John Otteni

I made a mockumentary about hunting vampires

Shocktober Day 1: Julia’s Eyes

Julia’s Eyes (2010)

If a film opens with “Presented by Guillermo del Toro” you know you’re in for something interesting. I’d go as far as to say del Toro’s name carries more promise than a “Presented by Quentin Tarantino” or any modern film that’s “Presented by Steven Spielberg”. I love Tarantino but when his name is attached to a film he didn’t direct it’s always trashy exploitation you find in a bin at 7/11. Spielberg produced a lot of great movies (and cartoons) in the ‘80s and ‘90s but it’s always been mainstream low-risk, blockbusters. Del Toro is far more niche. When del Toro attaches his name to a project you know it’s a story that resonates with him on a personal level. Del Toro loves stories with whimsy and dark fantasy. Films that find beauty in dark places. Much of which could be used to describe today’s film, the 2010 Spanish Horror-Thriller Julia’s Eyes.

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Shocktober: A Decade of Death

In 92 days a decade will be laid to rest. We will say goodbye to the fads and trends of the 2010s. We will say “Nevermore!” to fidget spinners, clown sightings, and whatever Dat Boi was supposed to be. But one thing that will never die, one thing that will forever linger on like the living dead… are the movies.

What a decade for horror with classics like; Get Out, It Follows, The Babadook, The Witch, and more. I would argue the 2010s might be the best decade for horror second only to the 1980s. So we’re going to pay our respects with a 31-day tribute to some of the scariest, most thought-provoking, and most entertaining films of the decade. Welcome to “The 2010s: A Decade of Death”.

Check out our schedule below. Stay scared!

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Rokk Talk Ep. 21: Woodstock

Fifty years ago today a bunch of hippies got high, slid around in the mud, and listened to Country Joe and the Fish… Or so we thought! Turns out there was more to the story. A festival was had Wood-something? Well apparently they made a movie about it and John and Colin watched it. Not only that, but they watched the long-ass edition. Check it out and hear what they had to say.

Criterion Month Day 27: Kicking and Screaming

Kicking and Screaming (1995)

I should have seen this movie when I was in college. Aside from the obvious point that it’s about directionless college students, I would have been able to relate. No one likes to face uncertainty, especially when you’ve spent the last few years hitting the books only to find those skills may not translate to the real world. The film rings true and I wonder if was a reflection of whatever writer/director Noah Baumbach was going through at the time. Baumbach has made a lot of movies of people of different ages struggling to figure out their next step and here’s where it started.

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Criterion Month Day 26: Shallow Grave

Shallow Grave (1994)

Danny Boyle is forever young. No matter what he does (or how good it is) you always feel his youthful energy. Boyle’s films are high adrenaline, quick-paced, and never boring. Stupid, maybe *cough, The Beach but never boring. What amazes me is that Boyle wasn’t a young hotshot music video director or hipster underground filmmaker when he made his first feature. Boyle was 38-years-old with a respectable background in theater and producing/directing for the BBC. How that evolved into marathon running zombies and guys chopping off their arms I don’t know, but he’s never lost that spark. Boyle knows how to balance the fine line between high art and entertainment, and in no place is that better displayed than in his 1994 dark comedy Shallow Grave.

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Criterion Month Day 25: Slacker

Slacker (1991)

Damn it! This is so late. Here we go!!!

I made more than one mistake picking Slacker for my “First Time Filmmakers” list for Criterion Month. First, Slacker isn’t Richard Linklater’s first feature-length film. It’s Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books is a $3,000, 86 minute, Super 8 mm film, starring Linklater as he drives through the country doing mundane day-to-day activities. Wow, I wonder why that isn’t a classic? As far as I can tell the film isn’t available apart from being a special feature on the Slacker Criterion. My second mistake was picking a non-narrative film. I don’t have a good track record with non-narrative films. I like drama, rising action. Even Linklater’s iconic hangout film Dazed and Confused had the underlying threat of Wiley Wiggins gettin’ a paddlin’. Slacker had a lot going against it in the John test and yet… I liked it okay, but why?

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