7: Blogs | Movies and More

20 must-see films down, 80 to go

My friend and colleague Ryan Pitts just added a link to the list that sits to the right, under the �Collections of posts� subhead. It�s titled �100 Films to See Before You Die.� ( Full post )

Life is weird, and so is this film

I just stumbled upon an interesting little site that, weird though it may be, offers one of the most intriguing demonstrations of public art that I have ever seen. It�s embedded below. ( Full post )

Language gets lost in 'Horton'

�Horton Hears a Who!� the new film by Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino, is this generation�s version of literacy. Which is to say that it�s taken a book and translated its literary qualities largely to visuals. ( Full post )

10 films: What does it mean to be human?

OK, so here�s another Top 10 movie list. This one involves movies that play with your mind, that unfold like acid trips � sometimes good, sometimes bad, always confounding but, on occasion, offering a glimpse of illumination. Perhaps even a hint of an answer. ( Full post )

P.S. this comes as no surprise

It�s news such as this that makes me think that, one day not all that long ago, I stepped into an alternate dimension that left me walking among people who look like living, breathing and, uh, thinking human beings but who, in actuality, are mannequins equipped with built-in laugh tracks. ( Full post )

Cage makes another 'Bad' decision

Somebody mentioned in my previous post how �disappointing� it was that I hadn�t included a Werner Herzog film on a list of films designed to rock your world. Mea culpa. ( Full post )

10 films that you won't forget

In a class that I took in graduate school at the University of Oregon, I was asked to compile a list of my favorite 10 films. After laboring over for a full evening, I turned in a list of my favorite � at the time � 16 filmmakers, with up to three films following each name. ( Full post )

Will 'Indiana Jones' outgross 'Iron Man'?

I�m not a betting man, but I just made a movie wager. I bet a friend that, based on what Boxofficemojo.com reports on Monday morning, May 26, �Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull� won�t have outgrossed what �Iron Man� made on its opening weekend. ( Full post )

'Iron Man' retains its iron grip

First the bad news: �Iron Man� dropped 48 percent over its opening weekend. ( Full post )

New 'Narnia' best film ever made!!!!

I�ve been reading a lot about how movie critics all over the country are losing their jobs. No question. Same thing�s happening with books critics. And art critics. And columnists. ( Full post )

Comics are the wave of Hollywood's action future

In case you hadn�t heard, comic books aren�t going to disappear from the big screen anytime soon. Now that �Iron Man 2� has been announced, Marvel Studios is apparently going to inundate us with other second-rank superheroes. ( Full post )

Irony, thy name is Colbert

You may, or may not, be a Stephen Colbert fan. Either way, his interview with Ariana Huffington (see imbed below) regarding her new book has moments of hilarity. The book�s title, by the way, is �Right Is Wrong: How the Lunatic Fringe Hijacked America, Shredded the Constitution, and Made Us All Less Safe.� ( Full post )

Summer reading list? Start here

One of the students in the journalism class that I taught this past semester at Gonzaga University said he wished that I had handed out a must-see list of movies, which I thought was a good suggestion. ( Full post )

The right title says it all

It comes as no surprise that a review copy of a film should fall with a thump on my desk. What is surprising is the DVD�s title. ( Full post )

Halberstam had a way with words

I was just skimming through my copy of the late David Halberstam�s book �Everything They Had: Sportswriting from David Halberstam� (Hyperion, 401 pages, $24.95) when I came upon a couple of great quotes. ( Full post )

What's better: Movies in the theater or at home?

I just got back from recording this week�s version of �Movies 101,� for which we reviewed �Iron Man� and two films out on DVD. ( Full post )

Two gems set amid the glitter

Amid the summer blockbusters that are flocking to regional theaters, from last week�s �Iron Man� and �Made of Honor� to this week�s �Speed Racer� and �What Happens in Vegas,� a couple of gems are available for cinephiles to see. ( Full post )

'Iron Man' creates a metal storm

Looks as if �Iron Man� is receiving good reviews across the board. That, of course, doesn�t explain why it made so much money. Crap, after all, sells, too. But it does give some hope that Hollywood blockbusters can insert a bit of quality, if not intelligence, in between the frames of things blowing up real good. ( Full post )

Who's an 'Iron Man' fan?

So, who saw �Iron Man� last night, and what did people think? ( Full post )

Gird your loins for 'Rambo'!

I�d be curious to check out the psychological makeup of the movie fans who will be showing up at Regal�s Riverstone Stadium cinemas in Coeur d'Alene on May 15 to see the one-night-only �special event presentation� of �First Blood,� the 1982 first edition in the �Rambo� series. ( Full post )