The Alamo Drafthouse has quickly garnered a reputation as one of the greatest movie theaters in the history of mankind…or at least the history of movie theaters. With their signature events, ample food and drink selection, and strict no-talking policy, they make obsolete all tawdry multiplexes and completely redefine the movie-going experience. Here’s what they’re up to this week!
Thursday July 28th
Summer Kids Camp: Bridge to TerabithiaAlamo Lake Creek 11:00am
“Based on the popular Newbery Award-winning novel, Bridge to Terabithia is a fantasy/adventure story of friendship, family and the power of imagination from the producers of The Chronicles of Narnia. Brimming with fantastical creatures, palaces and beautiful forests, the world of Terabithia is brought to life by the amazing Academy Award®-winning visual effects wizards at Weta Digital (Lord of the Rings, King Kong).”—OriginalAlamo.com
Summer Kids Camp: Flushed Away
Alamo South Lamar 11:00am
“In this comedy set on and beneath the streets of London, Roddy St. James (Hugh Jackman) is a pampered pet mouse who thinks he's got it made. But when a sewer rat named Sid (Shane Richie) – the definition of "low life" -- comes spewing out of the sink and decides it's his turn to enjoy the lap of luxury, Roddy schemes to rid himself of the pest by luring him into the loo for a dip in the ‘whirlpool.’”—OriginalAlamo.com
Grease Sing-Along
Alamo Lake Creek 7:00pm; 10:00pm
If you love the ‘50s, if the idea of poodle skirts and jukeboxes really revs your engine, then why not come together like rama lama lama and ding a de dinga a dong and sing along with your favorite moments from this musical smash hit? Complimentary combs and candy cigarettes will complete the illusion that you’ve traveled back in time to the ‘50s…as represented in the ‘70s.
Action Pack: Commando
Alamo Ritz 7:00pm
This week the Alamo examines the one vital quality necessary in crafting the perfect action hero: catchphrases. Sure, Arnie’s ability to use a multitude of absurd weapons and resemble a living action figure come in handy, but what’s the point of dispatching a hit man with extreme prejudice if you can’t coin the semi-ironic, supposedly humorous quip? As per usual, live explosions will threaten to burn the theater down and lines will appear on screen for all of us to quote-along with the innumerable one-liners.
The Ultimate Rock Sing-Along
Alamo Ritz 9:30pm
Leather pants? Check. Righteous Axe? Check. Gigantic hair? Double Check. This sing-along will prove once and for all that we do love rock-and-roll and want to engage in it all night while also partying every day. Stretch your vocal chords before hand for the blistering power solos.
Attack the Block Alamo South Lamar 11:55pm (beginning of a regular run at the Drafthouse)
Moses and his friends are the teen terrors of their London housing project. They believe themselves to be the baddest, meanest, most destructive things on the block, and they were…until the out-of-towners showed up. Attack the Block is an action/sci-fi/comedy that has not stopped gathering buzz since it rolled out of SxSW. After several promo screenings, the Alamo is proud to bring Attack the Block back for a regular theatrical run. Whoop whoop!
Alamo Survivor’s Tip: It is impossible to comprehend just how hard you will kick yourself if you miss the chance to see Attack the Block on the big screen. For what it’s worth, it is by far my favorite film of 2011.
Friday July 29th
Summer Kids Camp: Flushed Away
Alamo Lake Creek (thru 7/31) 10:30am
Master Pancake: New Moon
Alamo Ritz (thru 7/30) 7:00pm; 10:00pm
If any film franchise deserved a savage thrashing at the hands of the Master Pancake crew, it’s Twilight. Come thrill as the Alamo’s resident comedy team point out the innumerable faults of the second entry in the series that got virtually everything wrong about vampires, werewolves, and believable human beings.
