Special Screening

Rated NR; Director:Jeffrey Iwanicki, David A. Kleiler Jr.

Alamo website Description:  With frontman Roger Miller and other members on hand for a post-film Q&A.  Special Co-presentation with FunFunFun Fest, November 7-8 at Waterloo Park.  Tickets and schedule available at www.funfunfunfest.com.

As the old saying goes, legendary Boston post-punk band Mission of Burma may not have sold a lot of records in their time, but most everyone who bought one started a band, with such bands as Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Sonic Youth citing them as influences. Breaking up in 1983 due to lead guitarist Roger Miller's tinnitus (made worse by the band's notoriously loud shows), Mission of Burma was one of the most important bands of its time, and when they reunited for 2004's ONoffON, documentary filmmakers Jeffrey Iwanicki and David A. Kleiler followed their return, and NOT A PHOTOGRAPH: THE MISSION OF BURMA STORY is the result. When some once-prominent bands come back after several years away, the danger of those bands destroying their legacy with substandard new material often looms large (we're looking at you, Big Star), but NOT A PHOTOGRAPH proves that Mission of Burma's return shows that some bands not only never lose what made them great in the first place, but that they're able to pick it up again after nearly 20 years apart.

From the Alamo Website:  Free admission with DVD purchase. Just select the DVD option when you buy your ticket.

In the heart of Tim and Karrie League's Alamo Archives there is a small climate-controlled room. It is the unassuming home of one of the best trailer collections in the world. It is lined with filing drawers, labeled alphabetically, housing over 2000 trailers, ranging from...AND SARTANA KILLED THEM ALL to ZU: WARRIORS OF THE MAGIC MOUNTAIN. Regular patrons of the Alamo theaters get a chance to see the best of these trailers one or two at a time. People who aren't lucky enough to live nearby have never had the option to delve into this magic collection. Until now.

Synapse DVD has partnered with your favorite film programmers - us - to put together a fifth installment of their hugely popular 42nd Street Forever DVD series, this time focusing entirely on the Leagues' Alamo trailer archive. And as a very special treat, we are going to string up the actual film trailers and run them for you as a TRAILERTHON. Some of these trailers are for films you know and love, some are for movies that no one has seen in thirty or more years. And since these are the actual trailer elements you'll be seeing, you'll get all the grime, all the splices, and all the magic you can handle. From kung fu to insane kids' movies to softcore porn: do not miss this orgy of fun!

As a special bonus, you can buy a special ticket that includes the show and the DVD - all for the price of the DVD alone - $15!

Rated NR; 98min; Director:Curt Worden
Presented by Waterloo Records
From the Alamo website:  In 1957, on the heels of the triumphant debut of his groundbreaking novel, "On The Road", Jack Kerouac was suddenly a literary rock star, lionized by his fans and devotees. But along with fame and media hype came his unraveling, and, by 1960, Kerouac was a jaded cynic, disaffected from the Beat culture he helped create and tortured by self-doubt, addiction and depression. He secretly retreats to Lawrence Ferlinghetti's rustic cabin in the Big Sur woods for spiritual and physical renewal. But his plan is foiled by his own inner demons, and what ensues that summer becomes the basis for Kerouac's gritty, yet lyrically told, semi-autobiographical novel, "Big Sur". ONE FAST MOVE takes the viewer back to that cabin and to the Beat haunts of San Francisco and New York City for an unflinching, cinematic look at the compelling events the book is based on. The story unfolds in several synchronous ways: through the narrative arc of Kerouacs prose, told in voice-over by actor and Kerouac interpreter, John Ventimiglia (of HBO's THE SOPRANOS); through first'hand accounts and recollections of Kerouacs contemporaries; by the interpretations and reflections of writers, poets, actors and musicians who have been deeply influenced by Kerouac's unique gifts like Tom Waits, Sam Shepard, Robert Hunter, Patti Smith, Aram Saroyan, Donal Logue and S.E. Hinton; and by stunning visual imagery set to original music composed and performed by recording artist, Jay Farrar of Son Volt, with additional performance by Benjamin Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie.

For this special Food & Film event, enjoy an exquisite five-course French feast prepared by the extraordinary John Bullington and Trish Eichelberger.

Edible Austin Eat Local Week, December 5-12, is a week-long invitation for Central Texans to explore and celebrate the abundance of local food by eating out and shopping at participating area restaurants and markets, and to raise money for YouthLaunch's Urban Roots, a youth development program that uses sustainable agriculture to effect lasting change for youth 14-18 years old, and to nourish East Austin residents who have limited access to healthy foods. To see an updated list of event sponsors, participating restaurants and markets, and for a complete and updated listing of events during Eat Local Week, go to: www.edibleaustin.com/eatlocalweek.

