Wednesday, December 29, 2010

The Ritz's NEW YEAR'S EVE Feast!




The Ritz's New Year's Eve Feast:
WHEN HARRY MET SALLY
Friday 12/31, 7:00 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

While we can't quite promise your New Year's Eve will end with big smoochies and proclamations of love as the clock strikes midnight, we can promise a supremely entertaining and classy night of watching, laughing, and feasting to close out 2010 in style. Ritz head chef Elijah Horgan has composed a special menu themed to the film, and of course we'll have our very own New Year's champagne toast. And if you do find yourself kissing your long time "friend" and professing your love after the show, well, you can thank us later.

The menu is below, as are the optional drink pairings:

"I'll Have What She's Having"
Ciabatta, proscuitto and salami with roasted tomato and herbed ricotta.
Everything served "Sally Style"... on the side.
Laetitia Pinot Noir - $10.00

"Chef's Salad"
Shrimp, baby spinach, red pepper, orange slices and pomegranate seeds.
Orange vinaigrette... yup, on the side.
Zen Sangria - $7.50

"When Harry Met Sally - Sweet and Sour"
Braised pork belly, poached pear, and "grilled raddichio" with a sweet and sour reduction (on the side).
Honey Pear Champagne Cocktail - $7.00

"Apple Pie"
Tartlet filled with strawberry and apple compote. Fresh cream topping... on the side.
Hot Apple Cider either non-Alcoholic for $4.00 or with Sailor Jerry’s Spiced Rum for $7.00

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Celluloid Handbag presents VALLEY OF THE DOLLS







Wednesday, December 29
7pm at the Ritz
Get your tickets here!


This month Celluloid Handbag has joined the act as part of High for the Holidays and is proud to present VALLEY OF THE DOLLS. This movie is packed with intoxicated starlets including Patty Duke, Sharon Tate and Barbara Parkins. Watch them wrestle with ambition, men and all the substances they have to abuse as they cope with the highs and lows that accompany being either extremely talented or extremely attractive.

As usual Austin's most fantastic drag personality will take the stage before the movie. On this special night conceived with the intention of celebrating altered states, you can bet Rebecca Havemeyer's opening act will have the audience rolling.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

High for the Holidays: DARK SIDE OF THE RAINBOW




Dorothy, Toto and Pink Floyd:
DARK SIDE OF THE RAINBOW
Scattered Shows Sunday 12/26 thru Friday 1/7, @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

We may never know if Pink Floyd had the foresight to record their greatest album with the notion that it was meant to sync almost perfectly to Victor Fleming’s, THE WIZARD OF OZ. Some say that this is just a happy coincidence, perpetuated by bong rips and the child-like naiveté of your average stoner. Even though the band has categorically denied that this was their intent, others swear that the list of coincidences is too great for even Jungian Psychologists to deny.

Whatever your stance, it’s hard not to get excited when the ‘cha-ching’ from Money coincides with the exact moment Dorothy steps out into technicolor munchkin land. Even if DARK SIDE OF THE RAINBOW was not a brilliantly hatched plan, more meaningful than a double rainbow (all the way!), the two go together better than Funyuns and Mountain Dew (warning: while DARK SIDE OF THE RAINBOW can be enjoyed in any state of mind, Funyuns and Mountain Dew are only safe to ingest if you are high out of your mind).

Prizes courtesy of Red 7 at this and all other High for the Holidays shows.

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Thursday, December 23, 2010

TRUE GRIT Opens Village, Lamar & Lake Creek!




Jeff Bridges & Matt Damon in the Coen Brothers':
TRUE GRIT
Now Playing @Lamar, Lake Creek & Village

Advance tickets available here

Pulp-auteurs Ethan and Joel Coen emerge with a new picture that is going to grind you up and spit you out. They’ve teamed up with their old friend Jeff Bridges (who they originally worked with on the classic THE BIG LEBOWSKI) and created a Western masterpiece. Bridges plays Rooster Cogburn, a one-eyed Federal Marshall with perfect aim and no restraint. His performance is an awe-inspiring achievement in deadpan comedy.

When Cogburn is hired by a 14 year-old girl (Hailee Steinfeld, in a role that could make her a star) to track down the man who killed her father, the two embark on a revenge expedition through Indian territory. They are joined by Texas Ranger LaBoeuf (Matt Damon, who has never been so funny), a hanger-on with his own intentions for the hunted man.

This is the Coen’s true follow-up to NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MAN, another masterfully shot Western that infuses their distinct voices into an older genre. Here, the script is unbeatable and the strange phrasings and quirky way of talking will have you immersed in the story while tickled with glee. Roger Deakins’ cinematography is breathtaking. The film’s painstaking recreation of mid-nineteenth century West is fantastic.

Get your tickets for TRUE GRIT: Now Playing at Lamar, Village and Lake Creek

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

You Better Watch Out!



Horror Remix: You Better Watch Out
Thurs, Dec 23 at Lake Creek
Reserve your seat with a $5 food voucher!


Start a holiday tradition like no other. Three holiday horror classics sliced and diced down to a power-packed 2 hours. Plus, lots of fun extras, shorts and your puppet MCs, Cheesecake and Thunderclap. SO BAD… IT’S GOOD!

Featuring:
Iced (1988)
This straight-to-video snow ski slasher is a special little film; and much like skiing, this thing is best when drunk or stoned. Iced is the type of movie that get better with repeated viewings. If that’s the criteria for a great film, this might be a masterpiece… of shit.

In terms of traditional filmmaking, it does everything wrong. However, for a slasher film, it does everything right. When these two polarizing forces collide, a huge explosion occurs and cocaine rains down on the entire film… Iced is born. Don’t eat the red snow.

Christmas Evil (1980)
A really great, well made film, even with its ridiculous premise and even more ridiculous ending. Basically, Christmas Evil is a character study of a righteous man slowly going insane, and eventually believing he’s Santa Claus. This innocent delusion suddenly becomes dangerous and naysayers who don’t believe get waxed.

Silent Night, Deadly Night 2 (1987)
This movie gets universally dogged for being one of the great rip-offs in film history. And rightfully so. Almost half of its runtime are clips from the first film! It’s shameless; yet awesome. You see, SNDN 2 essentially makes the original obsolete. All the good stuff from the first is here, plus new stuff. The combination of the two creates one of the largest body counts I’ve ever seen.

If you don’t treat the original like sacred art, you’re sure to enjoy this money grab. Terrible acting. Groan inducing one-liners. Unique kills. This is a really fun movie and a true crowd-pleaser. (EJ Antilla)

Admission is FREE, but you can reserve your seat with a $5 food voucher here

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Lost Bill Murray film NOTHING LASTS FOREVER w/ filmmaker Tom Schiller LIVE!


NOTHING LASTS FOREVER with Director LIVE
Wed - 7 PM - Ritz


ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME RARE 35MM SCREENING!
NEVER RELEASED ON VIDEO OR DVD!

Writer-director Schiller is best known for his short films from the early days of SNL and, together with producer Lorne Michaels, concocted this imaginative fantasy-comedy about true love, bad art, magical bums, Carnegie Hall and space travel. Sweet, absurd and crammed with moments of inspired brilliance, it was barely released and never found the cult-audience it so rightfully deserved...

Set in some bizarre, retro, b&w time-period (with occasional Technicolor splashes!), the film follows a young man (a pre-GREMLINS Zach Galligan) on an adventure that will take him from beneath the earth to the surface of the moon, where Bill Murray is a sky host for a group of interplanetary grandmas. Things just get wilder from there.

