I’m not sure how many of you folks were fortunate enough to check out SON OF RAMBOW during Fantastic Fest 2007, but I can tell you as one of the lucky ones that this is going to be one of my personal favorite releases of 2008. Boldly going out on screen on the first weekend of summer blockbuster season , SON OF RAMBOW is brilliant counter-programming. One of the best coming-of-age comedies I’ve ever seen.

Here’s the storyline:
“A nostalgic trip back to the 1980s, Son of Rambow is an inventive valentine to an era where, for the first time in history, young minds had access to technology that allowed them to create their own stories while paying homage to their larger-than-life heroes from the movies that inspired them. Will, who isn’t allowed to watch TV or go to the movies, expresses himself through his drawings and illustrations until he finds himself caught up in the extraordinary world of Lee Carter, the school terror and crafter of bizarre home movies. Carter exposes Will to a pirated copy of the first Rambo film, First Blood, which blows his mind wide open.” -Sundance Film Festival

Trust me folks, it’s as good as it sounds (if that sounds good to you). They just released the trailer online yesterday, so I felt it my duty as a fellow fanboy to alert you to it’s presence. Those of you who follow my advice and watch the trailer now will be breaking out the red crayon to circle May 2 on your calendar as “the big day.” IronMan also comes out on May 2, so circle it twice.

I used to be both scared of and slightly disappointed by Mardi Gras on Sixth Street. In New Orleans it’s scary, sure, but it’s soooooo debauched and crazy that it doesn’t matter. Pee in an alley? Sure thing! Get hit by a cop’s billy club while climbing into a tree for some beads? Every single day! But Austin’s party in year’s past has been more of a letdown, and mostly filled with just trying to walk down Sixth Street to get to the Jackalope but constantly getting stuck behind some large group of guys that are really, really excited because one of their girlfriend’s has decided to show them all her boobs.

Now, don’t get me wrong – I love boobies. I’m not trying to be the well-behaved guy or anything silly like that. The trouble is, I also love drinking, and because Austin so far has not legalized street side hurricane vendors, I need to get inside one of the bars to get my Jameson on. When there are huge crowds of rejected Real World contestants getting all excited over something they can see on their TV in one of hundreds of Girls Gone Wild commercials, I just get mad. And so in years past, I would avoid Sixth Street on Fat Tuesday, preferring to instead… do ANYTHING AT ALL.

But this year, that’s all changed. Because this year we have a theater on Sixth Street, and that theater has balconies (just like the Big Easy!), and I just happen to have the perfect collection of sexy pop videos ready to go in a brand new Mix Tape Sing-Along. Even better? Now I have an excuse to get myself one of those fancy feather masks I’ve always wanted! Because who hasn’t wished we lived in a simpler time, when there were masquerade balls at the palace every weekend and beads raining from the sky every Tuesday? Check out the trailer:

We’ll have free beads for everyone, whether you choose to go wild or just want to hide out from the crazies out on the street. We’ll give you $2 off your admission if you wear a masquerade mask. We’ll have you primed and ready to hit the street in style after the show, or we’ll give you the perfect party and let you sneak out the back alley exit and completely avoid the madness.

Grab your tickets here, and Owen and I will show you our boobies at the show.

We’ve been loving the rave responses to the Sick & Twisted trailer featuring nothing but a cinnamon bun being beat down by a giant penis from the sky, but looking at the show earlier this afternoon, we realized that there’s a lot more to this year’s show than just that one penis. There are also PLENTY of cumshots, and lots of violence, and gleeful pissing, and penguins with guns, and superhero ejaculate, and… well, we figured it would just be best to cut a quickie sneak preview of a lot more of the cartoons.

With that in mind, here’s Spike & Mike 2008 in 40 seconds:

Ready to see the whole thing? Grab your tickets here, and we’ll see you this weekend at the Ritz.

If you tried to get tickets to this Thursday’s 90s One Hit Wonders Volume 2 Sing-Along, (the show that just happens to be the final showtime of this show), you may have recently seen that it was sold out. Well, good news, we opened up more seats, so you still have a chance to come out and get your sing on with all of the best groups from the 90s that couldn’t make it onto the charts more than once.

Tickets are available here, while they last.

Faithful Alamo fans like you will already have their tickets to our sold out “The Wizard” show, but here’s your chance to lay hands on our exclusive poster for the event!

Featuring Fred Savage and his crew bringing peace at last to the Mushroom Kingdom, this hand pulled silkscreen poster measures 24″ x 36″ and is printed on
heavy stock art paper!

Limited to just 110 worldwide, and only 90 available to the public. Each poster is signed and numbered by the artist, Tim Doyle. (Hey…I know that guy!)

