A Sampling of Movies with Big Anniversaries This Year

As always, a new year brings with it new, milestone anniversaries. For instance, 2023 is the twentieth anniversary of Lost in Translation (2003), the thirtieth anniversary of Dazed and Confused (1993), and the fortieth anniversary of Scarface (1983). It’s also the twenty-fifth anniversary of The Last Days of Disco (1998), the thirty-fifth anniversary of two … Continue reading A Sampling of Movies with Big Anniversaries This Year →

Happy New Year

Susie Diamond: So, make any resolutions? Jack Baker: No, you? Susie: Nah, I figure all that stuff's a bunch of crap, anyway. You do what you do, right? Just as Christmas Eve stirred memories of Susie Diamond (Michelle Pfeiffer) and The Fabulous Baker Boys, so does New Year’s Eve. That’s because the film’s most famous … Continue reading Happy New Year →

Susie, Jack, and the Christmas Eve Coffee That Never Was

This Christmas Eve my mind wanders to a Christmas Eve past. It was the late eighties, in Seattle. Musician Jack Baker (Jeff Bridges) had just asked singer Susie Diamond (Michelle Pfeiffer) out for coffee after the two of them played a Christmas Eve gig with Jack’s older brother Frank (Beau Bridges). Strictly business partners up … Continue reading Susie, Jack, and the Christmas Eve Coffee That Never Was →

Year End Stuff

It’s almost the final week of the year, an appropriate time to take inventory around here. I don’t usually spend much time viewing the site’s stats, but I just did and noticed one major thing: I’ve had more than twice as many posts this year, compared to last year. In the last three months alone … Continue reading Year End Stuff →

Christmas on Film

I love the look of Christmas season. The more bright, colorful lights strewn about the better, in my opinion. Mistletoe and holly and candy canes, oh my! Keep it coming. So I thoroughly enjoy when Christmas movies go all in with their yuletide vibes. In the best Christmas movies, the seasonal trappings are a key … Continue reading Christmas on Film →

The Art of the Ad: Sex, Lies, and Video Games

The 1970s-1980s arcade ads are so gloriously retro now that you can almost see the console lights blinking and flashing, smell the acrid odor of teenage boys working up a sweat gunning for high score on Centipede, and hear the myriad sounds of bleeps, booms, and other onomatopoeia bouncing around the room. The later, home … Continue reading The Art of the Ad: Sex, Lies, and Video Games →

Forty Years of Fast Times

If you grew up at a certain time—the 1980s—and in a certain place—suburban America—then there’s a better than average chance Fast Times at Ridgemont High means an awful lot to you. Earlier this year the movie celebrated its fortieth anniversary, which feels like the right time to express my undying love for it. In his … Continue reading Forty Years of Fast Times →