Burning Palms

We Luv Video is screening Burning Palms on Wednesday, September 9, from 7 PM to 10 PM, and it's more than just a movie night. The film is being introduced by Austin horror writer Jess Hagemann, who's also releasing a novel version of the story that same evening.

Burning Palms (2010) was the feature directorial debut of Christopher Landon, who later went on to make Happy Death Day and Freaky. It's a satirical thriller starring Dylan McDermott, Rosamund Pike, and Zoe Saldaña, and it runs about 90 minutes. The plot follows five interlocking stories that cross Los Angeles' sun-soaked streets, so it's the kind of thing that works well on a big screen when you can actually see the connections snap into place.

That's where Hagemann comes in. He's the author of Headcheese and Mother-Eating, and he became the movie's official novelizer, turning the film into a book. He'll introduce the screening and then stick around to sign copies of the novel, which will be sold on site by the Burnet bookseller Birdhouse Books. If you're into horror or just like seeing a movie and its book counterpart in the same room, this is a good chance to get both.

The screening is at the We Luv Video microcinema, 100 North Loop Boulevard East, and tickets are $5.00. The whole thing runs from 7 PM to 10 PM, so there's plenty of time for the introduction, the movie, and the signing afterward.