2011 TheMovie411 Blog Awards

 Misadventures of a Missed Cineaste 

      I'm back! I don't imagine those two words conjure up memories of a famous press release from only the greatest basketball player alive? Whether they do or don't, I'm back like Die Hard: With A Vengeance. Actually, scrap that analogy...Unless we could trade Zeus Carver for Jules Winnfield? In that case "with great vengeance and furious anger," FilmMattic announces his return. Needless to say, my posting attendance record would make Ferris Bueller shriek in horror. Of course, then Brian De Palma would finally (as if he's been tirelessly in search of such a thing) have the perfect scream to conclude Blow Out. Heck, even a stoned out-of-his-mind Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High would disown me. I can hear the chants already: Truancy, truancy. And to my dismay, they're charged with the same stoic passion as the Notre Dame Football team chanting Rudy, Rudy. In other words, my unexcused absence from the blogosphere warrants the deepest of scorn even from the likes of the Dazed and Confused. 

FilmMattic Reflections

Memorial Day Magic

      First off, I'd like to send my sincerest blessings to all of our U.S. Service Members. I have two older brothers in the military and many close friends in the Marine Corps. I have only a faint idea of their commitment and sacrifice to our greater good, our freedom, our security, but I thank each and every one of them for their brave service. 

Film Meme

Fifteen Movie Questions Meme

      The movie blogosphere, an arena I'm proud to navigate, is full of unusual and unique ideas. Al Gore's Internet distinguishes these ideas based on causal traits: in this case, repetitive, transmittable musings that bloggers freely share. What I'm referring to, of course, are the nifty man-made creations known as memes. The latest one to capture my unbridled attention is called "Fifteen Movie Questions." It's the brainchild of Anna from Defiant Success. And after perusing my blogroll, it came to my attention. My fellow movie buff gal deserves the J-Kidd worthy assist. Rachel  (aka [film] girl, interrupted), a talented fireball of wit and reason, recently jumped on the meme bandwagon. And as bandwagons go—I'm talking squarely to fair-weather Miami Heat fans—others must climb aboard. Well, heeere's Johnny, and by Johnny, I mean Matty. This would be the point in time when Tony Soprano's shrink would advise me to tone down my obsessive film tendencies. But, like the brooding Mr. Soprano, I casually ignore her advice. For those of you who are keeping score: Film Obsession - 1 / Normal Behavior - 0. I kid, of course. Naturally, I'll leave such self-deprecating gimmicks to Kathy Griffin. There is nothing abnormal about loving movies. Griffin, on the other hand...well, I try to keep my blogspace PG.

FilmMattic's Great Alphabet of Films

Recap

*Tom Cruise' expression pretty much sums up how I feel.

      Over the past month, I have reviewed 26 films that I consider absolute required viewings (you can find them all HERE in a neatly organized directory). And with this post, I am listing them...because well, who doesn't like a list?

The Great Alphabet of Films—Y is For

Yojimbo or Y Tu Mamá También

      I'm going to be a little playful now that the blogging challenge finish line is only inches away. All you need to know is that the italicized titles are actual films (that I didn't pick), and the following transcript is a fictional back-and-forth between two unnamed characters. Let's begin, shall we?  

"Your Highness," Mr. Nameless said.
"No, I won't address you with such cordial grace. It's The Year of Living Dangerously and I'm just a Youth in Revolt. There's no Yankee Doodle Dandy in 2011, which is to say, no one's gonna be mistaken for James Cagney. If you want Yesterday's version of raucous, vulgar entertainment, and that oh-so wonderful slice of Americana, you'll have to tune into 2004's Young, Beautiful and Screwed Up...what we know today as, Jersey Shore," Mr. Anonymous replied.
"You Must Be Joking?"
"What, You Talkin' to Me?"
"Well you're the only one here. You Don't Know Jack."
"You're Telling Me, huh? Let me say this to you, for your situation: You've Got Mail. It goes somethin' like: You'll Never Get Rich unless...well, some Ludacris rapper says it better than I."
"Act a Fool." 
 "Yep. Sadly sonny boy, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow just don't ring true with Ye Olden Days."
"Can I have some of Your Alcohol?"
"You're a Big Boy Now...sure."

 -----------------------------------

      Those hoping for Young Frankenstein, You're Out of Luck. You Know My Name, so there are no excuses for improperly addressing your hate mail. All I ask, no Yo Momma jokes because You, Me and Dupree say so. You Can Count On Me though, for picking a film that You, I love. You Came Along for the review and you got You So Crazy instead. The gimmick stops here, feel free to rejoice—Yes Man! You'll Find Out my pick after the jump. 