It’s entirely incomparable to anything you’ve seen, and Schiller doesn't pander to his audience -- if you don't understand his surreal humor, then screw you! This is a true original that's alternately charming, crazy and utterly unique. Also featuring appearances from a skinny Dan Aykroyd, 1978 Playboy model Appolonia van Ravenstein, Lawrence Tierney and Larry “Bud” Melman, this is indisputably one of the most vivacious and inventive films of our lifetimes. Unbelievable, and unseeable anywhere else!

Accompanying the show will be a special, ultra-rare reel of Schiller's work!

Also, available TONIGHT ONLY will be the incredibly rare, glow-in-the-dark LUNARTINI. Just $7 and guaranteed to blast you to the mooooon!

Get your tickets NOW!

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Get HIGH FOR THE HOLIDAYS at the Ritz




Don't Get Low, Get:
HIGH FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Monday 12/20 thru Sunday 1/2 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

Our annual intoxication tradition is back! High For the Holidays - a time when Mistletoe and Eggnog are replaced by multi-colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers and whatever else does the trick. High for the Holidays is a transcendental experience!

Monday 12/20: HAROLD & KUMAR GO TO WHITE CASTLE w/ All-You-Can-Eat Mini-Burgers! - 7:40pm
Music Monday: The Monkees: HEAD - 10:15pm

Wednesday 12/22: THE HOLY MOUNTAIN - 9:45pm
Weird Wednesday: THE MAGIC CHRISTMAS TREE - 12:30am

Sunday 12/26: FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS - 6:45pm
DARK SIDE OF THE RAINBOW - 9:50pm

Monday 12/27: DARK SIDE OF THE RAINBOW - 7:00pm
Music Monday: The Monkees: HEAD - 9:45pm

Tuesday 12/28: FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS - 7:00pm

Wednesday 12/29: Celluloid Handbag: VALLEY OF THE DOLLS - 7:00pm
THE HOLY MOUNTAIN - 9:50pm
Weird Wednesday: THE DEAN'S WIFE - 12:30am

Thursday 12/30: SUPER TROOPERS Quote-Along - 7:00pm

Saturday 1/1: DARK SIDE OF THE RAINBOW - 10:00pm

Sunday 1/2: DARK SIDE OF THE RAINBOW - 7:00pm

Get your tickets for these great shows now.

Friday, December 17, 2010

GET CRAZY!: A rare 35mm screening of the wildest New Year's rock explosion ever made!


Zzang!!!: GET CRAZY - Not on DVD!
Sun, Dec 19 - 10:00 - Ritz


This year, we unleashed our new series ZZANG!!!, a relentlessly wild monthly celebration of '80s insanity on film. We've dedicated ourselves to celebrating the most rabidly garish and spastic movies the neon decade had to offer.

GET CRAZY destroys them ALL.

Director Allan Arkush's follow-up to his beloved ROCK N' ROLL HIGH SCHOOL offers up an even more outrageous look at rock, roll, sex and drugs! It's New Year's Eve in New York City and a wicked promoter has a plan to hatch a massive concert at the biggest venue in town. As the bands and the fans start showing up at The Saturn, things do indeed Get Crazy.

Every conceivable musical stereotype is on the lineup for the night: a zany Bob Dylan-esque character played by Lou Reed; Reggie Wanker (Malcolm McDowell), an egotistical rocker in the Mick Jagger mold who ends up having a conversation with his penis; and an all-girl new-wave band called Nada who arrive in a beat up old Chevy with a license plate that says "GET BENT." The trunk pops open and out comes the band's secret weapon: an aggressive punk rock maniac named Piggy (Fear's Lee Ving). He immediately bashes his head into a wall, signs a contract by smashing his skull into the form and punches a stagehand in the gut!!

OUR GUARANTEE: this movie is rabid, manic and totally raging! ZZANG!!!

One night only! Rare as hell!
Get your tickets NOWWWWW!!!

Thursday, December 16, 2010

TRON Opens Village, Lamar & Lake Creek on Friday!




The Game Has Changed:
TRON: LEGACY
Starts Friday December 17 @Lamar, Lake Creek & Village

Advance tickets available here

In 1982, Disney created the mind-altering TRON. A flurry of cutting-edge computer graphics, the original film created a world that we've often returned back to in our dreams. TRON brought videogames into the cinema in a big way, and the world inside the game, THE GRID, is still one of the most iconic CG-realms ever created.

Now, after more than 25 years, we're finally able to return to the world of this beloved cult classic. Technology has certainly improved, as you'll see in the amazing 3D photography. Those weary of sequels need to hold their judgments - in a film so centrally about technology, an update like this can only be good. Add to that the fact that Jeff Bridges revives his role from the original film, and you've got a bona fide smash on your hands.

None of this mentions the absolutely out of control fantastic score by Daft Punk, the greatest robo-techno band on this planet or any other. Lifelong fanatics for the original film, the French bots of Daft Punk have made possibly the best orchestral-electro score in movie history. It's unbelievable.

Get your tickets for TRON now: Opening at Lamar, Lake Creek, and Village this Friday!

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Join Daft Punk on their quest to become human



Daft Punk's ELECTROMA
Thurs, Dec 16 at Lake Creek
Advance tickets available here


In our excitement for the opening of TRON: LEGACY, which features a killer soundtrack by our favorite robots-cum-electronic musicians Daft Punk, we decided it was about time to revisit the group’s visual and musical odyssey ELECTROMA. Have you ever wondered what is was like to become a robot? This is not the case for Daft Punk, as they already know what it’s like to be a robot (and French). Rather, ELECTROMA follows the pair as they embark on a quest to become human.

In this experimental film, the duo decided it best not to use their own music, and instead relied on such musical heavyweights as Todd Rundgren, Brian Eno, Sébastien Tellier and Curtis Mayfield to score the film. If you’re expecting the film to be as upbeat and fast-paced as Daft Punk’s music, you may be sorely disappointed. That being said, Electroma is as visually stunning as it is nuanced, and totally worth a watch (especially on gorgeous 35mm).

If you purchase tickets to both the 10p ELECTROMA and the midnight TRON: LEGACY, we'll reserve you a seat and help you bypass the line!

Click here to grab your tickets now!

Monday, December 13, 2010

A CHRISTMAS STORY Christmas Feast!


A CHRISTMAS STORY
With Chinese themed Christmas mini-feast!
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 15 at ALAMO VILLAGE
Get tickets HERE!

Think about the double dog dare, the Chinese caroling, the Red Ryder bb gun, those creepy elves and of course that “fra-jee-lay” Italian imported leg lamp. There is more timeless iconography packed into this perfect little gem than any other Christmas film since the birth of Jesus.

For this special presentation your ticket to the theater a multi-course meal themed to A CHRISTMAS STORY. We encourage each and every one of you to snort along and enjoy your plate just like the piggy does as you chow down on Shrimp, Carrot and Mushroom Eggrolls followed by Roast Duck Breast with mashed potatoes and ginger-sesame sugar snaps, and then rounded all off with Fudge with Vanilla Ice Cream and a Fortune Cookie.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Santa and Satan battle it out in Foleyvision



Foleyvision: SANTA VS SATAN
Sun, Dec 12 at South Lamar
Advance tickets available here


The world's most unique film-viewing experience is returning to tackle jolly old Saint Nick in the most riotously bizarre holiday movie you'll see in this lifetime! All music, voices and sound effects will be performed live in the theater!

This holiday season, Foleyvision takes on an incredibly ludicrous Christmas movie from south of the border that features your favorite laughing fat man in a red suit versus your favorite laughing skinny man in a red suit. And this time, it's personal. But when this turf war is over, the only casualty will be your abdominal muscles, sore from laughing for over an hour an a half straight. Watching this movie at Christmas time with the full Foleyvision treatment is one of the most extravagant joys those of us with hopelessly warped minds can hope to experience.

