If Loving Cinema Is Wrong, Then There's Something Seriously Fucked Up In The World
Let's go back a couple of days. Okay a week. Alright, let's go back several weeks. That's when Greg at the fantastically awesomely something or other tagged me for the meme Why Being A Cinephile Matters.
It was a meme created for the sole purpose of reminding Greg and others why they love blogging about film. I am finding myself more in the ebbs than the flows of film blogging lately, and when I'm in the ebbs, I am really in the ebbs. I don't write, I don't comment, I don't check traffic. It's like my blog is a needy lover that I can't just flirt with. I have to leave it completely. The fact that I'm a traffic whore doesn't help me at all, because while I'm completely unmotivated to write, I think that I must so that people don't forget about me all together. And on top of that, I decided to create a parenting blog for some reason or another, so I have been writing some on that and that has taken away from this and blah, blah, blah, blah. But I seem to be peeking out from the darkness a bit, work has slowed down some and I have more of a desire to begin writing about film again. And while the desire is great some days just to shut down Lazy Eye Theatre, I don't know that I ever could because part of loving film is talking/writing about it. And to me, if I gave up my movie blog, it's like saying that I don't love movies anymore. And I can't have that.
So to officially show why I love film, I will complete Greg's task and list why I think being a Cinephile matters. And I'm going to tweak it a bit and explain why being a film blogger matters. Here we go.
Ready?
You weren't ready, were you?
Okay, I'll give you a second.
Okay. Ready?
Seriously, just get ready already.
Ready now?
Okay, here we go.
* I've discovered that it's much easier to hate a film than to love one. That being a true lover of cinema means to not walk into a movie with a loaded pistol ready to shoot holes.
* I've discovered that I'm not much of a reviewer. More of a color commentator. There are far too many great reviews out there. And people who can write them far better than me.
* I've discovered Sergio Leone and found a new love for Westerns. Not just the spaghetti kind.
* Like Greg, I too discovered the sub-genre Pinky Violence and what a wild and wonderful world that is.
* I've discovered that I am not the only one who loves the films of John Carpenter. And that's it's possible that there are some who love his films more than me.
* I've discovered that the Koreans know what they're doing when it comes to cinema.
* I've discovered that there's more to Paul Verhoeven than Robocop.
* I've discovered that even the worst films still have interesting subtext if you look hard enough.
* And conversely, I've discovered there's a lot of subtext that's just a bunch of hogwash.
* I've discovered that explaining why a movie is really good, or really sucks, takes a lot of talent.
* I've discovered that a great review can engage a conversation even if you've never seen the movie. It can also erase a lot of pre-conceived notions.
* And finally, I've discovered that I will never know enough about film. And that is a very humbling and exciting discovery.
Sorry this is late Greg, but thanks for having me do it.
I will now tag some people
Tommy at Pluck You Too
elgringo at He Shot Cyrus
Adam at A Shot In The Dark
Joseph at It's A Mad Mad Blog 2 (I'm still working on your meme, by the way)
J.D. at Radiator Heaven
Paul at Careful With That Blog, Eugene
and Fletch at Blog Cabins
It was a meme created for the sole purpose of reminding Greg and others why they love blogging about film. I am finding myself more in the ebbs than the flows of film blogging lately, and when I'm in the ebbs, I am really in the ebbs. I don't write, I don't comment, I don't check traffic. It's like my blog is a needy lover that I can't just flirt with. I have to leave it completely. The fact that I'm a traffic whore doesn't help me at all, because while I'm completely unmotivated to write, I think that I must so that people don't forget about me all together. And on top of that, I decided to create a parenting blog for some reason or another, so I have been writing some on that and that has taken away from this and blah, blah, blah, blah. But I seem to be peeking out from the darkness a bit, work has slowed down some and I have more of a desire to begin writing about film again. And while the desire is great some days just to shut down Lazy Eye Theatre, I don't know that I ever could because part of loving film is talking/writing about it. And to me, if I gave up my movie blog, it's like saying that I don't love movies anymore. And I can't have that.
So to officially show why I love film, I will complete Greg's task and list why I think being a Cinephile matters. And I'm going to tweak it a bit and explain why being a film blogger matters. Here we go.
Ready?
You weren't ready, were you?
Okay, I'll give you a second.
Okay. Ready?
Seriously, just get ready already.
Ready now?
Okay, here we go.
* I've discovered that it's much easier to hate a film than to love one. That being a true lover of cinema means to not walk into a movie with a loaded pistol ready to shoot holes.
* I've discovered that I'm not much of a reviewer. More of a color commentator. There are far too many great reviews out there. And people who can write them far better than me.
* I've discovered Sergio Leone and found a new love for Westerns. Not just the spaghetti kind.
* Like Greg, I too discovered the sub-genre Pinky Violence and what a wild and wonderful world that is.
* I've discovered that I am not the only one who loves the films of John Carpenter. And that's it's possible that there are some who love his films more than me.
* I've discovered that the Koreans know what they're doing when it comes to cinema.
* I've discovered that there's more to Paul Verhoeven than Robocop.
* I've discovered that even the worst films still have interesting subtext if you look hard enough.
* And conversely, I've discovered there's a lot of subtext that's just a bunch of hogwash.
* I've discovered that explaining why a movie is really good, or really sucks, takes a lot of talent.
* I've discovered that a great review can engage a conversation even if you've never seen the movie. It can also erase a lot of pre-conceived notions.
* And finally, I've discovered that I will never know enough about film. And that is a very humbling and exciting discovery.
Sorry this is late Greg, but thanks for having me do it.
