Top Drafthouse Picks

For March, the Alamo Drafthouse offers new releases, feasts, and events. Oh, andalso a brand, spankin-new location

Joe Olivieri

The month of March has arrived, meaning that Austinites will soon be free of the oppressive winter doldrums that Central Texans have to suffer through. As temperate weather prevails, we will all start heading to the park and bike trails once again.

Unless, of course, you have severe seasonal allergies, in which case you’ll rue all of this floral fecundity and stick with indoor activities. Our local Alamo Drafthouses seem like good places to avoid the oncoming pollen onslaught, and not only are there plenty of new events to check out as usual, we will all soon witness the blossoming of the newest Drafthouse theater meant for our collective entertainment pleasures.

Alamo Drafthouse Slaughter Lane Opening Events

Via the official site’s blog, Drafthouse fanatics have been continually receiving glimpses of the slow birth of the newest Drafthouse theater located near Slaughter Lane and MoPac. It seems as if we’ve had to wait forever for this movie palace to be built and completed, but like the upcoming Avengers movie all of that waiting will soon pay off in a big way.

Doors will open to the public on March 8 with a limited selection of screenings to help the new staff get in the groove of things before the big extravaganza kicks off on March 22 with a week of kickass events.

Slaughter Lane will be offering up quite a smorgasbord of both classic and brand new events to help patrons settle into the sleek, eight-screen venue. If you want to stuff yourself, the Spaghetti Western Dinner accompanying The Good, the Bad and the Ugly screening on opening night should do the trick. This feast has hearkens back to the early days of the Drafthouse, and serves as a perfect way to christen the new locale.

You can even brave an epic film screening and feast with the return of the Lord of the Rings Hobbit Trilogy Feast, a 12-hour marathon of the extended-cut trilogy and a seven-course feast served at proper Hobbit meal times (try not to pass out before you even get to elevensies). The first month’s schedule is pretty stacked for Slaughter Lane, so it might be best to browse through the calendar and find the best film to help become better acquainted with the new theater.

Master Pancake: Lifeguard

Master Pancake Theater is known for taking aim at big Hollywood blockbusters and mocking away at them with guns a-blazin’. They will, of course, continue that trend with shows devoted to the Sex and the City movie, but for one night only they will dig a little deeper into the American film canon for some fresh meat.

That target will be the 1976 film Lifeguard, a rather groovy film set on a SoCal beach where a young, but still magnificently mustachioed Sam Elliott much choose between the freedom of his lifesaving job or settling down as a Porsche salesman. If that’s not enough to convince you, the Pancake crew promises a very special guest to the screening who won’t be named until the day of the screening.

Broadway Brunch: My Fair Lady

A brand new event series launching this month, Broadway Brunch will work from a very simple formula — brunch combined with musicals equals a dandy time had by all.

So why not launch the series with perhaps the most loverly musical of them all? While you’re watching Prof. Henry Higgins grow accustomed to the face of Eliza Doolittle, you can spend your time munching on some delightful brunch foods, although I can’t guarantee if there will be lots of chocolate for you to eat.

Battle Royale

I don’t want to join the large online clique of critics who are painting the soon to be released movie adaptation of The Hunger Games as a blatant rip off of this controversial Japanese cult hit. At the same time, fans of the books should take a chance to see this film just for the sake of comparing and contrasting how the two films approach the shared genre of dystopian gladiatorial games.

Released in 2000, the film (also based on a popular novel) received a flurry of public condemnations for its bloody portrayal of students forced to kill each other until only one remains. Most Americans have only seen it through bootleg channels, but now you can see it during a rare domestic distribution this month at the Drafthouse (including an appropriate run at Slaughter Lane).

Along with these unique events, the Drafthouse will open some fun new releases to be enjoyed by all. The most exciting of these will be the theatrical release of The FP, a dystopian film where turf wars are raged in the deadly world of competitive dance-fight video game “Beat-Beat Revolution”. The FP has been gaining a following amongst genre film fans and promises to be a blast when it gets its Drafthouse-wide release.

