Top 65 Things I Love About Eyes Wide Shut (that no one talks about)

Eyes Wide Shut is second to 2001: A Space Odyssey as my favorite Stanley Kubrick film. Which is to say, it is one of my all-time favorite movies. It is also a film set near Christmas, a fact often overlooked when recalling great Christmas films. He’s my breakdown of some things I love about the movie that are often overlooked. Please be advised that five of the screenshots in this post feature nude women. My intention of using these shots was not to objectify, but rather, to break down other aspects of the film that are featured in the those specific frames.

the Directors: Jean-Pierre Melville

Everyone has directors they haven’t gotten to. Even a film freak like myself has gaps. For me, Jean-Pierre Melville was one such gap. In August, I started my FilmStruck subscription, and the first film I put on was Melville’s Le Samouraï. When the film was finished, I sat in a daze, completely transformed by what I had just watched. The film was a game changer; I hadn’t experienced such strong cinematic impact in years. I kept going. Army of Shadows was next. Another classic. More. And more, and more. Within a week, I had watched every available Melville film. And now, I can confidently tell you that the man is one of my all-time favorite directors.

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 9: Expectations

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself. 

This is my final post detailing how I made my microbudget feature film, Wait. I’ve used 20,094 words in this series to explain how I made Wait, and this post is a final chance to hammer home the most important points.

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 8: Distribution

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself. 

How do you know when your film has completed its festival run? As mentioned in my previous post, your film will likely get rejected from more festivals than it’s accepted to. This level of rejection could motivate you to keep submitting your film to new festivals. I have to get into one more. This is the last one. It HAS to get in here. But, at some point, you have to call it and move on.

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 7: Festivals

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself.

You made it. It seems like a blur. But you made it. You wrote the thing, planned the thing, shot and edited the thing, and now you’re ready for people to see it. Film festivals are a tricky beast. On the outside, submitting your film to festivals seems universally positive. But once you go through it, you realize there are a lot of highs and lows to manage while your film goes on its festival run.

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 6: Music

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself. 

The right music can seriously enhance the emotion of your film. Music can be so important to a film’s DNA that it can actually function as its own character. Fellow blogger-turned-filmmaker, Nikhat, recently asked me for advice on how to acquire the rights to protected songs for movies, which I’ve outlined here below. But if you’re making a microbudget film, acquiring song rights is an option you likely can’t afford. So before I dive into that, let’s talk about a way you can get great music for a reasonable price.

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 5: Post-Production

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself. 

You made it. You wrote the thing, you planned the thing, and you shot the thing. Now you have to creep back into the madness of your mind and put the thing together. Now you have to make your film come to life.

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 4: Production

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself. 

In Part 3, I said that during pre-production, you spend a lot of money on a few things, and in post-production, you spend a little money on a lot of things. Spending money is a big stressor, but strangely enough, while you’re actually shooting your film, you don’t spend too much dough. But believe me, you have plenty of other things to stress about during filming.

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 3: Pre-Production

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself. 

In Part 2, we followed the money. And while that entire post was dedicated to the patience-testing, somewhat soul-crushing, curiously enlightening process of how you can acquire money for a microbudget feature film, the money talk is far from over. Though, from here on, I’ll discuss how I used the money I had, as opposed to how I got the money in the first place.

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 2: The Money

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself. 

In Part 1 of this series, I detailed how I narrowed in on the idea to form Wait, and the years-long process it took me to finally sit down and write the damn thing. Part 2 of this series was intended to focus on the overall pre-production of Wait. The first chapter of that post was going to detail how I gathered the money to make my film. But as I started writing, I realized the post needed to stand on its own. So, while I do touch on pre-production below, my full pre-production post will come in a few days. This post is dedicated to following the money. 

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film, Part 1: Writing

The purpose of this series is to share my experience of making my microbudget feature film, Wait, while being as transparent as possible. This series is specific to my experience only. Please do not take these posts as universal How-Tos. Also know, this series is intended to shed light on the process of making a film, not on the quality of the film itself. 

I have received a lot of questions about my film Wait since releasing it online in August. Two of the most common questions are: How did you make it?, and What took you so long to release it?

How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film

In January 2013, I wrote a feature length script called Wait. Upon completing the script, I set out to make the movie, which would be my first feature film. Four and half years later, I released Wait to the public via iTunes, Amazon and Vimeo OnDemand.

