This Week at Alamo Drafthouse DFW (10/28 - 11/3)

Calling all movie lovers… Here’s what’s happening this week at Alamo Drafthouse DFW!
This week is all about throwing it back our favorite classic films. Schwarzenegger will be back… to-back with THE TERMINATOR Double Feature. Get lost in retro films of yesteryear while enjoying brunch with three Flashback Brunches. Get hopped up on cinema with Bishop Cider Co. to see THE CABIN IN THE WOODS. For a full calendar listing, please visit drafthouse.com/dfw/calendar.

See y’all soon at the Alamo Drafthouse!



This Week's Highlights…

The Terminator Double Feature
Two TERMINATORS! Two movies! Two Ahnalds - one a killing machine from the future sent back to kill a mild-mannered waitress (who just happens to be the mother of the future savior of humanity) and the other a reprogrammed killing machine from the future sent back to now protect her and her son. See 1984's THE TERMINATOR and then tell us "I'll be back" for 1991's TERMNIATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY all for one ticket price! Catch the double feature at Cedars, Denton, North Richland Hills, and Richardson.

Flashback Brunches
Catch the best of retro films this week with Flashback Brunch screenings of LABYRINTH, HOOK and GHOST. Catch LABYRINTH at Denton, HOOK at Las Colinas, and GHOST at North Richland Hills,

Hopped Up Cinema: The Cabin in the Woods with Bishop Cider Co.
Each month Alamo DFW combines cinema with suds for Hopped Up Cinema - a collaboration between Alamo Drafthouse and one of their favorite local breweries featuring a selection of beers curated specifically for this series! Every guest will receive a flight of five favorites along with a commemorative pint glass from the brewery. Catch it at Richardson.


MONDAY | OCTOBER 28
Cedars
Screening: The House of the Devil 10th Anniversary Screening at 7:45PM

Denton
Screening: A Nightmare on Elm Street Movie Party at 7:00PM

Lake Highlands
Screening: Anime-zing: Vampire Hunter D (Subtitled) at 6:30PM

Las Colinas
Screening: Ghostbusters (1984) Movie Party at 7:00PM

North Richland Hills
Screening: The House of the Devil 10th Anniversary Screening at 6:30PM

Richardson
Screening: Ghostbusters (1984) Movie Party at 7:00PM
Screening: The Howling at 9:05PM



TUESDAY | OCTOBER 29
Cedars
Screening: Advance Series Premiere: HBO’s His Dark Materials at 7:00PM

Denton
Screening: Anime-zing: Vampire Hunter D (Subtitled) at 6:30PM
Screening: Nosferatu with Live Score by Invincible Czars at 7:00PM

Lake Highlands
Screening: The Host (2006) at 6:30PM

North Richland Hills
Screening: Misery at 6:30PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

Richardson
Screening: One Piece: Stampede (Subtitled) at 6:00PM
Bar Event: Tiki Bingo - Glass Half Full at 7:00PM
Screening: Hopped Up Cinema: The Cabin In The Woods with Bishop Cider Co. at 7:30PM



WEDNESDAY | OCTOBER 30
Cedars
Screening: Drácula (1931) [Spanish] MUBI Free Victory Screening at 7:45PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

Denton
Screening: Halloween (1978) at 7:00PM

Lake Highlands
Screening: Ghostbusters (1984) Movie Party at 7:00PM

Las Colinas
Screening: Monty Python and the Holy Grail Movie Party at 7:00PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

North Richland Hills
Screening: In the Mouth of Madness at 6:00PM
Screening: The Rocky Horror Picture Show Movie Party at 10:00PM

Richardson
Screening: One Piece: Stampede (Dubbed) at 6:00PM
Screening: The House of the Devil 10th Anniversary Screening at 7:30PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Glass Half Full at 8:00PM



THURSDAY | OCTOBER 31
North Richland Hills
Screening: Halloween (1978) at 7:00PM

Richardson
Screening: Halloween (1978) at 7:30PM
Screening: One Piece: Stampede (Subtitled) at 9:05PM



FRIDAY | NOVEMBER 1
Richardson
Screening: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM



SATURDAY | NOVEMBER 2
Denton
Screening: Terminator Double Feature at 6:30PM
Screening:

Lake Highlands
Screening: The Jerk Quote-Along at 7:30PM

Las Colinas
Screening: PBS KIDS at the Alamo: Xavier Riddle and The Secret Museum at 10:00AM

North Richland Hills
Screening: Terminator Double Feature at 6:00PM

Richardson
Screening: Terminator Double Feature at 6:00PM



SUNDAY | NOVEMBER 3
Cedars
Screening: Terminator Double Feature at 6:00PM

Denton
Screening: Flashback Brunch: Labyrinth at 11:00AM
Screening: Sleepy Hollow at 6:30PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 7:00PM

Lake Highlands
Screening: A Face In The Crowd MUBI Free Victory Screening at 6:45PM

Las Colinas
Screening: Flashback Brunch: Hook at 11:00AM

North Richland Hills
Screening: Flashback Brunch: Ghost at 11:00AM

Richardson
Screening: Joe Versus the Volcano at 6:00PM
Screening: Galaxy Quest Movie Party at 6:30PM


First Run Movies Now Playing...
Abominable
Ad Astra
Black And Blue
Countdown
Downton Abbey
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie
Gemini Man
Girl On The Third Floor
Hustlers
Jexi
Joker
Judy
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood Re-release
The Addams Family (2019)
Zombieland: Double Tap

Premiering This Week…
Harriet
Jojo Rabbit
Terminator: Dark Fate
The Lighthouse

Stay Connected...
Facebook: facebook.com/AlamoDrafthouseDFW
Twitter: twitter.com/AlamoDFW
Instagram: instagram.com/alamodfw
Website: drafthouse.com/dfw
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | www.drafthouse.com

Movies Scheduled for the Week of Oct 27 - Nov 2

Happy Halloween! Only one more month til Thanksgiving and a couple more months to Christmas.

The movie craziness has begun. So much to choose from this week. Unfortunately my car is busted (again), so I can't go to anything (again). If y'all can help posting upcoming films to our Facebook page or to the group, that will be really useful until I'm back online and finally moved into our new place.

Y'all be safe out there for the tricks and treats.

