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Jason Eisner is one hell of a talented director who has made some of the most wonderfully demented films you will ever see. He started out making short films like ''Treevenge," and his first feature-length film was Hobo With A Shotgun. The filmmaker has found his next film project, and it’s perfect for him and his crazy style.

The film will be an adaptation of the comic book New York City Outlaws, which comes from Robert Huszar and Ken Landgraf. The story centers on “a group of vigilantes who join forces to rescue NYC from total anarchy during a prolonged police strike.”

There are only five issues of the comic book, which was published in 1984, and if you’re familiar with it, then you can tell it was inspired by The Warriors. The script for the film is being written by Bryan Connolly and Zack Carlson.

I can’t...

"Quit streaming. Start dreaming." Is there a better celebrity endorsement than Matthew McConaughey for a small video store still stocked full of VHS tapes? He's always been a good symbol for retro and nostalgic material. Didn't he encourage you to listen to Aerosmith more through his character in Dazed and Confused? Now let him tell you why you ought to visit Vulcan Video in Austin for the great selection, service and free parking! McConaughey joined Jimmy Kimmel, who is taping his talk show from Austin all this week for SXSW, in producing three hilarious commercials for the indie family-run shop as a tribute to old tech during a convention of new tech. They meet Bryan Connolly and Kristen Ellison, managers for the two-location business and soon-to-be-wed...

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With Christmas around the bend, there's not nearly as much specialty programming from now until the end of the year, but there's still some great screenings worth mentioning. The Austin Film Society will be closing out 2014 with Cracking Up, a 1983 comedy from Jerry Lewis in 35mm. Bryan Connolly will be on hand for a post-film discussion for the showings tonight and again on Sunday evening.

In terms of the rest of the week in specialty screenings, they are pretty exclusively Christmas-themed. The Alamo Drafthouse Slaughter has free daily screenings of Arthur Christmas for Alamo Kids Club and Home Alone pizza parties on Sunday and Tuesday (which also will happen at the Alamo Lakeline). The Alamo Ritz has a digital restoration of Meet Me In St. Louis on Saturday and Sunday for Broadway Brunch, Gremlins on Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday, Die Hard in 35mm from Sunday through Wednesday for daily shows,...

Being in IMDb’s Worst Movie of All-Time (Troll 2) hasn’t hurt actor-now-director Michael Stephenson. He found it cathartic to tell that tale in the horror documentary Best Worst Movie and now he’s latched onto Destroy, a new dark comedy with Black Swan producer, Jennifer Roth.

Here’s the press release: “Magic Stone Productions announced today it has acquired and will produce the feature film Destroy. Michael Paul Stephenson (Best Worst Movie) will direct this fast-paced dark comedy. In Destroy, vampires don’t exist, but that doesn’t stop well-intentioned would-be vampire hunter Steve Howard from leaving a trail of blood-splattered wooden stakes across Bavaria. While he thinks he’s saving the world, he and new assistant Elise are mistakenly murdering sweet, innocent old men.

Destroy’s tone lands it somewhere between ’80s genre classics like An American Werewolf in London and contemporary comedies like Shaun of the Dead.

Michael Stephenson, the child star of Troll 2 and director of Best Worst Movie, is set to direct his first feature film, a dark horror comedy called Destroy. The dark comedy is set in a world where vampires don’t exist but a makeshift vampire hunter is moving swiftly across Bavaria laying wooden stakes into hearts left and right. While he thinks he’s saving the world, he and new assistant Elise are mistakenly murdering sweet, innocent old men. According to Shocktillyoudrop, Destroy’s tone lands it somewhere between ’80s genre classics like An American Werewolf in London and contemporary comedies like Shaun of the Dead. The script is penned by Alamo Drafthouse lead programmer Zack Carlson and Bryan Connolly, who recently co-authored the demented punk rock movie guide “Destroy All Movies: The Complete Guide to Punks on Film.”...

Michael Stephenson, that child star of Troll 2 who directed one of the best documentaries I've seen in years, Best Worst Movie, has announced he will direct his first feature film. It's called Destroy, and it's about a world where vampires Don't exist, but that doesn't stop a would-be vampire hunter named Steve Howard from leaving a trail of blood-splattered wooden staked victims across Bavaria.

Styd, who reported the news, say that Destroy's tone "lands it somewhere between '80s genre classics like An American Werewolf in London and contemporary comedies like Shaun of the Dead." To me it sounds like Bill Paxton's directorial debut Frailty about a father who is convinced there are demons in the world and takes his two young boys on a killing spree. Good flick.

The script is written by Alamo Drafthouse lead programmer Zack Carlson and Bryan Connolly, recent co-authors of the the...