This 9-part series is an exhaustive chronicle of how I made Wait. From writing to location scouting, directing to editing, film festivals to distribution, “How I Made a Microbudget Feature Film” is a deep dive into the heartaches and joys of making a microbudget feature film.

WAIT: Now Available on Vimeo OnDemand

At some point during the making of a movie, the movie takes on a life of its own. It’s born, it lives and it demands constant attention. Last month, when I released my feature film, WAIT, on iTunes and Amazon, I assumed my years-long relationship with the movie was officially out of my hands. After all, when you hand a movie over to audiences, it is no longer yours, it’s theirs.

WAIT: Now on iTunes and Amazon

What a long road this has been. I wrote the script for my first feature film, WAIT, in January 2013. We filmed it in Los Angeles and Washington D.C. from November 2013 through January 2014. Reshoots and additional scene shooting took place in June 2014. WAIT hit the festival circuit from December 2014 through June 2015. I submitted it for distribution on iTunes and Amazon in August 2016. And now here we are, August 2017, and WAIT is finally ready to be viewed. 

Top 15 Movies About America (made by foreign directors)

Sometimes it takes a foreign eye to truly capture America at its darkest hours. Other times, an outsider’s perspective can shed sardonic light on American stereotypes like suburbia, middle America, white trash, and so on. There’s an interesting theme to this list, that foreign directors are less afraid to show America at its worst. Below are a handful of great films about America that were directed by foreigners. There were many to include here, so do feel free to list your favorites as well!

Dunkirk

Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk is a $150 million experimental film. The film is new, it’s alive, and it is bound for infamy. To discuss art in any sort of measurable way is to relate that art to your own experience. Our tastes are informed, in part, by what we’ve been through and what we’ve seen. I’m noting that because I have seen thousands upon thousands of movies, and I have never seen a film like Dunkirk. And that sort of fresh vibrancy is enough to make me love a film. Of course, more factors are needed to achieve cinematic greatness, but seeing something I’ve never scene before is inspiring in a way that is all too rare. 

Top 56 Things I Love About Memento (that no one talks about)

Memento is a modern classic of cinema; not only my favorite Christopher Nolan film, but one of my favorite films period. It’s a unique, groundbreaking thriller that I have seen dozens of times, and studied endlessly. Nolan’s latest film, Dunkirk, opens today, and before we take a look at the new, I thought it’d be prudent to jump back and examine one of Nolan’s first.

Top 26 Things I Love About The Prestige (that no one talks about)

The Prestige is one of Christopher Nolan’s most polarizing films. True, detractors love to hate on Interstellar and The Dark Knight Rises, but there’s something about The Prestige that sparks divide. I’ve always loved the film, and was happy when dedicated readers of this blog encouraged me to add The Prestige to my “No One Talks About” blog series. With Nolan’s Dunkirk on the brink of release, I thought it’d be fun to highlight a few things I love about one of Nolan’s most divided films. (Note: All major plot points concerning The Prestige will be revealed in this post.)

In Character: Christopher Walken

Christopher Walken is one of cinema’s best, most iconic actors, and his appearance in this series has been a long time coming. There were a lot of essential roles to choose from here. I hope you enjoy my picks, and do feel free to share yours as well.

The Beguiled

I never knew where The Beguiled was going. The conventions of film made me speculate, but my predictions were consistently wrong. Even if I came close to calling the movie early, writer/director Sofia Coppola deviated from the norm in a way that was immensely compelling. This isn’t to suggest that The Beguiled is full of shocking twists; it’s more abstract than that. What’s captivating about the film is how it flirts with convention, but choses to introduce more human, complex variables.   

the Directors: Ingmar Bergman

Every word I have ever written on this blog has been in preparation for this post. It’s all been leading up to this – my expansive Director’s post on my favorite filmmaker, Ingmar Bergman. I saw my first Bergman film in the summer of 2008 and my life was forever altered. Seeing The Seventh Seal that warm, isolated evening in July redefined how I viewed cinema. The way I watch movies has never been the same, and it is with great joy that I’m finally able to present my exhaustive post explaining why.

I rewatched every film Bergman directed specifically for this post, so my thoughts on his films are as current as they can be. This post is a bit long (Bergman made a lot of movies), but I hope you find value in it.  

