Give me good movies or Give me DEATH!

I was just thinking tonight how film used to really be more of an art form. I don't think that can be said so much anymore. I was flipping channels and paused on a reality show called Life of Ryan... the whole segment I watched was about this 17 year old kid, a professional skater, who already has several businesses in his name but he doesn't know what he's doing, everyone else is doing it for him. I was sitting there watching this kid who doesn't even have an ounce of business sense get richer and richer simply because people like me are pausing to watch this crap. It's kind of crazy. I mean back when I was little - growing up on films like Wizard of Oz and Gone With the Wind - films seemed so much more monumental - they inspired and stretched the mind and the heart. Nowadays, all films seem to do is deflate our wallets. Every film I've seen this past year has been a disappointment - some more than others. Cloverfield was a wretched disappointment - no suspense, boring character development. It's not even worth writing to complain about... so I'll stop. The only exception I'd have to say was Guillermo del Toro's "Pan's Labyrinth", which was stunning and magical, heart wrenching and thought-provoking. Guillermo is a true artist. I highly recommend watching the extras on the dvd. Even his color palette for the film had a purpose; nothing he did was random. How many of today's writers/directors/producers can say that?
It reminded me why this project - blog4reel - is so important to me. Because, gd!, I miss good stories! I want my movies back! I also briefly watched a few snippets of the SAG Awards and saw that Javier Bardem won for No Country For Old Men, which I feel he rightly deserved. His character was fascinating and the movie is worth watching solely for him; however, I still find there's a lack of purpose or heart even in our finest films these days. I'm not saying I want morality or prepackaged life lessons shoved down my throat but it'd be nice to leave the theater with a sense of having just witnessed something unique, something beautiful, something that made me want to go home and write or debate as opposed to feeling the urge to whack myself over the head until I forget what I saw or finally pass out. I'm just saying, it'd be nice.

Anyway, Blog4Reel should be up and running any day now! Thanks to the Labkids, who are helping us with the marketing, for all your amazingness.