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Movie Theater To Go On Tour

Posted by samzenpus on from the moving-pictures dept.

ilsie writes "The Austin, TX based Alamo Drafthouse theater is undertaking a massive 6000 mile, 21 day tour across the western United States. They will be screening "12 famous films in their original shooting locations, chosen specifically to intensify the viewing experience," using their 20'x40' inflatable rig."

3 of 112 comments (clear)

  1. They have a history of creative events by lou2ser · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Check out the Photo Archive of past events.

    http://www.originalalamo.com/archives/photoarchive s.html

    They had a Mullet Premiere with free admission if you agreed to get a mullet (http://www.originalalamo.com/archives/mullets2002 /index.html)

    1. Re:They have a history of creative events by Ryan+Amos · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Are you kidding me? The Alamo Drafthouse is legendary (and extremely successful) in Austin, TX. They've recently expanded to Houston and Dallas. Look for them to go national; a movie theater where you can buy beer and pizza for about the same price as soda and popcorn anywhere else will be very successful. Not to mention they are totally willing to throw you the fuck out if you're noisy/talking on your cell. At their all-day Monday matinee showings, they sell $1 sodas and popcorn. On Wednesday nights at midnight at the original location they show free B-movies which you are encouraged to get drunk and heckle.

      In other words, after going to the Alamo, I rarely see movies elsewhere. They survive by selling some pretty decent food (nothing spectacular, but it beats Chilis) for about the same price you'd pay at a normal restaurant, except you get to watch a movie while eating. Pray they open one in your town, the Alamo is run by film buffs for film buffs without that snooty film buff atmosphere.

  2. Bad movie insurance by ajlitt · · Score: 3, Interesting

    In addition to all the wonderful things that others have to say about the Drafthouse, there's one point others may have overlooked. This theater provides ample insurance against having a bad time despite a bad movie.

    First off, they serve excellent food, but more importantly they serve beer. Amazingly, a pint of Guinness costs less there than a large drink at a chain theater.

    If that weren't enough... You know how most theaters will show ad slideshows before the movie? Instead, each theater has a video projector in addition to the film one, and for some time before the movie (over an hour at a special event) they show related and often funny material related to the movie in question.

    Example: I went to see Episode III at the Drafthouse on opening night (well, 12:01am opening day). Not only did I have the option of getting hammered if it turned out to be crap, I was entertained by the pre-movie screening of parts of the Cartoon Network Clone Wars short animations mixed between the likes of excerpts of Turkish Star Wars, Star Crash, various interviews, Mark Hamill's appearance on The Muppet Show, and (possibly worth the price of admission) the Star Wars Thanksgiving Special.