If there is one type of movie that I associate most with my dad, it’s the Western. Born and raised in central Texas around the mid-century mark, my dad grew up surrounded by cowboy iconography. Growing up I heard stories from my father’s youth about Gene Autry, the Lone Ranger, John Wayne, and Will Rogers. … Continue reading
Louis Gossett Jr. was my favorite actor for a while. Not Harrison Ford, not Tom Cruise, but the guy from Iron Eagle! I was 11 years old when I saw Gossett as the gruff Air Force Colonel with a heart of gold, and he seemed the perfect role model. My dad was in the army, … Continue reading
My sister grew up a dancer. When I went off to soccer practice, she put on her pink leotard and mom dragged her to a dance studio. I remember my sister’s love of dance stopping short at the fantasy when she was younger. She loved the swans and the princesses and the frilly tutus and … Continue reading
In the wake of Star Wars, the world was bound to see some cheap space opera knock-offs. When I was about four my dad took me to see Starcrash and to my brain at the time it was every bit as fun and exciting as the film it was aping. The movie had energy swords, talking robots, an evil … Continue reading
There aren’t many movies that I’ve ever walked out of, but Charlton Heston’s The Omega Man was definitely the first. I’m honestly not even sure how this happened since the film was released four years before I was even born. Maybe living in an Army town in the late 70’s meant that we had a … Continue reading
My family’s grand Thanksgiving tradition revolves around televised football almost as much as it does around turkey. In 2003 we celebrated a little late, so there was no football on TV and really not much of anything going on to fill those awkward all-grown family hours, so I suggested a movie. We couldn’t all agree … Continue reading
Sometimes the circumstances around seeing a movie far outweigh the experience of the film itself. Such was the case for me on a rare weeknight trip to the movies in 1985 to see the world’s first 3D Animated feature, Starchaser: The Legend of Orin. In late 1985, I saw an ad in the paper for Starchaser … Continue reading
It wasn’t so terribly long ago that a multitude of campy genre films descended on our multiplex screens and video rental shelves. The 1980s were a heyday for high concept, low brow entertainment from studios that looked to make a buck by offering a cheaper and more disposable version of the blockbuster. Star Wars spawned … Continue reading
Atlanta offers plenty of opportunities to see advanced screenings. Over the years, I’ve been to a lot of them–many sponsored by CHUD and others promoted by various radio stations, local stores, and the Atlanta Film Festival. If there’s one thing I’m sure of after the recent Scott Pilgrim screening, it’s that the world needs a … Continue reading
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is the world’s first movie version of Breakcore, even if that wasn’t Edgar Wright’s intention. The comic is a manic, high-speed blender of manga, indie rock, video games, and urban slacker chic and it works because it balances all of those elements without really trying to make sense of them. As a … Continue reading