Marc Savlov already rhapsodized about Danny Boyle here and how he'll be showing his much-buzzed-about (we're talking Oscar) Slumdog Millionaire at the Austin Film Festival. Now comes down the pike the news that AFF – prescient folks they – are going to hand him a trophy now. He'll be receiving the 2008 Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award, which is earmarked for "individuals who have demonstrated an unyielding commitment to outstanding scripts and innovative filmmaking." Slumdog Millionaire premieres at the Paramount on Friday, Oct. 17, at 7:30pm, followed by a screening of Boyle's breakout first feature, Shallow Grave, with Boyle in attendance. He'll accept the award on Saturday, Oct. 18, at a luncheon, followed by a conference panel titled "A Conversation With Danny Boyle." The Austin Film Festival runs Oct. 16-23. Buy your badges – and seriously, buy them now – at austinfilmfestival.com. For those having to tighten the belt a bit, AFF is offering a pretty stellar deal with the $95 Lone Star Badge, which gives you admission to all festival films and to one day of the screenwriting conference (and it's Saturday, the big guns day that you don't want to miss). Read more about the Lone Star Badge here.

Mystery/crime author James Crumley passed away this weekend in Missoula, Montana, according to The New York Times. A native Texan whose papers are archived at Texas State's Southwestern Writers Collection, Crumley is most famous for two separate and enduring book series starring detectives Milo Milodragovitch and C.W. Sughrue. NY Times obit here. Read Jesse Sublett's 2001 profile of Crumley in the Chronicle here.

Fantastic Fest may be winding down, but there's still a lot of life (or rather death, given its gruesome bent) left in it yet. The fest closes Thursday night with City of Ember, but before then you can still catch a few of the newly announced jury and audience award winners. Check out the FF website for remaining showtimes and after the jump for the award winners.

OK, I'm slow to comment on the Longhorns victory over Rice this past weekend. Consider it an homage to Texas, which is perennially late to its own party. But it didn't take the Horns too long this time to wake up down 3-0. Thanks, Colt McCoy. You are the heart and soul of the team. Without you, the Longhorns would be another … Rice. Let's take that in. One stinger in the shoulder and Texas falls apart. OK, that's a bit extreme. Colt doesn't play alone (even though he acts like it). But his arm and those handy catches by his pals Jordan Shipley and Quan Cosby are the only thing that gives hope as the clock ticks down to OU. So let's praise the Colt. It's 62 touchdown passes and counting. (Sorry, Major, maybe you should have taken that Rice coaching job you say they offered you.) He was the leading rusher against Rice with 83 yards on eight carries (the runnerup was Colt's runnerup, the shifty nonpasser John Chiles.) HIS offense racked up 600 yards against Rice. He can eat tin cans and pull kittens from 40-foot trees. He is Superman. Here's hoping no kryptonite shows up anytime soon. We've already seen Blaine Irby drop to the turf and take the tight end out of the game. Stay healthy, Colt. Which begs the question: why doesn't UT run the ball in the early going? Fourth-string tailback Cody Johnson looked like a hoss against Rice. Fourth string? OK, I'm not that worried. Bring on the Razerbacks.

The Texas Supreme Court, without giving a reason why (perhaps because it was so ridiculously obvious) has rejected the lawsuit by Libertarian presidential candidate and former Georgia Republican Congressman Bob Barr attempting to throw Barack Obama and John McCain off the Nov. 4 Texas ballot. “Today’s ruling by the Texas Supreme Court is a win for Democrats, Republicans, Independents and every Texan who wishes to exercise their right to cast a ballot for the candidate of their choice this November," said Texas Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie. UPDATE: Statement from Pat Dixon, the chair of the Libertarian Party of Texas:

We are naturally disappointed that the Supreme Court has refused to enforce the law against Republicans and Democrats in this case, when courts have repeatedly enforced the law against Libertarians, other minor parties, and independents in past cases. Unfortunately, rather than answer questions, the Supreme Court's action raises new questions. To what extent are parties bound by the Texas Election Code? Is there now a grace period for deadlines? How long is the grace period? Does it apply to the Libertarian Party as well as the Republicans and Democrats? Which deadlines should the Libertarian Party ignore? Does the Secretary of State have the power to enforce the law against people she doesn't like, and waive the law for people she does like? Unfortunately, these questions will have to be tested in the future.