Click here to grab your tickets!

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Better Watch Out! RARE EXPORTS opens Friday at Lamar!




Ho Ho Ho:
RARE EXPORTS: A CHRISTMAS TALE
Starts Friday December 10 @Lamar

Advance tickets available here

Starting Friday, we open the Santasploitation rager RARE EXPORTS: A CHRISTMAS TALE at the South Lamar theatre. This Yuletide genre film blew audiences away at our Fantastic Fest this past September, and we're thrilled to bring it back for a run at the Alamo.

If you've seen the RARE EXPORTS trailer, you know why we're exposing you and your family to this madness. In the film, a malevolent Santa Claus is accidentally unearthed during an archeological dig in frosty northern Finland. When an armed band of locals abduct the decidedly non-jolly old St. Nick and hold him for ransom, they are besieged by Santa's ruthless, homicidal elves.

Get the picture? Santa is real and he totally sucks. RARE EXPORTS: A CHRISTMAS TALE will have you staying up all night this Christmas, sitting by the chimney with a shotgun in your lap. We wouldn't have it any other way.

And that's not all! In celebration of the opening of the film this Friday, we're going to provide a very special Christmas Card photo op for you. We have captured Santa, and we're keeping him sedated and caged like a vicious animal in our lobby. You can swing by anytime between 6 and 10:30pm on Friday or Saturday and have your picture taken with a snarling, feral Santa Claus. Though he is confined in a cage, we will equip you with a weapon for the photograph - our insurance requires it.

We'll post the photos on our Facebook page and you can tag yourself and send the link to all your dumb friends who don't believe in Santa Claus.

Better watch out, tickets are selling fast. Buy them here now and avoid the rush.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

The Nutcracker Suite like you've never heard it before!



Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite w/ Invincible Czars LIVE
Thurs, Dec 9 at Lake Creek
Advance tickets available here


Take one part Stravinsky, one part Van Halen, and one part Captain Beefheart – mix them together and listen while huffing on a rag soaked in ether, and you may be getting close to pinning down the signature sound of Austin's Invincible Czars. Riff rock, classical music, loungey grooves, spacey klezmer, country shuffles, and circusy polka; the Czars blend genres seamlessly and send them all hurtling back in a frenetic, yet sophisticated arrangement.

Never one to rest on their laurels, the Czars have continually pushed themselves into new creative ventures including the scoring of silent films (THE UNKNOWN, AELITA: QUEEN OF MARS, DESTINY) and the re-working of famous classical suites including Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker Suite” and Mussorgsky’s “A Night on Bald Mountain.”

Since 2004, the band has made it a holiday tradition of performing their original take on the Nutcracker Suite. As an early Christmas present to you and yours, we’ve teamed up to bring them to the Drafthouse! On Thursday, December 9th, for one night only, the Czars will perform their Nutcracker show in its entirety at the Alamo Lake Creek. This is classical music like you’ve never heard before and certainly a great way to get into the holiday spirit!

Check out what people have been saying about this show:

“Every moment of it rocks.”
- Austin Powell – The Austin Chronicle

“The perfect addition to anyone’s holiday season.”
- John Aielli – KUT FM

“…combines all the beauty of Tchaikovsky’s original opus and turns it up to 11.”
- Dusty Rhodes The Houston Press

“…frenzied, turn-of-the-century riot inducing classical music…”
- Michael Chamy The Dallas Observer

Click here to grab your tickets now!

Monday, December 6, 2010

SHOWGIRLS with live commentary by the venerable David Schmader



SHOWGIRLS with David Schmader
Weds, Dec 8 at The Ritz
Advance tickets available here

Upon its 1995 release, Paul Verhoeven’s glitzy stripper drama SHOWGIRLS earned some of the most extravagantly awful reviews in cinema history. “A film of thunderous oafishness,” wrote Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times. Critics around the globe unanimously damned SHOWGIRLS as a failure doomed to die in infamy. Only it didn’t.

Since its original release, SHOWGIRLS has grown into a full-fledged cult phenomenon, thanks in no small part to the cinematic missionary work undertaken by David Schmader, the critically acclaimed writer and performer who hosted his first annotated screenings of the film at Seattle’s Northwest Film Forum in 1999.

Part art-appreciation lecture, part sit-down comedy routine, all against the backdrop of Verhoeven’s peerlessly offensive, flesh-drenched disaster, SHOWGIRLS with David Schmader was an instant hit, packing theaters in Seattle and touring to film festivals across the country, with Schmader reintroducing Verhoeven’s hideous folly to a generation of filmgoers as the most inadvertent, surreally hilarious comedy in film history.

Click here to grab your tickets now!

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Everything's better if you add a little chocolate!



Edible Austin: CHOCOLAT
Mon, Dec 6 at South Lamar
Advance tickets and full menu available here

Hey chocoholics, do we have an event for you! We’ve partnered with Edible Austin to present a special screening of CHOCOLAT, paired with an exquisite dinner inspired by food featured in the film. Alamo Executive Chef John Bullington will prepare a meal featuring CHOCOLATE, and tons of it.

If chocolate is indeed the ultimate aphrodisiac, then consuming a meal featuring close to a pound of high quality, amazing chocolate should get get your motors running. Have we mentioned the word “chocolate” enough to pique your interest? If you’re not already sold on supping on delicious chocolate while you watch a 5 time Academy Award nominated film, then what if I told you that all proceeds would benefit the youth development program, Urban Roots? Okay, then what if I said “chocolate” one more time?

Click here to check out the full menu and grab your tickets now!

Friday, December 3, 2010

STRANGE POWERS: STEPHIN MERRITT & MAGNETIC FIELDS




Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt profiled in:
STRANGE POWERS
Friday 12/3 thru Thursday 12/9 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

Back by Popular Demand!

With his unique gift for memorable melodies, lovelorn lyrics and wry musical stylings that blend classic Tin Pan Alley with modern sounds, Stephin Merritt has distinguished himself as one of contemporary pop's most beloved and influential artists.

Both a prolific recording artist and composer of theater and film scores, he performs most famously as the Magnetic Fields, whose 1999 three-disc opus 69 Love Songs is widely considered a masterpiece of traditional songcraft and irresistible synthpop.

Ten years in the making, STRANGE POWERS explores Merritt's songwriting and recording process, and focuses on his relationships with his bandmates and longtime manager Claudia Gonson, revealing an artist who has produced one of the most engaging and confounding bodies of work in the contemporary American songbook.

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

The INDIE DARLINGS SING-ALONG - ONE NIGHT ONLY!


The Action Pack presents
THE INDIE DARLINGS SING-ALONG
Thursday, Dec 2 at Alamo Ritz

It's no secret that the majority of our music video Sing-Along parties celebrate the poppiest of pop music. From Ladies of the 80s to Jiggy Crunk: the Pop Rap Sing-Along, our shows are usually all about the songs that we all know and love but sometimes have to pretend like we're too cool for. With the INDIE DARLINGS SING-ALONG we're going in the other direction for the first time ever. There will still be big pop that everyone knows, but it won't be the absolute cheesiest, and there will be much more Brooklyn than our other shows. We're thinking more Bjork than Britney, more MGMT than JT, and more Chromeo than ever before because god damn it "Night By Night" gets our vote for Song of the Year. (Henri Mazza)

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Charlie Chaplin's MONSIEUR VERDOUX!




Louis Black Presents Charlie Chaplin in:
MONSIEUR VERDOUX
Monday 11/29 & Wednesday 12/1, 7:00 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

We're very proud to invite Louis Black, founder and editor of the Austin Chronicle and SXSW, to present one of the greatest black comedies of all time, Charlie Chaplin's MONSIEUR VERDOUX. In addition to founding two of the biggest and hippest institutions in Austin Texas, Black is a serious film scholar and enthusiast. While earning a degree in Film studies at the University of Texas, he was one of the key members/programmers of the legendary CinemaTexas series. He also was one of the original board members of the Austin Film Society.

