Dungeons & Dragons, Trivia, Comics, and More Recommended Events

Possession

Monday 6, Alamo Lakeline and Village

So everyone knows that scene, right? With Isabelle Adjani in a dress, carrying shopping, and suddenly melting down in a tunnel, screaming and ranting, trying to tear the cosmos apart? Everyone knows it, every modern horror film seems to reference it. Yet, somehow, it never gets less soul-rending, less terrifying. Imitation can never diminish the original. Andrzej Źuławski‘s nightmare of modern psychosexual horror feels like a Lovecraftian summoning, bleeding straight into your soul.   – Richard Whittaker

Candy Mountain

Monday 6 & Wednesday 8, AFS Cinema

A recent biopic on folk music scene strummer Robert Zimmerman calls to mind creative scenes past – always heralded as grittier than today’s more slick and brand-centric landscape. But nostalgia for yesterday’s guitar-wielding heroes isn’t solely the domain of James Mangold’s directorial oeuvre. Nay, nay: In 1987, filmmaker Robert Frank and author Rudy Wurlitzer embarked on their third collaboration with this Sixties-inspired tale. Narratively riffing on real-life experiences Frank and Wurlitzer’s nomadic lifestyles afforded them, the film follows a young musician trying to balance a desire for financial success with his artistic integrity – alongside a cast dotted by cool-guy music tastemakers like Tom Waits, Joe Strummer, and Leon Redbone. Perfect viewing for the January doldrums, especially this new 2K restoration courtesy of Film Movement.   – James Scott

Freddy Got Fingered

Monday 6, Hyperreal Film Club

Fun fact about the astonishing 2001 Tom Green vehicle Freddy Got Fingered: a PG version of the film found on the DVD is only three minutes long. It’s hard to believe they were ever able to fashion a trailer for this thing. But it’s great; it’s art. Basically a $15 million prank on Fox Studios, the plot often gets lost among horse-dong side quests and meandering explorations of daddy issues, but eventually you remember this is about a cartoonist trying to sell his drawings. Or something. It’s a delight to watch Tom Green toe the line and see where he stops short, imagining at what point stuffed shirts like Siskel & Ebert would’ve wanted to storm out of the theatre. Five stars.   – Kat McNevins

Yarn and Yammer

Monday 6, Spicewood Springs Branch Library

If you, like me, enjoy watching hourlong YouTube deep-dives on niche community drama, then a recommendation for the crafting drama channel Emma in the Moment won’t go unappreciated. They’ve covered scraps on r/knitting as well as former TikTok darling the Chunky Boy’s fall from grace – which features an ex-Austinite at the drama’s center! – among many other crafty kurfuffles. This reco is here because at the Austin Public Library’s monthly meetup, you’ll need conversation topics to bandy about among fellow crafters. Knitters, crochet-heads, and fiber freaks are all welcome here – so whether you’ve dying to talk the possible downfall of Joann’s Fabrics or just want to cross needles in a group, this is the place to be.   – James Scott

Tuesday Trivia

Tuesday 7, St. Elmo Brewing Co. at the Yard

Ever since I was but a child, I’ve had a head for useless facts. This made me the prize of any high school quiz team, if only for the pop-culture sections. If you share this miscellaneous misfortune, the best place for you is a bar trivia night. Win friends; impress lovers; and get a prize or two from those fabo folks at Trivia 512 for knowing random whatevers like who Caryn Elaine Johnson is (answer: Whoopi Goldberg) or how to treat jellyfish stings (hint: Do NOT pee on them). Since this Tuesday they’re settling in at St. Elmo brewing, nab brain-fuel at one of the brewery’s three food trucks: Spicy Boys, Patty Palace, and Pueblo Viejo.   – James Scott

Minecraft Meetup

Tuesday 7, Little Walnut Creek Branch Library

Love those chunky cuboid guys who bounce around and lay pickaxes into similarly square-ish rocks? Enjoy building alongside others and appreciating each other’s virtual architecture? Have a piss-poor connection at home that makes hooking up to the interweb a hassle? Why not join Austin Public Library for a day of Minecraft-ery, where they’ve provided the laptops and a chill environment for building, mining, and exploring the netherworld. Feel free to also bring your own equipment, but be careful! You never know when a big blocky spider might crawl into your path...   – James Scott

I Know Who Killed Me

Wednesday 8, Hyperreal Film Club

A vintage of the pre-Christmas movie Lindsay Lohan rebrand, this schlock vehicle didn’t so much shock viewers upon release as made them weary. Like many of its ilk, director Chris Sivertson’s film borrows heavily from Italian slasher subgenre giallo in ways both bad and slightly more bad. However, as has happened for almost every Aughts-era flop, a reappraisal has been launched for Lohan’s dual-identity thriller that continues with Hyperreal’s screening. While Chronicle critic Steve Davis labeled it “a bloody mess, in more than one sense,” HFC programmer Cynthia Muñoz maintains the film offers much to fans of “camp, giallo, or re-examining the toxic way 2000s media treated young women.”   – James Scott