Oct 27 - Nov 2

Sun - Oct 27

Won't You Be My Neighbor - Ismaili Community Center And Jamatkhana - Plano

Mon - Oct 28

EarthX Ghost Fleet - 7:00 pm - Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth
Harriet - 7:30 pm - Angelika

Tue - Oct 29

Motherless Brooklyn - 7:00 pm - Angelika
Terminator Dark Fate - 7:00 pm - AMC Northpark
Terminator Dark Fate - 7:00 pm - Cinemark 17
EarthX Ghost Fleet - 7:30 pm - Angelika
Last Christmas - 7:30 pm - AMC Northpark
Last Christmas - 7:30 pm - Angelika Plano

Wed - Oct 30

Midway - 7:00 pm - Angelika
JoJo Rabbit - 7:30 pm - AMC Northpark

Thu - Oct 31

Happy Halloween

Fri - Nov 1

JoJo Rabbit - 7:00 pm - AMC Northpark

Sat - Nov 2

Playing With Fire - 7:00 pm - AMC Northpark
Playing With Fire - 7:30 pm - Cinemark 17

Black and Blue

(Review by Chase Lee)

The Kill Team

(Review by Chase Lee(

The Lighthouse

(Review by Chase Lee)

The Kill Team

THE KILL TEAM
** (out of ****)
The Kill Team doesn’t really say anything we did not already know about war. We all know it’s hell, considering the sentiment is a common phrase, and Dan Krauss’s movie, a narrative approach to material the writer/director covered in the 2014 documentary of the same name (unseen by me), can only hammer in the point. The true story on which this one is based is the kind of compelling, increasingly tragic stuff that tends to come out of the fog of war. Despite a worthy performance from its main actor, Krauss’s handling of that story in this format falls short in some important ways.

From the start, the film seems in a hurry to get to the main point of its story. The early segments, then, struggle to introduce us to its players in a way that does not come across as unintentionally jokey. We meet Andrew Briggman (Nat Wolff), a fresh military recruit who joins a group led by Staff Sergeant Wallace (Tunji Kasim). Right off the bat, we recognize the personalities here – not because they are distinctive (only the staff sergeant, undeniably in charge, has a personality that isn’t putting on a loud and masculine show) but because they are recognizable as men stuck in a cycle of combat and insulation.

This is all fine, especially because Wolff’s performance is strong in the way the actor’s eyes are constantly surveying what is in front of him, the gears clearly working in his brain. When Wallace is killed in a freak explosion, Andrew and his fellow soldiers (played by Adam Long, Jonathan Whitesell, Brian Marc, and Osy Ikhile) meet the replacement, Deeks (Alexander Skarsgård, whose valiant attempt to bring this character to life is undermined by his clear uncertainty how to afford the man any extra layers), who assures them that he has no intention to “replace” their old leader. He certainly has a different approach, though, in that he apparently feigns a buddy-buddy relationship strategy, while harboring some truly sadistic techniques to keep his men in line.

The key scene, which has one of the privates killing an insurgent who was apparently going to blow them all up, is played out with just the right amount of queasy tension. That carries through the second act, in which Andrew, noticing some discrepancies in the official report of the incident, leaves an anonymous tip with the criminal investigation division that sets the other men on edge. The third act, in which another of Andrew’s split-second decisions has irreversible consequences, feels more dutiful than suspenseful, though. There is less of the queasy tension that came before, and at under an hour and a half, Krauss doesn’t have much time to cover a lot of the loaded, ironic events of the story. The Kill Team weaves a stranger-than-fiction tale, and that may very well be why a narrativization of its events falls short. This telling simply comes across as one in a rush to get the bitter end.
(Review by Joel Copling)

The Current War The Directors Cut

(Review by Chase Lee)

Black and Blue

In “Black and Blue,” director Deon Taylor’s second thriller of the year, rookie cop Alicia West (Naomie Harris) finds herself in over her head after she agrees to work a double shift in place of her partner, Kevin (Reid Scott), when she witnesses a group of corrupt cops, led by detective Terry Malone (Frank Grillo), commit murder – their actions caught on her body cam. Of course, this fact is quickly identified by the perpetrators and makes her a target for the group. The majority of the movie focuses on their pursuit of Alicia. Malone and his men give her two options - hand over the camera and join their side or die.



Alicia is a shrewd, level-headed officer. She’s more interested in using her badge as a way to make a positive difference in the world rather than abusing its power. Injured by gunshot before she can gather herself and unwilling to turn against her morals by joining Malone’s ranks, Alicia attempts to return the camera to the precinct where the footage can be downloaded to the department’s computers, outing her dishonest coworkers. Desperate and met by continuous opposition, she turns to an old friend, Milo (Tyrese Gibson), for help.



Screenwriter Peter A. Dowling’s script is on the predictable side. There’s not much to say about this movie because it gives you exactly what it advertises – a straightforward thriller. All of the obvious twists and turns are present. The movie moves exactly in the direction you expect it to go. There are no surprises. It’s abundantly clear who is good and who is bad and viewers can probably guess the way in which this film will end.



Yet, despite the script’s predictability, Taylor’s movie works. There’s a good sense of pacing. Taylor and Dowling clearly lay out all the pieces of the narrative within the first fifteen minutes – characters’ personalities, Alicia’s status within the department, the way the body cams work, and how their functionality becomes an obstacle for the leading lady – before moving into the main storyline. What really hinders this film is some questionable acting, bad dialogue, and its general air of “been there done that.”



Taylor’s lame thriller “The Intruder” was released earlier this year. It was ridiculous and ill-conceived in every way, “Black and Blue” is definitely a marked improvement over that mess. While the movie is far from perfect, it’s serviceable enough for a recommendation. Viewers who go in expecting some cheap thrills will probably enjoy themselves.
(Review by Bret Oswald)

Alaween Halloween Carnival

Alamo Drafthouse Invites Families
To Start Their Halloween Night Of Fun At Free
ALAWEEN HALLOWEEN CARNIVAL
It's that time of the year boys & ghouls! Kick off a night of Trick-or-Treating fun at Alamo Drafthouse DFW's free ALAWEEN HALLOWEEN CARNIVAL on Thursday, October 31 from 3:00pm - 6:00pm at the Alamo Drafthouse Richardson and North Richland Hills locations. Featuring face painting, bounce houses, carnival games, and trick-or-treating throughout the theater for the little ones, and spooky specials for parents in the Glass Half Full and Vetted Well.

