Now that the WGA strike is over, I feel remiss that I haven't even hummed a few bars of the "Hallelujah" chorus. The fact is, though, that the writers could have stayed on strike for another six months and it wouldn't have bothered me. In fact, I ...
Beginning this week, I have decided to re-structure the "Video Views" weekly column so it no longer represents a prose catalog of new releases but instead concentrates on one or two hot topics or something interesting associated with a new release. ...
Most cinematic horror stories come from unsuspecting movie-lovers who stumble into a Friday night or Saturday night showing of the latest teen-friendly blockbuster only to discover that half the audience is more interested in having conversations and...
It's time to begin hoping that The Quantum of Solace is a home run because, if it isn't, this could be a very dry holiday movie season. Over the years, the studios have done a good job of programming the November/December schedule such that there is...
1. The WGA strike will not be settled but the writers will go back to work. With both sides deeply entrenched, the likelihood of a settlement is slim – at least any time in the near future. However, the repercussions of a prolonged strike could ...
Over the years, Roger Ebert has maintained a position that he doesn't see any computer/video games as being "art." While I agree with him that I have yet to see a video game I would consider to be art, there are two points to consider: (1) I'm not ...
I read an article recently that discussed the propensity for younger members of society to flout certain copyright laws. According to the article, about 50% of the content on the "average" young person's iPod is illegally obtained. Does this mean we...
When James Cameron's Titanic opened on December 19, 1997, there were a lot of nervous executives at 20th Century Fox and Paramount Pictures, the two studios that had co-funded the hugely expensive, special effects-laden extravaganza. While most who ...
Since I'm spending about 50% of my free time working on the ReelViews re-design, I figured it was worth at least a column to discuss the direction in which I see the site going. Admittedly, the original goal was to make a better home for the ads so ...
One year when I was a kid, I tried to give up TV for Lent. I got through about three days then had to amend the abstention to exclude a number of beloved programs. I'm no longer a practicing Catholic and I realize one doesn't give up things for ...
Return with me to 1978. 30 years ago - it doesn't seem that long. Back then, the "horror movie" of today did not exist. There were, instead, "monster movies." This broad category encompassed everything from the old Universal classics (Dracula, ...
First, let me say that I enjoyed "I'm Fucking Ben Affleck" more than the entire Oscar ceremony. Okay, so it wasn't as good as "I'm Fucking Matt Damon," but it was about as good as a rebuttal could be. Also impressive was the star power Jimmy Kimmel...
A slump seems to be a poor way to define the free-fall situation in which the movie industry finds itself. Hollywood has only itself to blame. When the multiplex output consists of one lame film after another, what could the expectations be? This ...
Cloverfield has become the latest motion picture to try to build excitement and word-of-mouth via the Internet. An informal poll of movie-goers has indicated that anyone who spends more than an hour per day surfing the web is more aware of ...
"The movie seems like a video game brought to life on a big screen." Question: Is that comment intended as an insult or a compliment? Once upon a time, the answer would have been clear. Critics, myself included, used that language (or something ...
While watching bits and pieces of the Olympics coverage over the weekend, I couldn't help but wince every time a sycophantic NBC reporter (usually a blond woman) approached a victorious athlete following his/her win. The questions asked in those "...
A crisis of conscience can be good for the soul - or the writing. So I have always believed. Over the course of nearly 17 years of writing reviews, I have had many instances of self-doubt. The roots can be varied and hard-to-define. Perhaps I ...