John’s Favorite Horror Movies of the 2010s (Part 1)

It feels strange to write a post about horror movies when there’s so much real horror in the world right now. Maybe there’s never a good time. This is a list I’ve been meaning to do for a while. The prospect of ranking so many films seemed overwhelming but a week ago I cracked it. So get ready for five weeks of top tens counting down my favorite horror flicks of the decade. I’m hoping to wrap this up before we have “Criterion Month” in July and will try to be thorough re-watching as many films as I can instead of coasting off nostalgia.

This isn’t a list of the “Best Horror” of the decade as much as it’s my personal favorites. I’m sure there are many great independent horror films I don’t even know about that could make this list. That being said I hope I can recommend some great horror movies to you (the reader) and hope you enjoy yourself even in these terrible times. So without further ado… Or should I say A-BOO! Here we go!

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The Pick: Hot Rod

Everybody rev your engines, because this week we’re soaring off a jump and crashing our mopeds into a discussion of Hot Rod. Is it the most thought-provoking and intellectually stimulating conversation we’ve ever had? Not really. Does it feature us constantly recalling ridiculous jokes from the movie in question and chuckling to ourselves approvingly? You bet your ass. We also get a bit into the underrated movie career of Andy Sandberg and why there just wasn’t room for Hot Rod in the comedy-abundant Summer of 2007. Continue reading

Colin’s Quarantine Diary: Week 10

Here we are, the final week of May and the final installment of my quarantine diaries. I’m not sure if I learned much during these past few months while writing these, other than that during difficult times it’s nice to have art and entertainment that can offer you some level of comfort. I suppose I also learned that even if the entertainment industry shuts down the way it has recently, there’s still enough content out there to keep you satisfied until the end of time. Like, it’s a little weird that there’ve barely been any notable movies to get released this year, and yet I’ve had a rewarding enough time revisiting older movies these past few months that I’ve barely been affected. Still, as we transition out of this period, it will be nice to go to movies and concerts again, though let’s hope the venues for these communal experiences will even be able to survive.

So yeah, things are a little grim and the future is quite uncertain, but for now, here’s the last bunch of things that have been getting me through quarantine. Continue reading

The Pick: Dune

He who controls THE PICK controls the universe! This week Sean, John, Colin, and special guest Matt “Nancy” Carstens are watching David Lynch’s 1984 sci-fi fantasy nightmare Dune! Why? Cause over the past four months we read Frank Herbert’s iconic 1965 novel. How did the film compare to the book? Is David Lynch’s Dune an overlooked masterpiece? Can you really milk a cat to fight off poison? All this and more are discussed in this episode. It’s a spicy one.

Colin’s Quarantine Diary: Week 9

These posts are starting to feel a little more like a chore each week, so I think next week will be my last installment of Colin’s Quarantine Diaries. Not sure if I (or anyone else on the blog) will feel compelled to write much on here after that, though I suppose we have Criterion Month coming up in July, which weirdly isn’t that far away.

I’m not sure that things have quite started shifting back to normal, though it’s probably more likely that this is the case if you don’t live in a big city. But for me, the past week has seemed to be a lot of talking about transitioning towards normal rather than any action being taken to do so. Which is fine. Everybody being a little cautious about when is the right time to start living life in the outside world again is by no means a bad thing, especially when there seem to be plenty of people that are more than happy to throw precaution by the wayside. I, however, was not one of those people this week, since I spent just as much time inside watching movies and TV and listening to music as ever. Continue reading

The Pick: Dick Tracy

Get out your two-way wristwatches and your banana-colored trenchoats, because this week we’re talking about Dick Tracy. It’s a movie that seemed to be everywhere when it came out in 1990, and now is more or less forgotten. We delve into Warren Beatty’s long road to getting a Dick Tracy movie made, as well as all of the merch and marketing that went into making it a cultural phenomenon. Or at least, an attempted cultural phenomenon, since we also get into why the movie doesn’t really fit into our typical modern notions of a blockbuster. Also featured is a momentous edition of John’s Rogues Gallery. Continue reading

Colin’s Quarantine Diary: Week 8

Each week in these intros, I try to find something remarkable about the past week. Though this week, not much is coming to mind. Well, other than all the bad stuff that’s going on. I suppose yesterday was mother’s day, though I don’t think many people managed to have typical mother’s days, and if they did they probably shouldn’t feel great about it. But I can’t point too much blame on people who are trying to have some semblance of actual human contact with the people they love. It’s hard. It’s all hard, and if we get to see our friends or family soon, that will be swell. But for now, there’s still the comfort of music and movies and whatnot. Continue reading