Two nights with Thee Ohsees and I'm sore. Pathetic. John Dwyer, however, is probably not. In bands like Pink & Brown and the Coachwhips, the guitarist has never been one to contain himself live. Every time I've seen a band he's a part of, he's always filled to the brim with nervous energy, which makes it look like he's constantly trying to put out a fire. What started as Dwyer's solo project ten years ago has now become a full band, and its pure rock potential has been tapped with one of 2008's sleepers, The Master's Bedroom Is Worth Spending a Night In. Which brought them to Beerland on Sunday. The quartet set up next to the bathroom and with a simple introduction launched in to an hour set. Dwyer's bowl-shaped mop of hair was wringing sweat down his face, making him look a little like an overgrown Eddie Haskell, as he and singer Brigid Dawson yelped in tandem. Guitarist Petey Dammit and animal drummer Mike Shoun are really the band's secret weapon, the rhythmic base that fuels every stomper they play. Last night at Club 1808, the Eastside's delightfully grimy new punk dive, they encountered a few technical difficulties, but it was really the perfect venue for their dirty, collaborative punk catharsis. Check the gallery for color (Sunday) and black & white (Monday).

Austin Congressman Lloyd Doggett, speaking on the House floor today: "A few months ago, President Bush accurately diagnosed the problem he just dumped in the lap of Congress. 'Wall Street got drunk, and now it’s got a hangover,' he said. But Mr. President, you gave them the keys to the liquor cabinet by failing to enforce our laws. And now you’re really demanding that Americans, who didn’t get invited to the party, must pay for everything destroyed in the drunken brawl. "These late night negotiators have not asked the President, 'where do we find $700 billion?' It is time to demand that bailout supporters outline the revenue measures necessary to pay for it. And the place to begin is with those who enriched themselves when Republicans took the cop off the corporate beat. We need an alternative to just raising the credit card limit – an alternative to more irresponsible 'borrow and spend' from a President, who has already borrowed more from foreigners than all previous Presidents in American history put together and who continues to mortgage America’s future."

The Austin American-Statesman is reporting that Congressman Michael McCaul has turned down their attempt to organize a debate between him and his challengers for the District 10 seat, Democrat Larry Joe Doherty and Libertarian Matt Finkel. The McCaul campaign "could not immediately say what the exact scheduling conflicts were," writes Statesman reporter Jason Embry. District 10 stretches from West Lake Hills and the exclusive, gated Lake Austin neighborhood where McCaul lives, through north Austin and Pflugerville, and then all the way to the suburbs of Houston. UPDATE: Statement from Doherty: "At a time when our financial markets are going bankrupt, our energy bills are skyrocketing and the public's trust in Congress has collapsed, it is irresponsible of McCaul to run away from the issues. Texas families are struggling, and they deserve to know my opponent's views on the issues they face each day. My campaign is based on holding Washington accountable, and politicians like McCaul need to be held responsible for the pay-for-play style politics that place the burden on working families."

The twentysomething, punky girl hesitated at the corner of 27th and Guadalupe, waiting for the light to change. Her modified mohawk lay like a white fur pelt on her cropped hair. She appeared blissfully unaware that her once-rebellious hairstyle made its Austin debut more than a quarter-century ago in a building that stood about 50 feet away. 2610 Guadalupe stood open last week, being gutted for renovation in its umpteenth incarnation as a bar. For the last 20-odd years, it was the well-loved Texas Showdown but I’d darkened its unprepossessing doorway when it was also Gemini’s and the Buffalo Gap. And Raul’s, of course, which is what brought me back there last weekend. The swell guys that pass for developers – and I say that with 100% heartfelt sincerity because they have been sweethearts – let the South Austin Museum of Popular Culture, marshaled by Museum mistress Leea Mechling, inside to view the mural. Since the Texas Showdown opened, it hid behind wooden planks, living in legend and memory. Sarita Crocker painted it with a combination of housepaint and acrylic in 1979, assisted by Claire LaVaye, and all these years later it looked pretty damn good, if dusty and dirty.