how the people affected have managed to go on.

This documentary provides material for us to understand the long, difficult situation for the affected people. Director Hidetaka Inazuka will be in attendance for more information.

THUR 6/7 (thru SAT 6/9)

10am to 10pm
Flash Forward Festival
at The Fairmont Hotel, Battery Wharf, Boston (North End/Waterfront)
FREE

Last year's inaugural exhibit was an excellent survey of photographers from Canada, UK, and the States where there were 2 or 3 works by each winner of the related competition.

The exhibit returns to a large room and a couple satellites at the Fairmont that is open until 10pm. Between 10am and 6pm, there are various free lectures and panels through Saturday.

On a side note: The Fairmont Hotel is a great place to meet someone for drinks or dinner when you don't want to run into anyone you know...

THUR 6/7

6:30pm to 8pm
"Exposure 2012": Opening Reception
at Photographic Resource Center, 832 Comm Ave, Boston (BU campus)
FREE

The other photo game in town presents the work of 10 photographers out of 270 submissions from around the country.

You can go to a large exhibit or see a smaller presentation where Curator Alison Nordström says, "The overall quality of the work is high and the artists understand how their chosen medium can realize their ideas like no other."

The exhibit is on view through WED 7/18.

THUR 6/7

7pm
"From the Heart of Cambridge: A Neighborhood Portrait": Discussion
at Porter Square Books, 25 White St, Cambridge (near Shaw's Market)
FREE

Through the efforts of the Longfellow Oral History Project, stories from the last century have been collected from 90 Cantabrigians in an illustrated book.

People from different perspectives share their memories, and I'd like to think that some of the subjects will be present tonight for the brief walk down memory lane.

THUR 6/7

8pm
"Star Wars: Uncut"
at Brattle Theatre, 40 Brattle St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
$10 / $8 students, seniors

When I saw the concept for this film, my first reaction was "Holy crap!" Watching the clips engendered variations on the theme.

After soliciting people to send in their home-created footage of "Episode IV: A New Hope", a genius team edited the contributions in 15-second snippets for the most awesome Frankenstein of a complete version of the original "Star Wars".

This is frackin' hilarious -- and far more satisfying than watching what George Lucas has done to the movie. Sheer pleasure for any fanboy or fangirl. I may want to watch "Uncut" multiple times, and it'll be hoot to do it in a crowded theater.

THUR 6/7

9pm
Bent Shapes, Dog Day, The Operators, Duzheknew
at Radio, 379 Somerville Ave, Somerville (Union Sq)
$8 / 21+

9:30pm
Endless Wave, Ghost Box Orchestra, Soccer Mom, Hex Map
at Great Scott, 1222 Comm Ave, Allston
$8 / 18+

There are a couple gigs that appeal more than others around town -- all respect to every band playing tonight.

Over in Somerville, there are a couple bands from Nova Scotia are joined by the reunited Operators and Bent Shapes (aka Girlfriends reconfigured) for full night of catchy, garagey rock. On the other side of the river, a handful of shoegazey, proggy rock will be fuzzing out. I'm more partial to noisy garage-pop, but both should be good gigs.