Needless to say, he's a man of great esteem in the Austin film scene. He also happens to love this awesome Charlie Chaplin movie MONSIEUR VERDOUX. This is Chaplin's darkest and most sadistic work, a comedy of murder that, while hitting much of the same comic genius of Chaplin's earlier work, will show you a new side of the great tramp.

MONSIEUR VERDOUX, based on an idea by Orson Welles, tells the morbid story of the titular hero, a gold-digging fop who excels at the art of extermination. He woos wealthy widows and snaps up their fortunes with one hand while snapping their necks with the other. This delightful tale will have you laughing, philosophizing, and cringing along with the great star.

Louis Black will be on hand to give us some insight on the history and context of the film, and why it's so important for us to love it.

We're also presenting MONSIEUR VERDOUX without Louis as a matinee on Sunday 12/5 at 12pm.

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Friday, November 26, 2010

ZZANGG!!!: ROAD HOUSE w/ David Schmader




ZZANGG!!! and David Schmader Present:
ROAD HOUSE
Sunday 11/28, 7:00 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

Come see the 200-fisted, tough-guy-with-a-heart-of-gold epic that capped off the brawling ‘80s action era! The late, great King Swayze stars as world’s greatest bouncer Dalton, a man that’s just as at home when cracking a man’s skull as when he’s doing tai chi in front of a glassy lake.

Though seemingly unflappable, Dalton is pushed over the max when an evil town patriarch (Ben Gazzara) brings the hammer down on every true-hearted citizen. Sam Elliott, TOP GUN’s Kelly Lynch and X bassist John Doe co-star in this explosion of punching, pugilism and good old-fashioned fisticuffs! All in a movie actually made by a dude named “Rowdy”!! The only major studio release to feature the following line of dialogue between two men during a fight: “I used to f**k guys like you in prison.”

For this very special 35mm screening, we’ll be joined by Seattle cinema expert David Schmader, the man who opened the world’s eyes to the wonders of SHOWGIRLS! ZZANG!!!

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

XMAS POPS is back!


The Action Pack brings back
THE XMAS POPS SING-ALONG
because Christmas (pops) comes early this year!
Friday, Nov 26 at the Alamo Ritz
Get your advance tickets right here

Was that the most perfectly timed cold front or what? I woke up on Thanksgiving morning, went outside, and thought, "Geez, it doesn't feel very much like the holidays out here..." Then just a couple of hours later I stepped out again, all confident in my short sleeved shirt - and had to turn right back around, change my shirt, and add a jacket.

YES!

So now that the holidays actually have officially come to central Texas, it is most definitely time to return to one of my favorite holiday traditions - The XMAS POPS SING-ALONG.

Those of you who've been to this show in the past know what it's all about. We take Christmas music videos from all over the place, then assemble them into one collection that manages to blend seamlessly between John Denver & The Muppets singing The Twelve Days of Christmas into Wham's Last Christmas, Run DMC's Christmas In Hollis, and pretty much everything in between.

Throughout the show we'll also be playing several holiday themed games, including a Shoot My Eye out contest and some holiday Videoke, but the real highlight for me doesn't even take place inside the theater.

For me, the entire show is a warm up for the main event - leaving through the back door of the Ritz, gathering in the alley behind the theater, and then heading out as one pack of extremely holiday-spirit-filled carolers to take Sixth Street by storm. We'll be handing out caroling books to everyone in the audience then going up and down the street singing U2 and Mariah Carey and the Peanuts' Christmas Time Is Here to bouncers, drunks, revelers, fancy diners, and anyone else we can come into contact with.

So after you've got your shopping done (and picked up some Alamo Gift Cards, of course), I invite you to come downtown and ring in the holiday season with The Action Pack. As usual, Greg and I will be dressed in silly costumes and wearing yellow tights instead of pants. Yeah, Merry Christmas - you're welcome. (Henri Mazza)

Happy Thanksgiving! Hook 'em!



UT vs A&M - Thanksgiving Day 2010!
Thurs, Nov 25 at Ritz and Lake Creek
Advance tickets for Lake Creek available here
Advance tickets for Ritz here

Orphaned on Thanksgiving? No worries! We've got a traditional homemade Thanksgiving Feast (while supplies last), open lovin' arms and the big game on the big big Alamo screen! Watch the UT Longhorns battle their way toward a Thanksgiving Day victory against our friends and rivals to the East, the Texas A&M Aggies!

Hey and don't let the hook 'em picture fool you- Aggie fans are welcome! After all, Thanksgiving is the day for coming together and celebrating that for which we are thankful...and we are all, as Texans, most thankful for football.

That said, hook 'em.

You can reserve a seat by pre-purchasing your Thanksgiving Feast (sorry, the Thanksgiving Feast option is already sold out at Lake Creek; there are still tickets available for the game though)!

You'll get a heaping plate with all these homemade classics:
Turkey and gravy!
Stuffing!
Cranberry sauce!
Green bean casserole!
Sweet potatoes (yes, the kind with the marshmallows on top!)
Yeast roll!
Then finish it all off with a nice big slice of pecan pie!

An $18 ticket reserves you a seat and the Thanksgiving Feast. Or you may purchase a $5 food and beverage voucher to reserve a seat WITHOUT the turkey dinner but you can then use the $5 voucher against anything else ordered during the game. If there are seats remaining the day of the game, admission will be free at the door.

Grab your tickets for Lake Creek here
Grab your tickets for Ritz here

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Sunset Blvd. with live performance by Rebecca Havemeyer






Wednesday, November 24, 7pm at the Ritz
Advance tickets available here!

Rebecca Havemeyer is not only Austin's most fantastic drag personality but an incredible and unpredictable performer who puts on a remarkable show every month at the Ritz for Celluloid Handbag. Every month is special, but this month is exceptionally special because this month Rebecca’s stage antics will be followed by a film so important to the history of American cinema that if you don’t go see it you’re just not grateful.

In SUNSET BOULEVARD, Gloria Swanson stars as Norma Desmond, a washed up star from the silent era who is obsessed with making it big again. For years, she has stayed hidden in her gothic mansion working on some monstrosity of a screenplay with nobody for company but her creepily devoted butler and monkey. Enter William Holden as a handsome young hack of a screenwriter and you’ve got the makings of a twisted plot complete with a murderous cougar. A 35mm print of this stunning piece of film noir by the brilliant Billy Wilder is not the cinematic event to miss.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Ready, Set, Bag!



READY, SET, BAG! with exhibition sack-off
Mon, Nov 22 at Lake Creek
Tues, Nov 23 at Ritz
Advance tickets for Lake Creek available here
Advance tickets for Ritz here

It's high time someone pulled back the veil on the underground sport of competitive grocery bagging. READY, SET, BAG! does just that as it chronicles the lives of eight grocery baggers who are competing for the honor of being named the "Best Bagger" at the annual National Grocers Association convention in Las Vegas.

You may scoff at the thought of a "National Bagging Competition," but the subjects of this documentary are deadly serious about their craft. The film follows these diverse characters as they prepare for the competition and offers a rare glimpse into the lives of the commonly misunderstood grocery bagger.

A portion of ticket proceeds from this will benefit the Capitol Area Food Bank and the screening will include a pre-show exhibition sack-off/grudge match between Whole Foods North vs. Downtown.

Grab your tickets for Lake Creek here
Grab your tickets for Ritz here

Buster Keaton's THE CAMERAMAN with Live Score!



