Austin Top 5 4/17-4/24

Austin is a unique and exciting city for cinema, and as such there’s lots of films and cinema-related events to choose from. These weekly posts will cut through the mainstream releases to highlight the Top 5 cinematic events to check out each week

Tough Guy Cinema: BAYMAGEDDON!

Are you ready to have your eyeballs melted off by the most vulgarly masculine and American movies ever? Then come to the Alamo Drafthouse Ritz this Sunday for the one night only event, BAYMAGEDDON! Screening ten hours of Michael Bay movies, three of which will be in 35mm, and none of which will be Transformers, it’s the most insane event Tough Guy Cinema has ever programmed, concluding with a early screening of Bay’s newest film, Pain and Gain, and serving manly food and drink specials to get your juices flowing!
Alamo Drafthouse Ritz, Sunday, April 21^st, 2pm

Big Screen Classics: The Shining

 Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece of terror may be under the microscope now by conspiracy theorists in Room 237, but that doesn’t take away from the sheer visceral power of his nightmarish film. Notoriously hated by Stephen King, author of the novel it was based on, and famous for Jack Nicholson’s iconic descent into madness, the film is a classic in every way, and deserves to be seen on the big screen again.

Alamo Drafthouse Slaughter Ln, April 20^th-22^nd

Drive with composer Cliff Martinez

 Drive is already regarded as a modern classic in many corners, and with good reason. A slick, brutal, and beautiful ode to 80s crime movies with a distinct European sensibility, it’s something to behold. It also has one of the coolest soundtracks in recent memory, fueled by an ambient and propulsive score by Cliff Martinez. Martinez will be doing a Q&A at the screening. Also, just seeing Drive in a theatre again is worth it.

Alamo Drafthouse Ritz, April 22^nd

Upstream Color comes to Austin

 After a decade of silence, Shane Carruth is finally ready to unveil his follow-up to Primer. A twisty and mind-bending film that is impossible to describe in words, there’s really no way to convince you to see the film without saying that you just have to see it. So you should probably do that.

Alamo Drafthouse Slaughter Ln and Violet Crown Cinema, starting April 19^th

Oblivion opening weekend

 Joseph Kosinski’s follow-up to TRON: Legacy opens this weekend. A stunningly realized sci-fi film, it’s a visual and sonic experience with another all-in performance from Tom Cruise, one worth seeing on the biggest and brightest screen possible.

Opens April 19th

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What are you watching in Austin this week?