Movies This Week: Bad Buck Beginners Cars

Right now I would easily pay $10 -- hell, even 3D rates of $15 -- to watch a rainstorm in person here in Austin. (I know one happened Tuesday night but I was asleep.) While I wait for such a diverting entertainment, I'll have to settle for watching movies instead. Do any of them have scenes of precipitation? Probably not. I may just have to settle for a very good documentary, a top-notch performance from Christopher Plummer or a raunchy comedy instead.

My plans for this week include finally seeing Midnight in Paris (Debbie's review) -- you all have talked me into it, since even non-Woody Allen fans are recommending it heartily. On Sunday night, Alamo Drafthouse at the Ritz brings local filmmaker Ben Steinbauer (whom Elizabeth just interviewed) to Cinema Club to screen the Mayles brothers' documentary Salesman. I may have to sneak over to Alamo on South Lamar at lunchtime next week since the Kids' Club movie is The Muppet Movie. And tomorrow night, if there's no rain, it might be the perfect time to head over to Deep Eddy Pool for their Splash Party Movie Night screening of Grease. (I hear they have spiffy new projection equipment and a new screen too.)

Movies We've Seen:

Bad Teacher -- Look for Elizabeth's review this weekend. In the meantime, here's a sample: "A hilarious and somewhat raunchy view of the world of education, the film follows Elizabeth (Cameron Diaz) as she tries to save money for a boob job." The movie, directed by Jake Kasdan (Walk Hard), also stars Justin Timberlake, Lucy Punch and Jason Segal. (wide)

Beginners -- Don claims in his review that this SXSW 2011 feature "shouldn't work at all" because it combines so many different elements in a story that jumps around in time and space ... but surprisingly "works well, smashingly well, so well that it's among my favorite films of this year." Christopher Plummer's performance is apparently the best reason to check it out. (Alamo South, Arbor)

Buck -- Another SXSW film returns to Austin, this time a documentary about "horse whisperer" Buck Brannaman. In his review, Don says it's "a rare family-friendly film that will please arthouse audiences also." I'm not a fan of horse movies but I've heard so many good things about this movie that I'm planning to see it soon. (Arbor, Violet Crown)

Cars 2 -- Look for Mike's review Saturday morning -- he says it's enjoyable, but regrets that "it isn’t as full of the love for autos as the first." The original Cars movie was my least favorite Pixar film, and I'm tempted to skip this one. However, Mike tells me that Bruce Campbell provides one of the voices and you know how I get about that. (wide)

Other New Movies:

Double Dhamaal -- This comedy is a sequel to the Bollywood film Dhamaal. (Tinseltown South)