Fresh Start by Gale Galligan

Wednesday 8, BookPeople

Who doesn’t wish for a second first impression? Ollie Herisson – protag of author Gale Galligan’s newest young readers offering – has gotten plenty of tries, as her diplomat father’s work moves the family around the globe constantly. But after her parents decide to settle down in Virginia, Ollie must deal with having had her last first impression – and what comes afterward. In conversation with Austin’s Gabriela Epstein, Galligan hits up BookPeople to chat awkward school memories, making comics, and possibly their many pet rabbits.   – James Scott

Dungeons & Dragons for Teens

Wednesday 8, Millwood Branch Library

It’s never too early to be a huge nerd, so why not tap into that improvisational storytelling instinct during adolescence? Ages 13-18 are invited to take part in a five-session campaign that brings their characters to the astral plane for wild and wacky antics at Spelljammer Academy. Seats are limited, so apply to join only if you’re able to make at least four out of the five sessions. Email [email protected] to register, and happy travels!   – James Scott

Secret Celluloid Mystery Movie

Wednesday 8, Alamo South Lamar

While usual Weird Wednesday programmers Laird Jimenez and Morgan Hyde take a well-deserved breather, the Drafthouse’s freakazoid film night gets shaken up with a mystery movie hosted by cartoonist Rory Blank. Known widely as this year’s Best of Austin Cartoonist/Comic Creator and known nichely as Hot Dog by those who’ve sweated within the late 4th Tap Brewing space during Party World Rasslin’, Blank’s dry humor fits the repertory program’s off-kilter viewing choices. Hints about the night’s film title are thus: It’s only screened in Austin once over the past 20 years, and a remake is on the 2025 box office slate. Happy guessing!   – James Scott

Adaptations Book Club: The Motorcycle Diaries

Wednesday 8, We Luv Video

Debates about which was better, the book or the movie, are my FAVORITE. Sometimes the movie is totally better (Big Fish). Usually the book is the clear winner (Ella Enchanted). And then there are the rarified occasions where both are brilliant (Atonement, The Godfather). Which is my way of saying that a club dedicated to adaptations is genius, but what else would we expect from the We Luv Video team. The Motorcycle Diaries is a great selection. Originally marketed as “Das Kapital meets Easy Rider,” Che Guevara’s actual memoir of his early adulthood explorations of Latin America is a fascinating glimpse into a historical figure. But the film, with its stirring Gustavo Santaolalla score and Gael Garcia Bernal’s soulful Guevara, brings the entire tale to life.   – Cat McCarrey

Magnet Mania!

Wednesday 8, Windsor Park Branch Library

Are we sure we trust magnets? The way they attract or repel depending on their orientation? Seems suspicious. Luckily your kids can get educated on the actual science of magnets before, like us, they get too old and jaded to learn how they work. This workshop for ages 3 and up will exercise critical-thinking and problem-solving skills with some help from magnetic toys and tiles. Just keep an eye on those metal-loving objects; you never know when they might turn on you.   – James Renovitch

YA for Adults: Time and Time Again by Chatham Greenfield

Wednesday 8, Hampton Branch Library at Oak Hill

I suppose you’re never too old for melodrama, which lies at the heart of most young adult novels. Austin Public Library plays into the latest phenomenon of older peeps enjoying teenage tomes by hosting a book club just for y’all. This month’s pick comes from Floridian Chatham Greenfield, whose debut novel follows queer Jewish teens falling in love while stuck in a time loop that threatens their budding romance. Expect a sunny setting and plenty of sweaty situations – because of the Sunshine State’s humidity, obvs.   – James Scott

Rashomon

Wednesday 8 & Friday 10 - Sunday 12, AFS Cinema

Something magical happens after you watch Rashomon. Suddenly, around 80% of pop culture makes way more sense to you. Jokes from The Simpsons and Community finally land. References are clear as day. You might even be emboldened enough by this sudden clarity that you’ll feel the urge to watch movies clearly cribbing from Rashomon’s multiple-perspective structure, like The Usual Suspects or The Last Duel (which is totally worth checking out; it’s probably Ridley Scott’s best movie from the past decade). But even without the sudden cultural cachet, Rashomon is worth the watch. It’s a deserving masterpiece from unequivocal genius Akira Kurosawa, a telling analysis of whether individual memories are actually trustworthy.   – Cat McCarrey

Making Comics

Thursday 9, Terrazas Branch Library

I’ve always said that I’m not an artist, but after reading cartoonist (and Matt Groening contemporary) Lynda Barry’s defense of anyone as able to foster a daily drawing habit, I’ve started reconsidering. It’s a great way to connect to the wild, childlike essence of creativity we mostly grew out of at some point. Comics, in particular, are a fantastic entry point back into unfettered artistic expression. Local illustrator and independent comic creator Adam Kobetich is offering a free workshop teaching the basics of storytelling and panel layout with comic creation. What goes on those panels? Utterly up to you.   – Cat McCarrey

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Want to see all of our listings broken down by day? Go to austinchronicle.com/calendar and see what's happening now or in the coming week.