This column is written for the small but loyal group of readers who have forged their way through the recently serialized The Price of the Terror. Those who haven't read it or don't know what it is are welcome to continue reading, but I'm not sure ...
Over the course of 2008, I have noticed a decline in the website's readership. There are no obvious site-related issues to explain this. Advertising has been constant since 2007 (it actually started in late 2006). The June redesign has not resulted ...
In 1996, as the snows fell heavily outside, I embarked upon the then-radical concept of establishing a "personal website." At the time, few people outside universities and tech-related corporations knew about the Web, and the idea of a site that ...
"24" and "Lost" tomorrow... I promise. A movie opened this weekend that I didn't recognize as a remake until after I had posted the review. The film in question is Fever Pitch and it shares its title with the 1997 original. I saw that movie 8 ...
Speculation about what the future multiplex may look like and how Hollywood could marry streaming with theatrical releases.
The main issue associated with reviving VideoViews (the site's DVD-related review page) hasn't been setting it up (it's only one page, and that one page has been cloned from the main new reviews page), but the weekly commitment necessary to update it...
In each of the past few years, I have seen about 200 movies theatrically (with another 100+ per annum on DVD). Of these, I typically review about 150. (Last year, it was 171.) However, although the 75% "review rate" might be considered aggressive, ...
When it comes to genre films, a certain amount of formula isn't a bad thing. Such is the case with the romantic comedy, where plot has always taken a back seat to two more important characteristics: chemistry and character likeability. For a ...
Those who know me are aware that I'm a sucker for romances - as long as they are well-made and lacking in excessive sentimentality. Tear-jerkers like Ghost don't do anything for me. (I hate that film with an unholy passion.) But give me something ...
When it comes to today's TV sets, bigger is better. Gone are the days when a 28" set was admired far and wide. Now, such a television is relegated to basements and back rooms where the neighbors can't see it. So it's ironic that the bigger the ...
I have now logged more than 200 votes in the "picture/no picture" tally, and the current results are within 5 of being an even split. Both sides have presented some compelling arguments. Thankfully, no one has threatened to boycott the site if I ...
Initially, this ReelThought was going to be about the insane, must-be-first mindset that is driving film critics' groups to announce their end-of-the-year awards before they have seen the entire roster of 2011 films. It's the same mentality that is ...
First, a few notes. I will be writing something next week about the Oscars, although I'm formulating how to do it in a way that's different from the other million columns written about the nominations. I dislike being boring and repetitive (...
What has begun? The erosion of DVD profits. According to Pali Research analysts Richard Greenfield and Mark Smaldon (see this link), 2007 will be the first year in the relatively short history of the now-popular format that DVD sales are expected ...
Every year, I get at least a dozen e-mails asking if I'll be attending Sundance. Some are from people hoping to meet me; others are from readers wondering if I'll be posting updates. It has been seven years since I have been to Park City and I don'...
It had to happen some time. We have reached the point when the number of movies being released to DVD is in a downturn. The reason is obvious: with the majority of the studios' A-list and B-list catalog titles available, there's a scarcity of ...
Since I "converted" ReelThoughts into a more conventional blog (rather than just a convenient place to stick commentaries), I have been pretty good about posting something nearly every day. Next week, my resolve may falter, so I have decided to ...