THE CAMERAMAN
Silent Classic with Live Score by Bee Vs. Moth
Monday 11/22, 7pm at the Ritz
Buy Tickets Here

1928's THE CAMERAMAN is one of Buster Keaton's best, most imaginative and entertaining films. And that's saying something. Here the great stone-face plays a young man who tries to impress a girl by becoming a newsreel cameraman. Of course, nothing goes right. He always forgets to load the camera or he does it wrong or he's in the wrong place at the wrong time. In short, everything gets screwed up, and nobody screws everything up more entertainingly than the great Keaton.

And we feel that nobody can do better musical justice to Keaton's wild set pieces than Austin's own Bee Vs. Moth, whose brass-laden "multiple-genre, weirdo instrumental rock" is just right for this anarchic laugh riot. Listen to them today at beevsmoth.com and be here for the live score of the year!


Saturday, November 20, 2010

Cinema Club: BEAT THE DEVIL w/ Andrew Bujalski




Cinema Club Presents:
BEAT THE DEVIL w/ Andrew Bujalski
Sunday 11/21, 7:00 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

The Cinema Club brings together classic films and film scholars/enthusiasts to present sometimes-forgotten treasures and to lead a rousing discussion afterwards in our comfortable Ritz theatre. In the past we've had great guests like UT professors Charles Ramirez Berg and Thomas Schatz and historians Eddie Muller, Kim Morgan, and Joe Bob Briggs. This month, we're joined by filmmaker Andrew Bujalski (MUTUAL APPRECIATION, FUNNY HA HA) to present the underseen Humphrey Bogart classic BEAT THE DEVIL.

BEAT THE DEVIL is a terrific film, somewhat difficult to comprehend but witty to the end. It was written by Truman Capote in a fever dream that was interrupted by his conversations with his raven, and afternoon shoots were often written in the morning by the ailing author. This led to some bizarre scenes and fiendishly funny (and subtle) satire, and a lot of improvisation from the cast of well-trained actors: Humphrey Bogart, Jennifer Jones, Gina Lollobrigida, Peter Lorre, Robert Morley and more.

Our guest Andrew Bujalski knows a thing or two about free-wheeling filmmaking and improvisational acting. An undisputed master of directing actors in loose, ultra-realist settings, Bujalski is the perfect guest to discuss this unique Hollywood cult classic.

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Friday, November 19, 2010

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY Spaghetti Western Feast



THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY Spaghetti Western Feast
Sun, Nov 21 at Lake Creek
Advance tickets available here

SUNDAY (11/21) SCREENING INCLUDES ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT SPAGHETTI and CAESAR SALAD FOR THE LOW PRICE OF $25!! General admission screenings Mon Nov 22-23.

As part of our Digital Classics series, we are presenting a meticulously restored digital print of perhaps the greatest threequel of all time. Now is your chance to experience the rise of Clint Eastwood’s legacy and the culmination of the “Man with No Name Trilogy” on the big screen.

The trifecta of Sergio Leone, Clint Eastwood, and composer Ennio Morricone continues as three gunslingers compete to find a fortune in buried confederate gold. We can’t wait to get another chance to experience the sweeping visuals, prolonged tension, wanton violence, and one of the most recognizable musical themes in any movie (it’s playing in your head right now) again on the big screen.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY
plays November 21st-23rd at Lake Creek, but for opening night (Sun, 11/21), we have something extra-special planned. In celebration of the Spaghetti Western, the opening night screening of the film will include all-you-can-eat spaghetti and Caesar salad as part of the low low ticket price of only $25. Eat spaghetti while you watch a Spaghetti Western. If that’s not meta enough for you, I don’t what is.

Grab your tickets here


Thursday, November 18, 2010

It's HARRY POTTER time, y'all!


HARRY POTTER and the DEATHLY HALLOWS: Part 1
All midnight screenings are sold out, but you can catch Harry Potter all weekend!

TICKETS: Alamo S. Lamar, Alamo Village, Alamo Lake Creek

Hey you guys! The new Harry Potter movie is out! If you're any sort of a Potter fan, you definitely knew this already.

I had the opportunity to see this movie a few days early. Sure most of us have read the book, but that doesn't mean I'm going to spoil the magic of the film for you. All I will say is this: IT IS AWESOME! Really and truely. The three main kiddos are great, the supporting cast is incredible, Bill Nighy is in it for a hot second (love him!), the CGI is lookin' pretty topnotch (which is saying a lot, especially compared to the first few films), and they split the films nicely. My only complaint is that I have to wait to see the conclusion! So yeah, you'll love it. As if you had any doubt... (Caitlin.)

Part 1 begins as Harry, Ron and Hermione set out on their perilous mission to track down and destroy the secret to Voldemort’s immortality and destruction—the Horcruxes. On their own, without the guidance of their professors or the protection of Professor Dumbledore, the three friends must now rely on one another more than ever. But there are Dark Forces in their midst that threaten to tear them apart.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Cinema Cocktails: HORSE FEATHERS





The Marx Brothers in:
HORSE FEATHERS
Monday 11/15 & Wednesday 11/17, 7:00 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

Groucho, Harpo, Chico, and Zeppo star in the movie that made them famous. Yes, the Marx Brothers come to the Alamo Drafthouse, bringing their unique brand of anarchy and hilarity to unsuspecting and potentially drunken audiences.

No comedy group was ever as funny, as satirical, or as disrespectful as these four brothers, and HORSE FEATHERS is their tour-de-force, demonstrating the uncanny wit of wiseguy Groucho, the trouble-making hustling of Chico, and the mute antics of Harpo (and Zeppo plays the straight man, as usual).

HORSE FEATHERS has Groucho as Professor Quincy Adams Wagstaff, the new president of Huxley College who is interested only in destroying the university and making off with the money and the women. Harpo and Chico, who work in a speakeasy, are mistakenly enlisted to join the college football team as ringers, and the confusion proves overwhelming for the entire student body.

This is a Cinema Cocktails presentation, which means we've got a special cocktail paired with the film: The Bee's Knees, a prohibition-era favorite. Gin, Fresh Lemon Juice, and Honey mixed up and served in a Honey-drizzled cocktail glass - You'll be swept up into a speakeasy circa 1932.

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Frederick Wiseman is Coming to Austin!




Frederick Wiseman brings his new film
BOXING GYM
to South Lamar starting November 12

Advance tickets available here

Acclaimed documentarian Frederick Wiseman, who brought us the Verité masterpieces HIGH SCHOOL, LAW AND ORDER, TITICUT FOLLIES, and, recently, LA DANSE, is coming to open his new film, BOXING GYM, in Austin. BOXING GYM presents a fly-on-the-wall perspective of Lord's Gym, the legendary Austin training room owned by Richard Lord. The film is beautiful and will set you in a trance.

We're opening the film on Friday, and to celebrate we'll be having special guests all weekend long!

On Friday at the 4:05 and 7:00 showings, Richard Lord will be live!
On Saturday at the 4:25 and 7:00 times, Lord will be joined by Frederick Wiseman as well!


And, perhaps most excitingly, on Sunday at 4:00, Wiseman will be presenting one of his most challenging and enduring works, TITICUT FOLLIES. A study of Massachusetts' treatment of criminally insane inmates at the Bridgewater State Hospital, TITICUT FOLLIES was the first American film banned for reasons other than national security or obscenity. It, like much of Wiseman's work in general, forces us to look inside institutions we pay little attention to and make our own judgments about their problems and ultimate worth. This is a truly unique event and one you should not miss!

Get your tickets for BOXING GYM here!
And don't miss TITICUT FOLLIES w/ Wiseman on Sunday at 4!

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Austin Comic Con Shows this Saturday!



