OFCS members don’t just write film reviews. Here are several articles you might find interesting.
Best of Lists
12 Seriously Underrated Christmas Episodes
William Bibbiani @ CraveOnline
12 Things We Learned from the ‘Desolation of Smaug’ Commentary
William Bibbiani @ CraveOnline
All 92 ‘Step Up’ Dance Sequences: Ranked
William Bibbiani @ CraveOnline
Take 5… Comedic Actors Who Went Serious
- Excerpt: To celebrate the release of The Skeleton Twins, I take a look at 5 other comedy actors who have taken on more serious roles.
The Top 12 Nostalgic Christmas Commercials
William Bibbiani @ CraveOnline
Interviews
The Better Angels
Fred Willard Interview: ‘Planes’ and How to Be Funny
William Bibbiani @ CraveOnline
- Excerpt: Actor Fred Willard gives us comedy advice and tells stories about making ‘Planes: Fire & Rescue,’ ‘WALL-E,’ ‘Salem’s Lot’ and more.
Interstellar: Hans Zimmer on Love, Big Questions & EDM
William Bibbiani @ CraveOnline
- Excerpt: The composer tried to ‘consolidate the theory of quantum mechanics, time and gravity,’ and wound up writing a love theme.
Interview With Alexandre Desplat
Kristen Lopez @ Awards Circuit
Matthew Beard and Allen Leech
Morten Tyldum
National Gallery
Spoiler Interview: Ruben Östlund on ‘Force Majeure’
William Bibbiani @ CraveOnline
- Excerpt: The director of one of the most acclaimed films of the year reveals what the ending means, and which two YouTube videos inspired his movie.
Festivals: General Coverage
Dys-‘ and ‘The Cold Heart’ win Audience Awards at Cellar Door Film Festival
- Excerpt: The audience favourites at Ottawa’s Cellar Door Film Festival are the Canadian horror film ‘Dys-‘ from director Maude Michaud and the German animated fable ‘The Cold Heart’ directed by Hannes Rall.
Ottawa’s European Union Film Festival Runs Nov. 13-30
- Excerpt: Preview of Ottawa’s European Union Film Festival, an annual highlight.
Festivals: Individual Reviews
The Dark Side of Chew
- Excerpt: Review from Planet in Focus
Destroy All Monsters: Narratives Of Normal At Rendezvous With Madness 2014
Living on the Edge
- Excerpt: Review from Planet in Focus
Monsoon
- Excerpt: Review from Planet in Focus
On the Trail of the Far Fur Country
- Excerpt: This doc unearths a gem for Canadian film fans.
Starz Denver Film Festival 2014: Castanha
Peter Nellhaus @ Coffee, Coffee and more Coffee
Starz Denver Film Festival 2014: Killers
Peter Nellhaus @ Coffee, Coffee and more Coffee
Television
Being Don Draper
Samuel Castro @ Ochoymedio.info [Spanish]
- Excerpt: Breve presentación de las razones por las cuales “Mad men” es una de las mejores series de la nueva era dorada de la televisión.
Movie reviews: The John Hines Show (radio)
Bob Cashill @ WCCO Minnesota CBS Local
- Excerpt: Reviews of Nightcrawler and more for CBS radio station; 10/31, broadcast 11:10am CST
Movie reviews: The John Hines Show (radio)
Bob Cashill @ WCCO Minnesota CBS Local
- Excerpt: Reviews of Fury and more for CBS radio station; 10/17, broadcast 11:10am CST
Movie reviews: The John Hines Show (radio)
Bob Cashill @ WCCO Minnesota CBS Local
- Excerpt: Reviews of Gone Girl and more for CBS radio station; 10/3, broadcast 11:10am CST
Movie reviews: The John Hines Show (radio)
Bob Cashill @ WCCO Minnesota CBS Local
- Excerpt: Reviews of The Equalizer and more for CBS radio station; 9/26, broadcast 11:10am CST
Movie reviews: The John Hines Show (radio)
Bob Cashill @ WCCO Minnesota CBS Local
- Excerpt: Reviews of Interstellar and more for CBS radio station; 11/7, broadcast 11:10am CST
The Walking Dead’ Season 5 Review: “Self Help” Drops Bombs And Mullet Jokes
Brent McKnight @ The Last Thing I See
- Excerpt: After a misstep, “The Walking Dead” returned to its recent form this week with an introspective episode that highlights some oft-ignored characters and mullet jokes.
Essays
‘Tinseltown,’ ‘Classic Hollywood,’ and the Secret, Sexy History of Movie Scandals
- Excerpt: It seems a course correction is in the works, in the form of a sub-sub-genre of blogging, podcasting, and nonfiction writing that revisits the scandals of Hollywood’s early years with an eye toward scholarship rather than sensationalism.
Critiquing the Culture of Death: How dystopian fiction can point to a better world
Steven Greydanus @ Catholic Digest
- Excerpt: Utopian and dystopian fiction often ask the same big questions: What makes for human happiness and well-being? What does it mean to be human?
The Curious Case of “The Gambler” – The Woes of Hollywood’s International Release Strategy
- Excerpt: The scattered release calendar remains perplexing, in a sense it always has been. But with The Gambler I see no logic, just a careless loss of money and unintentional promotion of piracy.
The Curse of the Fourth Film: Why ‘Toy Story 4′ Is Probably Doomed
- Excerpt: Not only does the announcement further solidify Pixar’s metamorphosis into yet another sequel factory, but it’s a case of filmmakers muckin’ around with a series that had somehow come to an unquestionably satisfying conclusion. Plus, on top of all that, if you go looking for movie franchises that were still holding strong by installment four, the results aren’t exactly overwhelming.
Leaked Memo Details Michael Bay’s Benghazi Movie, Other Political Thrillers Based on Real Events!
- Excerpt: Thanks to a source deep inside Bay’s production company, Flavorwire has attained a secret memo detailing not only the Benghazi movie, but a whole slate of historical thrillers the director has in the works, in an attempt to drastically remake his image and filmography.
The Slow Erosion of the TV vs. Movie Actor Class System
- Excerpt: As the specifications for what mainstream movies are willing to do (and can do well) narrow, it’s become clear that for actors interested in crafting characters and exploring ambiguities (rather than running in front of green screens), the medium of choice has shifted.
Who Put the Kibosh on the Hollywood Sex Abuse Doc ‘An Open Secret’?
- Excerpt: If her film is sloppy, or reliant on the testimony of unreliable witnesses, then it should be held and, at the very least, revised. But if it is being suppressed out of fear and intimidation, then that’s just one more layer of the shameful story it tells.
Reviews of Short Films
Boy
Paulo Peralta @ CinEuphoria [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: Portuguese Short Film Review
Pela Boca Morre o Peixe
Paulo Peralta @ CinEuphoria [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: Portuguese Short Film Review
Permiso de Ausencia
Paulo Peralta @ CinEuphoria [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: Spanish Short Film Review
Sê Bem-Vindo a Esta Casa
Paulo Peralta @ CinEuphoria [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: Portuguese Short Film Review
Other Articles
The Overnighters
Jordan M. Smith @ IONCINEMA.com
