Movies This Week: Farewell Wild Vampire Nanny During Winnebago Time

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This week's big news is that Landmark is closing the legendary Dobie Theater after Sunday's shows. A lot of reminiscing has been going on, most of which is about memories predating the theater's Landmark days, back when it was an independent theater. Our own Jette was interviewed about it on News 8 Austin after her post waxing nostalgic earlier this week. Surprisingly, two new films are opening there today, and a whole lot of films opening or returning to Austin big screens.

Cairo Time -- Described on IMDb as a "A romantic drama about a brief, unexpected love affair that catches two people completely off-guard," its stars (Patricia Clarkson, Alexander Siddig) are the main attraction for me. (Dobie)

Farewell -- Looking up this French spy thriller, I was surprised to see the likes of Diane Kruger (Inglourious Basterds) as "Femme jogging" and an international cast, it makes me wonder if it's worth seeing. Since it's the same director who directed Kruger in Joyeux Noël, an acclaimed film with an international cast, it certainly piques my interest. (Arbor)

Life During Wartime -- Todd Solondz (Palindromes, Welcome to the Dollhouse) wrote and directed this dark comedy about families and secrets in a manner I suspect only Solondz can make equally horrifying funny and beautiful. Ciaran Hinds as a convicted pedophile? Wow. (Dobie)

Lottery Ticket -- Guy has to keep ahold of a winning ticket over the weekend, among the likes of Loretta Devine, Bow Wow, and Ice Cube. Is it any good? No idea. (wide)

Nanny McPhee Returns -- Emma Thompson returns as the hideously ugly nanny with a magic cane and twisted sense of instilling discipline in children. This time with swimmin' piglets. Debbie can tell us more in her review. (wide)

Piranha 3D -- Really? Do I need to explain this? Only after someone explains why Richard Dreyfuss is in it. (wide)

The Killer Inside Me -- Michael Winterbottom's latest comes back again for a limited run. (Alamo Lamar)

The Switch -- Jason Bateman may or may not have switched the sample Jennifer Aniston was going to use to have a baby. Um. Yeah. (wide)

Vampires Suck -- Someone didn't like Twilight enough to mock it, specifically the guys who brought us Scary Movie, Epic Movie and Date Movie. So if you like movies that have "movie" in the title, this might be your style. (wide)

Wild Grass (pictured at top)-- This adaptation of Christian Gailly's novel directed by Alain Resnais (Private Fears in Public Places) brings us the tale of a lost wallet and the attempts to return it, which turn a simple matter into a romantic opportunity. (Arbor)

Winnebago Man -- Local filmmakers Ben Steinbauer (director) and Joel Heller (producer) are back in town with their SXSW 2009 hit about Jack Rebney, who unknowingly became an Internet sensation when footage from an attempt to make a Winnebago commercial hit the internet. This limited run includes two special screenings at Alamo South Lamar this weekend with the director in attendance. Tonight's is already sold out so buy your tickets now for Saturday night. Read Don's review for more. (Alamo Lamar, Alamo Ritz)


Check out our personal picks below. Don't forget you can always alert us to special screenings, new film series, etc.

Debbie -- After a week at a national workshop on drinking water, I can't be more excited to see Austin Film Society's Tuesday screening of Sleep Dealer (an official selection of Cine Las Americas as well as Sundance). This fictional film takes place in the future where memories are sold, and is centered around a remote farming community that has recently been hijacked by a private company. Having already taken control of the entire area's water supply, the company is now seeking to sell the precious resource back to citizens at criminal prices -- not too far from standard practice in some western states, so I've been told. Aqua-terrorist cells form to take back their community's precious commodity.

Don -- I'll be bidding a fond farewell to the Dobie, where I spent many a Sunday afternoon for more than 15 years. The Dobie (which closes on Sunday) is showing two well reviewed indies, Cairo Time and Life During Wartime, and I may see both. (One of my fantasies is to reopen the Dobie myself. I'd show only obscure indies -- and one screen would show nothing but Slacker all day long.)

Jenn -- I'm torn between a last hurrah at the Dobie or a screening of Winnebago Man on Sunday. I'm thinkin' anyone planning on going to the Dobie this weekend better buy their tickets early.

Jette -- If you missed Amy Grappell's amazing short documentary Quadrangle at SXSW (or at Sundance, where it won an award), you can catch it on Thursday night at 7 pm at the Austin City Limits studio, as a fundraiser for the film's Academy Award-qualifying run. It's a fascinating doc about Grappell's parents' relationship dynamics in the 1970s, and I'd love to see it as a feature-length film someday.