For more information, visit Alamo Drafthouse DFW's ALAWEEN HALLOWEEN CARNIVAL Event Pages:
Alamo Drafthouse Richardson: https://www.facebook.com/events/1354780884680552/
Alamo Drafthouse North Richland Hills: https://www.facebook.com/events/3681747401850799/


Alamo Drafthouse DFW social media:
Facebook: facebook.com/AlamoDrafthouseDFW
Twitter: twitter.com/AlamoDFW
Instagram: instagram.com/alamodfw
Website: drafthouse.com/dfw

Movies Scheduled for the Week of Oct 20 - Oct 26

Got this message from Yahoo Groups:

Attention: Starting December 14, 2019 Yahoo Groups will no longer host user created content on its sites. New content can no longer be uploaded after October 28, 2019. Sending/Receiving email functionality is not going away, you can continue to communicate via any email client with your group members.

Not exactly sure what this means. And frankly I don't have time to figure it out right now. Trying to pack and find a place to live before the end of the month. Anyone with suggestions on a new group location will be appreciated.

Lots to choose from this week.

Oct 20 - Oct 26

Sun - Oct 20

Terminator 2 - 7:00 pm - Alamo Lake Highlands

Mon - Oct 21

The Current War = 7:00 pm - Angelika

Tue - Oct 22

Black and Blue - 7:00 pm - AMC Northpark
Harriet - 7:00 pm - AMC Northpark
JoJo Rabbit - 7:00 - Angelika
Sea of Shadows - 7:30 pm - Frontiers of Flight Museum

Wed - Oct 23

Countdown - 7:00 pm - Harkins Southlake

Zombieland: Double Tap

“Zombieland” skillfully combined the horror and comedy genres, pairing tongue-in-cheek humor with gore-filled action pieces. The movie was a hit, making it surprising that it's taken ten years for a sequel to materialize. Unfortunately, “Zombieland: Double Tap” is the type of follow-up that tries too hard to replicate the viewing experience of its predecessor. In short, “Double Tap” presents more of the same.



The sequel once again brings together the creative forces behind the original movie - director Ruben Fleischer, screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick (who also worked with Dave Callaham on this script), and stars Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin. Unfortunately, they don’t manage to once again capture lightning in a bottle. The jokes here feel forced with the majority of them coming across as strained attempts at recapturing the mood and energy that made the first movie so much fun to watch. Despite its brief runtime, "Double Tap" is a film that seems to run a little too long – not good for a ninety-minute movie.



In the decade since the zombies started overrunning the world, Tallahassee (Harrelson), Columbus (Eisenberg), Wichita (Stone), and Little Rock (Breslin) have grown into a functioning family unit, deciding to settle down - in the White House - instead of running around the country. At the same time, the zombies have begun to adapt, some becoming dumber and others becoming smarter and more aggressive.



Shortly into the movie, Wichita and Little Rock decide they have had enough of Tallahassee and Columbus. Tallahassee has become an overbearing father figure to Little Rock and Columbus wants his relationship with Wichita to get a little too serious. The women take Tallahassee's beloved custom ride, telling the guys of their departure through a sorry excuse for a letter (acknowledged by Wichita) and hit the road. Wichita returns minus Little Rock, who has run off to Graceland with her hippie-type love interest, Berkeley (Avan Jogia), and Tallahassee's car. The group goes in pursuit.



The cast comfortably refills their characters' shoes, character relationships at least seem natural but things feel unexplainably off. The rhythm and flow that made the original movie work are missing. Jokes are rehashed before one of the characters calls out their age and staleness - neither the old or the new joke eliciting a laugh. How disappointing. This really was one I had high hopes for.



Despite all the negative comments, there are some good things going on in this movie. The writers add in some new characters, most notably airheaded bimbo Madison (Zoey Deutch). Her stupidity and ill-fitting cheery demeanor are constantly mocked by the rest of the cast. Deutch continues to prove what a versatile actress she is, showing her range in a role unlike her others. Although her character is (purposefully) annoying, her scenes are the best parts of the movie. There's an energy present when her character is onscreen that’s absent from the rest of the movie.



There are some decent action pieces too. The best involves another pair of zombie-slayers, played by Luke Wilson and Thomas Middleditch whose characters bear an uncanny resemblance to Harrelson and Eisenberg's. Joined by Nevada (Rosario Dawson), the group defends themselves from some recently turned zombies as the camera gracefully glides around the set, a hotel (where Nevada lives) made to look like Graceland.



The positive aspects, however, do little to improve the movie. It’s all a little stale. "Zombieland: Double Tap" is a far cry from the original.
(Review by Bret Oswald)

Zombieland: Double Tap

(Review by Chase Lee)

Fun event at Dallas Museum of Art: Mid-Century Modern Horror

Where

Horchow Auditorium at Dallas Museum of Art

1717 North Harwood

Dallas TX 75201

214-922-1200



Date

Saturday, October 26, 2019



Hours

3:30 pm - BUCKET OF BLOOD

6:30 pm - PEEPING TOM

9:30 pm - IN FABRIC

Doors open 30 min prior to each showtime



Website

https://dma.org/programs/event/fangoria-and-dma-present-mid-century-modern-horror



Description

FANGORIA and the DMA present a day of mid-century modern horror featuring classic films from the 1950s and 60s and a special preview screening of the 2019 release In Fabric. This triple feature will explore the visual language of mid-century horror and what made this period of filmmaking unique.



3:30PM – A BUCKET OF BLOOD, 1959, Dir: Roger Corman:

Special introduction by SMU’s Kevin Heffernan - Associate Professor, Division of Film and Media Arts, SMU Meadows School of the Arts.



6:30PM – PEEPING TOM, 1960, Dir: Michael Powell:

Special introduction by FANGORIA’s Preston Fassel - Award winning author of OUR LADY OF THE INFERNO.



9:30PM – IN FABRIC, 2019, Dir: Peter Strickland

Featuring a conversation with IN FABRIC costume designer, Jo Thompson.



