The Screening Room

So, I set out on Tuesday after work with my Iron Man screening pass in hand with what I thought was more than enough time to park the car, get through any line there might be, and find a decent seat at Cinemark Movies 17 on Webb Chapel Road in Dallas. Well, you know what they say about best-laid plans and such ... Anyway, I get dropped off at 6:30 p.m., a whole hour before the screening's scheduled start, and make my way through the gaggle of people in front of the theater, thinking, "I've done this before; I know where to go." Well, before I could pull the pass all the way out of my purse, the doorkeeper (though she was standing at a table) said, "No."

A live broadcast from quirky public radio show This American Life will be onscreen on Thursday (May 1) at more than 300 movie theaters, including 11 locations in the D-FW area. My favorite thing from the press release? It'll feature two Wisconsin convicts who "gain local fame for almost escaping from prison using dental floss."

Click here to find a theater near you. For tickets to get your Ira Glass fix, go here.

What does winning the Audience Choice Award at Texas Frightmare Weekend get you these days? A nice little run at the five local Studio Movie Grills. Dallas filmmaker Anthony Brownrigg picked up a small distributor, Kurv Entertainment, for his dark comedy Red Victoria, and now he's looking to gauge further audience interest. The screenings run May 4-8, at the various SMGs, and, glory be, they're free. Get all the info at the official Website here.

On your marks. Get set. Shoot. It's time for another 24-Hour Video Race, sponsored by the Video Association of Dallas. Peep the official press release below for all the details on how to spend a sleepless night making movies.

Just got off the phone with the great William Fraker, cinematographer of classics such as Bullitt and Rosemary's Baby. He'll be in Dallas next Thursday when the USA Film Festival presents a 40th-anniversary screening of Rosemary. We'll have a feature on Fraker this Sunday at Guidelive.com.

One theme that emerged a few times during our conversation: the art of concealing rather than revealing. Rosemary's Baby is a classic example in that you never actually see the baby - yet it's still my favorite horror film. "He has his father's eyes." Gives me chills just thinking about it. If you haven't seen it, do yourself a favor and take advantage of this rare big-screen opportunity.

If you were planning your spring schedule around the USA Film Festival - hey, it's possible - please take note: the dates have been changed from April 24-May 1 to April 21-27. Maybe they decided they wanted to be closer to AFI-Dallas (which runs March 27-April 6), or at least steal some thunder with an announcment. Maybe they just wanted to avoid any conflict with potential May Day celebrations. In any case, them's the new dates.

Wanna see Academy Award winner Olympia Dukakis when she hits town Thursday to speak at the Nasher Salon? I've got your hookup. The first two people to e-mail me with OLYMPIA in the subject line will win a pair of tickets to the sold out event, which begins at 7 p.m. A screening of Moonstruck will follow. Shoot me that e-mail at sbecker@dallasnews.com.

The AFI Dallas International Film Festival has announced a pair of new awards that come with hefty prizes. The winner of the MPS Studios Texas Filmmaker Award will get $20,000 in cash, goods and services. The winner of the Current Energy’s Earth Friendly Award, for films and filmmakers that communicate the importance of environmental sustainability through the art of film, will get $10,000.

The festival will run March 27 – April 6, with the awards ceremony taking place on Sunday, April 6 at the W Hotel. Other awards include the $25,000 Target Filmmaker Awards for Best Narrative Feature and Best Documentary, the $10,000 HDNet Award for the best film shot in HD, and audience awards in the Narrative Feature, Documentary and Short Film categories. For more info on the fest visit www.afidallas.com.

Don’t feel like watching the Oscars from your couch on Sunday? Then head over to the Angelika Film Center (5321 E. Mockingbird Lane in Dallas) to watch the Academy Awards on the big screen. The free event begins at 6 p.m. and will feature some special giveaways. Might want to get there early, though, as seating is first come first served.

Harold and Kumar, the Rolling Stones and Helen Hunt: that's how the SXSW Film Festival will roll next month. The full lineup for SX 2008, running March 7-15, has been announced. Here's some stuff we're looking forward to.

If you live near Plano and you dig on Oscar-winning epics, here's an event for you. The Angelika Plano continues its series of classic Oscar favorites every Thursday night at 7:30 for the next month. The fun starts Tomorrow night with Lawrence of Arabia. Feb. 7 brings All About Eve, followed by Gone With the Wind (Feb. 14, good Valentine's Day date) and Ben Hur (wager on chariot race, Feb. 21). Tickets are nine clams. Get 'em here.

It's 40 years old, it's black and white, and it's scarier than Britney on bender. We speak of Night of the Living Dead , the original 1968 zombiefest that's heading to the Inwood for a one-night stand Feb. 21.

Tekken, the film adaptation of the popular video game, will hold a casting call on Sunday in Dallas. The film is looking for extras 18 and older of Japanese ancestry to work on the production, which will shoot in Shreveport in February. If you fit the bill, stop by the Embassy Suites Hotel, 3880 W. Northwest Highway, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. If you get picked, you’ll earn $200 a day plus hotel room. For more info, go to www.gloriosocasting.com.

Local members of the Screen Actors Guild will host a SAG Awards watching party, and you’re invited. The event will be held Sunday at 6:30 p.m. at the Dallas Angelika, 5321 E. Mockingbird Lane. Mitch Carr of 98.7 KLUV will MC the event that will feature local celebs, contests and door prizes. Tickets are $10; proceeds benefit the Texas Motion Picture Alliance.

