Why The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Failed
Because when I saw the recent trailer for The Desolation of Smaug I barely cared. “What did it say?” Okay, okay, that’s not a real reason. Obviously it didn’t fail financially; there are plenty of…
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Why Does Superman Have to Throw a Punch?
It seems like there’s a fundamental difference of opinion these days surrounding America’s first superhero and the use of his famous power set. With Man of Steel, Superman has been physically unleashed. Sure, he’s done…
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People Care Too Much About Long Takes
People care too much about long takes. Okay, I’m getting ahead of myself. This thought got in my head a few weeks ago, when the trailer for Gravity dropped online. You can watch it here,…
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Destiny’s “Law of the Jungle” Ad is Stupid
“Pretentious” is a word thrown around an awful lot these days. Usually it seems to find itself attached to movies with lofty philosophical ambitions, like Tree of Life, or The Seventh Seal. On a more…
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Unreal Movie Review: Mud
At the start of my tenure on this site, I championed the tragically underrepresented Take Shelter. The writer and director of that movie was a fella named Jeff Nichols. I haven’t seen his indie debut…
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Not All Genre Cinema is Created Equal
It’s fair to say that tentpole movies have become a bit of a new Mecca for prominent filmmakers. DC brought in Oscar nominee and repeat mindbender Christopher Nolan to kick-start the Batman franchise. Marvel’s made…
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Naked Lunch, Its Awesome Trailer, and Movie Ads
Yes, I’m talking about Cronenberg again. Hold onto your butts. Marketing, in theory, is a pretty simple operation. Well, the operation isn’t simple at all, but the core concept is: Sell your product. Marketing for…
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Movies that Desperately Need Sequels
Sequels are a fact of life these days. If a movie does well, there’ll be another one to follow it up. Or fill us in on what came before it. Or maybe they’ll just reboot…
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Okay, I’m Hooked on Hannibal
Truth be told, I don’t watch a ton of TV these days. Money and market saturation aside, there’s something about getting invested with a TV show that usually feels like too much of a commitment…