And if you love films that honor the culinary arts, Jiro Dreams of Sushishould be a must see, as it follows the life of the world’s greatest sushi chef.

For the full list of Drafthouse events, check out their online calendar or March guide and find your own perfect way to welcome spring back to Austin.

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No. 1 Again

Older UT Longhorns reminisce as team is back on top after 16 years

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The Longhorns have seen a lot and emerged victorious.

The Texas Longhorns returned to class Monday as the No. 1 team in the country for the first time in 16 years and with college football buzzing about hotshot backup quarterback Arch Manning, who could very well be leading the team for another game or two.

And while several Longhorns noted that national championships are won in January and not September, the older players admit they like seeing that No. 1 next to the iconic Longhorn logo.

It was just four seasons ago that Texas was 5-7.

“It's huge for people who grew up Texas fans,” senior tight end Gunnar Helm said. “To be the team to bring us back to No. 1 is an honor.”

There have been some struggles getting there.

Texas (3-0) was last ranked No. 1 over a three-week stretch of the 2008 season. The Longhorns were No. 2 in 2009 after losing that season's the national championship game. Those two years ended a decade-long stretch of 10-win seasons that included the 2005 national title.

Then came five losing seasons, and eight more with four or more losses. “Texas is back!” memes mocked the Longhorns on social media. Texas did not win another Big 12 title until 2023, it's last season in the league.

And that 5-7 finish season in 2021, coach Steve Sarkisian's first in Austin, is still raw for the many on the current roster.

Being No. 1 "means a good bit to me because I've been 5-7,” senior center Jake Majors said. “I've been through that hardship.”

Sarkisian has been an assistant at two programs that were No. 1 at USC and Alabama. He'll take the No. 1 ranking, but immediately pointed Monday to the bigger picture in the new era of the College Football Playoff.

Texas earned its first berth in the CFP last season and lost to Washington in the national semifinals.

“Back in the day, the polls were huge because the polls dictated who got to play for, and also who won a national championship. Nowadays, you have to go earn it,” Sarkisian said. “I think it's good to show what we're capable of, but we're going to have to go earn this thing. The mission is far, far from over.”

Junior safety Michael Taaffe insisted the Longhorns are focused on the finish, not the ranking in late September after three games. The goal is to be like the Texas undisputed national champions of 1963, 1969 and 2005.

“If we just settle right now, we’re not going to be legendary,” Taaffe said. “Our goal is to be legendary.”

The other buzz about Texas is all about Manning.

Starting quarterback Quinn Ewers had garnered attention as a Heisman Trophy contender after leading Texas to a big road win at Michigan, then had to leave the game against UTSA in the second quarter with a non-contact abdominal strain.

That opened the door for a nearly flawless performance from Manning in front of 100,000 fans and a national television audience on ESPN. The former five-star recruit from the famous football family delivered four passing touchdowns and a 67-yard TD run in a 56-7 rout.

Manning is the son of Cooper Manning, the grandson of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning, and the nephew of Super Bowl-winning QBs Peyton and Eli Manning.

Texas was expected to easily beat UTSA, but Manning was so sharp in his big moment that he helped the Longhorns snatch national attention and headlines the same night previous-No. 1 Georgia was in a struggle to beat Kentucky.

Then came the Longhorn leap to No. 1.

Manning would seem likely to get his first career start this week against Louisiana-Monroe (2-0) but Sarkisian would only call Ewers “questionable” for the game.

Texas starts its first SEC schedule against Mississippi State on Sept. 28. Ewers missed several games over the previous two seasons with shoulder and sternum injuries.

Sarkisian said he does not need to do anything special to address the growing national interest in Manning, his budding celebrity and its potential impact on the team, or Ewers, a third-year starter.

“I don't do anything. Arch is just another guy on our team,” Sarkisian said. “And the reason I'm able to do that is because that's who Arch is every day. Arch is a selfless teammate. He cares about the guys on the team, cares about Quinn.”

Manning did not meet with the media on Monday. After the game Saturday night, Manning called Ewers one of his best friends on the team.

“I’ve just learned so much from him,” Manning said. “He’s been the man to me, and I hope he’s OK.”

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