I will now tag some people
Tommy at Pluck You Too
elgringo at He Shot Cyrus
Adam at A Shot In The Dark
Joseph at It's A Mad Mad Blog 2 (I'm still working on your meme, by the way)
J.D. at Radiator Heaven
Paul at Careful With That Blog, Eugene
and Fletch at Blog Cabins
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20 comments:
I know I never get tagged for these because I still haven't done something about Snake Plissken's eye patch (an idea just hit me, if you can believe that), but that's a pretty darned good list of reasons.
I have questions though:
Can interesting subtext also be hogwash?
Does hating a movie come easier the older you get? My movie money comes via hard labor for minimum wages, so I tend to be very soft on a lot of things, like I'm trying to convince myself that I just spent seven bucks wisely, which is why I liked nearly everything that came out last summer.
Who doesn't love the films of John Carpenter? Hell, my mom is the person who turned me on to them.
Of course there's more to Paul Verhoven. Haven't you seen TOTAL RECALL?
I love cinema.
But you know what? Some of your discoveries, there, are the exact reasons why my blog isn't at all about film. Even though those were the blogs I almost exclusively read when I first started reading and commenting. I did think for a while that was the way mine might go, but it turns out I don't know NEARLY enough about the subject to devote an entire blog to it.
Maybe someday!
But I do love reading the blogs of those who do know. It's an endlessly fascinating subject.
P.S. Bring back Bizarro Days!
Paul,
Despite your complete disrespect to all things Snake, I have tagged you.
I think interesting subtext can be hogwash. But if you find it interesting, would you still consider it hogwash?
I don't know if hating a movie becomes easier as you get older? I've noticed that since I've begun blogging, I spend my time trying to figure out my writing hook and usually that goes to a negative place. I don't know that it's a money thing. I truly want to love every movie I see. And because I have 2 children, my escape to movies isn't as often as I like so while it's not about money (I'm lighting up a $100 bill right now) it certainly is still a special experience for me.
Your Mom introduced you to JC? I want to hang with her. I actually had the privilege of seeing Escape from New York in the theater. My parents took me when I was a kid.
Oh yeah, I've seen Total Recall. Super Troopers. Hollow Man. Showgirls and whatnot. But I just recently saw Black Book and was exposed to his much earlier work before he came to the US.
Fuck, I said Super Troppers. I meant Starship Troopers. Two totally different movies.
Megan,
Loving movies and writing about them is hard work and what is demotivating at times is that I do see it as work and I hate that.
I've got to get through my September TOERIFC selection which is If... if you're interested, but then I'm on Bizarro. Thanks for asking.
Nicely done. Reviews are hard to write...even bad reviews.
Nothing but mad respect for Snake.
One night, I was in my room when my mom called me out to the living room. "You have to see this," she said. It was Halloween. A week or so later, she handed me a now incredibly worn copy of Big Trouble in Little China.
As far as moms, go, she ain't bad. She's the reason I talk during movies, but she ain't bad.
As I was reading down your post, I kept thinking, "Someone better tag me for this damn thing!" and you did! You did! You like me! You really like me! Thank you, Piper, thank you!
I want to know more about "Pinky Violence."
I love the analogy about shooting holes into films and how that's not the purpose of being a critic.
I agree with Megan...BIZARRO DAYS must live again!
Encore,
Saying you hate something is one thing. Explaining why you hate it is completely another.
elgringo,
Write away. Write furiously. And yes, Bizarro will be back.
Thanks for tagging me on this meme and I really appreciated your heartfelt comments on why you maintain a film blog. I would certainly echo those feelings as well. I certainly enjoy checking out what you have to say on a weekly basis, esp. if it's about Fincher's THE GAME (heh). I will definitely give this some thought and respond in kind on my blog.
Thanks for tagging me. It'll be some time before I respond, but I will. Your writing is always entertaining, and you've changed my mind a few times, which from a stubborn bastard like me is a high compliment.
J.D.
I look forward to your words.
Tommy,
Thanks for the compliment. Take your time, lord knows I did.
Sweet, I got the "And..." billing. I feel like Paul Newman or Gene Hackman late in their careers. Though maybe that's not a good thing, as they aren't really acting anymore. Hmmm.
No offense to the meme itself, but I rather liked your explanation of why you have trouble blogging more than the discoveries you gave. Can't say I don't feel the exact same way on certain days (though, ebbs and flows be damned, I'm ALWAYS a traffic whore).
Thanks for the tag. I'll get on it as soon as I'm done procrastinating about something else.
Fletch,
I should have said "and introducing Fletch".
So Pat, thanks for doing this during the nine days I decided to take off from blogging. Really, great timing pal! But seriously ass-hat... uh... I mean, Pat, thanks for doing this. Right when I wasn't around to see it. Have I mentioned you had a couple of months to do this and then did it when for the first time in over two years I decided to step back from my blog? I did? Good.
By the way, something is seriously fucked up in the world but I think it has more to do with that burrito I had for dinner than anything. You might want to stand back.
Comment approval? Great! Now I won't get to see anymore Wow Gold comments. Thanks for ruining my week jerkface.
Sorry I'm so hostile today.
Greg,
I'm sorry. I've got your calendar here and I completely forgot to check it. I'm looking at it now, and yes, there it is. It says "Greg Is Gone-dy" for 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9 days. And then it says something here at 11 am every day it says "Greg Poo". Yep, I'm reading that right.
CHEap WOW gOLd
它是的哇金子是那么完全令人敬畏的是，但是輕拍不是令人敬畏的格雷戈是
Sorry, but I missed the spam. By the way, that's a real sentence I typed into Babel fish. Copy and paste it and make it from chinese-trad to english. It doesn't quite translate back correctly but what the hell.
Boy it takes you a long time to approve comments. I'm going to write a strongly worded letter to management.
Management takes at least 6 to 8 weeks to respond.
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