TOP TEN FILMS: 2022

“What do you know about art, kid?”

Persistence Of Vision: ‘Empire Of Light’ & ‘The Fabelmans’

Movies that recreate a filmmaker’s own formative years are practically a genre unto themselves. Most awards seasons of late have had at least one in the conversation. (Lady Bird, Roma, and Belfast are some of the most lauded recent examples.) This year, there’s a whole slate of them. James Gray’s Armageddon Time looked at the

Top Ten Films: 2005

(A “Then & Now” perspective.) This Top 10 is actually a 20, because sometimes ten just isn’t enough. Actually, it’s because that’s how I wrote it back when it was originally published a decade ago, and if I’m bothering to re-post it I may as well re-post the whole thing, right?

Return To ‘Oz’: A Minor Desecration Of My Childhood

I saw Oz The Great And Powerful earlier this week, and I am pleased to report that it is only a minor desecration of my childhood.

The Movies That Made Me: Teen Screams

I wasn’t what you’d call a “normal” teenager — if there is such a thing. See, most teens watch a movie like I Know What You Did Last Summer eagerly awaiting the bloody kills, rooting for the bad guy to gruesomely dispatch his sinful adolescent targets. Me? I cried when they died. When asked how

Trailer Trash: ‘Oz The Great And Powerful’

Dear Sam Raimi, Please don’t obliterate my childhood. Love, HardintheCity.

Top Ten Films: 2010

As a film school graduate, I’m afraid I have an obligation to take entertainment way too seriously. That’s why, when awards season rolls around, I can’t help but partake in the senseless, arbitrary, and totally nerdy critic’s pastime of ranking all the films I saw and compiling a Top Ten List. And since 2011’s award

Hard In The City vs. The Oscars: Live Blog & Winners 2011

Since my live blog of the Golden Globes this year was surprisingly popular (really, I didn’t think anyone would care what I have to say), I am again live-blogging and tweeting up a storm for the Academy Awards this evening. Should you need them, here are my predicted winners.

Gold Rush: Independent Spirit Award Winners 2012

And the Oscar winners have been announced! Congratulations, everyone! Thanks for playing and see you next year. Okay, actually, these are the Independent Spirit Awards winners, but there’s a lot of overlap with tomorrow’s predicted champions. Traditionally, the Spirit Awards are meant to be a way to counterbalance the Academy’s ardor for more mainstream, bombastic

Gold Rush: Oscar Predictions 2012

Though so many of us take the Oscars very seriously (guilty as charged), really, it’s just a game. It’s no different than the Super Bowl, except there are about five teams playing in every “quarter” and it’s actually quite embarrassing to be wearing the same outfit as anyone else. No jerseys on the red carpet.

Gold Rush: Academy Award Nominees 2012

At this point, what else is there left to say, but: Oscars… Extremely Lame & Incredibly Disappointing.

Gold Rush: Oscar Nomination Predictions 2012

Predicting the Oscars is useless. Sure, it can be fun guessing the winners when the big night is nigh, but what’s the use of predicting nominees? I’m telling you, there is none. And yet, people do it. I use the term “people” to refer to that small handful of folks like myself for whom the