Ticket Prices

$10 - BUCKET OF BLOOD

$10 - PEEPING TOM

$15 - IN FABRIC

$30 - All 3 films, includes priority seating

Seating will commence 30 minutes prior to start time.

tickets

https://www.dma.org/programs/event/fangoria-and-dma-present-mid-century-modern-horror?fbclid=IwAR2YAQUygXOYFyN351VnDNmdruk_PMkHcnszaf7sVpCF0VSuFkfi54FR2ro



Facebook


facebook.com/events/571703603599520/

This Week at Alamo Drafthouse DFW (10/14 - 10/20)

Calling all movie lovers… Here’s what’s happening this week at Alamo Drafthouse DFW!

This week is all about coming back to life. Nut up or shut up: Round 2 with the ZOMBIELAND Double Feature: Zombies Only Screening. Catch the 4K Restoration of THE EVIL DEAD with a reimagined score by original composer Joe Loduca. Get your double fix of Frankenstein with the FRANKENSTEIN & BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN Double Feature. For a full calendar listing, please visit drafthouse.com/dfw/calendar.

See y’all soon at the Alamo Drafthouse!
Fons PR


This Week's Highlights…

Zombieland Double Feature: Zombies Only Screening
Celebrate the second chapter of ZOMBIELAND with a zombies-only double feature. Come dressed as a zombie – the face paint, the tattered clothes, the human limbs, you know the drill. You're going to be in a theater filled with fellow zombies so please don't look alive. Catch the double feature at Cedars, Denton, Lake Highlands, and Richardson

The Evil Dead - 4K Restoration
This special edition of EVIL DEAD presents the horror classic for the first time in 4K plus with a reimagined score by original composer Joseph LoDuca and a thrilling new 5.1 surround mix created by Marti Humphrey and Jussi Tegelman the award-winning sound crew behind DRAG ME TO HELL and ASH VS. EVIL DEAD. Catch the restoration at Richardson.

Frankenstein & Bride of Frankenstein Double Feature
In 1931 director James Whale brought Mary Shelley's popular novel to screen with Boris Karloff in an iconic role as the titular doctor's creation and later brought the first of the film's sequels in 1935 out in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN Over the years it has become as revered as Whale's original film (if not more so, in some circles) with heavy focus applied to its grandiose aesthetic and queer subtext. Catch the double feature at Richardson.


MONDAY | OCTOBER 14
Cedars
Screening: The Mummy (1999) Movie Party at 7:15pm

Denton
Screening: Monty Python and the Holy Grail Movie Party at 6:00pm

Lake Highlands
Screening: Monty Python and the Holy Grail Movie Party at 7:00pm

North Richland Hills
Screening: Anime-Zing: Vampire Hunter D (Subtitled) at 6:45pm
Screening: Night of the Living Dead at 8:30pm

Richardson
Screening: The Host (2006) at 6:15pm



TUESDAY | OCTOBER 15
Denton
Screening: Hopped Up Cinema: Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back W/ Armadillo Ale Works at 7:00pm

Lake Highlands
Screening: Snowpiercer at 6:30pm

Las Colinas
Screening: Drácula (1931) [Spanish} MUBI Free Victory Screening at 6:30pm

North Richland Hills
Screening: The Last House on the Left at 6:45pm
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

Richardson
Screening: Monty Python and the Holy Grail Movie Party at 7:00pm
Bar Event: Tiki Bingo - Glass Half Full at 7:00PM
Screening: Video Vortex: Soul of the Demon at 9:15pm



WEDNESDAY | OCTOBER 16
Cedars
Screening: Zombieland Double Feature: Zombies Only Screening at 6:30pm
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

Denton
Screening: Zombieland Double Feature: Zombies Only Screening at 6:00pm
Screening: The Thing (1982) at 7:00pm

Lake Highlands
Screening: Zombieland Double Feature: Zombies Only Screening at 6:00pm
Screening: Nightmare on Elm Street Movie Party at 7:30pm

Las Colinas
Screening: Diner BaD Radio at 7:30pm
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM
Screening: Rocky Horror Picture Show Movie Party at 8:00pm

North Richland Hills
Screening: The Fog (1980) at 8:15pm

Richardson
Screening: Scary Movie (1991) at 6:15pm
Screening: Zombieland Double Feature: Zombies Only Screening at 6:30pm
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Glass Half Full at 8:00PM
Screening: Rocky Horror Picture Show Movie Party at 8:45pm



THURSDAY | OCTOBER 17
Las Colinas
Screening: BaD Radio Live Broadcast 5000th Episode at 12:00pm


FRIDAY | OCTOBER 18
North Richland Hills
Screening: The Gate (1987) at 6:30pm

Richardson
Screening: The Gate (1987) at 7:45pm



SATURDAY | OCTOBER 19
Cedars
Screening: Brunch on Broadway: Little Shop of Horrors at 11:00am

Denton
Screening: The Wolf Man at 6:30pm
Screening: Monty Python and the Holy Grail Movie Party at 8:15pm

Lake Highlands
Screening: Monty Python and the Holy Grail Movie Party at 6:15pm

Las Colinas
Screening: The Craft Movie Party at 6:45pm

North Richland Hills
Screening: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping Sing-Along at 6:30pm
Screening: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) at 9:05pm

Richardson
Screening: Evil Dead II at 9:00pm
Screening: The Evil Dead - 4K Restoration at 6:30pm



SUNDAY | OCTOBER 20
Cedars
Screening: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping Sing-Along at 7:30pm

Denton
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 7:00PM
Screening: The Craft Movie Party at 8:15pm

Lake Highlands
Screening: T2 Fan Screening With Terminator Dark Fate Footage at 7:00pm

North Richland Hills
Screening: Afternoon Tea: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Harbor of Fleet Street at 3:30pm
Screening: The Mummy (1932) at 6:30pm

Richardson
Screening: Frankenstein & Bride of Frankenstein Double Feature at 2:15pm
Screening: Nightmare on Elm Street Movie Party at 6:30pm


First Run Movies Now Playing...
Abominable
Ad Astra
Downton Abbey
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie
Gemini Man
Hustlers
Jexi
Joker
Judy
The Addams Family (2019)

Premiering This Week…
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
Zombieland: Double Tap


Stay Connected...
Facebook: facebook.com/AlamoDrafthouseDFW
Twitter: twitter.com/AlamoDFW
Instagram: instagram.com/alamodfw
Website: drafthouse.com/dfw
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | www.drafthouse.com

Movies Scheduled for the Week of Oct 13 - Oct 19

Wow, loved the cool weather for like a day or so. Back to more Texas seasonal craziness of Fall in the 80's.

