What a year! There’s been good and bad, like so many other years before, as we plow along in this life. It’s been a big year of first time views for me, from new additions in a growing collection of Criterion and Alamo Drafthouse editions to a celebration of John Ford’s career. I’ve winnowed down 116 FTVs to a list of 25 of the best new-to-me films watched in 2014, and here they are, in alphabetical order! Continue reading 2014 in First Time Views: The Top 25
Category Archives: bloog
happy turkey day!
From my heart to yours, a Thanksgiving tradition ’round these parts… Continue reading happy turkey day!
OHMC 2014 – Week Four: The Wrap
The October Horror Movie Challenge is over, and final reviews and write-ups are rolling in across the board. The last week of the Challenge was fairly light for me, particularly after revisiting the entire Saw franchise. There’s just something about those movies that kind of kills the buzz. Anyhow, here are the last few films for the 2014 October Challenge! Continue reading OHMC 2014 – Week Four: The Wrap
OHMC 2014 – The Saw-a-thon
Here’s the thing about the October Challenge: sometimes, you end up wading through a lot of really awful films when you’re trying to get through 16 first time views. And then sometimes you’re me, who does it on purpose, with films that aren’t first time views. Hence…SAW SUNDAY. [SPOILERS AHEAD] Continue reading OHMC 2014 – The Saw-a-thon
OHMC 2014 – Week Three: The Kitchen Sink
The Challenge rolls along and we’re reaching the finish line with just over a week before Halloween! How have you been doing, if you’ve been playing along? Are you burning through the requirements like wildfire or taking it slow? Week three was a lot lighter than the previous two, with a weird mishmash of genres and styles, everything but the kitchen sink it seems. Read on! Continue reading OHMC 2014 – Week Three: The Kitchen Sink
OHMC 2014 Hidden Horror Contest Winners!
It’s the moment you’ve been waiting for — the winners of the Hidden Horror book contest have been chosen! I’m am pleased to announce that through a completely mysterious, scientific process (random name picker dot org, basically), the two people who will receive a copy of this indispensable reference guide are…[drum roll]… Continue reading OHMC 2014 Hidden Horror Contest Winners!
pregaming the October Horror Movie Challenge
The last few days of September are hard. I get antsy for October to be here, so I can get cracking on celebrating Halloween for 31 days. It’s not even about the October Horror Movie Challenge at this point; it’s just time to get spooky. I try to avoid watching horror films for all of September, because I know what it’s like to get burned out on the genre by the time 31 October rolls around. But I was weak this year! I was weak. Continue reading pregaming the October Horror Movie Challenge
coming soon: the October Horror Movie Challenge 2014
October is coming fast, friends! I’ve got my queue built and ready to go for the…
image credit – Christianne Benedict of Krell Laboratories
Continue reading coming soon: the October Horror Movie Challenge 2014
playing pros and cons with: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
And now, the pros and cons of the latest Marvel feature film: Guardians of the Galaxy (dir. James Gunn, 2014)…[SPOILERS AHEAD] Continue reading playing pros and cons with: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
the perils of the revival
Recently, a group of my friends and I visited a nearby revival house to watch a screening of The Princess Bride (1987). I seriously misunderestimated the enduring popularity of this film, because when we arrived at the theater, there was a line to the box office that ended somewhere around the back of the building. It was impressive. I do not know why I assumed it would be like any other time I’ve visited there — The Princess Bride is a HUGE cult classic, quoted to this day and so ubiquitous in our pop culture that it’s popularity never fully registered with me. It’s always been one of those movies that just was. Continue reading the perils of the revival
bemused + nonplussed 