Some people may prefer dry rubs, but on Sunday, May 20, attendees at the second annual Austin Chicken Wing Festival got a heavy helping of wet as they braved heavy rain and wind to pick wings clean and...
After participating in the Austin Chicken Wing Festival last year, Waller Creek Pub House will return for a second go-around on Sunday, May 20 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the festival’s new, larger...
Chicken wings might be the main attraction of the Austin Chicken Wing Festival, but they won’t the only food attendees will find at the event, which takes place this Sunday, May 20th at the The Auguste...
The Austin Chicken Wing Festival returns for its second year after selling out fast in 2017. This time, the festival will ramp up with a larger venue, The Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts, and...
I came to The Daily Texan to review movies. The gig was too good — I went to free screenings, saw the biggest blockbusters before almost everyone else and met some of my favorite celebrities (except...
This Friday, the end begins.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s biggest event yet, “Avengers: Infinity War” is the culmination of a 10-year journey. This might make it a confusing...
Sex is a commodity in “Fifty Shades Freed.”
Gone are the trepidation of first kisses and the smoldering glances hinting at burgeoning romance. Those meaningful elements somehow made “Fifty...
Twenty-seventeen had some heavy hitters at the box office, but 2018 promises to be even more jam-packed with superheroes and sequels — for better or for worse. To help you navigate the busy...
‘The Florida Project’
Sean Baker once again revisits forgotten America in “The Florida Project,” portraying a summer in the life of young Moonee and her unemployable mother....
When most film franchises achieve titanic size, they find themselves enslaved to formula and expectations. The heroes and villains don’t really change because to do so would risk alienating the fans....
Not any movie can make you believe a lady and a frog can fall in love, but “The Shape of Water” does. Thanks to strong writing and direction by Guillermo del Toro, this picture is a stirringly...
Next year, Netflix, Amazon and Hulu will face their toughest battle yet as more streaming services rise to challenge their supremacy.
YouTube, Apple, Facebook and other platforms all appear poised to...
To call “Mudbound” a period piece would do it a disservice. Yes, the film is about two families — one white, one black — who struggle to get by on unforgiving Mississippi farmland...
After spending years in development hell and encountering numerous production setbacks, DC’s “Justice League” finally makes its long-awaited splash on the silver screen. Like Zack Snyder’s...
Agatha Christie’s “Murder on the Orient Express” has been subject to numerous film and television adaptations, but none of them looked as crisp and rich as Kenneth Branagh’s take....
The first season of “Stranger Things” merely dipped into a wider universe, but “Stranger Things 2” dives headfirst into a realm of fascinating monster mythology. Buoyed by excellent...
“All men are created equal,” former vice president Joe Biden once said while quoting an old saying. “And then, a few become firefighters.”
“Only the Brave” brings...
It’s hard for movies about jerks caught in time loops and becoming better people to escape the shadow of “Groundhog Day.” But with enough cleverness and originality, a time loop picture...
Science fiction and noir blend together once again in this incredible sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1982 masterpiece, “Blade Runner.” With Scott’s blessing, Denis Villeneuve carries...
If you had reservations about donating a kidney to get ACL passes, don’t fret! There are plenty of great activities to enjoy during both ACL weekends at a cheaper price. Here are five events that...
Over the last twenty years, Tom Cruise has built an image best described in only two words: Tom Cruise. He rarely disappears too far into a character, bringing his familiar cocky, yet charming, persona...
Cliff Butler, the pastry chef at Dobie Twenty21 Student Spaces, serves hundreds of students a day. Starting next Monday, Butler will serve up not only sweet treats, but also large helpings of entertainment...
Cliff Butler, the pastry chef at Dobie Twenty21 Student Spaces, serves hundreds of students a day. Starting next Monday, Butler will serve up not only sweet treats, but also large helpings of entertainment...
This fall, enter a world of superheroes, monsters, espionage and androids, or travel to planets far, far away with mystical warriors and powerful gods. With only four months left in the year, it’ll...
The 1990 ABC adaptation of Stephen King’s “It” was an enjoyable experience thanks to Tim Curry’s performance as the titular evil clown. Nonetheless, the ABC “It” was...