Saturday July 30th
Free Kid’s Club: The Puppetoon Movie
Alamo South Lamar 11:00am
“Before computers showed up, animators had a real tough job. Filmmakers worked day and night with their…what were those things called?...HANDS and SKILLS to create unique visions and enduring characters. They used pen and ink, paint, clay and whatever else they could get a hold of. One enterprising fella named George Pal took it even further and invented a whole new method of animating, named “puppetoons.” Pal’s colorful, immortal shorts featured intricately carved and beautifully painted figures and backdrops, and included beloved characters like Tubby the Tuba and a ton you’ve never seen before. Join your host Gumby (!!!) on a rarely-seen tour of the incredible work of this overlooked legend! NOTE: Though this collection was released in 1987 with a G rating, a very small section of the material is from the ‘40s and reflects some of the stereotypes of the era. But don’t worry, your kids are smarter than you think. They can handle it!”—OriginalAlamo.com
Summer Kids Camp: Flushed Away
Alamo Lake Creek (thru 8/4) 10:40am
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Alamo Village 11:55pm
Thrill to all the cheap laughs, cheap women, and cheap production values of one of the world’s premier bad movies. Watching The Rocky Horror Picture Show in-and-of-itself is an event, but it takes on a whole new life when witnessed within the walls of The Alamo Village with loads of audience participation, dressed-up patrons, and general wickedness that has become a vital component to the film’s meteoritic rise to cult film legend.
Sunday July 31st
Cinema Club: Bell Book and Candle w/Mark Savlov
Alamo Ritz 6:30pm
“In 1958, Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak starred as romantic leads together in two movies. One was Alfred Hitchock’s Vertigo. The other was the unjustly overshadowed, utterly brilliant comedy about urban witchcraft, Bell Book and Candle. The chemistry Stewart and Novak developed in Vertigo, perhaps the most poignant in screen history, seems to be awkwardly draped over the two stars in this film, and the juxtaposition of Hitchcockian-dynamics in a light comedy makes for one of the most bizarre experiences of the 1950s. The Cinema Club presents this with the help of Austin Chronicle film critic Marc Savlov, who calls this his favorite film of all time. “—Daniel Metz via OriginalAlamo.com
Asian Invasion: The Heroic Trio
Alamo Ritz 10:00pm
“We love those movies from the Far East - kung fu, gun fu, weird horror - it's an obsession. We've always sprinkled Asian titles into the mix, but now we're making it a regular part of our downtown Ritz programming. On the last Sunday of every month our late show at the Ritz will be a rare 35mm screening of an Asian title we love. Admission is only $5. We hope to see you there every month for the best in flying swordsmen, triad gunplay, rubber monsters and mangled subtitles.”—OriginalAlamo.com
Alamo Survivor’s Tip: Long ago and far away the Drafthouse had a regular kung fu series and its absence has left a fist-sized hole in our hearts. To bring it back to the tune of this amazing Johnnie To actioner is the definition of perfect.
Monday August 1st
Summer Kids Camp: Flight of the Navigator
Alamo South Lamar (thru 8/4) 11:00am
“David Freeman (Joey Cramer), a 12-year-old boy, is mysteriously abducted by an alien ship and returns to Earth eight years later, still only 12. He now possesses great navigational powers that enable him to fly his space ship anywhere he desires. Along with the robotic Commander Max (voiced by Paul Reubens under the name Paul Mall) and Mascot Puckmarin, the boy encounters an adventure of extraterrestrial proportions.”—OriginalAlamo.com
Summer Kids Camp: Bridge to Terabithia
Alamo Village (thru 8/4) 11:00am
Music Monday: ACL Pilot Episode: Willie Nelson
Alamo Village 7:00pm
“Is there anyone on earth who doesn’t love Willie Nelson? He is one of those Texans we can all look at and say, “Yep, that’s our guy.” And he was the only fitting choice to kick off a little TV show that originated here to showcase the best of Texas and other roots music to the whole world through long-form live concerts. Willie and friends kill here, of course. Who would expect anything less? We will screen the full pilot episode of ACL as well as selected clips of other great performances from the show.”—OriginalAlamo.com
Music Monday: Soul Power
Alamo Ritz 9:45pm
“In 1974, the most celebrated American R&B acts of the time came together with the most renowned musical groups in Africa for a 12-hour, three-night long concert held in Kinshasa, Zaire. The dream-child of Hugh Masekela and Stewart Levine, this music festival became a reality when they convinced boxing promoter Don King to combine the event with "The Rumble in the Jungle," the epic fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, previously chronicled in the Academy Award-winning documentary When We Were Kings. Soul Power is a verité documentary about this legendary music festival (dubbed "Zaire '74"), and it depicts the experiences and performances of such musical luminaries as James Brown, BB King, Bill Withers, Celia Cruz, among a host of others.”—OriginalAlamo.com
The Big Lebowski Quote-Along
Alamo South Lamar 10:20pm
If you love the Cohen Brothers’ tribute to shiftless losers with mad bowling skills and penchants for Creedence Clearwater Revival, this is the place to be. All your favorite one-liners from The Dude will flash across the screen to prompt your collective vocal worship of this masterful comedy.
