Indie Picks: At The Movies This Weekend

3D Sex And Zen, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema

There isn't much to report this time around, so we're giving the weekend to the Drafthouse (as we often do). They're opening a 3D softcore porno from Hong Kong that doesn't even have distribution in the U.S. You're welcome.

3D Sex And Zen: Extreme Ecstasy (Alamo South Lamar)
It's a story that you might not have heard about unless you really follow the film industry closely, but earlier this year this movie beat the opening grosses of Titanic and Avatar in Hong Kong. Sexuality is not really allowed to be depicted on screen in Mainland China, so there were actually tourist packages where folks flocked in to Hong Kong just to take a peek at this taboo flick. The whole thing sounded a lot like when Deep Throat expanded past the raincoat crowd in the 70s.

If you're looking for actual pornography, you'll be sorely disappointed. 'Extreme Ecstasy' is cut from the same cloth as late night Cinemax, so there is nothing hardcore about it. Still, if you've been looking for lots of violent swordplay combined with full frontal nudity to, um, come at you, you should check out one of these late night, adults-only screenings from the Drafthouse.

Also this weekend:
- The Guard (Regal Arbor, Violet Crown Cinema)
This comedy stars Don Cheadle and Brendan Gleeson in a buddy/cop flick where the duo tries to take on a drug smuggling ring in Ireland. While this one feels like one of those movies where every great moment is crammed into the trailer, it screened at Sundance and Tribeca earlier this year and Roger Ebert says it's "a pleasure."

- The Whistleblower (Regal Arbor)
Rachel Weisz stars as an American cop who uncovers a ring of sex trafficking in Bosnia in this "ripped from the headlines" thriller that was dismissed as shrill and choppy by no less than The New York Times.

- The Paramount Summer Film Series has a Leaders Of The New Wave double feature on Saturday & Sunday with Godard's Vivre Sa Vie and Truffaut's The Soft Skin.