Author Archives: AaronOOF

Over on Cinematical today is an interesting post titled “Screenplays you should read.” It falls under their “Cinematical Seven” category in which various writers make lists of seven … whatevers. (In this case, obviously, screenplays to read.) With the enormous number of great movies throughout history, it’s obviously quite difficult to come up with aContinue reading “OUT OF FOCUS 10: SCREENPLAY READING FOR FUN”

Last week, I wasn’t working at all. I suddenly went through that little spurt of posting because I was inspired (or something) and had the time. This week, I’m on another short temporary job today through Wednesday. Today at least, I don’t seem very busy, but I don’t know that I’ll necessarily get to aContinue reading “MISCELLANEOUS MISCELLANY: THE I’M SORT OF WORKING EDITION”

A couple days ago in my first post about my disappointment with being unable to plug-in my laptop at Tillie’s, I mentioned an IM chat I had with a friend who was frustrated by the way certain people hog space at cafes and therefore is all in favor of ways of limiting that ability, e.g.,Continue reading “BECAUSE I CAN’T SEEM TO STOP WRITING ABOUT CAFES — A MINI MANIFESTO”

So I’m sitting here minding my own business tonight watching The Apprentice. If you’ve seen the show, you know that there’s always a scene where Trump describes the upcoming to task to all the contestants, and at this time we usually also meet a couple of representatives from whatever big-time corporation has decided to productContinue reading “WHY IT’S HARD TO HATE THE DONALD”

I’ll admit it: I don’t read the art coverage on Slate so I’m unfamiliar with the rest of Lee Siegel’s work. I also am not a huge Spike Lee fan. I think he’s made a few great movies, a large number of incredibly mediocre ones, and he hasn’t really changed much as a director allContinue reading “STILL DECIDING IF THIS IS THE DUMBEST INTERVIEW I’VE EVER READ: SPIKE LEE TALKS TO SLATE, AND I FEEL SORRY FOR HIM”

You see, my little rant yesterday about the cafe Tillie’s in my new Brooklyn ‘hood was truly written with sadness and not venom. And just now I discovered why I really need a place like Tillie’s. You see, there’s this Starbucks I found in Manhattan, and, as I’ve alluded to, I come here regularly becauseContinue reading “THIS IS WHY I NEED TILLIE’S”

December is here and that means we can look forward to plenty of new releases timed specifically for awards consideration. The coming weeks will be chock full of Oscar bait from Brokeback Mountain and Memoirs of a Geisha to Munich and The New World. And that doesn’t even take into account wanna be blockbusters likeContinue reading “THE WEEKEND IN PREVIEW: THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM”

So yesterday I wrote this little ditty about the Gotham Awards and I suppose, to some degree, I questioned their credibility. Today, after reading about the winners (via indieWIRE), I can’t help but question it further. Capote as Best Feature? Are they kidding? Capote is not a great movie. It’s a great performance — several,Continue reading “SHOCKED BY THE GOTHAMS: FORGETTING WAS A BETTER IDEA”

I’m always sad when I learn about a writer whom I admire saying goodbye to his or her website. Obviously, it’s sadder when it involves someone actually dying, and that’s certainly not the case here. (In fact, it appears some of the opposite end of the life spectrum is involved.) Still, I just learned tonightContinue reading “SADNESS (ALBEIT NOT TRAGEDY) IN THE FILM BLOGOSPHERE”

Over at MBToolbox today, Claire Zulkey posted what’s basically an outline of a chunk of Robert McKee’s infamous “Story Seminar” (which she actually found here). Her premise was that McKee’s seminar (which in my book went from localized film-community “fame” all the way to infamy with its dead-on representation in the brillian Adaptation) is soContinue reading “COMPLETE McKEE FOR ALMOST FREE”