Austin Comic Con Presents: HUMAN CENTIPEDE and ALIEN vs. NINJA
Sat, Nov 13 at The Ritz
Advance tickets for HUMAN CENTIPEDE available here
Advance tickets for ALIEN vs. NINJA available here

Comic aficionados unite for the 2010 Austin Comic Con November 12-14! As part of the festivities, we are proud to bring you two kick-ass screenings on Saturday Nov 13.

Don't miss an encore presentation of Tom Six's disturbing (and medically accurate) thriller HUMAN CENTIPEDE, featuring a live Q&A with the actors who portrayed the "centipede". That’s right: Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie and Akihiro Kitamura, the three performers who form the “human centipede” in Tom Six’s maniacal mad scientist masterpiece will be live in person at the theater to answer your questions! I'm sure everyone can think of a few questions they would like to ask them, myself included.

Also playing as part of the "Con", is the terribly awesome (terrible + awesome) film ALIEN VS. NINJA. Like some kind of ultra-stupid, ultra-gory version of the Mighty Moronic Power Rangers, AvN is the kind of boneheaded movie that does exactly what it says on the box. There are ninjas, and they fight an alien and by the end so many buckets of gore have been emptied, so many prop swords have been soaked in green alien gunk and so many copyright laws have been violated that the entire Dumb Movies Genre needs to go on vacation.

Grab your tickets to HUMAN CENTIPEDE here
Grab your tickets to ALIEN vs. NINJA here

Check out the full lineup of programming happening during Austin Comic Con here


Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Don't miss the most talked about documentary of SxSw 2010!



SXSW Presents: MARWENCOL
Nov 10, 17, and 24 at The Ritz
Advance tickets available here

If you missed the South by Southwest Grand Jury Award winning documentary MARWENCOL, we’re giving you three more chances to catch this fantastic documentary. MARWENCOL has been garnering great reviews and racking up awards and accolades on the festival circuit. So, don’t miss screenings at The Ritz on Nov 10, 17, and 24, presented by South by Southwest Film Festival.

In April of 2000 Mark Hogancamp was savagely beaten by five men outside of a bar. The attack that almost killed him put Mark in a coma for nine days and left him with little memory of his previous life. Unable to afford traditional therapy, Mark was left to mend his own physical and psychic wounds. To do so, he created an imaginary World War II-era Belgian town called Marwencol and populated it with dolls that represented fictional characters as well as his friends, family, and even his attackers.

After a few years, Mark started taking hyper-realistic photographs of the scenes that played out in his imaginary town. Episodes of violence, lust, and longing featuring his doll doppelganger “Captain Hogan” mirrored aspects of his life and ultimately helped Mark to regain his sanity.

When a prestigious New York art gallery invites Mark to showcase his photos, he must choose whether or not to leave the safety of his imaginary sanctum for the uncertainty of the world at large.

Check out what the press are saying about MARWENCOL:

“I can barely describe the wonders of ‘Marwencol,’ Jeff Malmberg’s documentary about a man, brain-damaged following a near-fatal beating, who has built a fictional WWII-era Belgian town out of tiny props and Barbie-size dolls.” -Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly

“…an absorbing portrait of an outsider artist; a fascinating journey from near-death to active life; a meditation on the brain’s ability to forge new pathways when old ones have been destroyed.” -V.A. Musetto, New York Post

“One of the oddest and most moving documentaries since ‘Best Boy’ or ‘Grey Gardens,’ Jeff Malmberg’s debut film is a marvel.” -Liam Lacey, Toronto Globe & Mail

“Exactly the sort of mysterious and almost holy experience you hope to get from documentaries and rarely do… like a homegrown slice of Herzog oddness, complete with true-crime backfill and juicy metafictive upshot.” -Michael Atkinson, Village Voice

Click HERE to purchase your tickets.

Monday, November 8, 2010

THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI in 4K Digital All Week!





Amazing 4K Digital Restoration of the Epic:
THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI
Monday 11/8 thru Thursday 11/11 7:00pm @Lamar

Advance tickets available here

Winner of an astonishing 7 Academy Awards! THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI is a riveting tale of war, duty and honor played out among British and American prisoners of war on a work detail for their Japanese captors. The quality of acting, cinematography and direction on display here is nearly unmatched. Directed by master of the epic David Lean(LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, DOCTOR ZHIVAGO). Starring Alec Guinness (Obi-Wan Kenobi!) and William Holden (SUNSET BLVD).

It's really good. It's also one of the most deeply satisfying nights you'll spend at the movies anytime, anyplace.

When we started looking at adding digital cinema capabilities to our theaters we looked at a number of different systems. All of them used the 2K model except for Sony's highly advanced 4k system. We were blown away by the detail and the density and brightness Sony 4k gave us.

So we are thrilled to present one of our very favorite classics, THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI, in an absolute state of the art 4k digital restoration. Unless you watched a virgin 70mm print of this film on opening night, on optimally tuned equipment, you've never seen this movie look this good.

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Chris Morris' FOUR LIONS Now Playing!


An Alamo Drafthouse Release
Chris Morris' FOUR LIONS Now Playing!
Get tickets here!

The very first release from Drafthouse Films!

"FOUR LIONS is a creeping, under-the-skin classic, a comedy that will reward viewing after viewing and might ultimately best last year’s IN THE LOOP for quotability." - Damon Wise, Empire Online

"Painfully funny… Morris pulls off the near-impossible."- Drew McWeeny, HitFix

Chris Morris' FOUR LIONS is a funny, thrilling comedy that illuminates modern jihadism through the prism of farce. What THIS IS SPINAL TAP did for heavy metal and DR. STRANGELOVE did for the Cold War, FOUR LIONS does for the modern face of terrorism.

In a British city, four men have a secret plan. Omar is disillusioned about the treatment of Muslims around the world and is determined to become a soldier. This is the most exciting idea Waj has ever heard -- better still it's a no-brainer because Omar does his thinking for him. Opposed to Omar -- and everyone else on earth -- is the white Islamic convert Barry. He would realize he'd joined the cell to channel his nihilism -- if he had half the self-knowledge of a duck. Faisal is the odd man out. He can make a bomb, but he can't blow himself up just now 'cuz his sick dad has "started eating newspaper." Instead, he's training crows to fly bombs through windows. This is what Omar has to deal with.

They must strike a decisive blow on their own turf but can any of them strike a match without punching himself in the face? Crackling with wit and tension, FOUR LIONS is the essential response to our failure to engage with reality and a high toast to the idea that laughter is better than killing.

Get tickets for opening weekend HERE!

Friday, October 29, 2010

FOUR LIONS Director Chris Morris All Week Long!





Chris Morris's TV Work Absolutely FREE:
THE DAY TODAY, BRASS EYE, and JAM
Sunday 10/31 thru Thursday 11/4 10:00pm @Village

Advance tickets available here

Think THE DAILY SHOW is cutting edge? British satirist Chris Morris (director of the highly anticipated FOUR LIONS opening Nov 5 at Alamo South Lamar) was lampooning the news with a sharp wit before Jon Stewart could even vote. Now, in one of the first American screenings ever, the Alamo proudly presents Chris Morris' landmark news programs THE DAY TODAY and BRASS EYE, and his ultra-weird comedy/horror JAM! And that's not all: The whole thing is FREE!!!!

Sunday 10/31: THE DAY TODAY Part 1 - 10pm

Monday 11/1: JAM - 10pm

Tuesday 11/2: THE DAY TODAY Part 2 - 945pm

Wednesday 11/3: BRASS EYE Part 1 - 10pm

Thursday 11/4: BRASS EYE Part 2 - 10pm

Tickets to these screenings will be free, but you can reserve your seat by purchasing a $5 food and drink voucher redeemable towards your check at the show that night.

