Posts in SPECIAL
GUEST EDITORIAL: Do Movies Predict the Future or Influence It?

By Kevin Gardner

It is always strange when you are watching an old movie and see a far-fetched scenario that has since played out in the real world. Did the movie writers have privileged information about some new gadget? Maybe a child who watched that movie was inspired and grew up to design something similar. Either could be possible. On the other hand, there are some movies that predict social issues and world events that nobody could have imagined.

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SPECIAL: Nominations for the fifth annual Chicago Indie Critics Awards

Leading all films with an impressive nine nominations is Netflix’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom helmed by Best Director nominee George C. Wolfe and starring acting nominees Chadwick Boseman and Viola Davis. Following next with seven nominations each was David Fincher’s Mank and Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of the Chicago 7, both also hailing from Netflix. In all, 45 different films are represented with nominations for the 2020 CIC Awards.

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10 YEAR RETROSPECTIVE: The 10 Best Films of 2010

Despite the overall crappiness of this year, 2020 has been the 10th anniversary of this website Every Movie Has a Lesson. I didn’t start this endeavor until May of 2010 and, when the end of the year rolled around, I didn’t have a complete “sample size” or body of work, so to speak, to write a proper “10 Best” list. Missing that chance has always bothered the completist in me. I’ve been meaning to fix that and this little anniversary seemed like the right time, especially after charting a “best of the decade” list a year ago at the close of the 10s. So, turning back the clock a decade, here are my “10 Best Films of 2010.”

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20 YEAR RETROSPECTIVE: The best of the rest of 2000

In an annual series, Every Movie Has a Lesson is going to look back twenty years to revisit, relearn, and reexamine a year of cinema history to share favorites, lists, and experiences from the films of that year. When measuring back as far as twenty years or more, I feel like “favorites” that have stood the test of time have aged to become some level of “best.” I feel like a bunch of those populate my reflective look back at the best of the rest of 2000.

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20 YEAR RETROSPECTIVE: The 10 Best Films of 2000

In an annual series, Every Movie Has a Lesson is going to look back twenty years to revisit, relearn, and reexamine a year of cinema history to share favorites, lists, and experiences from the films of that year. When measuring back as far as twenty years or more, I feel like “favorites” that have stood the test of time have aged to become some level of “best.” I feel like a bunch of those populate my reflective look back at the best of 2000.

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INFOGRAPHIC: The True Cost of Iconic Holiday Movie Moments

The creative folks at CreditRepair.com designed this visual on iconic holiday movie moments and what they'd cost in real life + financial lessons anyone can learn from! They analyzed scenes from classic holiday movies (think Home Alone, Elf, and The Grinch) and found out how much they'd cost if they actually took place! Aside from satisfying curiosity, they tied the results back to important financial lessons we can take from these lovable characters and serve as important reminders of what really matters during the holiday season.

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GUEST EDITORIAL: Why Horror is a Favorite Genre for People in Current Times

by Garima Aggarwal

Ever since I was a kid, I used to watch and enjoy the spooky horror movies a lot and my mother, who was always scared to watch them, used to scold me whenever I put horror movie on television. When I got into high school, I found most students prefer watching horror films in place of other movies. And today I feel a need to tell people who always ask horror movie lovers 'What do you get by watching scary movies those are unrealistic?' A study published in the Journal of Media Psychology states that people watch scary films for 3 reasons; tension, relevance, and unrealism. Weird? Even I was not aware of this until I, myself, put the missing pieces of the whole scenario.

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INFOGRAPHIC: Guess the Numberplate Quiz

At Peter Vardy, they thought, as the coronavirus has somewhat clamped the handbrake on our year, it was about time that we all had a little bit of fun. That’s why today we bring you a quiz on Movie Number Plates. They’ve selected a series of number plates from the most famous cars in film and brought them together to see how many you can guess correctly. Some are easy but some are extremely tough. If you can correctly identify all of them, we’ll be very impressed! The plates range from films dating back to some of the all-time classics, to the car-focussed thrill rides on the big screen today. We’ve also thrown in a couple tailspins to keep you on your toes too. When you’re ready, give the quiz a go then make sure to send it to all your friends and family to see who's the biggest movie motor buff!

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EDITORIAL: Is "Casino Royale" the Best Bond Film?

The debate over which of the many great films in the James Bond canon is the best could go on and on for decades. The series has produced some excellent films that balance action and drama around Agent 007 while on Her Majesty’s Secret Service. The films have helped define what an action movie can accomplish and set the standard for film franchises that series like the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Harry Potter films have tried to emulate, somehow managing to make each movie distinctive and yet fit perfectly into the wider canon. Casino Royale has quickly become a fan favourite and is one of the most financially successful Bond films of any era, but is it the best Bond film? This is what we are going to try and find out.

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GUEST COLUMN: 5 of the Most Impactful Movies About Climate Change

by Kevin Gardner

Everyone knows that there is nothing that can get you quite as emotional, excited, or invested like a good movie, and there are plenty of good movies out there. Watching movies about health and wellness might have the power to get you to cut down on your sugar intake, and watching movies about rescue pets might push you to adopt an animal. Therefore, watching a movie about climate change might just get you invested in environmental justice.

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MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "You'll Probably Agree" YouTube channel talking the future for movie theaters

Back in May, I joined Mike Crowley’s You’ll Probably Agree podcast with Ian Simmons of Kicking the Seat and Pat McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com in discussing the state of movie theaters knee deep during this pandemic. Things looked brighter then. Now, six months later, with a spiking virus, streaming business moves, and conpanies closing or circling bankrupcies? Not so much. The four of us took to Mike’s YouTube channel recently to ponder the uncertain future. Enjoy this spirited conversation! I’m sure we’ll be doing it again soon.

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GUEST EDITORIAL: Cinema Experience in the Time of COVID

by Lewis Robinson

As the pandemic has absolutely ravaged the movie industry, leaving it in tatters. It is now up to us, the consumers and movie-goers, to create a similarly satisfying experience in our homes. Even if the theaters were still open, it would arguably be grossly irresponsible to ignore the dangers of the pandemic and potentially spreading it around; alas, we are left to our own devices. With theater chains like Regal Cinemas and AMC closing down their theaters across the country, and in some cases for good, it seems to be the end of an era. No longer will we be able to enjoy a delicious batch of fresh movie popcorn. No longer can watch plots unfold with unexpected twists and turns on enormous screens providing a crystal clear picture quality with audio so clear and so loud that it would shake the very foundation of the seats in which we sat

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