TerrorTuesday

The Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas is something of a Mecca for movie geeks. In addition to first-run theatrical fare, the Drafthouse regularly showcases cult, foreign, and classic films. For the last four years, Alamo programmer Zack Carlson has hosted a late-night horror movie celebration called Terror Tuesday and if you are a lover of horror, both esoterically brilliantly and obscurely awful, this night was invented just for you.

So I decided, since I am already a fixture at the Drafthouse, despite their best efforts to get rid of me, why not provide coverage for this weekly treat? The Terror Tuesday Report will dissect the movie shown as well as provide a barometer for the audience's reaction; as many of these films demand to be seen with an audience, this proves a vital component to the evening.

This week's film: Burial Ground.

The Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas is something of a Mecca for movie geeks. In addition to first-run theatrical fare, the Drafthouse regularly showcases cult, foreign, and classic films. For the last four years, Alamo programmer Zack Carlson has hosted a late-night horror movie celebration called Terror Tuesday and if you are a lover of horror, both esoterically brilliantly and obscurely awful, this night was invented just for you.

So I decided, since I am already a fixture at the Drafthouse, despite their best efforts to get rid of me, why not provide coverage for this weekly treat? The Terror Tuesday Report will dissect the movie shown as well as provide a barometer for the audience's reaction; as many of these films demand to be seen with an audience, this proves a vital component to the evening.

This week's film: The Beast Within.

The Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas is something of a Mecca for movie geeks. In addition to first-run theatrical fare, the Drafthouse regularly showcases cult, foreign, and classic films. Not only that, but they bring you food and beer during the film; satiating each one of your senses. Every Tuesday for the last four years, Alamo programmer Zack Carlson has hosted a late-night horror movie celebration called Terror Tuesday. If you are a lover of horror, both esoterically brilliantly and obscurely awful, Terror Tuesday was invented just for you. So I decided, since I am already a fixture at the Drafthouse, despite their best efforts to get rid of me, why not provide coverage for this weekly treat? The Terror Tuesday Report will dissect the movie shown as well as provide a barometer for the audience reaction to the film; as many of these films demand to be seen with an audience, this proves a vital component to the evening.

This week's film: The Hills Have Eyes.

The Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas is something of a Mecca for movie geeks. In addition to first-run theatrical fare, the Drafthouse regularly showcases cult, foreign, and classic films. For the last four years, Alamo programmer Zack Carlson has hosted a late-night horror movie celebration called Terror Tuesday (it used to be on Thursdays) and if you are a lover of horror, both esoterically brilliantly and obscurely awful, this night was invented just for you.

So I decided, since I am already a fixture at the Drafthouse, despite their best efforts to get rid of me, why not provide coverage for this weekly treat? The Terror Tuesday Report will dissect the movie shown as well as provide a barometer for the audience reaction to the film; as many of these films demand to be seen with an audience, this proves a vital component to the evening.

This week's film: Crawlspace.

Salutations horrorphiles! Well we've spent another Tuesday and that means it is once again time for the Terror Tuesday report. Terror Tuesday, for those new to this segment, is a celebration of crazy, cult horror hosted by the world famous Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas. Every week, master of disaster Zack Carlson bludgeons our senses with some of the rarest, most inexplicable films imaginable...or unimaginable in many cases. The crowd is composed mostly of Drafthouse mainstays and horror film fanatics.

For my part, each week I will breakdown the film shown as well as gage the audience reaction to said film. So far we have narrowly escaped the Gates of Hell and had our eyeballs roundhouse kicked by Raw Force. This week we venture into the world of late 80's sci-fi/horror featuring a staple of the decade: Mr. Dolph Lundgren. Willi survive I Come in Peace? Or will Dolph finally break me?

Often overlooked in the maddening rush of the work week, Tuesday is rapidly toppling the more traditionally-anticipated days to stand as my favorite. This zeal is in no small part due to Austin's Alamo Drafthouse and its cult revival vehicle Terror Tuesday. Each week, this bastion of schlock and awe delivers some of the weirdest, rarest, most unbelievable horror films from all corners of the globe. Since I have the good fortune of living in Austin and regularly attend this weekly congregation of horror buffs, I thought it only appropriate that I cover both the film and the audience reaction for Horror Squad.

This week, we tear into Raw Force from 1982.

Every religion needs its place of worship, but most religions also subscribe to the idea of a holy land. The holy land is a place of immeasurable reverence where the God (or gods) of their people can be honored in a more communal, and more dedicated fashion. Jews go to synagogues, Christians to church, and Muslims to mosques ... and inconveniently all have their holy land in the same place. For horrorphiles like me, the holy land is Austin, TX and our temple is Terror Tuesday at the Alamo Drafthouse.

Every Tuesday night for the past several years, the Alamo Drafthouse has been witness to some of the greatest, the cheesiest, and the schlockiest horror films ever made. In this hallowed theater, these late night forays into madness find joyous purchase no matter what textbook definition of quality they may lack. The high priest of horror in this temple is one Zack Carlson who introduces each movie with the enthusiasm of a carnival barker and an unmatched encyclopedic knowledge. He warms up the crowd with wit and excitement to the point that the crowd can be quite frenzied by the time the reels start spinning. I feel entirely at home in this Mecca of genre love and I have decided to make it my charge to attend as many Terror Tuesdays this year as humanly possible.

Each week I will break down both the film featured and the subsequent audience reaction. For this, the first Terror Tuesday of the year, Zack has chosen Lucio Fulci's Gates of Hell

The fine town of Austin, Texas, has been overwhelmed by horror films! And I have the next batch! But first, a little history: There once was a man called Zack Carlson, and he was hired to help program films for the Alamo Drafthouse movie theater / restaurant / dream factory. One of Zack's projects was the highly popular Terror Thursday, which meant free horror flicks once a week. The terror has now switched to Tuesdays, which certainly makes more sense in an alliterative way, and the price has now skyrocketed from FREE to ... one dollar. (If you'd like to attend a Terror Tuesday screening and you don't have a dollar, just let me know. I've started a scholarship foundation.)

So mainly because I love Zack and the Alamo, but also because horror movies make me happy, I now bring you the next EIGHT WEEKS of Terror Tuesday titles. (Oooh, now there's an alliteration!) Please keep in mind that, yes, most of these films are readily available on DVD, but also that A) that's not the same as a big screen (and the Alamo only uses actual film prints!), B) it's an excuse to get out of the house, you gore-addicted shut-ins, and C) the Alamo has cheese fries that make other places' cheese fries look like yellow poop on rye.

• 7/7 -- Prince of Darkness
• 7/14 -- Deadtime Stories
• 7/21 -- Re-Animator
• 7/28 -- The House on Sorority Row (with Elvira introducing!)
• 8/4 -- Deathdream
• 8/11 -- Killer Klowns from Outer Space
• 8/18 -- Kingdom of the Spiders
• 8/25 -- 976-EVIL

After the jump: Carlson writes rather pithy synopses for the Alamo Guide. Enjoy!