And be sure to check out Drafthouse Films release of FOUR LIONS opening Nov 5 at Alamo South Lamar.

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

I haven't had a good custard in years!



Dismember the Alamo: DEAD ALIVE Sloppy Food Party
Sun, Oct 31 at the Alamo South Lamar
Advance tickets available here

Peter Jackson’s break out feature is quite possibly the greatest zombie flick ever made, and certainly one of the messiest movies of all time. What other movie has an ass-kicking priest, zombie procreation, and an ultra-bloody dismemberment-by-lawnmower scene? If ever there was a movie that made you want to eat, DEAD ALIVE is.....well, maybe not people's first choice. But, for those hard-core fans with a love for zombie films, and an iron stomach to boot, have we got a treat for you. For this special Dismember the Alamo screening, we’ve joined the film with the messiest food pairing we can think of.

Of course there will be custard for dessert (rich and creamy, just the way you like it!) and plenty of sloppy joes to slurp down when Lionel goes medieval on the zombies with his lawn mower. Plus, we have a few other tricks up our sleeves that will have you feeling like you’re seeing the film again for the first time!

Join us for this special screening and stick around afterward for the premiere of AMC's THE WALKING DEAD followed by The Action Pack's Zombie Prom at Highball.

Click HERE to purchase your tickets.



Saturday, October 23, 2010

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS w/ gourmet food and Live Oak Beer Pairings as part of Austin Beer Week!



INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS Live Oak Beer Feast
w/ Live Oak Co-founder Chip McElroy!
Wed, Oct 27 at the Alamo South Lamar
Advance tickets and full menu available here

As part of Austin Beer Week, we are pleased to announce a screening of INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS with a multi-course German feast paired with German-style beers from our friends at Live Oak Brewing Company. The screening will also include a guided tasting with descriptions of the beer as well as a Q&A after the film hosted by none other than Live Oak co-founder Chip McElroy!

If there was ever an event geared toward those who love beer and hate Nazis, this is it! Join us as we taste the fine offerings from our talented Alamo chefs paired with the finest beers from Austin's own Live Oak Brewing. The two go together better than Nazis in a theater fire! Check out the show page for a full menu and list of beer pairings. Grab your advance tickets before it's too late! For a full list of events happening during Austin Beer Week, check out the full schedule here.

Also, don't miss the Real Ale Cask Night the following night at Alamo Lake Creek. Admission is FREE and we'll be tapping a cask of Real ESB as well as a keg of this year's Coffee Porter. Click here for more info on the FREE event.

Friday, October 22, 2010

THRILLERFEST moved to THE HIGHBALL!



THRILLERFEST: Thrill the World 2010
DATE: Saturday, October 23, Lesson @ 3pm, Dance @6pm
NEW LOCATION: The Highball
(due to rain concerns)

Grab your tickets HERE!

Because even zombies are affected by rain (have you *seen* RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD?), and our sources tell us it's supposed to be all sorts of stormy on Saturday, we will be moving the Thriller event this year to INSIDE at THE HIGHBALL.

CHECK IN
You can check in at the Highball beginning at 2pm, and the lesson will start at 3pm. On your way in, make sure you SIGN IN if you are going to dance, because we need to have a true and accurate count of how many dancers join us so we can report back to Thrill the World HQ. You’ll still be able to pay your admission at the door on the day of the event, but pre-registering online may save you time at the doors. To get your advance tickets click here, and remember that proceeds from this event go to help support Scare For A Cure and their battle against breast cancer – PLUS you get $10 off the Zombie Ball on Oct 30, where we will be heading back to take our revenge on Seaholm and performing again. But even though we’re inside – be dressed as a zombie!

TIMELINE
The doors will be open to the public beginning at 2pm. The amazing Craig Ries will lead us through a COMPLETE dance lesson starting at 3pm so even if you’ve never taken part in Thrill the World before you can show up and by the official Thrill time you will know it because he will be starting from SCRATCH.

Beginning around 4:30pm we’ll be working complete run throughs. From 4:30pm to 5:30p, we’ll keep rehearsing and rehearsing and rehearsing the dance, moving up from the slowed down track all the way up to full speed. Then we’ll take a quick break before reconvening at 5:45 to get lined up into a grid and give everyone as much space as possible for the official Thrill Time. At PRECISELY 6:00pm we’ll all start to rise from our zombie graves and break into a zombie march with some shoulder snaps at the EXACT SAME TIME as people are dancing in other cities and countries around the world. At 6:08pm we’ll jump up and down and cheer and clap for ourselves and our amazing awesomeness, then we’ll all sing along to a stirring rendition of “Heal the World,” which will also be happening in various locations all around the planet. We’ll take a short break after that and will have a party photo booth where you and your group can get your zombie portraits taken by Trevor Ray Thompson.

At 6:30pm the McCallum High orchestra will be performing an instrumental MJ melody on the Highball stage, and after that, we’ll go into straight into a Michael Jackson dance party featuring a selection of his best music videos presented on all the screens at the Highball. Dance on the dance floor, grab dinner at the Highball, or just soak up the MJ vibes. After that you may be exhausted, BUT if you still have more dance in you, feel free to keep on keeping on at the Highball for The Action Pack’s new Music Video Dance party, where we’ll keep on with the force, don’t stop all the way to 2am. And don’t forget! Your $10 door fee and donation to Scare For A Cure also gets you $10 off your admission to next week’s Zombie Ball back at Seaholm. We’re going to gather a legion of zombies there for a special encore performance of Thriller, so be sure to join us for that.

All right, all together now, let’s grab our crotches, yell out “A hee hee!” and make this a PARTY!

Get tickets now!

Monday, October 18, 2010

Thrill the World at Seaholm



THRILLERFEST 2010
Oct 23, 2pm at Seaholm Power Plant in Downtown Austin
$10, proceeds go to Scare For A Cure
Grab your advance tix now right here
Check out an advance dance lesson at the Highball this week
!

In 2008 we did our Roar Turns all over the Long Center Pavilion. In 2009, we moved the party over to the yard behind the Seaholm Power Plant in downtown Austin, and this year we're going to Rock On Rock On Rock On Rock On right there. Because this is THRILLERFEST 2010 and we're going to do it up bigger and better than ever.

If you've never heard of ThrillerFest or Thrill The World, though, here's the deal: In 2006, Ines Markeljevic taught 62 people the iconic choreography for Michael Jackson's Thriller, then had them all dance together at the same time in a public place in Toronto, CA. Even with that number of people, she set a new Guinness World Record, and media impressions reached into the millions.

In 2007, using a sophisticated system of cell phones and watches, she expanded and had 1,722 people in 52 cities on 5 continents dancing to Thriller at exactly the same time, setting a new world record.

Back in 2008, we realized that this was something we needed to be a part of, so we flew Ines down to Austin so she could teach classes here and we could build a new legion of zombie dancers to be a part of the tradition. That year Austin had 881 people dance along with the rest of the 4,179 people from 10 nations (Australia, Canada, England, Germany, Ireland, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, New Zealand, Scotland, United States of America, and Wales)and we became a part of the King of Pop's history forever.

Last year, of course, MJ left us all much too soon, and to protect his memory 22,571 people joined in the Thrill the World event worldwide.

This year, the world will be thrilled again, and we've put out a call all over Texas to have people join us at the ThrillerFest event here in Austin on October 23, 2010. The official dance time world wide this year is 6pm CST, and we're going to start our event at 2pm with a COMPLETE dance lesson so that everyone who shows up that day can have a chance to participate.

Of course, you'll be able to be a much stronger dancer if you take some time to rehearse ahead of time, and there are a few ways to do that:

NUMBER 1: Check out Ines' YouTube page and work your way through her lessons at your own pace. You've got a couple of weeks (depending on when you're reading this) so if you get going you can really learn the whole thing and be a master by Thrill Time.