Tuesday August 2nd
AFF Presents: Fright Night w/Tom Holland Live
Alamo Ritz 7:00pm
“Remember when horror movies had fun, excitement, and Roddy McDowall? On August 2nd, the Austin Film Festival and Alamo Drafthouse will be taking a
trip back to the mid-80s with the original Fright Night. You'll see McDowall as the most cowardly vampire hunter in syndication. You'll see Chris Sarandon as Jerry Dandridge, the most WASP-ily named vampire in the history of cinema. And you'll see what happens when our hero Charley Brewster has to stand between his girlfriend and a considerably more appealing older man, a teenager's worst nightmare.”—OriginalAlamo.com
trip back to the mid-80s with the original Fright Night. You'll see McDowall as the most cowardly vampire hunter in syndication. You'll see Chris Sarandon as Jerry Dandridge, the most WASP-ily named vampire in the history of cinema. And you'll see what happens when our hero Charley Brewster has to stand between his girlfriend and a considerably more appealing older man, a teenager's worst nightmare.”—OriginalAlamo.com
Terror Tuesday: A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: The Dream Warriors
Alamo Ritz 10:00pm
“By the time his third film rolled around, Freddy was already the toast of Hollywood. Fancy cars, beautiful women, wild parties…the works. But rather than rest on his horror-laurels, the celebrated slashmaster unleashed the masterpiece of his career. Dream Warriors’ artistic and financial success catapulted high school homicide to the top of the sub-studio heap, creating a template for countless imitators and paving the way for decreasingly entertaining sequels and a recent, steaming brown remake. But none of those depressors can tarnish this powerblast of ‘80s mayhem, featuring the Bastard Son of a Thousand Maniacs taking on a bevy of mentally ill teenagers who nocturnally transform into wizards, marionettes and punk rock knife-wielders. Genre superhuman John Saxon co-stars in the most action-packed rampager of the series. Sure, Terror Tuesday often celebrates the underdogs of the mortality circuit, but sometimes you’ve just gotta pay credit to the looming legends.”—Zack Carlson via OriginalAlamo.com
Alamo Survivor’s Tip: It’s not enough that the Alamo is giving us a new 35mm print of Fright Night, one of the greatest vampire films of all time, but to have director Tom Holland live in person? This is not only the director of Child’s Play, but also the writer of Psycho II and The Beast Within. If you haven’t seen the latter two films, I recommend rectifying this immediately.
Wednesday August 3rd
Sommelier Cinema: The Seven Year Itch w/Eric Pelegrin
Alamo Ritz 7:00pm
“It’s hot. Really hot. Texas in August hot. And while we sit out on patios this season, there’s often a struggle to figure out which wines to reach for. Are we constricted simply to young whites, nestled in a bucket of ice? Wine seller Eric Pelegrin (who runs Austin’s best wine shop, Travis Heights Beverage World) is here to show us that there is a world of wines out there to enjoy in the oppressive heat of a Texas summer. We’ll be serving the perfect summer white, sure, but also some rosé and even a red that will change your attitude toward what a summertime glass of wine can be. Accompanying the flight of wines from Pelegrin will be one of the quintessential summer movies, the Marilyn Monroe sex-comedy The Seven Year Itch. “
Action Pack: Starship Troopers
Alamo Lake Creek 7:00pm
You know what’s great about Starship Troopers? Everything is great about Starship Troopers. It’s got giant bugs, it’s got amazing effects, it’s got Paul Verhoeven’s witty social satire, and it’s got a cast of “what-ever-happened-to-them” all stars. The action pack’s signature cap guns and live explosions will be on hand to help ensure that you kill bugs good.