In Character: Billy Crudup

Billy Crudup (pro tip: it’s pronounced “crude-up” not “crud-up”) is an actor I can’t believe I haven’t covered in my In Character series. When I began to immerse myself in his filmography, I realized why: this guy is good in everything. He’s choosy with his film roles, as he dedicates much of his career to the theater, but his film performances are contained, real, and great. Choosing his six best roles was not easy, but here’s a look at one of my all-time favorite character actors.

Alien: Franchise Breakdown

You have to give it to Ridley Scott. The man has been fighting tirelessly to revive the franchise that gave him a career. Alien was an instant classic; it made the words “A Ridley Scott Film” wholly important. Like Scott’s Prometheus, his latest inclusion to the franchise, Alien: Covenant, is being met with mixed reviews. And truly, if there was ever a franchise whose films are all over the map, it is this one. Note: this post contains spoilers for all Alien films, including Alien: Covenant.

In Character: Lili Taylor

Lili Taylor is one of film’s best living character actors, a distinction she’s held since she began appearing in films in the late ‘80s. She helped make the ’90s American independent film movement so iconic. When that movement dried up, Taylor moved to TV, delivering some of the best work of her career. In fact, her recent stint on the second season of American Crime is right up there with her best work. I love that Taylor is still going so strong; she makes everything she’s in that much more interesting.

In Character: Powers Boothe

We’ve lost another great one. Powers Boothe was a big man, a Texas man, an intimidating and charismatic man. His voice thundered and his fury raged. I say this a lot in these posts, but I genuinely liked Boothe in everything I saw him in. The performances below highlight his best work in rather fine films, but the man was no stranger to appearing in films that were not well received. Yet, he’s great in all of them. Red Dawn, Sudden Death, U Turn, MacCruber – line them up and I’ll watch them all, because Powers Boothe was the man. A sad loss indeed, but such a worthy career to revisit.

In Character: Tom Berenger

Tom Berenger is a guy I’ve always rooted for. There’s just something about him. He has an old school swagger but a thinly masked sensitivity. He’s tough yet vulnerable, mean yet melancholic. His career has twisted and turned, but he’s been in the game for 40 years, and I enjoy watching him today as much as I did when I was young.

Top 10 Persona-lite Movies

Ingmar Bergman’s Persona is one of Top 3 favorite films of all time. It’s a fever dream masterpiece that I will continue to pick apart. Because, despite being only 83 minutes long, Persona is one of the most pleasantly complex films I’ve ever seen. I’ve spent more hours working over the film in my mind than I have actually watching the movie.

Classifying a film as “lite” in this post is not to suggest that the film is inferior to Persona. The purpose of this list is to draw attention to a particular group of films that remind me of a particularly unique film. Very few movies can even be considered in the same warped class as Persona, but these are a few of the best of them.

Matineecast: Song to Song

Ryan McNeil’s Matineecast is one of my favorite film-related podcasts. I’ve been fortunate enough to be featured on Ryan’s show before, most recently to discuss Terrence Malick’s new film, Song to Song.

Song to Song is a complex flick. It joggles multiple love connections while enthusiastically ignoring the convention of time. There’s a lot to unpack in the film, certainly more than the limits of my review allowed, so it was great to have the opportunity to discuss the movie in-depth with Ryan.

Click here to head over to Ryan’s site, The Matinee, and listen to our discussion on Song to Song.

Top 71 Things I Love About There Will Be Blood (that no one talks about)

Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood is a masterpiece, certainly one of the best films made since its release a decade ago. Upon reflection, it’s incredible Anderson was even able to make this movie. Prior, Anderson had done a little-seen two hander (Hard Eight), two large mosaics (Boogie Nights, Magnolia) and a quirky character study (Punch-Drunk Love). The tone, pace, and execution of There Will Be Blood don’t have much in common with those other films. In hindsight, There Will Be Blood kind of came out of nowhere. Which makes it that much better. Here are several reasons why.

Song to Song

Watching Song to Song is like explaining an old romantic relationship to a new friend. You would certainly start at the beginning – how you met, how long it took to fall in love. And then you may suddenly jump to the end – the fighting, the apathy. Beginning to end, back to back. As you kept talking, your narrative might gradually shift to highlights – the highs, the lows, the vacations, the fights. In real life, stories of such personal importance are rarely told in order. We shape our own narrative to make things more compelling. It’s a challenging concept for film, but one that clearly interests director Terrence Malick.