Columbus Day weekend, or as we would celebrate/protest in Plymouth, MA as Indigenous People's day.

Asking the group for help this week keeping up with the upcoming screenings. I have some personal issues that is going to keep me offline for awhile and need y'all to monitor and share any movie notices. Thank you in advance!

Oct 13 - Oct 19

Tue - Oct 15

Maleficent - 7:00 pm - AMC Mesquite
Maleficent - 7:00 pm - AMC Northpark
Zombieland: Double Tap - 7:30 pm - Alamo Lake Highlands

Wed - Oct 16

Countdown - 7:30 pm - Alamo Denton

The Battle of Jangsari

The Battle of Jangsari is based on a true story of a little known operation during the Korean War. Co-directed by Kwak Kyung-taek and Kim Tae-hoon and written by Lee Man-Hee and Jung Tae-Won it tells the story which was basically a suicide mission which took place over two days (September 14-15, 1950) at Jangsari in Yeongdeok, North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. The battle was supposed to be a diversionary tactic to buy time for General Douglas MacArthur’s attack at Incheon in a couple of days.

Led by Captain Lee Myung-Joon (Kim Myung-Min) who did not have any battle experience but volunteered to lead his 772 student soldiers who only had a couple of weeks training. He chose his men, whose average age was 17, for their physique and strength of character. They travel during a typhoon with all the young soldiers puking into buckets on the ship traveling over a raging sea. They only have 4 rafts to get to shore so in order to get close enough to the beach, the ship is grounded. The teams have to secure ropes for the rest of the soldiers to lead them to the beach. They are besieged by bombs and bullets in their effort losing many of their battalion. The story centers on a few characters such as Choi Sung-Pil (Choi Minho of the K-pop band Shinee) who escaped with his family from North Korea, Ki Ha-Ryun (Kim Sung-Cheol) who has a tough attitude, Guk Man-Deuk (Jang Ji-Gun) a not so bright big guy who looks after Moon Jong-Nyeo (Lee Ho-Jung) who joined the army so her twin brother the only male in the family would not die in the war. We see the fear and heroism through their eyes as they experience the horror of war at their age.

Meanwhile American jounalist Marguerite Higgins (Meghan Fox) who represents the many female war correspondents on the front line, fights with Colonel Stephen (George Eads) to tell the world that these young men were being used as a sacrifice to distract the North Koreans into thinking the main attack force was hitting Jangsari and not Incheon on the other coast. The addition of the American characters doesn't seem all that necessary except to add some exposition.

The filmmakers bring the magnitude of the inexperienced young men thrust into a life and death situation is the main focus. The Battle of Jangsari was kept secrets for many decades. The filmmakers were able to convey the violence and the bonding of the survivors. They were teenagers fighting with the enemy of the same age. Yes, some of the situations were cliche and some of the scenes were awkward and obvious. But the story was interesting to see this war through the eyes of the Korean people.
(Review by reesa)

This Week at Alamo Drafthouse DFW (10/7 - 10/13)

Calling all movie lovers… Here’s what’s happening this week at Alamo Drafthouse DFW!

This week is all about pop jams and getting spooky. Party with Her-Royal-Highnesses of Pop at the Pop Princess Video Dance Party. Get all wrapped up in THE MUMMY Movie Party. Get ready to do the monster mash over a bowl of your favorite cereal with the HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA Monster Cereal Party. For a full calendar listing, please visit drafthouse.com/dfw/calendar.

See y’all soon at the Alamo Drafthouse!



This Week's Highlights…

Pop Princess Video Dance Party
Dress up like your favorite princess and get down to the Alamo Drafthouse for some sweet aural confections. As always there will be dance party props to use during the show and a specially themed cocktail to quench your thirst between songs. Come embrace all the joy that pop princesses bring ‘cause "we'll keep dancin' till the world ends!” Embrace your inner pop star at North Richland Hills and Richardson

THE MUMMY (1999) Movie Party
An ancient curse. A supernatural monster. A bumbling librarian. A dude who definitely isn’t Indiana Jones. Join Alamo DFW for a night of grand, old-fashioned adventure with fun props to help you get swept up in this rousing throwback to the adventure films of early Hollywood including a Magi tattoo an explorer’s torch (it’s a lighter) a glider to toss around during Winston’s legendary flight and more as we unlock the secrets of the mummy’s tomb with Rick and Evelyn. Catch the movie party at Denton, Lake Highlands, Las Collins, and North Richland Hills.

HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA Monster Cereal Party
Get your Halloween off to a spooky start with a showing of HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA featuring all-you-can-eat classic Monster Cereals including Count Chocula, Boo Berry and Frankenberry! Catch the HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA Monster Cereal Party at Denton, Lake Highlands, and North Richland Hills.


MONDAY | OCTOBER 7
Denton
Screening: Video Vortex: Soul of the Demon at 9:10PM

Lake Highlands
Screening: Champagne Cinema: The Craft Movie Party at 7:25PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

Las Colinas
Screening: Videodrome at 9:00PM

North Richland Hills
Screening: The Mummy (1999) Movie Party at 7:15PM

Richardson
Screening: AGFA Secret Screening 6 Year Anniversary Double Feature at 7:05PM



TUESDAY | OCTOBER 8
Cedars
Screening: Monty Python and the Holy Grail Movie Party at 6:15PM
Screening: Little Monsters (2019) with Livestream Q&A at 7:30PM

Lake Highlands
Screening: Video Vortex: Soul of the Demon at 9:15PM

North Richland Hills
Screening: Army of Darkness at 7:15PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

Richardson
Screening: Army of Darkness at 6:15PM
Screening: Air Time Presents: Catch Me If You Can at 7:00PM
Bar Event: Tiki Bingo - Glass Half Full at 7:00PM



WEDNESDAY | OCTOBER 9
Cedars
Screening: Anime-Zing: Vampire Hunter D (Subtitled) at 7:45PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

Denton
Screening: Escape From New York at 6:45PM

Las Colinas
Screening: A Nightmare on Elm Street Movie Party at 7:10PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 8:00PM

North Richland Hills
Screening: They Live at 6:45PM

Richardson
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Glass Half Full at 8:00PM
Screening: Dread Presents: Harpoon at 8:40PM



