Sundance? Tribeca? Pfffffft.

As I mentioned before, the real deal in celluloid goodness has been happening this week at the 1st Annual Casa De Famous Free Cable On-Demand Filmfest and Dorito-thon. We don't have goodie bags containing diamond encrusted rolexes and vitamin water, but we do have a bag of the of the new Hot Wing/Bleu Cheese Doritos Collisions (which, for the record, are likely the leftover buffalo wing flavor they had out a while ago and the cool ranch that have been out forever)! We also don't have the latest and greatest films yet to hit the theatres, but we do have some stellar flicks that I either hadn't seen yet and/or classics I hadn't seen in a long while.

As I seemingly pay in blood for the whole Comcast digital cable deal, the movies aren't really free...but I don't have to pay over and above my normal bill to enjoy them like pay-per-view. So, here's the recap of the star-studded screenings that took place this week:

MONDAY

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre 2 - Sooo insanely bad, it's good. How can you go wrong w/ Dennis Hopper, the first death scene done to the sounds of Oingo Boingo's 'No One Lives Forever' and the eroticism of the whole chainsaw foreplay on the ice tub scene (you just have to see it)? Schlock horror reeking of the 80's at it's finest. I stumbled upon it right before I was getting ready to go to bed and ended up watching it until 1AM. It's that good!

TUESDAY

Dig! - Wow. If you ever want to see an instructional video on how to sabotage a band and/or your life in general, check out this entertaining 2004 documentary on the Brian Jonestown Massacre/Dandy Warhol love-hate relationship. It's incredible to watch Anton Newcombe and the BJM just implode, while the Dandys skyrocket to major label success. I never got a chance to see it when it was released, but it was well worth the wait.

WEDNESDAY

Akira - A japanimation opus that set the standards for all anime that would come afterwards and, really, started the second wave of fandom that came about in the 90's. A visually amazing futuristic amalgamation of the uncertainty of youth and the nuclear spectre hanging over post-war Japan/the globe in general. The level of detail was wasted on me when I last saw it in a more 'altered' state in college...seeing it now, even by today's film standards, still blew my mind.

THURSDAY

Six-String Samurai - A kung-fu rockabilly take on the Road Warrior, set in a post-atomic bomb 1957. Mutants, the soviet army, killer bowlers and death himself put themselves in the way of the blade-wielding Buddy Holly-esque protagonist, as he journeys to Vegas to claim the throne as the heir to Elvis. I kind of saw this half-awake a while back on late-night TV, but plan to really digest the whole thing tonight. I remember it being some goofy fun, hopefully I wasn't dreaming.

Again, each and every one of them are available on Comcast On Demand's Free Movies if you are a victim, er, subscriber. You might as well get your money's worth, so check them out. After the festival closes tonight, i'll be checking out 'Hot Fuzz' and '300' via Netflix over the weekend and my best pal since grade school and I have already made plans to go see the new 'Halloween' on premiere night (31-Aug). See you at the movies!