Blogging Award Part Deux

Stylish Blogger Award

      Modesty goes out the window with this newest announcement. Thanks to the lovely and talented Nicole @ Electric Daze, I am now the grandiloquent owner of the "Stylish Blogging Award." I've always considered myself a trendy fella. I mean why else do most of my friends ferret out my incomparable advice when deciding which gear to rock on a Saturday Night. My buddy James used to come to my house with four different shirts—and this was before Jersey Shore turned t-shirt time into the newest, hippest, and most superficially-based, college-aged trend since....well, starter jackets, baggy jeans, and every other Hip-Hop fashion fad of my youth. 

The Great Alphabet of Films—N is For

North by Northwest

      I would love to include a Coen brothers film in my Alphabet. No Country for Old Men is a tremendous contemporary film, but North by Northwest is one of the greatest films, period. Not to mention, Fargo is their best film, but Fight Club won that close contest (Sorry Coens). I also love The Natural (who doesn't love Roy Hobbs!?) and National Lampoons: Animal House (the father of the "gross-out genre") is one of the greatest comedies of all-time—my buddies and I even hosted a Toga party in honor of Blutarsky (played by the sorely missed, John Belushi). Network (the recently deceased Sidney Lumet) provides one of the most powerful scenes in the history of cinema, complements of the immortal Peter Finch, and his rousing "Mad As Hell" monologue. Lest we even forget, the 1927 film, Napoleon (Abel Gance), a landmark silent French film for its use of handheld cameras and editing. As you can clearly see, every letter presents a unique challenge. It's my job to ascertain which film deserves the highest acclaim, given my tastes and sensibilities. By simply adhering to this stipulation, my pick is North by Northwest, from legendary director Alfred Hitchcock.

Blogging Award

I'm About as Versatile as...Johnny Depp

(Just kidding! Depp dwarfs me in that department. I mean the guy's done every conceivable role: Jack Sparrow, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, Willy Wonka, Gilbert Grape, Donnie Brasco, Raoul Duke, George Jung, John Dillinger etc. etc...He's a damn good chameleon).

100+ Followers!

*****Editor's Note*****

      In lieu of reaching 100 followers (thank you Marie for being the 100th!), I want to take a brief moment to send my sincerest thanks to all my newest followers and readers. You A-to-Zer's and the like have all played a very integral part in my achievement of this milestone. Thanks for joining, for reading, and for commenting! Each one of you is worthy of my "Person of the Week" honor!
      I also want to give a big, special thanks to all my existing followers and readers. I applaud you all for sticking with me despite being subjugated to my cinema-obsessed rants and reviews. You guys and girls are a terrific bunch. And I especially love the routine feedback, and the regularity of unique and insightful comments! 

*Me and the coolest Mexican Deliveryman giving you all a Gigantic THUMBS UP!

Some of my most Loyal Followers:


Dezmond @ TheHollywoodSpy
Dempsey @ TheMovie411
George @ CineMarvellous!
J.Son @ SON:Sation
Jaccstev @ MovieCafe 
JL @ CouchPotatoClub
M. Hufstader @ TheSmokingPen
Melissa @ Melissa's Imaginarium


