I realize this is late notice, but I wanted to quickly mention that Eagle Pennell's little-seen classic Last Night At The Alamo will be shown on IFC tomorrow, which is Friday, January 9, 2009, at 5:30 central/6:30 eastern.
I've sure as hell never seen it. Since I live in Austin, TX, this has been a source of shame for me.
Here's what Jen Scoville says in The Texas Monthly:
With more cussing in the first five minutes (and throughout the film) than you can shake a stick at, this one offers an authentic insight into culture of the Texas barroom. Texas Chainsaw Massacre scribe Kim Henkel again puts a darkly comedic spin on a terrifying subject -- a group of drunk, potty-mouthed good ol' boys trying to keep their favorite Houston watering hole, the Alamo, from closing down. These realistic urban cowboys are colorful to say the least, and for such a low-budget enterprise, the acting is uniform and the black-and-white camera work dramatic.
Here's an interview with stars Lou Perryman and Sonny Carl Davis in the Austin Chronicle:
Austin Chronicle: Your characters in Pennell's films have such an easy, utterly convincing rapport. Was that there to begin with, or did it emerge as the two of you became friends in real life?
Lou Perryman: He had an ugly-ass mustache when I first met him [on "Hell of a Note"]; I remember that much.
Sonny Carl Davis: The rapport grew, I think, because as remains true with acting to this day, there's a feeling-out period, a "can you trust this guy?" period at the beginning of every film. There's power struggles. It can be a battleground or a lovefest.
Here's an utterly delightful interview with those same guys in the AV Club:
AVC: Lou, what made you decide you were done with acting?
LP: My political beliefs. My spiritual beliefs. It's all trash. And Chuck Norris, I'd flush that cocksucker down the toilet. What a pussy motherfucker. What a fucking cunt.
SCD: You rolling tape on this?
AVC: Yep.
LP: He's a pussy! Fuck Chuck Norris. I regret being in any of that goddamn Walker, Texas Ranger shit. Motherfucker couldn't act his way out of a rubber. Jesus, he's fucking terrible. People buy that as a Texas Ranger? A guy that's 5'5"? For God's fucking sake. And so much of it is just tawdry. Part of it, too, is my depressive mentality, and being frustrated. I thought I had plenty to offer. I went through the grandiosity of believing I was really good—and I was good at times.
And here's our very own Scott Von Doviak on the movie:
Eagle Pennell may be the most important independent filmmaker you’ve probably never heard of. His movies aren’t easy to see; search Amazon.com for his 1984 feature Last Night at the Alamo and you’ll find one used VHS copy available for $44.99. You won’t find his last film, Doc’s Full Service, at all. His first feature, 1979’s The Whole Shootin’ Match, has recently been restored, however, and a DVD should be available soon. And while Shootin’ Match may not be his best effort (I’d vote for Alamo), it is his most important in the grand scheme of things because of who saw it when.
So, yeah. Watch it.
---
I also wanted to take a second to say that I can't continue this column the way I was doing it. It takes too much time to research and write every week and then I have no time for other work. What I'm going to do from here on is try to identify worthwhile movies, maybe 3 a week, a few days in advance, so I can post that they're coming on. I hope that works for everyone; let me know in comments if you have any better ideas.