Every Movie Has a Lesson gives a hearty welcome back to The Cinescope Podcast, hosted by Chad Hopkins, after a brief winter sabbatical. After seeing me recently come out of hosting a screening of E.T.: the Extra-Terrestrial through the "Kids Klassics" series at The Wilmette Theatre, Chad invited me to record a nostalgic retrospective on Spielberg's film as the return episode of The Cinescope Podcast. E.T. is a cherished favorite film for both of us and it made for lovely discussion.
Read MoreThis week, I was cordially invited to re-team with the mainstays of the Kicking the Seat Podcast hosted by Ian Simmons. David Fowlie of Keeping it Reel, Emmanuel Noisette of Eman's Movie Reviews, Ian, and I consider ourselves Earth's Mightiest Critics to discuss Marvel's summer-movie megalith, Avengers: Infinity War! We decompressed and ranted after an early screening at the MacGuffins bar and lounge of the AMC River East location. Presented here is an evenly divided round table of opinions.
Read MoreFor this departing month of April, Aaron White of the Feelin' Film podcast are pleased to present you a conversation about 1953’s Shane, just in time for its 65th anniversary. Newer or younger audiences may recognize this film as the allegorical pairing made in James Mangold’s Logan, but this classic western sits at #46 on the AFI Top 100 10th Anniversary list and #3 on the westerns list for good reasons.
Read MoreFrees’s voiceover goal is to change Donald’s mind about math, to ruffle his feathers of antiquated ideas, false concepts, superstitions, confusion, and general bungling (all revealed in pseudo-analog-Inside Out fashion). Whether the knowledge of these “boundless treasures of science” stick in his bird brain remains to be seen. Spirited and pristinely stylish animation, dancing shapes, and moveable manipulatives fill the screen backed by music from Buddy Baker, a veteran of 26 Disney films of the era.
Read MoreIn light of Mark Zuckerberg's testimonies before Congress this past week, Mike Crowley, the excellent YouTube video creator of his You'll Probably Agree channel, hit me up with the idea of looking back at David Fincher's The Social Network. Fincher's film has evolved from a tell-all biopic of sorts to a cautionary tale with an impact that is still growing. Mike and I think the film holds up and we went the social media route to record a video chat of our conversation.
Read MoreI may not be a full-on gearhead, but I do love a great car in a film! Car leasing company OSV has created an interesting and engaging infographic detailing the 10 most memorable cars to have graced the silver screen in the last 50 years. From Steve McQueen’s Mustang GT390 in Bullitt to Vin Diesel’s Dodge Charger from The Fast and The Furious, these are mean machines that really stand out from the crowd.
Read MoreOn behalf of The Wilmette Theatre, I owe a big thank you to Wilmette Life, The Chicago Tribune, and freelance Pioneer Press reporter Dan Dorfman for the kind and positive coverage of our ongoing "Kids Klassics" series! We had our first screening of five covering Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Enjoy the news story and some pictures from the event.
Read MoreDo you want to kill at parties or learn to talk like a pro gambler at CasinoSites? Hollywood might help there! This little infographic below gives you 99 insane facts about some of the most popular gambling movies of all time. Like, the box office take for Casino Royale looked like the GDP of a small, developing country at around $599 million. Or that over 250 movies have been filmed in Las Vegas over the last seven decades.
Read MoreEvery Movie Has a Lesson has gradually become more and more of an advocate and proponent of the buried treasure that is the short film scene. I'm excited to share this report of a promising new hub named Softy.tv for audiences to experience and enjoy more from this branch of the film medium. Enjoy and learn up on this great viewing opportunity!
Read Moren concisely thematic way, the award-winning short film The Prince, written and directed by Kyra Zagorsky, is a moving artistic interpretation of one of those such moments. It indeed has a thought-provoking story to tell, and the result creates a resonating effect in short order, the chief goal of a good short film. The Prince’s key to accomplishing its depth is the twin layers it uses to portray and describe its moment.
Read MoreEverything nowadays gets scored and ranked against everything. As an educator with accountability to assessment and achievement, I can respect that and gladly drink that Kool-Aid. With the annual NCAA March Madness tournament going on in full swing, a pair of movie-themed brackets have been surfing the Facebook waves and I couldn't help but be intrigued. One challenge is for the youthful casual fan and one is for the somewhat more serious cinephile.
Read MoreI know I love a good gambling film. The anticipation and setup of a clever bet, con, or rouse can crack with cinematic excitement. If I had to add one to this list, it would the football skybox scene in 2015's Will Smith vehicle Focus. Here are some other winning moments. Enjoy this fun infographic from vegasslotsonline.com!
Read More