Consider originality celebrated for the day. Michael Stephenson, director of Best Worst Movie, has got his next project underway, and it’s a dark comedy called Destroy that features a vampire hunter set loose in a world where he’s taking down innocent elderly men. Well, not completely innocent. Old men have seen some things, ya know? Luckily, our human-staking hero has an assistant to help him out. Fans of the Alamo Drafthouse will be interested to know that the script was written by lead programmer Zack Carlson alongside Bryan Connolly, but the concept is enough to get me excited. It’s comedic and horrible and new, and it sounds like Don Quixote transplanted onto the world of Universal monsters. Plus, it comes at the perfect time to act as an antidote to the vampire outbreak we’ve seen in theaters. Check out the concept art by Johnny Sampson here: Why does that look like a young...

Michael Stephenson, best known as the child star of the legendarily terrible 1990 horror pic "Troll 2", is set to produce and direct his first narrative feature - the dark comedy "Destroy" reports Heat Vision.

Set in the real world where vampires don't exist (sorry Twi-hards), a well-intentioned would-be vampire hunter travels across Bavaria in a quest to save the world from the bloodsuckers. In reality, he's mistakingly murdering innocent old men and leaving a trail of wooden-staked corpses in his wake.

Bryan Connolly and Zack Carlson co-wrote the script. Early casting is underway and shooting will soon take place in Eastern Europe.

Stephenson was able to land the gig thanks to his experience writing and directing "Best Worst Movie", about how "Troll 2" became a cult phenomenon.

“Best Worst Movie” chronicles the rise of 1990’s infamous “Troll 2” (you know, where they wind up in the town of “Nilbog”, or goblin spelled backwards) from a largely forgotten footnote in the history of horror film to full-blown cult phenomenon. Director Michael Stephenson, who was the child star of “Troll 2”, has now parlayed the groundswell of popularity for his documentary into the opportunity to direct his first feature, a dark horror comedy called “Destroy”. In “Destroy” vampires don’t exist, but that doesn’t stop a well-intentioned would-be vampire hunter from leaving a trail of blood-splattered wooden stakes across Bavaria. But while he thinks he’s saving the world, he is mistakenly murdering sweet, innocent old men. Jennifer Roth, one of the producers of “Black Swan” is on board to produce the film, with a script from Austin, Texas (by way of Washington) based duo Zach Carlson and Bryan Connolly,...

As the Alamo Drafthouse brand has grown, we’ve had the pleasure of bringing some very unique individuals into the programming team. I met Lars Nilsen, for example, when he was working at Kinko’s near campus and soon found that he had a knowledge base of exploitation film that was unparalleled in the city, perhaps the universe. I later got to know former Alamo programming savant Kier-la Janisse at the 2002 Sitges Film Festival. We were both on vacation to absorb their comprehensive retrospective of Spaghetti Westerns (most of which were unfortunately Not subtitled in English). If you travel halfway across the globe for a movie nerd-cation, you’ve accomplished one of the unofficial Alamo programming office job requirements. We’ve been lucky enough to come across a handful of like-minded folks over the years who were so obsessive-compulsive in their love of movies, so rich in obscure knowledge that...

Michael Stephenson is best known for his role in the 1990's cult classic film Troll 2. His experience in making Troll 2 led him to direct the documentary Best Worst Movie. Stephenson is now ready to get started on his first feature film, a dark comedy called Destroy, and I think your going to love the premis.

In the story, vampires don't exist, but that doesn't stop a well-intentioned would-be vampire hunter from leaving a trail of blood-splattered wooden stakes across Bavaria. But while he thinks he's saving the world, he is mistakenly murdering sweet, innocent old men.

Ha! Ha! I love the concept of this film! It's going to be a hilariously awesome dark tale of death. I can't help but be excited about the movie, it has the makings of a cult classic, which I think is what Stephenson is going for. 

THR reports that the "script was...

Michael Stephenson, the child star of Troll 2 who showed his filmmaking talents with 2009's Best Worst Movie , has his sights set on directing his first narrative. Stephenson will tackle Destroy for Magic Stone Productions. In Destroy , vampires don't exist, but that doesn't stop well-intentioned would-be vampire hunter Steve Howard from leaving a trail of blood-splattered wooden stakes across Bavaria. While he thinks he's saving the world, he and new assistant Elise are mistakenly murdering sweet, innocent old men. Destroy 's tone lands it somewhere between '80s genre classics like An American Werewolf in London and contemporary comedies like Shaun of the Dead . The script is penned by Alamo Drafthouse lead programmer Zack Carlson and Bryan Connolly. The pair recently...