On to the next one—lets get to 200!!

~~~~Be sure to check out my latest A-Z review, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark~~~~
 

Movie Poster Contest

Good Matt Hunting for a Creative Concept

*Robin Williams has a big head...not as big as mine!

      TheMovie411 (run by Dempsey Sanders, male model extraordinaire), in association with 1Minime & 1Paintme, is running a fantastic Movie Poster Contest. The details of the contest can be found @ TheMovie411. Essentially, the purpose of the contest is for you to create a Movie Poster featuring your mug shot. It does not have to be an original poster (i.e. you can use an existing one), you just have to incorporate your own artistic spin. For all you creatively minded thinkers, this competition will be a perfect vehicle to highlight your fancy graphic skills.

FILMMATTIC DOMAIN CHANGE

The Birth of FilmMattic

      For all my blogging friends, I just want to alert you to my domain change. It is no longer http://www.filmmatty.blogspot.com. My new domain is: 

http://www.filmmattic.com. 
      
      I please urge all of you that follow my blog to update your links. All you have to do is eliminate the "blogspot" piece.
      This is merely just a cosmetic change, though I am also excited by the prospect of increased site control. I am still going to provide the same content.

Thanks a bunch!!

P.S. I am going to watch Limitless later today, so expect a review very soon!

Oscars 2011: Live-Blogging the Show

FilmMattic @ Work 

 

      The crown jewel of the film world, the Oscars will begin in a matter of moments. This Award's show carries an infectious luster. In keeping with this spirit, I have decided to live-blog the event—my first ever foray into the live-blogging realm. 
      Without further ado, ready yourself for a continuous onslaught of everything Oscar, and jump right into my live-blogging of the 83rd Annual Academy Awards.

Filming for a Reason

 
      Call me an eternal optimist. Call me a delusional prognosticator. Call me an irrational thinker. I cede any pejorative title relating to my reservoir of inexperience from any reader of my blog—that is your right. 
      But, in the coldest of my reasoned thoughts, I call myself a calculating practitioner of manageable expectations, fashioned by a creative and smartly-premised bent. I have designs of one day honing my craft in the film business, initially as a screenwriter. 
      At this point, I will accept any role in the creative process. My one caveat, of course, is that it is concrete and not menial—i.e. if your looking for a gofer to fetch your coffee, I'm not your guy.  Ultimately, I would like the opportunity, as I'm sure most also do, of having my screenplay purchased from a studio and budgeted for production and wide-release. And of course, I'd be captaining the starring role.
      This fairytale story of the hungry and unknown, wily-eyed ambitious actor/writer becoming a movie star has already been done. In my humble opinion, it is the greatest story ever told. The making of one of my favorite films, Good Will Hunting, is precisely a tale of how two mostly forgotten acting talents—as their earlier film roles were largely unseen—became household names. 
      Facing uncertain oblivion in Hollywood and driven by a tenacious hunger, full of piss and vinegar, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck implored a big studio to buy their screenplay. By enlisting the support from cult indie, now-mainstream director Kevin Smith, Damon and Affleck convinced Miramax to green-light their script.  It was a career-making turn for the best friends. Soon, leading roles would start pouring in.
      Now, to say that my ambitions of discovery even remotely follow Damon and Affleck's tremendous rise to fame, is a bit far-fetched and laced with fairy dust. But I strongly believe I possess the talent of a filmmaker—in the duel sense of writing and acting—that will grant me the chance to have my film screened around the world. What follows next, of course, is the stuff of movie legend ...

* Checkout one of my favorite scenes from Good Will Hunting from the below link.  It's the Harvard Bar scene that I always enjoy watching.  It's great to watch Will just completely and unabashedly disparage that obnoxious, preppy Harvard student by calling him out ... ya know it appeals to the geeky side of me, just exerting intellectual kung fu on some deserving prick. 

A Seed of Potential

      As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be in the film business. The opportunity to broadcast my thoughts to a public audience, keen on insightful commentary, is an undertaking I have yet to explore. 
      Thus, my rationale for creating this blog is to gain entrance into the film community—a community fraught with smart, diverse minds. Such accessibility, I hope, will engender meaningful debates and consequently, an opportunity to cultivate my knowledge of cinema.
      As an aspiring actor/writer, I am yearning for the chance to subject my work to substantive criticism. One of the foreseeable ways by which I can hone my craft as a filmmaker is to connect with individuals of diverse sensibilities. This will allow for my work to undergo an honest critique. 
      Additionally, this blog will possess fundamentally intellectual qualities; specifically, serving as a venue to host various film debates.  As an avid moviegoer, I am eagerly looking forward to the chance to not only share my thoughts with other film aficionados, but to partake in entertaining debates.
      I am sure you can all easily discern where my film loyalties lie.  The blatant Goodfellas reference at the top serves as the inaugural declaration of my film sensibilities. Scorsese, Scorsese, Scorsese! I place Marty—perhaps it's sacrosanct to refer to him so casually without having met the guy—on a plateau akin to the Mount Rushmore of artists, a Mecca reserved only for the prodigious auteur's of cinema. 
      The reasons, as I will divulge in one of my follow-up blog posts, are thoroughly robust. And feel free to refute. After all, this blog is meant to elicit engaging discussions, which require a spirited back and forth. But for now, I will provide thoughts on the genesis of this blog.  
      Given the current dearth of my audience, this blog represents the very infant step in my ambitions to achieve some scintilla of spotlight in the vast film community.  In fact, other than my film connoisseur roommate Mike, zilch is a more apt descriptor of my audience. 
      Consequently, I am focusing my writing on broader topics.  Such an approach will allow non-native readers of my work to gleam insights into the machinations of my film-torn mind. I look at it this way—the more diverse my topics, the more controversial.  Thus enter debate stage right. 
      My discussions will not only encompass film critiques, but they'll also cover extraneous film making ideas, incorporate best/worst of lists, and myriad other engaging topics. All of these virgin efforts necessitate an objective I've long held. 
      In a hasty effort to not sound too righteous, my objective is to, one day, express an opinion, deliver a performance, wield a production or perform an analysis, that any moviegoer or intriguing mind can ingest. Therefore, I am willingly throwing my hat in the ring we refer to as the Internet.

I guess its just Risky Business, this whole Hollywood thing ...

a

*Below is the real deal video of Tom Cruise's iconic dancing sequence to Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock and Roll" in Risky Business.