Posters will be on hand at the event for sale, but you can pre-order yours on-line at Mondotees now! And, considering we’re sold out for the event, there are only enough posters for under 25% of the attendees…think you might want to get one now? Hmmm?

Stars Fred Savage and Luke Edwards along with Director Todd Holland will be in attendance! Special thanks to Nerdcore and Ain’t It Cool News!

Hot of the presses folks: the latest installment of the Rambo Franchise finishes first in nearly all mayhem and destruction categories (except for # of bad guys killed by Rambo with his shirt off). Three cheers to Lionsgate for nearly doubling the total death count from Rambo III, which in turn, doubled the death count from Rambo: First Blood Part 2. Suffice it to say, if you need a little carnage in your cinema diet this weekend, turn first to the soldier with a heart of gold: John Rambo. Complete stats below:

Tonight through Saturday night at the Alamo Village, each midnight show will be followed by a flamethrower demonstration, in which lucky audience members who have the guts will take out suspected terrorist baby dolls with a high-velocity baby-killing device. If you think we’re kidding: keep thinking and STAY OUT OF OUR WAY.

Oh, and the movie: killtastic in every way. An orgy of violence. Goes great with beer.

Tickets on sale here. Be there or be a Communist Nazi Terrorist!

Next Wednesday, January 30th at the Alamo South Lamar, celebrate over-sized agoraphobic rodents and the prospect of an early Spring with one of the greatest comedies of all time and a scrumptious five course feast served up by Alamo super-chef John Bullington!

And the icing on top of it all is that proceeds from the show will help support the Austin Family Institute!

Eat, drink, laugh…and help out Austin families all at the same time!

You won’t be served the same dish over and over again…but you’re close. Each of the five courses will be created using the same five ingredients- Pork, Squash, Basil, Rice and Cheese.

Sound boring? Far from it! Look what Chef John has come up with…

I

Rice flour ravioli stuffed with basil-pork sausage and pumpkin in a cave-aged gruyere sauce

II

Suppli- a fried nugget of Parmesan risotto swimming in butternut squash soup with prosciutto and basil oil

III

Spaghetti squash marinated in basil resting on a sushi cake topped braised pork and manchego

IV

Burgundy-honey glazed pork tenderloin with gorgonzola and wild rice alongside basil smoked grey hubbard squash

V (dessert)

Bill Murray pulls off one of the greatest comedic performances of all time in this film. John Bullington has created one of the most mouth-watering menus of all time for this film. Put the two together, help out a few Austin families in the meantime, and you’ve got one incredible evening.

For tickets and info, click here!

(Note: We are aware that January 30th is not Groundhog Day. We just didn’t want that little marmot to come out, see its shadow and rain on our parade.)

Last night at the Alamo Village there was a special sneak screening of RAMBO, in which Sly Stallone resuscitates the character, now living in Thailand as a venomous snake collector, until some missionaries get kidnapped by impossibly villainous thugs. Then it’s time to kill a lot of people. And nobody does it better.

As violent as the previous three Rambo movies were, this one takes the violence-cake. In fact, it kinda sets a new high water mark in chunky explosions, juicy bullet impacts and burning flesh. It’s pretty amazing. It’s definitely conceived as a thrill ride, not a message picture, but that’s fine. I get enough messages on my phone. I want to watch bad guys explode like blood-filled meat pinatas. I’ll go read a book if I want to think about how violence is bad for the soul.

So definitely go see the movie, opening this weekend at Village. And in the meantime, enjoy this video of irresponsible people using an irresponsible flame-spewing weapon at some irresponsible theater somewhere after a special sneak screening of RAMBO:

Check out another attendee video of the great Burmese baby massacre of 2008

Attention all horrorhounds and mutilatio-maniacs!

The central US’ most major celebration of terror — and the largest in our state’s history — THE TEXAS FEAR FEST will be upon us soon! On March 7 through 9, Dallas will be flooded with more b-movie royalty and big-scream celebrities than your wildest nightmares would ever allow.

And the Alamo Drafthouse’s own Rolling Roadshow will be there on opening night to present outdoor 35mm SPECIAL GUEST SCREENINGS of gut-churning classicks including A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, FRIGHT NIGHT, A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 4: THE DREAM MASTER and (last but certainly not least) TROLL 2!! Each of these unforgettable back-to-back films will be hosted by cast and creators LIVE IN PERSON, and I guarantee that this is the closest you will ever get to seeing these films in unfettered ’80s drive-in glory!

For details on the screening event, CLICK HERE!

And to purchase a ticket for the entire Fear Fest weekend, CLICK HERE!

Miss it and spend eternity shrieking in bitter agony.