Jenn Brown's blog

Opening this Week

SXSW closing-night film (500) Days of Summer opens today, and it's likely to be the sleeper hit of the summer (pardon the pun). It's the type of romance film that guys really enjoy. I wasn't as impressed with it as some, but it's not a bad film, just makes a few missteps that distracted me. Check out Slackerwood's group review.

Debbie caught G-Force earlier this week, so you can check out her thoughts here.

Jette witnessed The Ugly Truth, and here she is barging in with her reaction:

The Ugly Truth made me realize how sick I am of formulaic romantic comedy. Formulaic dance movies can still have interesting choreography; sports movies often have some fascinating action sequences on the field or in the ring; action films have cool explosions. But the by-the-book romantic comedies offer nothing but attractive stars and sporadic cliched humor. We don't even get witty dialogue anymore.

If you haven't bought your tickets for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, which Slackerwood already reviewed, you're probably going to have to wait a week, especially if you don't like morning showtimes.

Fear not, folks, you Have Options.

Moon continues at the Dobie and the Arbor, and The Hangover is still holding on despite the summer blockbusters. I haven't seen The Hangover yet, so I might remedy that this weekend. Food, Inc. also continues.

The Texas Spirit Theater over at the Texas History Museum (that's the non-IMAX theater) is showing Just a Little Bit Crazy, a documentary about the annual National Rattlesnake Sacking Championship in Taylor. The film, which played Austin Film Festival in 2004, screens 1-2 times a day all week; check the theater website for details.

[Warning: Portions of this article may constitute spoiler material if you haven't read the Harry Potter books.]

Have you ever given a film or a filmmaker credit, even for the failings of a film?

It's been an interesting summer. Early this year, some of us very lucky Austinites caught the unofficial world premiere of Star Trek, resulting in quite a bit of flak from the media. Paramount was accused of stacking the deck with Trekkies (not true), and it wasn't until the press outside of Austin had an opportunity to see Star Trek for themselves that suddenly, they were agreeing with us.

The interesting thing is that for all the glowing reviews, Star Trek is a flawed film. But its flaws were easily marginalized because the director and writers clearly understood the Star Trek universe, the characters and how to tell a good story. We could discuss some of the logic breaks, or the lack of character development outside of Kirk and Spock, but what really matters is that was fun, thrilling and made us want more. I say "we" because I know I'm not alone. At least on Slackerwood.

Last week, director Simon Rumley's latest feature finished filming here in Austin. Red, White and Blue, touted as a "slacker revenge thriller," filmed in various locations around town, including one afternoon at local honky-tonk landmark The Broken Spoke.

A few weeks ago, Tim League, executive producer of the film and co-founder of the Alamo Drafthouse theaters, posted a call for extras to the Alamo blog and Twitter, with the promise of fun and standing around and drinking beer.

I've got friends in Vancouver who've been extras on a few films, and they were telling me to bring a book or two, it'll be boring. It'll take hours to shoot a single scene. Well, okay -- it took 3.5 hours from the time we were asked to be there, to "That's a wrap. Thanks, folks." Even if I had brought a book, I wouldn't have had a chance to look at it. We were too busy having fun. And it helped a local film, so even better.

The Fantastic Fest pre-season is in full swing, with last night's screening of [Rec] satisfying many a local badgeholder, and making those not in Central Texas green with envy, and that's even before The Collector and Deadgirl screen later this month.

Earlier today, Horror Squad broke the first announcement about the 2009 lineup, which includes a mix of 32 features and shorts. The official press release is on the Fantastic Fest website.

The opening-night film will be Gentleman Broncos (pictured above), the latest film by Napoleon Dynamite writer-director Jared Hess. The cast alone will make it a hit with the indie/genre fans: Sam Rockwell (Moon, Galaxy Quest), Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Concords), Jennifer Coolidge (American Pie), and Michael Angarano (Sky High). Angarano plays a home-schooled kid whose first story is ripped off by his favorite author, Ronald Chevalier (Clement), and being filmed as well.

With record-breaking temperatures all week, staying in the delicious chill of AC is ideal. Austin offers plenty of movie events to keep you busy this week.

Opening this Week
Many Austin film film fans ave been waiting impatiently for Moon to open locally after a very successful SXSW premiere, and our patience is finally rewarded. Director and co-writer Duncan Jones, along with Nathan Parker, have penned an old-fashioned science-fiction tale, the sort that utilizes an unfamiliar landscape to explore the human condition and social vistas. In this case, Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) is at the end of three-year stint alone on the moon, and has clearly been there too long, when he has a very personal encounter. It's the type of movie that screams for lengthy discussions after viewing, but works best the less you know.

Needless to say, it's not a typical post-millennium Hollywood movie, but one that is destined to become a classic. The underrated Sam Rockwell finally gets a lead role that really allows him to show his chops, far beyond his comedic turn in Galaxy Quest, or the shamefully under-viewed Joshua. It's playing at Dobie and Arbor, and if you don't see it, turn in your sci-fi geek card immediately. It's not quite a shame it's not playing at the Alamo, as you don't want to be distracted during this quiet, thoughtful, cerebral film.

Have you recovered from Part One yet? If so, read on for more basic theater etiquette.

Personal Space. Just because you put your feet up at home does not mean that's okay in the movie theater. No one should have to share an armrest with your toes, or be forced to look at them in the seat next to them. If you put your feet on the tables at an Alamo, I hope the waitstaff puts theirs on your food.

Hats Off, AKA Bouffant Be Gone. Seriously, if your thinning hair makes you so self conscious that you can't remove your hat indoors, either sit in the back row or talk to your doctor. As for you, Big Hair, the 50's want their bouffants back, and no wants to get whiplash trying to look around you. If you don't sit in the back, pay for the seats that you block.

Austin has a film fetish. From the municipality to the people who keep it weird, we love cinema. Emancipet, which has provided free and low-cost neutering and other services for Austin's pets for 10 years, is capitalizing on that with their annual Fur & Film Fete.

The Fur & Film Fete includes food, drink, music, animal-themed films and a chance to mingle with other film fans who care about their pets. Sweet Leaf Tea and Tito's Vodka are supporting the event, according to an Emancipet staffer's tweet.

Last year's event featured a series of kitschy old educational films, and the previous year included a retrospective on William Wegman. Austin Film Festival's Kelly Williams is involved, so there is considerable film and film programming knowledge behind the event.

Emancipet is facing critical funding shortages due to city budget shortfalls, and needs all the help they can get to keep performing between 1,200 – 2,000 neuter procedures a month. Yes, a month. Emancipet recently completed its 100,000th neutering procedure. Not neutering pets has a lot of hidden costs, both to individual owners and the community: unwanted pet pregnancies, which result in abandoned pets, overflowing shelters, and more.

Dear Austin,

I love Austin, and it's film geek heaven. But apparently fewer and fewer of us know how to properly behave in theaters. It seems Austin's movie audiences are getting worse, even at the Alamo.

The theater is not your living room. And you are not alone in it. It's past time for a Theatergoers Primer.

Stop Talking. Shut it. When you arrive in the theater, stop using your outside voice. It is acceptable to talk, but quietly, not like you're at a nightclub. When the lights dim, so should your conversation. Stop talking during the trailers, as some people are actually trying to enjoy those, even if they are available online. When the film talks, no one should be talking.

The Alamo love for Michael Jackson continues, with a special, free simulcast of the Michael Jackson memorial services on Tuesday (today) at the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar. Admission is free, but you can reserve a seat by purchasing a $5 food and beverage voucher. Seating begins at 11 am, and the service begins at noon.