Summer might be over, but you can keep the fun going by studying up on these classic school-themed movies.
“Back to School”
In this comedy classic, the legendary Rodney Dangerfield plays...
“The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.” These iconic words open Stephen King’s first novel of “The Dark Tower” saga, “The Gunslinger.”...
It’s a cold, cold war in David Leitch’s vision of 1989 Berlin. Hyper-violent spies from the West and East play deadly cat-and-mouse games along streets and inside foreboding buildings. The...
Spider-Man is home at last, and Marvel Studios hasn’t wasted an ounce of his potential in this fun-loving superheroic ode to John Hughes comedies. Director Jon Watts wisely skips the radioactive...
“War for the Planet of the Apes” concludes the best sci-fi trilogy in recent memory. Like 2014’s “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” it’s a dark and foreboding film uninterested...
With the help of motion capture technology that maps his performances to digital characters, Andy Serkis has played the ring-obsessed Gollum, a gentle reimagining of King Kong, the mysterious Supreme Leader...
The nefarious Gru (Steve Carell) and his minions return for another unwarranted sequel in “Despicable Me 3.” This time, Gru discovers his long-lost twin brother, Dru (also played by Carell),...
The nefarious Gru (Steve Carell) and his minions return for another unwarranted sequel in “Despicable Me 3.” This time, Gru discovers his long-lost twin brother, Dru (also played by Carell),...
Zoe Lister-Jones, known for her roles in “New Girl” and “Life in Pieces,” demonstrates her versatility as a leading actress, writer and director with “Band Aid.” It’s...
Out of all the movies under Pixar’s belt, “Cars” least deserved a sequel. Though decent, it lifted its plot straight out of the Michael J. Fox comedy “Doc Hollywood” and simply...
What lurks in the shadows beyond the trees?
Anyone who’s even a little horror savvy will immediately think they know the answer while watching “It Comes at Night.” They’ll recognize...
The first “Guardians of the Galaxy” was a gamble. And yet director and co-writer James Gunn opened the picture with such vigor and wit that he grabbed the attention of moviegoers around the...
Iraq War film “Sand Castle,” to be released on Netflix on April 21, tells the story of an American platoon tasked with repairing an Iraqi village’s water supply. The platoon encounters...
No one could have predicted the fate of “The Fast and the Furious” back in 2001. The franchise started off as a “Point Break” clone before straying off-road to find its identity....
When he’s not teaching math or developing curriculum for the engineering department, UT lecturer Van Herd takes to the sky with the Civil Air Patrol.
CAP is a volunteer reserve that supports the...
Adaptations of beloved franchises are bound to invite criticism from die-hard fans. This year’s live-action “Ghost in the Shell,” based on a Japanese manga and anime series, incited controversy...
The crew of a space vessel comes into contact with a terrifying creature that picks of its members one by one. As the casualties mount, the crew must find a way to kill the organism, or at least prevent...
South by Southwest is drawing to a close, but we're not done yet. Here's what we're checking out today! Follow the blog for updates.
(Update, 2 p.m.): Snoop Dogg, Weldon Angelos,...
Monsters are great metaphors for mankind’s demons. “Gojira” is about nuclear holocaust. “A Monster Calls” is about accepting death. Nacho Vigalondo’s “Colossal”...
On March 6, 2016, electronic music band Major Lazer played a historic concert in Havana, Cuba, before half a million fans. Their performance came at a time in which the United States began seeking to repair...
Writer-director Jason Headley makes a great feature film debut with “A Bad Idea Gone Wrong,” an indie comedy about two friends who manage to bungle an easy robbery job. This light picture owes...
What did I just watch?
That’s the question most people will ask after seeing “The Honor Farm,” a teen horror film that has seems more interested in telling a coming-of-age story than...
Adam Keleman’s debut feature, “Easy Living,” is the kind of movie you want to see at SXSW: an intimate indie picture produced by an up-and-coming filmmaker who isn’t afraid to take...
Update (12 a.m.): Debuting songs from their new LP Feels Like Summer, Weezer performed at Brazos Hall to a packed crowd.
Update (11 a.m.): If even Pharrell Williams was brought to tears by Maggie...
