It’s very hot out to day, and we’re exhausted. Some weather outlets say it feels like 97° right now. Yikes. So, without comment, here are pictures of pugs dressed like the cast of Lord of the Rings.
Continue readingMedia Services at the Movies: White House Down
The summer blockbuster season is here! “Media Services at the Movies” will look at what big movie is coming out this week, then offer a few movies like it from our collection. Okay, hear us out on this one. There was once a time when summer blockbusters were not superhero movies. They were just loud […]
Continue readingBeyond Tony Soprano: James Gandolfini in film and television
No doubt you’ve read the news about the tragic, young death of James Gandolfini, the actor best for his powerhouse role as Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano. No one doubts that role is one for the ages. But even without The Sopranos, Gandolfini had a large and diverse career, including documentaries about war veterans and […]
Continue readingSlim Whitman, musician featured in Mars Attacks!, dies
Here’s a sad movie trivia obituary. Slim Whitman, renowned folk yodeler, died today at age 89. Though not exactly a beloved or legendary musician, Slim Whitman has a small place in film lore. In the climactic scene of Tim Burton’s 1996 movie Mars Attacks! (DVD 4555), Whitman’s “Indian Love Call” is used by the military […]
Continue readingMedia Services at the Movies: Monsters University
The summer blockbuster season is here! “Media Services at the Movies” will look at what big movie is coming out this week, then offer a few movies like it from our collection. Who among us have never, at least once, loved a Pixar film? The Disney-owned studio has nearly two decades of bona fide classics […]
Continue readingSpielberg joins Soderbergh in warning of film industry “implosion”
Pessimism loves company. Roughly a month after now-retired director Steven Soderbergh engaged in an epic-length verbal takedown of the movie industry, Steven Spielberg has followed suit; Hollywood Reporter quotes a foreboding Spielberg warning of the industry’s imminent restructuring. The director predicts a number of changes, such as higher ticket prices for pricier blockbusters and the […]
Continue readingIWDRM is a mesmerizing tribute to iconic film images
I’ve been looking for an excuse to post this for a while, but no good one has come up. Consider it a little Tuesday pick-me-up. IWDRM is a blog that posts animated stills of famous movie scenes. That sounds confusing, and the results are somewhat confounding too. Pictures on the site combine animation with still […]
Continue readingMedia Services at the Movies: Man of Steel
The summer blockbuster season is here! “Media Services at the Movies” will look at what big movie is coming out this week, then offer a few movies like it from our collection. Seven years have passed since the last Superman film – 33 years since arguably the last good Superman film. We didn’t expect them […]
Continue reading“Fitzcardboardaldo” will make any Herzog fan’s week
This might be best to share without much context. Experimental artist and puppeteer Robin Frohardt recreated Werner Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo in cardboard. We see creative tributes to movies all the time, but the sheer audacity of this project and its unusual choice of subject are laudable. And ironic, given Herzog’s tendency to make movies about impossible […]
Continue reading“Slow TV” will test your patience, calm your nerves
When we think about critically acclaimed and popular television, we usually turn to gripping procedurals like Game of Thrones and Mad Men. Compared to other popular sitcoms or dramas, these shows tend to be tense but protracted, using their episodic nature to develop characters and events with chess-like methodology. Many complain that these shows tend […]
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