Usually I would be blogging from the Sundance Film Festival right about now. Not this year. And I gotta say, I'm fine with being home.

I've made the trip the last nine years, and have enjoyed it immensely (despite my tendency to get a cold every other year, kind of like the way the Spurs win NBA titles). But lodging gets more costly every time - more attendees + ski hamlet that can't hold everyone = high prices - and this year my usual roommate decided not to go either. Plus, I've often wondered how much value the trip is to the paper, and to my time as a critic. Example: One of my favorite films from last year's fest, Grace is Gone, opens here next week - a mere 11 months after the fact. It even picked up a new Clint Eastwood score along the way.

I'll be at SXSW in March, and I may very well return to snowy, cold as a (fill in your witch's anatomy part) Utah in 2009. But this year I'm more than happy to sleep in my own bed.

We're all for intelligent movie talk here at the Screening Room. Sometimes we even provide it. So this announcement from the Dallas Institute of Humanities and Culture was met with a figurative thumbs up: The Institute will host a monthly discussion on current films with a critic or professor every first Monday of the next four months (that's Feb. 4, March 3, April 7 and May 5 if you're scoring at home, or even if you're alone). The action runs from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuition is $80 for members, $90 for nonmembers and $25 for teachers.

The 2nd annual AFI-Dallas International Film Festival is right around the corner (March 27-April 6). Want to get involved and have access to screenings-a-plenty? Become a volunteer. Click here to find out how.

To get some pub for the release of The Simpsons Movie on DVD Tuesday, teams of Simpson elves will be handing out free yellow Simpsons’ Santa hats at an area mall on Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. Which mall, you ask? It’s supposed to be a secret, but the clue from Fox is “a mall closest to the ‘North’ pole.” Our advice — maybe you should go ‘Park’ there.

It was a touchstone of '80s pop culture (for better of worse), and now Urban Cowboy will earn a spot in the Texas Film Hall of Fame. Debra Winger will accept the honors March 7 in Austin. Other new HOF inductees include El Paso native Thomas Haden Church and Jayne Mansfield (hubba hubba), whose daughter, Law and Order: SVU star Mariska Hargitay, will accept on her behalf.

Now in its ninth year, The Vistas Film Festival has shown itself to be an increasingly well-orgainzed and creatively programmed showcase for Latino film. This year's installment runs Wednesday through at the Angelika, kicking off tomorrow night with El Benny (based on the life of Cuban singer Benny Moré. Look for more coverage in Wednesday's Guide Live.

Javier Bardem has a gas with Old Men (Miramax)

Feel free to ask any questions about the largest fest in North America, which also happens to be a heck of a good time in bustling, friendly city (think of it as a clean New York). In the mean time, here are a few highlights from the most recently annouced titles:

The Walker: Paul Schrader directs Woody Harrelson as a well-heeled man about town for hire in Washington, D.C.

Man From Plains: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter will be in town for Jonathan Demme's doc about the former president.

Redacted: Brian de Palma goes to Iraq in search of the Black Dahlia. OK, everything is true except the Black Dahlia part.

Previously announced fest titles include the Coen Bros. No Country for Old Men (shot partially in Marfa); Michael Clayton, starring George Clooney as a lawyer who grows a conscience; and Ang Lee's Lust, Caution. We could keep going, but with 349 films it might take a while. We'll touch the ground opening day, Sept. 6. Look for frequent and dazzling dispatches here in the Screening Room.

Yes, I've been away from my post, taking in the awesome sights and hairpin turns of Highway 1 in California. It's a drive everyone should make before they die (and keep your eyes on the road or you might die before you actually finish the drive).

Speaking of finishing, I just visited with Justin Lin. He's the director of the new comedy Finishing the Game, a mockumentary about the quest to find a replacement for Bruce Lee after Lee died during the shooting of Game of Death. It kicks off the 6th annual Asian Film Festival of Dallas 7 p.m. Thursday at the Magnolia.

Lin has played the indie/Hollywood shuffle the last few years, following up the Asian stereotype-busting Better Luck Tomorrow with a pair of big action flicks, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift and Annapolis. He's been around the block, and he wonders how much things have really changed for Asians in film since the days when Lee was launching his spin kicks.

"The only time Asian-American actors usually get to show up is when the script says 'Asian,'" he says. "I know how talented and versatile my actors are, and they sound as American as anyone. But when they go read for a part they have to do fake Asian accents. Color blind casting is still very rare."

Look for more on Lin and the festival Thursday at guidelive.com.

I will be introducing Francois Truffaut's 1959 New Wave classic The 400 Blows (or Les Quatre Cents Coups, for you French speakers) tonight at 8 at the Fort Worth Museum of Modern Art. The screening is part of the museum's Magnolia at the Modern tribute to Janus Films, the distributor that was responsible for bringing seemingly every important art film of the '50s and '60s to America. (Janus also gave birth to the Criterion Collection , which carries the same high standards over to the DVD age).

Why should you see The 400 Blows? It's an indelible mix of tenderness and anger and one of the best films ever made about being young in a world of hypocritical adults. It has some divinely liberated and lyrical camera work. Plus, I'll be there. What more could you want? Other than me not being there?