Director Nora Ephron (SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, MIXED NUTS) brings us this big screen adaptation of two different books- Julie Powell's bestselling memoir Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen, and Julia Child's memoir My Life in France. Powell (played in the film by Amy Adams, otherwise known as Meryl Streep: The Next Generation) embarks on a year-long culinary quest to cook all 524 recipes in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. The film intertwines the lives of the two women who, though separated by time and space, are both at loose ends...until they discover that with the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible.

Check out SXSW 2009 favorite Winnebago Man and help the filmmakers raise money for a wider, non-fest release. The doors open at 7 pm, and the documentary starts at 8 pm. More information in our article about the event.

Nueva Onda's monthly summer movie night ends its 2009 run with a Halloween program of documentaries and short features. Here are the descriptions from the Nueva Onda site:

Tracy is Ben Slamka's cautionary tale about messing with big trouble in dark remote places. Some grade-A Halloween humor. Don't mess with Tracy. (6 min) Slamka will attend the screening.

Jim Beam is a lightning-quick life-and-death story starring... well, Death. He's procrastinating until one foolish, unwitting act forces his bony hand. From Austinite Jabbar Raisani. (30 sec)

Lost in the Fog is John Corey's vivid documentary about the big-hearted California racehorse Lost in the Fog and his owner and trainer. In 2005, this modestly-bred colt developed into one of the fastest horses in the world, setting track records around the country and showing incredible tenacity. But could the horse break through into the pantheon of truly great racers? Or would time catch up to the horse or his elderly owner? (1 hr) Corey will attend the screening.

The restaurant will open for dinner at 6:30, and the movies start at 8 pm.

Whole Foods and Alamo Drafthouse are co-hosting the "Sunset Supper and Cinema" series on the rooftop plaza at Whole Foods downtown. Admission is free, but various refreshments are available for purchase. You also can purchase a three-course meal, related to the movie being shown, for $15. The movies start at sundown.

This week's movie is especially fitting for Halloween: the 1984 comedy Ghostbusters.

Whole Foods and Alamo Drafthouse are co-hosting the "Sunset Supper and Cinema" series on the rooftop plaza at Whole Foods downtown. Admission is free, but various refreshments are available for purchase. You also can purchase a three-course meal, related to the movie being shown, for $15. The movies start at sundown.

This week's movie is the 1960 classic Hitchcock film Psycho.

Rated Unknown; Director:Brad Neely
Before finding out big news about his career which requires Neely to soon leave Austin for Los Angeles, he put together a brand new program of his work featuring never-before-seen videos! He had planned to present this program in person, but now it's just the program- but that's more than enough to guarantee you an incredible night! So come out to the Ritz to celebrate the continued success of Austin's favorite son.

Back in 2001, Brad Neely became a local celebrity when the Daily Texan began running his self-published "Creased Comics" without realizing he was never actually a student. His irreverent, crudely drawn single-panel gems were always good for a quick mindgasm, but it wasn't until he put his pen to internet-based animated cartoons that Neely would attract the whole Nation to his charmingly disfigured approach. Case in point: COX AND COMBES' WASHINGTON, which became the most viewed video of all time, ever (pending authenticity). But Neely was no one hit wonder, his recurring series PROFESSOR BROTHERS and BABY CAKES hit new highs in (seriously) artistic expression. When we had him out at the theater last year to show his movies and talk about them there was a groundswell of response. Fans who normally sat in small cubicles, watching the videos on a tiny screen sat in a large cubicle and watched them on a huge screen. And then Neely assumed the stage and took questions. The result was like nothing that has been seen before or since. If you missed those epochal shows - don't miss these. And if you were there, come see Neely's new work, and the videos we thought would be too controversial to show the first time.

For more on Neely, visit creasedcomics.com

THE RITZ 80th ANNIVERSARY BASH FEATURING 1929'S PICCADILLY WITH LIVE SCORE BY ERIK HOKKANEN

This October, the Ritz theater will be 80 years old. It's been through some changes but for most of that time it has been open for business and showing movies. We're honored to carry on the Ritz tradition. And for this momentous anniversary, we're going to party like it's 1929. We'll be showing the amazing late-silent classic PICCADILLY, starring beauteous Anna May Wong as a dishwasher who rises to star dancing attraction at a posh London club. It's an astonishing film that few will ever have a chance to see on the big screen. But that's not all. Accompanying the film will be Erik Hokkanen and his band. Hokkanen is a master of jazz and gypsy music and his stylings will take you back to the roaring '20s. In addition we will have a number of short films and news reels from the era and a special price-fixe menu of luxurious, ritzy food. Don't worry though, our recreation of the era will be incorrect in one small regard: there will be no alcohol prohibition.

You can opt for event only, or meal option.  Drinks are not included.  More information:  http://www.originalalamo.com/Show.aspx?id=6753