Terrence Malick Q&A: The Meaning of Life and Other Small Things

Okay, well, first of all, I can’t just be all cool guy and publish a blog post about a Terrence Malick Q&A without geeking out a little. I mean, I saw Terrence Malick… in person. At one point, he was 5 feet away from me, smiling graciously to all those who acted as if they were staring at a mythical god.

Terrence Malick is one of my favorite living filmmakers. I love every movie he’s made, and so appreciate that he makes movies his own way. Part of his method has been his prior insistence on not speaking publicly. No interviews, no question and answer sessions, no Making-Of docs, no awards acceptance speeches – literally, nothing. But in his later years, Malick seems to be opening up a bit more. He has been spotted at science and history-based Q&As for some of his films (namely The New World and Voyage of Time), but he recently showed up for a lengthy Q&A for his latest film, Song to Song, at the South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas.

Voyage of Time: IMAX Director’s Cut

The late astronomer, Carl Sagan, developed the Cosmic Calendar as a way to explain the history of the universe to laymen. According to Sagan, if the entire history of the universe (from The Big Bang to present day) were represented in one calendar year, highlights would break down as follows:

January 1, The Big Bang occurs

September 14, Earth is formed

December 24, First dinosaurs appear

December 31, 11:54 p.m., Modern humans appear

December 31, 11:59:45 p.m., Writing is invented

December 31, 11:59:59 p.m., America is discovered

In Character: Bill Paxton

When Bill Paxton died last month, cinema lost one of its finest character actors. For more than three decades, Paxton stole scenes in nearly 100 films, TV shows and miniseries. He wasn’t always in great films, but any film featuring Bill Paxton was a film worth watching. He made us laugh our asses off and cry our eyes out. He was the guy, every time, every role. On a recent episode of Marc Maron’s WTF Podcast, Paxton sounded eager to keep delivering great roles. Which makes his unexpected passing that much harder to take. Paxton’s loss is such a sad one, but we’ll always have his work, some of my favorite examples of which are below.

In Character: 2016 Oscar Nominees Edition

With the Oscars set to role today, I thought it’d be fun to take a quick look at the careers of all the acting nominees. Be sure to let me know your favorite performances by each nominee!

Breaking Down Sound Mixer Kevin O’Connell’s 21 Oscar Nominations

With more than 35 years in the business, Kevin O’Connell is one of cinema’s most revered sound mixers. Most notably, O’Connell is the person with the most Oscar nominations in history, who has yet to win. O’Connell has been to the show 20 times (21 this Sunday, for sound mixing Hacksaw Ridge), but hasn’t made it to the podium once.

LAMB Devours the Oscars: Best Actor

Below is my entry to LAMB’s Devours the Oscars column. Check out all of their Oscars 2017 posts here.

When the Oscar nominations were announced a few weeks ago, it seemed like Casey Affleck was a lock to win Best Actor for his searing work in Manchester by the Sea. But in a pleasant change of pace for the Oscars, most of the major awards are relatively open. The only real lock is Supporting Actress (Viola Davis, get it), with the other big categories are stuck in two, or even three, way races. Here I’ll take a look at Best Actor – what I think of each performance, and their chances at winning – before concluding with a few snubbed performances I would’ve love to have been nominated.

Top 10 “Rotten” Films of 2016

This is my favorite end-of-the-year movie list tradition. At the end of every year, I look at all of the “rotten” films on Rotten Tomatoes, and highlight ones I actually liked. Most of these aren’t close to being great films, but I enjoyed my time with them all the same. Be sure to list your favorite “rotten” films as well! (Note: I’m using the Rotten Tomatoes scores each film had on December 31, 2016.)

Top 15 Male Performances of 2016

Much like my favorite female performances of 2016, I love that this list is comprised of heavy-hitting veterans and newcomers I had never seen in a film before. I hope you enjoy my picks. Do feel free to share yours as well!

Top 15 Female Performances of 2016

I love that 2016 was a year filled with so much fresh talent, with plenty of excellent veteran work filtered in. Seven of the performances listed here were by actors I either couldn’t recall seeing in a movie before, or simply hadn’t. I hope you enjoy my picks. Feel free to share yours as well!

Top 10 Films of 2016

Looking over this list, it’s interesting that nearly half of my choices made my Top 10 Films of 2016 (so far) list back in July. I suppose to some degree, 2016 gave us something to like throughout. Here are the 10 I enjoyed the most.