“The Strange Ones” is a slow burn. It’s a moody mystery that withholds as much as it can from us, allowing questions to rack up one after the other before it provides any answers. Viewers...
“Free Fire” stars Sharlto Copley and Armie Hammer and director Ben Wheatley held a press event on Monday at Stunt Ranch, a paintball and outdoor events venue just 17 minutes outside downtown...
The words “so-bad-it’s-good” have become synonymous with “The Room.” Its lead star, writer and director, Tommy Wiseau, is a cinema icon and beloved for his larger-than-life...
(Update: 3:30 p.m.): Apollo 11 astronaut, Buzz Aldrin, and Editor at Large, Jeff Kluger, sat down today for a conversation about everything from the future of human space exploration to holographs.
–Mae...
The “Game of Thrones” cast and crew brought ice and fire to South by Southwest on Sunday afternoon. The HBO series’ panel was hosted by stars Maisie Williams and Sophie Turner and showrunners...
These things make a great car chase: good guys, bad guys, fast rides, close calls and clean getaways.
“Baby Driver” opens with all of these things as its titular character, a getaway driver...
Nick Offerman charmed South by Southwest at a conversation hosted by Nick Kroll on Sunday afternoon. Offerman was at the festival to premiere his new comedy film, “Infinity Baby,” which envisions...
(Update 4:40 p.m.): Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss were joined on their panel by cast Maisie Williams and Sophie Turner. The panel discussed the show’s writing process, what’s...
Since the well-deserved success of the experimental “The Tree of Life,” director Terrence Malick has further pursued an impressionistic approach to film. Instead of developing narratives with...
Update (3:30 p.m.): Rainn Wilson and Justin Baldoni discussed the importance and power of empathy in entertainment media and their respective side projects, the SoulPancake and the Wayfarer.
-Mae Hamilton
Update...
This year’s prestigious South by Southwest Film Festival boasts a huge roster of brave new stories and perspectives. It will be impossible to catch all the films, documentaries and shorts that will...
The South By Southwest Film Festival boasts big names and big stars, but it also allows new talent to shine. Here are four up-and-coming directors geared to impress festivalgoers this year.
Zachary...
“Apocalypse Now” meets kaiju in “Kong: Skull Island,” one of many renditions of the monster ape. While it isn’t a masterpiece like the 1933 original or the 2005 Peter Jackson...
“Table 19” is a second-rate “The Breakfast Club.” The latter moves at a slow, natural pace, allowing its big moments to build off of small and meaningful character interactions....
Jordan Peele is the last person you’d expect to be a master of horror. Yet, this satirist’s creativity finds a perfect home in “Get Out,” which transforms everyday racial tensions...
Atmosphere is an important element of horror movies. If the atmosphere isn’t consistently creepy, then it isn’t good horror. But atmosphere isn’t the most important element — that...
Though far from a masterpiece, “Fifty Shades of Grey” was more colorful than its title suggested. Thanks to artistic director Sam Taylor-Johnson, its attempts to break free from its laughably...
Last year, critics savaged “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” deriding its convoluted story and underwhelming characters, and audience response was mixed. The failure of “Dawn of Justice”...
Good sci-fi films make it easy to suspend disbelief. Bad ones don’t. Take “The Space Between Us,” which asks us to believe NASA would be dumb enough not to check if one of their astronauts...
One of the most universally agreed upon tragic moments in film is when the dog dies. “A Dog’s Purpose” recognized this and hopes to capitalize on the phenomenon, featuring not one but...
M. Night Shyamalan — a name that triggers filmgoers and invites relentless parody. Since “Unbreakable,” his batting average has been much less than stellar, with “The Happening”...
Charles Liu:
“Moonlight”
“Who is you?”
That’s the question Chiron, an African-American boy growing up in Miami, must answer as he comes to terms with his masculinity...
A bale of cocaine worth 7 million euros has been lost by the police on the Irish coast. Two boys decide the only logical plan of action is to seize it for themselves.
The boys are Conor MacSweeney (Alex...
Against all odds, a Japanese movie about a grinning octopus training teenage rejects to become assassins is a poignant ride. Yes, “Assassination Classroom: Graduation” is the absurd second...