THURSDAY | OCTOBER 10
North Richland Hills
Screening: Fright Night at 6:45PM

Richardson
Screening: Fright Night at 6:15PM


FRIDAY | OCTOBER 11
Cedars
Screening: Under Control with Live Q&A at 7:00PM

North Richland Hills
Screening: The Devil’s Rejects at 6:45PM

Richardson
Screening: The Devil’s Rejects at 9:00PM



SATURDAY | OCTOBER 12
Cedars
Screening: Champagne Cinema: The Craft Movie Party at 7:15PM

Denton
Screening: Hotel Transylvania Monster Cereal Party at 10:00AM
Screening: UNT Football Watch Party at 6:00PM
Screening: Rocky Horror Picture Show with Los Bustards Shadow Cast at 10:00PM

Lake Highlands
Screening: Hotel Transylvania Monster Cereal Party at 10:00AM
Screening:

Las Colinas
Screening: The Mummy (1999) Movie Party at 7:15PM

North Richland Hills
Screening: Hotel Transylvania Monster Cereal Party at 10:00AM
Screening: Pop Princess Video Dance Party at 9:00PM

Richardson
Screening: Night of the Living Dead at 6:15PM
Screening: Pop Princess Video Dance Party at 9:00PM



SUNDAY | OCTOBER 13
Cedars
Screening: Monty Python and the Holy Grail Movie Party at 4:35PM

Denton
Screening: The Mummy (1932) at 6:00PM
Bar Event: Geeks Who Drink - Vetted Well at 7:00PM
Screening: The Mummy (1999) Movie Party at 7:15PM

Lake Highlands
Screening: The Mummy (1999) Movie Party at 7:15PM

Richardson
Screening: The Wolf Man (1941) at 6:15PM
Screening: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping Sing-Along at 7:00PM


First Run Movies Now Playing...
Abominable
Ad Astra
Brittany Runs A Marathon
Downton Abbey
Hustlers
IT: Chapter Two
Joker
Joker in 35MM
Rambo: Last Blood
The Peanut Butter Falcon
The Goldfinch

Premiering This Week…
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie
Gemini Man
The Addams Family (2019)

Stay Connected...
Facebook: facebook.com/AlamoDrafthouseDFW
Twitter: twitter.com/AlamoDFW
Instagram: instagram.com/alamodfw
Website: drafthouse.com/dfw
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | www.drafthouse.com

Movies Scheduled for the Week of Oct 6 - Oct 12

Don't y'all love October. Not holding my breath for cooler temps and changing leaves. But this is the time when the blockbusters come out to play.

At the Joker screening last week, they checked ID's to match the names on the passes. Also if you guest isn't with you when the wristbands are handed out, you would have to either go in yourself, or go to the end of the line when your guest shows up. The shape of things to come perhaps?

Please folks don't take kids to rated "R" movies. They will not be allowed in. A little research on the films you are seeing by asking your favorite search engine.


Oct 6 - Oct 12

Tue - Oct 8

Gemini Man - 7:00 pm - AMC Northpark
Gemini Man - 7:30 pm - Cinemark 17

Wed - Oct 9

The Addams Family - 7:30 pm - Cinemark 17
The Addams Family - 7:30 pm - Angelika

Joker

I do not where to talk about this movie without giving too much away. “Joker,” from director Todd Phillips is part of the DC extended universe. It delves into an altered reality wherein Bruce Wayne’s parents are ambushed after leaving a movie theater that was showing “Blow Out,” a great John Travolta led Brian De Palma movie that still kept him on the A list of celebrity.

“Joker” also offers a flipside to Martin Scorsese’s masterpiece “King of Comedy” (1982). In that gem, Robert De Niro was Rupert Pupkin, a terrible stand-up comedian who stalks Jerry Lewis’s Perry Langford. It was not high on a lot of best of the year lists, nut Scorsese was the prestigious Palm d’Or award as a nominee. Paul D. Zinneman, however won an award at the BAFTA’s for best screenplay.

“Joker” also deals with mental illness and the act that it is a story about misplaced youth and coming to find out about one’s past as an orphan. He loves his mother Penny (Frances Conroy), and comes to find out she is mentally unstable and spent time at Arkham Assylum, a mental institution in the city of Gotham, where “Joker” takes place.

Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck even carries a card remarking on his cackling and laughter as a way of showing that he has a disease. Some fellow passengers shrug it off while others bully him.

A major inside joke occurs when Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck sports a yellow cloak a la “The Village,” (2004) a part he played in M. Night Shyamalan’s aforementioned tale.

As I said earlier in my review, I cannot give away too much without spoiling it for the viewer. As a director, Todd Phillips probably has his biggest budgeted titles under his belt. I’m sure after “The Hangover” trilogy, as well as “Starsky and Hutch” (2004). He knows when to lighten the load in spots while all the while offers some brutal scenes and displays of violence.

“Joker” delivers the goods in a big way. I am not sure where this will end up in their library. So readers know, Margot Robbie reprises her Harley Quinn role in “Birds of Prey” next year. It comes out Feb. 7 of next year, 2020 to be exact. The full title is “Birds of Prey: And The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.”

Be warned: this is not like the Christopher Nolan Joker Heath Ledger won the Oscar for. It is just a different take on the twisted clown with a differing personality.

Grade: B+
(Review by Ricky Miller)

Half Earth Day Celebration at Frontiers of Flight Museum

Join EarthX to mark Half Earth Day - Halfway to the 50th Earth Day Anniversary! We'll celebrate our sponsors, exhibitors, and Half Earth Day with food, drinks, music, and a screening of SEA OF SHADOWS. The event will also feature speakers Anousheh Ansari, CEO of XPRIZE Foundation, the first female private space explorer and a space ambassador; Ken McQueen, the new Region 6 EPA Administrator; and emcee Leilani Münter from the Discovery Channel's "Planet Green", a vegan hippie chick with a racecar, who is also a Sports Illustrated Top 10 Female Driver and the #1 Eco Athlete in the world.



