Short Cuts

Don't Crush That Reaper, Hand Me The Four-Stake Shotgun Dept.: It's rare that I'll take the space to plug a national release in this spot (much less a sequel), but Guillermo del Toro's Blade 2, which closed out SXSW Film 2002 last Saturday night at the Paramount Theatre, is such a blast and is so artfully constructed and fun to watch that I'd be remiss in my duties if I didn't command you in a stern-yet-loving voice to pack the theatres this opening weekend, not only to boost this hideously cool vampire epic's all-important opening box office, but also to help fund del Toro's upcoming big-screen adaptation of Mike Mignola's awesome Hellboy comic. (Blade 2 co-star Ron "One-- Perlman, who was in attendance with del Toro last Saturday, is slated to play the hammer-handed hellion, proof indeed that yes, Verotika, there is a Satan Claws.) Paramount attendees engaged in a lengthy post-screening Q&A with the director and former Austinite, which included generous descriptions of assorted body parts, a compare/contrast discussion of newfangled vampiric exsanguination techniques versus female anatomy, and this all-too-accurate description of his motivations behind the lens: "Not every movie has to be an art film, and with Blade 2, I wanted to make a movie that would make you eat some popcorn and look at each other and go 'Whew!'" Mission accomplished, I'd say. By a pleasant coincidence of release scheduling, GdT's other new film -- the sublime The Devil's Backbone -- opened here last Friday at Landmark's Dobie Theatre, so if you're not in the mood to catch Wesley Snipes disemboweling H.P. Lovecraft-style bloodsuckers, you can still take in the far more quiet but no less affecting charms of Backbone... If you're like us, chances are you're still recovering from the wealth of film and music events of the past week, but if you're raring for more (you maniac, you) the Cinemaker Co-op gang will be showcasing the results of their M.A.F.I.A. (Make a Film in a Weekend) Super-8 challenge this Sunday and Monday, March 24-25, at 6 and 9:30pm at the Hideout Coffee House and Theatre (617 Congress). The resulting films are always exciting (particularly since even the filmmakers themselves haven't seen them yet) and/or interesting, and the Hideout has enough caffeine to keep your bleary eyes painfully unshuttered no matter how many Rolling Rocks Russell Crowe made you drink last weekend. Admission is $3/Cinemaker members, $6/general public, and more info can be had at www.cinemaker.org ... If you missed the chance to see SXSW festival favorite and winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature, Mai's America, looks like Lady Luck is smiling down on you: Marlo Poras' documentary will air on PBS' acclaimed POV series on Aug. 6.