Talladega Nights Quote-Along
Alamo Village 10:00pm
“If you're only going to watch one movie this year...it should probably be The Highlander. It's just a great movie... it won the Academy Award for ‘Best Movie Ever Made’ if I'm not mistaken. But if you're going to watch two movies this year, you should probably race on down to your local Alamo Drafthouse and catch a screening of The Action Pack's Talladega Nights Quote-Along. Why you ask? Because if you don't I'm going to come at you like a spider-monkey and scissor kick you to the back of that head, that's why! This movie is pure excellence and it's got three of my most favoritest things in it: Nascar, sexy lady parts, and American Pride. So grab a checkered flag and some other celebratory materials on your way in as we Shake N' Bake our way to one of the best nights ever. Buy tickets fast because, "If you're not first, you're last" and you will not want to miss out on this.”—OriginalAlamo.com
Weird Wednesday: Truck Turner
Alamo Ritz 10:30pm
“If there’s a better blaxploitation movie than TRUCK TURNER we haven’t found it - and we’ve looked! Isaac Hayes turns on the charm as a legendary bounty hunter with a short temper. When he takes down a psychopathic pimp named Gator, he inadvertently creates a power vacuum in the Los Angeles prostitution scene. Then Gator’s bottom woman Nichelle (“Lt. Uhura”) Nichols (who should have gotten the Oscar, seriously) offers Gator’s orphaned whores to any mack who can take down Truck Turner. Soon there’s an open war in the streets between the wisecracking, beer-guzzling Turner and a coalition of over the top pimps, the most dangerous being Yaphet Kotto’s intense Harvard Blue. Every line of dialogue in this movie is suitable for framing. To top it off, there’s an Isaac Hayes score and Scatman Crothers as an elderly, but still active, pimp. It just can’t get better than this. It can’t!”—Lars Nilsen via OriginalAlamo.com
Houston
Girlie Night: Troop Beverly Hills
7/28 7:30pm
“You know how most girls dabble in Girl Scouts but never make it past the Brownie level because you actually have to work to earn patches and the uniforms are, let's be frank, kind of heinous? Well, I actually stayed in my troop until I was in the eighth grade, which yes, was incredibly lame. You know why? Because there was a part of me that secretly hoped and wished and prayed that Phyllis Nefler would show up with her flaming red hair and crazy harlequin pastel dress and take charge of my troop so we could earn patches in Shoe Shopping and Diamond Inspection and go camping at the Beverly Hills Hotel and make fondue because AWESOME!!!!!”—Sarah Pitre via OriginalAlamo.com
Big Screen Classics: Full Metal Jacket
7/30 10:00pm
One of the greatest war movies ever made returns to the big screen. Along with showcasing entirely new facets of the horrors of the Vietnam War, Stanley Kubrick’s military masterpiece launched the careers of Vincent D’Onofrio and Hollywood’s go-to drill sergeant R. Lee Ermey.
Only at the Alamo: Anime
8/2 7:30pm
The Alamo Drafthouse provides a welcome haven for fans of Japanese animation. Samurai swords must unfortunately be checked at the door.
