Special Screening

Rated PG-13; 86min; Director:Fred Dekker (1987)

Only one '80s masterpiece can claim the title of The Killingest, Swearingest, Monster-est Kids Movie of All Time. I'll let you guess which film it is, but I'll give you a hint: THE MONSTER SQUAD!! A group of horror-obsessed adolescents are joined by the Frankenstein Monster to combat Dracula, the Wolfman, the Mummy and a Swamp Creature. Childhood innocence is lost in a blinding storm of silver bullets, stakes and enormous explosions. This child-sized chunk of anti-creature justice was unleashed on cinemas with such savage fury that few recognized its true greatness, but it has since been rediscovered as the classic it truly is!

"We'll be joined to celebrate this timeless family adventure by director Fred Dekker, screenwriter Shane Black, squad leader Andre Gower, wolfman Jon Gries and more very special guests being added as you read this!

"Don't miss the movie/monster nerd event of the year, or we'll kick you right in the nards!"

Fantastic Fest 2009 selection Stingray Sam returns to Austin for a three-night run at Alamo Ritz. Alamo calls it a "manic intergalactic comic musical" and "charmingly spazzmatic."

Fantastic Fest 2009 selection Stingray Sam returns to Austin for a three-night run at Alamo Ritz. Alamo calls it a "manic intergalactic comic musical" and "charmingly spazzmatic."

Fantastic Fest 2009 selection Stingray Sam returns to Austin for a three-night run at Alamo Ritz. Alamo calls it a "manic intergalactic comic musical" and "charmingly spazzmatic."

From the Alamo site: "A new film presenting the Chicago band Wilco live in concert during their 2008 tour. Filmed and recorded from five quintessentially American concert venues - Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa, Tipitina's in New Orleans, The Mobile, AL Civic Center, The Ryman Auditorium in Nashville and the 9:30 Club in Washington D.C. - the film captures the spirit, energy and poignancy of a Wilco concert and tour. Ashes of American Flags intersperses interviews with band members and day-in-the-life footage as the band travels across the U.S."

aGLIFF hosts a brunchtime showing of the delightful 1958 film Auntie Mame. Admission is free for aGLIFF members.

If you want to go all-out on New Year's Eve, head to Alamo Ritz to watch Billy Wilder's film The Apartment with a multi-course feast and cocktail pairings. Warning: I once watched The Apartment alone on New Year's Eve while doing laundry and it may have been the most depressing NYE of my life. Hopefully the Ritz will liven up the atmosphere.

Austin Film Society co-hosts a special screening of the Kwanzaa film The Black Candle with the Carver Museum. The movie screens at 10 am and again at 2 pm, with Kiswahili lessons by Carver instructor Jane Muturi from noon-1 pm. Admission is free; however, since seating is limited, it's recommended that you RSVP at 974-4926 if you want to attend.

Austin Film Society co-hosts a special screening of the Kwanzaa film The Black Candle with the Carver Museum. The movie screens at 10 am and again at 2 pm, with Kiswahili lessons by Carver instructor Jane Muturi from noon-1 pm. Admission is free; however, since seating is limited, it's recommended that you RSVP at 974-4926 if you want to attend.

As a beer geek, I've become a bit of a craft beer snob and haven't played a beer game since college. However, after witnessing a particularly animated floor beer pong game at local beer writer Lee Nichols's annual holiday beer tasting, I've become intrigued with the sport of competitive beer pong. Our friends at B-Side Entertainment are hosting two special screenings this week of the documentary Last Cup: Road to the World Series of Beer Pong,which chronicles four teams as they make their way to the second annual World Series of Beer Pong.

From the Alamo website:

"Outrageous but true, LAST CUP: ROAD TO THE WORLD SERIES OF BEER PONG chronicles America's wooziest subculture and follows participants as they compete to conquer the fun and frothy sport of competitive beer pong. Beer pong practitioners from across the US meet in Nevada for the second annual World Series of Beer Pong where the team with the sharpest accuracy (and highest tolerance) stands to walk away with $20,000. LAST CUP cuts through the drunken revelry and sets its cameras on four very different teams, culminating in a sobering, nail-biter of a conclusion."