“The Greasy Strangler” takes the line between good and bad taste and obliterates it. This is a juvenile and repulsive film that imbues the quirkiness of “Napoleon Dynamite” with...
“A Dark Song” is the kind of horror movie that creeps forward and relishes in its heightening dread. It doesn’t want you to scream or jump. It wants you to get goosebumps, to stare into...
Just as many writers have labored to create the next great American novel, many filmmakers have striven to create the next great American film.
“American Honey” is director Andrea Arnold’s...
Korean and Japanese-language drama “The Handmaiden” is everything that “Fifty Shades of Grey” was not — it’s highly dramatic and uses sex as a springboard for...
Life is supposed to give people lemons. Instead, it gives Natasha (Natalya Pavlenkova) a tail.
Such is the story of the Russian film “Zoology,” a bizarre and sometimes inexplicable fantasy...
“Blair Witch” director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett stopped by the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar to talk about their surprise sequel to “The Blair Witch Project.” The Daily...
“Blair Witch” wasn’t originally thought to be the third “Blair Witch Project” movie.
First advertised as a new property by Adam Wingard titled “The Woods,”...
The 2016 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Tour came to the Austin Film Society on Sunday, but it wasn’t as consistently great as its prestigious nature hyped it up to be.
The showing, which...
January 15, 2009. US Airways Flight 1549 flies through a flock of geese and blows out both engines. Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger (Tom Hanks) turns the aircraft back to La Guardia Airport....
Clint Eastwood may be the quintessential movie cowboy, but he’s also a superb director with a long list of excellent films. With his latest picture, “Sully,” coming out this week, The...
For a movie that has Oscar bait written all over it, “The Light Between Oceans” delivers a surprising amount of substance. Alhough its lavish production design, artsy camera shots and reserved...
With the school year in full swing, it’s time to hit the books again. To help you make this semester a great one, check out a few of these movies to get motivated.
“Rudy”
Rudy Ruettiger...
Director Luke Scott appears to owe a lot to his father, Ridley Scott (“Alien,” “Blade Runner”) with his debut picture, “Morgan.” In the movie, he carries over Ridley’s...
The summer of 2016 shaped up to be an exciting year for tentpole films but wound up one of the most disappointing seasons for blockbusters in recent memory. Most sequels and remakes failed to recapture...
“The Blackcoat’s Daughter” is a slow, drawn-out false start. This is the kind of movie that appears to drive toward something, but due to director Osgood Perkins’ negligence of...
Last Wednesday, director Fede Alvarez visited the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar Boulevard for a screening of his new horror film, “Don’t Breathe.” In the movie, a group of teenage thieves...
“Don’t Breathe” is one deliciously inventive thriller that rarely lets you actually, well, breathe. Director Fede Alvarez crafted a wholly engrossing movie that keeps you on your toes...
While the summer’s films have been largely disappointing, this fall’s upcoming movies may make up for the string of bad releases. Here are five that will be worth checking out.
“The...
The barren plains of West Texas dominate “Hell or High Water.” A devastating recession keeps people living on the fringe. Debt-tackling investment firm ads line every street corner. The environment...
When studios pump out remakes, it’s generally because they want cash. Sometimes, though, there is the rare remake that is necessary, one that improves upon the original. The first “Pete’s...
After a series of missteps right out the gate, the DC Extended Universe is already in trouble. Ironically, it’s now up to a band of comic book villains to save the fledgling superhero series with...
Austin-based director Keith Maitland first learned of the Tower shooting from his seventh-grade Texas history teacher. The topic wasn’t part of the school’s curriculum, but the teacher, a UT...
Crime drama “Hell or High Water” premiered at the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar on Monday, July 25. The film follows two Texas brothers (Chris Pine and Ben Foster) who try to save their family...
It’s been nearly nine years since CIA assassin Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) disappeared at the end of the “The Bourne Ultimatum.” The film was the impressive closing chapter to a superior...
Fifty years have passed since TV audiences were swept into a captivating future of unity and diversity with Gene Roddenberry’s “Star Trek.” Several generations of shows and films have...
This Friday, director Justin Lin’s “Star Trek Beyond” will embark on another adventure with the USS Enterprise just in time for “Star Trek”’s 50th anniversary. Before...