Magic Stone Productions announced today it has acquired and will produce the feature film Destroy . Michael Paul Stephenson ( Best Worst Movie ) will direct this fast-paced dark comedy. In Destroy , vampires don't exist, but that doesn't stop well-intentioned would-be vampire hunter Steve Howard from leaving a trail of blood-splattered wooden stakes across Bavaria. While he thinks he's saving the world, he and new assistant Elise are mistakenly murdering sweet, innocent old men. Destroy 's tone lands it somewhere between '80s genre classics like An American Werewolf in London and contemporary comedies like Shaun of the Dead . The script is penned by Alamo Drafthouse lead programmer Zack Carlson and Bryan Connolly. The pair recently co-authored the internationally successful...

Consider this a warning. If you fail to immediately purchase a copy of Destroy All Movies a swarm of post-apocalyptic punk rock bikers will kick your door down and ram their fists down your throat. If you fail to read it a minimum of three times from cover to cover within the first week of bringing it home a swarm of post-apocalyptic punk rock bikers will kick your door down and ram their fists down your throat. And if you fail to make all of your friends do the same a swarm of post-apocalyptic punk rock bikers will kick your door down and ram something down your throat but it probably won't be a fist. Now you know what you have to do.

Written and assembled with just as much style and energy as the films it celebrates, Destroy All Movies claims to be the complete guide to punks on film.

Although the holiday season means time off work for most other industries in the U.S., it means it's awards season for the film business, which in turn necessitates plenty of tributes and accolades to be presented on the East and West Coasts at your local repertory theater in advance of the Oscars where movie stars can be seen and Q & As are conducted. Yet in New York and Los Angeles, there will be a wealth of other options as neighborhood theaters flood their screens with contemporary cinema from other parts of the world, classic movies in their full bigscreen glory, and certain-to-be-fun nods to the holidays, whether it's Halloween or Christmas. If you live in one of these areas or see fit to travel, these are the events worth the trouble over the next few months.

by Stephen Saito

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“I think people, once you put a camera on them, they just can’t help but say some stupid shit.” -Ian MacKay A movie guide should make you want to watch movies, and none has ever made me want to watch as many as “Destroy All Movies!!! The Complete Guide to Punks on Film”. Spawned by a late night viewing of Penelope Spheeris’ classic “Suburbia”, and edited by Austin (by way of the Pacific Northwest) film heads Zach Carlson and Bryan Connolly, “Dam” is an exhaustive compilation of almost every punk rock film ever made. Hollywood’s interpretation of punk and punks usually involves some sort of marauding gang of wayward youth wreaking havoc on the good, normal folks of society at large, like in “Class of 1984”. In these trashy, exploitation scenarios punks are a force of evil that must be destroyed in order to preserve all that is...

Fantastic Fest 2010 Adds New Films To Its Impressive Lineup

Fantastic Fest, the largest genre festival in the U.S., is excited to announce additional films to its mind-blowing roster of features & shorts. Highlights of this announcement are the Us premiere of the hyper-stylized action film Bunraku, a sneak preview of Darren Bousman’s terrifying new horror-thriller film, Mother’s Day (featuring a bravura performance by Rebecca DeMornay), and the world premiere of Agnosia, the latest film from Fantastic Fest 2005 Alumnus Eugenio Mira.

Additionally, Fantastic Fest will play host to a sneak preview of the highly anticipated action-comedy Red, starring pretty much the best cast assembled for a comic book adaptation…ever. And if you’re not excited to see Helen Mirren at the helm of a .50 caliber machine gun, we don’t want to know you.

Bill Pullman, one of our all-time favorite Fantastic Fest guests is returning to the festival this year.

With the Fantastic Fest 2010 just two weeks away, the “largest genre festival in the U.S.” has announced a third wave of films.

Included in the line-up are Summit Entertainment’s action-comedy Red, Darren Bousman’s Mother’s Day, and the stylized action flick Bunraku with Josh Hartnett and Woody Harrelson.

But I’m especially excited about the addition of Agnosia, a “romantic thriller” produced by Guillermo del Toro. ”I’ve read few screenplays in my life that have impressed me as much as Agnosia,” del Toro said. Spanish filmmaker Eugenio Mira directed.

Fantastic Fest is also hosting a special “Master Pancake Theater” (similar to Mystery Science Theater) to mock Independence Day with guest Bill Pullman, plus a Spaceballs quote-along. Finally, they have planned the world premiere of the SyFy movie Sharktopus, followed by the presentation of the Lifetime Achievement Award to Roger Corman and his wife, Julie. Again, I...