NUMBER 2: Check the calendar at The Highball and take a group dance lesson there, or join in with Sustainable Waves as they prep up for the Zombie Ball.

Or, of course, you could always do both! Then you'll be the grand master when you join us on October 23.

We've partnered with Scare for a Cure again this year and will be donating proceeds from the event to their efforts to frighten off breast cancer. $10 will get you in the gates this year, but if you feel like donating more to their cause you can bring more to help out at the event.

Plus! Your $10 donation will also get you $10 off of entrance to the Zombie Ball featuring White Ghost Shivers and Roky Erickson when we do a reprise of the dance on Oct 30!

A hee hee!

Sunday, October 17, 2010

All Work and No Play Makes Jack a Dull Boy





Sunday 10/17, 8:40, Monday 10/18 & Tuesday 10/19, 7:00 @Ritz
Advance tickets available here

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and o plany makes jack a dull boy All work and no play makes jack a bull boy.

All work and no play makes Jack a audll boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes jack a dull boy Alo work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull bpy ALl wor abd no play makes Jack a dull boy.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All wok and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no Play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jck a dull boy. All work and no play make Jack a dull boiy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

Come.

Horror Masterpiece THE SHINING Coming to the Ritz this Week!





Jack Nicholson only works, never plays in
THE SHINING
Sunday 10/17, 8:40, Monday 10/18 & Tuesday 10/19, 7:00 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

Just in time for Halloween, we’re showing the greatest horror film ever made. Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece about the Torrance family, holed up for the winter as the caretakers of the Overlook Hotel, is intense, stunning, and downright scary!

It’s full of now-classic horror film moments, from ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES JACK A DULL BOY to “Heeere's Johnny!,” REDRUM, and those creepy twins, but it never feels clichéd or outplayed; it’s the kind of horror movie that ages well, the terrifying imagery and sounds only becoming stronger as the years go by.

Starring Jack Nicholson from back when he was actually crazy, Shelley Duvall as the svelte wife with a baseball bat, and Scatman Crothers as Dick Hallorann, the Shining mentor for little Danny/Tony.

So embrace your mad side and come out to see the greatest horror film ever in gigantic 35mm on the biggest and best screen in town!

Get your tickets for this great show now.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

All three EVIL DEAD films paired with a multi-course flesh-ripping feast



The EVIL DEAD Trilogy Feast
Sun, Oct 17 at the Alamo Ritz
Advance tickets and full menu available here

People talk big about boring old holidays like Christmas, but there's only one time of year that truly warms our cockles: Halloween! And with visions of severed hands dancing in our heads, we at the Alamo are ready to hail to the Santa of Slaughter himself, Mr. Bruce Campbell.

Now, we do it to the max with a multi-course flesh-ripping feast so delicious, it'll make you feel like you've hurtled through time to combat medieval zomboid demons! This manic assault on your taste buds will take us from the homemade horror roots of 1981's EVIL DEAD, through the spazzed up 1987 sequel and directly into battle with the ARMY OF DARKNESS, all in full-tilt blood red 35mm! The most hilarious, violent and downright delectable feast in Alamo history.

Click here to check out the menu and grab your tickets before it's too late. Miss this chance to see all three EVIL DEAD flicks back to back to back and it's like the Deadites have already won. It's us or them, and we're damn sure not getting OUR souls swallowed.

Friday, October 15, 2010



Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1
Midnight Screening Tickets on sale Fri, Oct 15 at noon
Plus, special Yule Ball + Screening combo tickets!

As both the Wizarding and Muggle worlds should know by now, Part 1 of HARRY POTTER & THE DEATHLY HALLOWS opens on Nov 19. We’ve had our robes all in a bunch about this since we saw the first trailer and now the time is almost here!

Tickets for our midnight screenings (which may or may not be at midnight on the dot) at South Lamar, Village and Lake Creek go on sale today (Fri, Oct 15) at noon!

Of course, watching HP at midnight is always a celebration in itself, but this year we've decided to do something extra special and magical-ly over at South Lamar: Our very own Yule Ball at the Highball. We've got a special combo ticket that includes admission to the Yule Ball AND to the midnight show of Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows, Part 1. Check out the details here.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

The SHAUN OF THE DEAD Quote-Along!



The Action Pack presents the
SHAUN OF THE DEAD QUOTE-ALONG
Oct 14, 21 & 28 at the Alamo Ritz
Advance tix to all shows available right here


For weeks now I've been saying, "I'll do it on the night," over and over and over again. Well tonight at the Ritz it finally *is* the night - that's right, it's time for the SHAUN OF THE DEAD QUOTE-ALONG and we are going to bash some zombie brains in with the best quotes about having red on you that have ever been uttered in movie history.

But perhaps even more exciting than the simple fact that we not only get to enjoy Edgar Wright's zom-rom-com on the big screen again while quoting along with key lines that are subtitled karaoke style is that we'll also be giving away free cricket bats so we can bash in the heads of any zombies that happen to be sitting next to us every time Shaun is attacking one of their undead brethren!

That's right, we special ordered some *hilarious* cricket bats straight out of China, and after they arrived in Alamo HQ this week we spent most of our afternoons bopping each other in the brains. Tomorrow night, we'll be inviting YOU to bop your friends and neighbors in the brains with those very same cricket bats, and the startling reality of the coming zombie apocalypse will chill your ones as you realize that one day you may ACTUALLY HAVE TO BASH IN YOUR FRIEND'S BRAINS...

But not today! Today we're okay, and so we're turning the Alamo Ritz into the Winchester for one night only. Because think about it - we have strong doors, a secret exit into the back alley if anything gets too out of hand, the balconies in the main theater and a projection booth to hide in... heck, if zombies actually attack us there's even a secret ladder to the roof that I'll show you, and from that roof we can jump over to the next one, then we can find a safe way down, steal your step dad's Jaguar, and take a short cut to safety!

Just be sure to practice your zombie groaning before the show. It's vacant, with a hint of sadness. You're dead and you hate it - go!

As an extra bonus, if you attend tonight's screening you'll have a chance to win prizes and tickets to Scare for a Cure's H1Z1:Zombie Wasteland! If you would like to simply purchase tickets to the Wasteland because you're scared of winning, you cna also enter "ALAMO" at check out for a $2 Discount.(Henri Mazza)

Unseen Gems From TV Past - THE OTHER NETWORK Tonight!





Conan O'Brien, Judd Apatow, Robert Smigel and More:
The Other Network: NOT READY FOR CRIME-TIME
Wednesday 10/13, 9:35 @Ritz

Advance tickets available here

Rare gems rescued from the secret vaults of Hollywood! THE OTHER NETWORK presents TV pilots that were too controversial, too idiosyncratic or just too damn funny for prime-time TV. These fully-produced TV shows were never aired and never before seen. Each show screens with an exclusive intro from the writers/producers who created them, giving unique insights into Hollywood and the creative process.

On this episode...

LOOKWELL is the legendary pilot by Conan O'Brien & Robert Smigel, written especially for Adam West as an actor who played a detective on TV and can't let it go. Intro is an extended exclusive interview with Conan O'Brien by Other Network creator Beth Lapides.

BEAT COPS by Conan O'Brien, Sam Seder, Tom Maxwell & Don Woodard features beautifully-nuanced performances by Seder & Jon Benjamin as two neurotic street cops. Intro by Seder.

LIFE ON PAROLE is a single-camera dramedy about a hard-headed but soft-hearted parole agent by Judd Apatow & Brent Forrester (THE OFFICE, THE SIMPSONS). Intro by Forrester.

Get your tickets for this great show now.