Hecklevision: Cyber Seduction
8/3 7:30pm
“On its surface, HeckleVision is simply another way we can all interact with the screen by having any and all texts we send in appear on the screen along with the movie. But that technology with this Lifetime movie about a mother struggling with her son’s “addiction to Internet porn” will be Horrible Movie Heaven.—Henri Mazza via OriginalAlamo.com
Free Family Fun: The Spongebob Squarepants Movie
7/28-7/29 11:00am
“Something nefarious is afloat in the depths of Bikini Bottom: King Neptune's crown has been stolen, and the prime suspect is Mr. Krabs, SpongeBob's boss at Mr. Krabs' Krabby Patties. Despite the overwhelming evidence against Mr. Krabs -- not to mention having been turned down for a long-awaited promotion at the restaurant -- SpongeBob (voice of Tom Kenny) refuses to believe that his boss is responsible and teams up with his best friend, Patrick (voice of Bill Fagerbakke), on a mission to Shell City, where he hopes he can exonerate Mr. Krabs and return the crown to its rightful owner.”—OriginalAlamo.com
Only at the Alamo: A Very Special Episode
7/28 7:30pm
Sitcoms are a strange animal. They create worlds in which a girl can have two dads, where former football stars could adopt tiny little black kids, and fresh princes can live in Bel-Air. And yet, despite this disconnect from reality, it seemed every sitcom had that “very special” episode wherein they touched upon, often very inappropriately, serious issues. Come enjoy all the hilarious discomfort!
Horror Remix: Boat Show
7/30 10:00pm
Who doesn’t love boats, right? The sound of the water lapping the sides as the sea (or lake) air whips through your hair on a gorgeous, sunshine-y day or clear summer night? But you know who else loves boats? Horror movies! The Horror Remix brings you two hours of some of the best nautical butchering our beloved genre has to offer. Yeah, that lifejacket isn’t going to save you.
San Antonio
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
7/28 10:30pm
Only at the Alamo: Anime
8/1 7:30pm
Pop Princess Sing-Alongs
8/2 7:00pm; 9:45pm
“The first time we built a Pop Princess party it was all about Britney, Christina, and some British girls named after random spices. Nowadays, when you think "Pop Princess" you think Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, or Rihanna... and you wouldn't be wrong. While we're still going to have those classic pop princesses represented (I know the '90s don't seem that long ago, right?!), we're gonna move closer to today's heroines of pop.”—Greg MacLennan via OriginalAlamo.com
Only at the Alamo: Wild & Wonderful Whites of West Virginia
7/28 7:30pm
“Shoot-outs, robberies, gas-huffing , drug dealing, pill popping, murders, and tap dancing - what do these all have in common? These are just a few of the parts of being a member of the Wild and Wonderful White Family. The legendary family is as known for their wild, excessive criminal ways as they are for their famous mountain dancing members, including Jesco White, the star of the cult classic documentary, Dancing Outlaw. Exploring both the comic and tragic sides of life on the other side of the law, this stylish, fast-paced family portrait exposes the powerful forces of corruption, poverty, and West Virginia's environmentally and culturally devastating coal mining culture that helped shape the White family, a dying breed of outlaws preserving a dying form of dance.”—OriginalAlamo.com
Horror Remix: Boat Show
7/28 10:00pm
Free Family Fun: How To Train Your Dragon
7/31 11:30am
When it comes to quality family films, Dreamworks has long had to reside in the cold shadow of Pixar. Time after time they have finished a distant second in this race as Pixar’s win streak rose to the utterly ridiculous level. But How To Train Your Dragon is THE film that casts a speck of doubt on Pixar’s unquestionable supremacy. Full of stunning effects, wonderful voice acting, and legitimately heart-lifting moments that don’t feel forced, How To Train Your Dragon is an absolute triumph.
Big Screen Classics: Blue Velvet 25th Anniversary w/PBR
8/2 7:00pm
“Frank Booth, the coolest person ever to grace a movie screen, had a lot of things going for him. He was a criminal. He was played by legendary madman Dennis Hopper. He really knew how to make love (here’s a tip: it involves gas masks and violent dry-humping). And he didn’t drink Heineken; the only thing that touched his lips (aside from poorly applied lipstick) was PABST BLUE RIBBON. In honor of the 25th anniversary of Blue Velvet, we’re bringing back one of our favorite film and drink pairings, where we show the classic David Lynch film and let the PBR flow freely. The film is one of the greatest bizarre, seedy-under-the-surface stories ever told, directed masterfully by Lynch at his absolute peak. Starring Kyle MacLachlan, Isabella Rossellini, and Laura Dern.”—OriginalAlamo.com
Big Screen Classics: Blue Velvet 25th Anniversary w/PBR
8/2 9:00pm