The film SEA OF SHADOWS follows a team of dedicated scientists, high-tech conservationists, investigative journalists, and courageous undercover agents, as well as the Mexican Navy, as they put their lives on the line to save the last remaining vaquita porpoises. Mexican drug cartels and Chinese traffickers have joined forces to poach rare totoaba fish in the Sea of Cortez, using deadly methods that threaten to destroy virtually all marine life in the region, including the elusive and endangered vaquita. This riveting National Geographic Documentary Film shares the intense story of those looking to bring the vicious international crime syndicate to justice.



Free Event October 22, 2019



Frontiers of Flight Museum

6911 Lemmon Avenue, Dallas, TX 75209



5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. with film screening at 7:30 p.m.



Tickets at https://events.bizzabo.com/218170



Further questions - info@earthx.org or 214-310-1200



EarthX will celebrate its second annual Half Earth Day at the Frontiers of Flight Museum on October 22.



Facebook: @earthxorg

Instagram: @earthxorg

Twitter: @earthxorg

NTXFF - The Two Popes

“The Two Popes” sounds promising on paper, a collaboration between a renowned group of artists - director Fernando Meirelles, writer Anthony McCarten, and actors Jonathan Pryce and Anthony Hopkins. While it’s a movie that sounds like all the pieces should slide easily into place, it never seems to click together.



The movie begins in 2005, during the papal conclave resulting in Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger’s (Anthony Hopkins) election as pope, known as Pope Benedict XVI. The runner-up, Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio (Jonathan Pryce) is shown to be a rival, a more liberally minded member of the Catholic Church suggesting an impending change.



Years after Benedict’s ascension, Bergoglio decides it’s time to retire. It won’t spoil anything to say that Bergoglio doesn’t retire. For those that don’t know, he’s the current pope – Pope Francis. Not hearing a response from Benedict, who has to approve the choice, Bergoglio buys a plane ticket for Rome. Coincidentally, Benedict’s response, inviting him to Rome, arrives after he’s bought his ticket. As it turns out, both men see this as an answer from God. The majority of the movie takes place in Rome, focused on a series of, I assume, imagined conversations between Pope Benedict and the future Pope Francis.



Benedict doesn’t want Bergoglio to retire. He thinks the retirement will send the wrong message to the people and he thinks Bergoglio is the most likely candidate to be elected as the next pope, a job that Bergoglio doesn’t want. McCarten uses flashbacks to explain Bergoglio’s hesitation, exploring his past actions in 1970s militant Argentina.



While the conversations on their own are interesting, presenting a clashing of ideals, Meirelles decides to present them in a stylized manner that detracts from the dialogue. Shots are horribly framed. At times, there’s too much headroom. Other shots are sloppy, chopping off sections of the actors’ faces or suddenly zooming in for a closeup. The editing is frenzied, taking on the hectic nature of a Michael Bay action movie. Why choose to present a character drama in this manner? It’s like Meirelles doesn’t have enough confidence in the audience’s attention span.



There’s one scene, late in the film, that works wonderfully. Bergoglio is asked to the Vatican to continue his discussion with Benedict. A guard guides him to a darkened room. As Bergoglio walks into the room, the camera pans up and the room brightens through a vibrant white glow revealing the Sistine Chapel. The ensuing scene is shot in a manner that captures the beauty of the room, creating an engaging backdrop that doesn’t distract from the dialogue. Whenever Meirelles allows the scenes to have a more natural flow they play better. Too bad the majority of the movie isn’t handled this way.



Maybe my expectations were too high from all the glowing praise this has received so far. On initial watch, I’m disappointed.
(Review by Bret Oswald)

NTXFF - This World Won't Break

Middle-aged troubadour Wes Milligan (Greg Schroeder) is a wannabe star whose time to be discovered is running out. Writer/director Josh David Jordan’s debut feature “This World Won’t Break” opens with Wes playing a gig at a small bar for a handful of people. His career as a musician is stagnant, close to death. Unsurprisingly, we quickly come to discover that Wes is broke, three months behind on rent, and has been evicted.



Despite his desires for fame and glory and his lack of income, Wes isn’t seen to be much of a go-getter. The only time we see him attempt to push his music is when he’s somehow managed to get himself an audience with a local radio personality. “This World Won’t Break” takes place in Dallas. I highly doubt any radio station in a major city (or elsewhere) would allow someone to come in off the street and confront their deejays. Wes is shown giving a number of intimate one on one performances, singing to his ex-wife’s voicemail and playing for friends and family. When he’s not singing, he’s at work, where he’s never seen doing any work – that is until the script requires him to cut himself washing dishes, thereby screwing up his shot at playing live for the aforementioned deejay.



Wes never becomes a character the audience cares about, always seen forlornly moping about. The people around him aren’t much better, caricatures included in place of an engaging narrative. His father (Matthew Posey), his friend Catfish (Mitchell Parrack), and even his landlord (Tim DeLaughter) are all stereotypes, personas seemingly included to relieve the audience of the dreary atmosphere despite the fact that they don’t blend with it. The acting across the board is poor, each actor trying too hard with their character, though the majority of the audience seemed to eat up the presented absurdity.



The movie is lacking a good editor. Scenes drag on for far longer than they should. At one point, Wes is seen playing for bartender Roxanna (Roxanna Redfoot), who works at the bar he plays for at the film’s start. The pair are alone in a large room. As Wes plays, Roxanna picks up a nearby hula-hoop and begins dancing along. The song ends and the two chat a bit before Wes leaves. Instead of ending the scene after Wes’s exit, the shot lingers, hovering long enough to show Roxanna once again start dancing around with the hula-hoop. Why? And why would there randomly be a hula-hoop in this room? The scene adds nothing to the story.



That seems to be the case for many of the scenes in Jordan’s film, left in to lengthen the work. There are too many subplots that go nowhere and add nothing. Later in the movie, Wes is seen cleaning out a dilapidated building, shoveling up mounds of dirt. Why is he doing this? The scene ultimately serves no purpose. To make matters worse, the same footage is shown again from a different angle. This is just one example of a long line of baffling choices in this feature.



Everyone in Wes’s life, besides his ex, repeatedly tells him how great he is. He’s repeatedly told that he has a gift that he needs to share with the world. It’s 2019, why doesn’t he have a YouTube channel. It’s hard to believe he’s tried that hard to be discovered or to share his work. To put it bluntly, “This World Won’t Break” is a self-indulgent melodrama. Running nearly two and a half hours, Jordan’s work is a film that is mostly a grueling endurance test. There’s not much being said throughout the work, other than trite phrases attempting to make the characters seem deep or clever. The runtime is bolstered by Schroeder performing many musical numbers with each of them bringing the movie to a grinding halt.



