8 Ideas for Movie Theaters of the Future
In the spirit of the Academy Awards, as well as an article in EW Magazine (not to be confused with Nickelodeon’s Eww Magazine), I have some ideas I’d like to suggest for movie theaters of the future. Some of these can be combined, while others won’t work with one another. Assigned seats. When you go [...]
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Today I want to talk about a movie that you probably haven’t heard of, a documentary called Exit Through the Gift Shop. A movie that you need to see. The movie consists of a decent amount of footage from a French guy named Tierry who decides to document the secret subculture of street artists (think [...]
My Favorite Movies of 2010
Last year was a pretty weak year for movies, so instead of writing a 2009 list, I had a Best of the Decade list. This year we’re back in business. Five movies received the coveted 5-Star Stegmaier rating, and several others (Inception and How to Train Your Dragon) came very close. Here’s are my five [...]
The Movies That Move You
I really want to settle down into bed with Mockingjay (Kindle edition!), so fortunately my friend Ariel had a blog entry/contest for me to post today: I love the collective gasp of the crowd when the actor rounds the corner during a chase scene and is confronted by a giant alien – or really any [...]
The Coolest Movie Theater Ever
I don’t go to movies at AMC theaters in St. Louis. There’s nothing particularly wrong with the theaters. They usually have big, comfortable seats and stadium seating. The biggest issue I have is that their popcorn is terrible, and I’m a popcorn guy. So the independent chains get my money. However, I saw a movie [...]
How I Saw Every Summer Movie in One Day
Lately I’ve been yearning for someone who gets as excited about movies as I do. The trend seems to be that I get excited about a movie, no one else expresses enthusiasm, and I save it to my Netflix queue for 6 months down the road. However, I really like seeing movies on the big [...]
I Am Iron Man 2
Two years ago, I wrote an entry on this blog (complete with photos) about the sheer joy I experienced while watching the first Iron Man movie. It was such a revelation to have a superhero movie come together that well. Thus I was incredibly excited about Iron Man 2: The Ironing. I eagerly awaited each [...]
Confession #12: My Time Is My Heaven
I had a unique weekend. I got home from work (followed by a trip to the grocery store) around 7:00 on Friday. I didn’t leave my condo for the next 44 hours. It was lovely. No, I’m not turning into a hermit. I just have some busy weekends coming up, so I committed to a [...]
The Rom Com of Your Life
I asked people on Twitter the other day what their favorite romantic comedies were. I got some great answers, most of which I had seen, but there were a few diamonds in the rough that I’ll have to watch before April (in April I’ll embark on Script Frenzy). Many of you gave me great feedback [...]
Script Frenzy
Every November, there’s an online event called National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). Hundreds of thousands of people commit to writing a novel in a single month, starting with 0 words and ending with at least 50,000 by November 30. You don’t “win” anything, per se–just the joy that you completed a novel. It’s basically a [...]
My Favorite Movies of the Decade
In alphabetical order, here are my favorite movies….of the decade. Almost Famous Brokeback Mountain Children of Men City of God Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Definitely, Maybe Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind The Fellowship of the Ring The Incredibles Inside Man Iron Man Let the Right One In Lost in Translation Memento Old School The [...]
Confession #8
I am intentionally single. For those of you who have been reading my confessions, this revelation may come as no surprise. But I want to talk about it today in the context of the movie Up in the Air (for which there will be no spoilers). The movie is about many things, but one major [...]
What I'd Do If 2012 Were Real
There’s not a single part of me that believes that the world will end in late 2012. But as I watched the movie the other day, in which a few scientists and government officials know about the impending doom but don’t tell the general public, I started to wonder: What would I do if I [...]
Six Movies I'm Looking Forward to in 2009
Where the Wild Things Are (October 16): The book has 11 sentences. The movie’s going to be so much more. Avatar (December 18): It’s supposed to be a revolution and a revelation in 3D. Up in the Air (): Filmed in St. Louis, looks like a movie that’ll make me think…and feel. Fantastic Mr. Fox [...]
Six Movies for Home Viewing
I don’t think I’ve watched a minute of summer television other than the Daily Show. What have I been watching instead during dinner, you ask? Movies. Specifically, parts of movies. I’ll split a 90-minute comedy between two dinners; a 150-minute drama between three meals. Thank goodness for Netflix. I don’t necessarily recommend all of these [...]
What Are You Allowed to Do at Your Bachelor Party?
I saw The Hangover this weekend and really enjoyed it. It wasn’t as funny or timeless as Old School (same director), but there were plenty of laughs, three-dimensional characters, bachelor party ideas, and an amazing sequence at the end when the credits are rolling. The movie is about a bachelor party (more specifically, the day [...]
The Future of Telecommuting
Every once in a while an unknown movie comes along that nearly makes me burst with curiosity and wonder. Last year that movie was Let the Right One In. But that was based on early, extremely positive reviews (and they were correct). All I’ve seen of Sleep Dealer is a mediocre trailer and a brief [...]
Driving on Revolutionary Road in a Gran Torino
I saw two movies this weekend, both of them quite good. Below are my reviews. Gran Torino Rating (out of 10): 8 Good: The movie is mainly a character study of ageless Eastwood, a man who knows death but not life, but there’s just enough plot to keep you wondering what’s going to happen next. [...]
Football in 3D
I was at the movies yesterday (Marley & Me, actually good, maybe a post on that later) when I noticed a poster advertising tonight’s BCS Football Championship Game (Florida vs. Oklahoma) in 3D at the theater, live. I was intrigued…not intrigued enough to go dish out $9.50 to watch the event, since I can watch [...]
2009 Resolutions
After reviewing my 2008 Resolutions, I realized that a number of them were hard to quantify. And I love to quantify things. I look at things objectively, not subjectively. So this year my goals will be more concrete, more measurable. Here we go, in no particular order: Write 12 short stories (1 a month, if [...]
The First Movie I Watched in 2009
When Slumdog Millionaire started getting press and awards, I was dubious. How could a movie about a kid on India’s version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” trying to find his destined love be all that special? After spending 2 hours with that kid, I know why his story makes such a special film. [...]
My Favorite Movies I Watched in 2008
As is my way, my list of the top movies of 2008 includes any movies that I saw this past year, even if they came out in 1942. One thing I noticed about a lot of the movies I saw this year is that they transcended the categories I’ve blocked them into here—Iron Man isn’t [...]
Milking the Opera Scene
Today my girlfriend and I went to see the movie Milk. It’s about Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in America. It’s a fascinating movie, well plotted, written, and acted, and as is always the case, I was moved to tears by all scenes involving crowds of people [...]
My Comments on Your Comments
Today the comments board on my blog was more active than ever before, so I’m devoting today’s post to the good Americans, Canadians, and Indians who took the time to type out their thoughts (and none of them anonymously! You guys are awesome) about the blog. “Definitely clip [six-pack rings]–they will probably still be around [...]
