Movies This Week: More Than 'Up' and 'Hell'
There's a lot going on in Austin for movie fans this weekend. Two big films opening, including Pixar's latest success, Up, which has been wowing audiences at sneak-peek screenings, and Sam Raimi's return to form in Drag Me to Hell. But there are others out there that you might want to check out.
Raimi brought Drag Me to Hell as a work-in-progress to SXSW this March, and wowed the audience at the single sold-out midnight show. The advance screening hosted by AICN proved that the SXSW screening wasn't a fluke. Raimi, best known for the Evil Dead franchise, returns to the style of filmmaking that made him famous, complete with body humor, gross-outs, ridiculousness, and likable characters stuck in impossible situations. If you don't like the style of the Evil Dead franchise, you probably won't like this, either. But Raimi's films are fun, and he's the master of horror comedy. Just don't bring a PETA supporter with you.
On the other hand, Pixar's Up even has an anti-animal cruelty subplot. It's Pixar, so you know what you're going to get; something for the kids, and a lot for the adults. Up is guaranteed to top a lot of lists in December ... but not for its 3-D, which really feels like an afterthought. If you have a choice between 3-D and 2-D, and the kids aren't screaming for the nifty RealD glasses, save your money and see it in 2-D. At the same time, don't be surprised if you find yourself watching it a few times. Yes, it's that good. You might want to check it out first before the littlest ones who are old enough to pay attention to the movie see it; in at least one Austin screening, a couple scenes caused some crying, and a loud cry for Mom.
Still, it's got the Pixar trademark mix of smart humor and a lot of heart, wrapped in a good story. For all the characters are rendered on computers, they feel very real, right down to the implausible bird. But that's one of Pixar's collective talents, taking an implausible and making it feel real.
You should also be warned, Up may make you want to see a lot of old-fashioned films, especially those with Hepburn and Tracy. I know Ed Asner and Christopher Plummer voiced the two old men, and though the characters resemble them, I could not stop thinking they also looked like Spencer Tracy and a villiany Kirk Douglas. It doesn't help that young Ellie feels like a Katharine Hepburn-inspired character. I swear some of her lines are composites of some of her earlier film zingers. And perhaps you'll be giving your old, oddly shaped dog an extra treat and a pat, as they could use Dug as a poster pup for dog-rescue groups. [If you want another opinion, Jette wants to shamelessly plug her review on Cinematical.]
But there are other films in town. Rian Johnson's The Brothers Bloom starts at Alamo South Lamar this weekend, and continues its Regal Arbor run. The Arbor is also showing the controversial Outrage, a documentary by Kirby Dick that apparently is outing homophobic, closeted homosexual politicians. Dick's previous film, This Film Is Not Yet Rated, was an expose on the MPAA's inconsistent and often arbitrary rating system.
Dobie and Arbor are both showing the documentary Tyson, about everyone's favorite biting boxer, which has had strong reactions from those who've seen it.
If you missed the Pee-Wee's Big Adventure Bike-In after the storms last Saturday, no worries -- there's a brunch show at Alamo Ritz this Saturday, and later than the normal brunch hours, too, at 2 pm.
The Kids' Club at Alamo South Lamar is showing Bedknobs and Broomsticks for free on Saturday. Alamo South also has a Master Pancake of Rocky IV, Alamo Village continues its usual Rocky Horror Picture Show event, and the Ritz hosts the Air Sex 2009 Dark Horse round on Sunday night.
The Paramount Summer Classic Film series is not screening this weekend, due to other events. The classics return to the Paramount on Wednesday, June 3 with a double-feature of 1930s musicals: Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in The Gay Divorcee, and the Busby Berkeley film Dames.
Speaking of next week, if you have not already reserved your tickets for the special Food, Inc screening, it's already sold out. No worries though, the film is being released in the next month.
Also on Monday, and not yet sold out, is the special presentation of Inning by Inning, Richard Linklater's documentary about "the winningest coach in NCAA Division I history in any sport," University of Texas baseball coach Augie Garrido. Linklater will be at the Alamo South Lamar screening in person. More details here.