Jordan’s film lacks a good rhythm, needlessly floundering along for far longer than it should, though I’m not sure a tighter, shorter edit would have allowed this one to play better.
(Review by Bret Oswald)

NTXFF - Jhalki

Jhalki, the lead character of co-directors Brahmanand S. Singh and Tanvi Jain’s film “Jhalki,” lives in a small village in India. A man from the city frequently visits the village. He’s charming and friendly but, as viewers will be quick to notice, there’s something off about him. He tells the villagers about their children, who he has previously taken to the city, offering them money or presents that he claims their kids have sent them. Then, we see one of the parents offering their child to him, telling him that their son needs a job. The boy is young and scrawny, hardly old enough to be working. The man is a human-trafficker, buying the children from the villagers and selling them to warehouses in the city.



While their father is in the hospital, Jhalki’s brother Babu is taken. She follows, hoping to keep him out of harm’s way and bring him home. But, Jhalki is young and naïve and before she knows it, she’s tricked into going to get her brother something to eat. In the blink of an eye, he is gone. Unsure of where she is, or where she came from, Jhalki fearlessly wanders around the city in search of Babu, thwarted in her search by people who refuse to come to her aid.



Singh and Jain weave a tale about a sparrow and a lost grain throughout the movie. In that story, a sparrow accidentally drops a piece of grain into a hollow tree branch then goes around demanding everyone help her recover it so that she can take it home to feed her babies. The constantly repeated parable, obviously meant to represent the film’s lead character and her search for her lost brother, soon grows irritatingly familiar. To add further irritation, the story is offered in fragments. The beginning of the film introduces the first part of the parable but the end isn’t revealed until the film’s final moments. Each time the story is told, Singh and Jain repeat the beginning. Near the movie’s end, it’s revealed that an elephant will come to her aid.



The comparison is quick to grasp yet the sparrow’s story feels frustratingly incompatible with Jhalki’s search. The more the audience hears the sparrow’s story, meant to illustrate how the actions of one can influence others, the more it sounds like the sparrow is just belligerent. Wouldn’t it have been easier for her to find another grain rather than continually pester everyone else to get this tiny morsel out of the tree? The grain and Babu are incomparable. A human life can’t be compared to a bit of food.



That’s not the only problem with “Jhalki.” The actors frequently seem like they are trying too hard, never totally convincing in their performances. While the young girl who plays Jhalki is believable in her portrayal of the character’s forceful veracity, in some scenes it seems like she’s trying hard not to laugh. The adult performers are better but still not satisfactory.



“Jhalki” also has the feel of the direct-to-video output from the 90s. Shot composition is frequently pleasing but the film has a distracting shot on video look. Worst of all is the film’s soundtrack, which gives the movie an overly cheesy after school special vibe. The directors have a compelling and timely story to tell here, it’s just not well executed. “Jhalki” is worth a watch but isn’t a particularly good film.
(Review by Bret Oswald)

NTXFF - Dolemite is My Name

Director Craig Brewer’s biopic, “Dolemite is My Name,” is a rather straight-forward biography story. While Brewer’s film may not be a fresh take on the genre, it does offer something that many movies lack – an uproarious energy that parallels its subjects’ spirit.



“Dolemite is My Name” tells of the rise of Rudy Ray Moore (Eddie Murphy), who works as an assistant manager at a record store when the movie starts. He’s a man who’s been bitten by the celebrity bug, currently moonlighting as an emcee at a night club, but lacks the talent to get noticed. That is until he gets some inspiration. When a bum comes into the store, spouting out rhymes, Rudy gets the idea to create a character based on the homeless population’s tales and their delivery of them. The end result is his famous character Dolemite.



Murphy is perfect in the role, giving his performance a manic energy that finely parallels the desperation of Moore, washed up before ever being given a chance. But the birth of Dolemite is just the start of Rudy’s journey. Rudy works on exploiting the popularity of his new character, recording a party record and selling it out of his truck. Before he knows it, he’s caught the eye of a record label, leading to more success. But it’s not until he and some friends go to a screening of Billy Wilder’s remake of “The Front Page,” raved as being the “it” comedy to see by critics but not even eliciting a chuckle from his group, that Rudy decides to use the character to make the type of movie he wants to see.



The creation of the “Dolemite” movie is the main focus of Brewer’s film. Moore is shown to be a hustler, a smooth-talker who works his tail off to get his work off the ground. If he was working hard before – trying to make it as a singer, then as a stand-up comic – he’s working even harder now. Hiring friends to start off his crew – singer Ben Taylor (Craig Robinson), comedy protégé Lady Reed (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), and cashier Theodore (Tituss Burgess) – before wooing talent from outside his immediate circle – writer Jerry Jones (Keegan-Michael Key) and actor D’Urville Martin (Wesley Snipes), famous to the group for being the elevator operator in “Rosemary’s Baby,” who jumps at the chance to direct the movie. Snipes nearly steals the movie away from Murphy with his over-the-top performance as the hoity-toity actor too good for Moore’s film. He presents Martin as an actor who’s slumming it in order to get a chance at directing.



There’s an infectious energy present as Rudy and his ragtag group of filmmakers work to create their ideal motion picture, making the film with the people they know around the neighborhood as their target audience. As Rudy puts it leaving “The Front Page,” “film critics don’t know how to have fun.” Brewer’s movie is fun, an absolute blast to watch. It does flounder a bit in areas – the problems that arise during production are a little too quickly solved and Moore’s editing and compiling of a final cut of “Dolemite” is completely ignored – but it makes up for its discrepancies with its breakneck pacing. In addition, the jokes fly at the audience at a steady rate, not a problem in itself, but this causes the slower spots to stand out more.



The biggest issue with this movie is that, for those of us who haven’t seen “Dolemite,” it spoils many of the gags from that film. It would probably be better to view Moore’s movie before viewing Brewer’s. If you don’t care about having another work spoiled, or have no desire to see it (you might after watching this), “Dolemite is My Name” plays perfectly fine without any homework. It’s distributed by Netflix so there’s no reason this shouldn’t become a familiar title.
(Review by Bret Oswald)