Category: 30Hz Bl-g

Ramblings at the frequency of 30Hz

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30Hz Bl-g Cinema

The Ghostbusters Trailer and Internet Rage

In case you missed it, Paul Feig’s all female Ghostbusters trailer went live this week. I’m not sure how you could have missed it considering that the Internet immediately became a Petri dish of hyperbolic overreactionarianism. And no, “overreactionarianism” is not a word, but I’m going to make it happen because that’s exactly what I witnessed on my Twitter and Facebook feeds last Thursday. Overreactionarianism is a phenomenon that has grown increasingly popular on the Internet lately. The doctrine of overreactionarianism states that everyone has a high horse and whenever possible they should jump on said high horse and trample all other opinions with only a minimum amount of information at hand. Overreactionarianism to this trailer took two very distinct forms.

The Ghostbusters Trailer, Rage and Overreactionarianism

First there was the angry nostalgists who rose up in arms against those who would dare update/remake/reboot Ghostbusters.

Get that shit out of my face (angry baby)

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30Hz Bl-g Cinema

#CurateMyLife Classic (and Not-Quite-So Classic) Film Style

I came across this blogathon via Twitter and #TCMFF acquaintance Aurora (aka @CitizenScreen) on her Once Upon a Screen classic film blog. It seemed like a fun endeavor to put my love of film into pictures. The concept was first put into motion by film enthusiast Margaret Perry as a social media experiment… as part of her Cultural Heritage Management course at the University of York. She’s dubbed this a “Flash Blogathon” (and that sounds very exciting!) with the purpose of connecting heritages all over the world. Naturally, the classic film community loves such a challenge, and Margaret has tailored a set of requirements just for us. She’s outlined the details in her ‘flash blogathon’ announcement post, but basically we’re here to participate in a scavenger hunt of our own cool film stuff. Head over to Margaret’s page to check the guidelines and come up with your own #CurateMyLife entry.

First, however, I’ve got a few things to share. I stuck mostly to Margaret’s categories… but perhaps enlarged the notion of what constitutes a classic film. If you’ve read this bl-g at all, you’ll know I’m kinda stuck in 1985. So now let’s start exploring how classic and classic-ish film plays a major role in my everyday life.

 

30/007Hz #CurateMyLife – A Celebration of Stuff

 

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1. DVD/Blu-ray Collection

Talk about starting this scavenger hunt with a bang. I’m a compulsive collector. I’m a student of film. I love libraries. I love being surrounded by libraries of books, DVDs, records. I collect the films I love. I collect the films that have affected me personally through my collegiate film education and beyond. That said, my DVD/Blu-ray collection is threatening sentience. I don’t believe in owning digital copies (unless that version is the best version of the film available). Physical media plays an important role in tactile appreciation. Owning a physical copy of a movie is a commitment of space. It means something. I won’t go into my specific ideas about the meaning of physical media here, but I’ve published a piece on why vinyl records are important that you should read if you care to indulge my eccentricities further.

 

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30Hz Bl-g Cinema

Backstage Blogathon: A Night at the Opera

The Marx Brothers in The Cocoanuts

Welcome, Backstage Blogathonners! And a special thanks to our hosts Movies Silently and Sister Celluloid. This is my tardy entry that was written and stored away in December, waiting for the blogothon dates to arrive… and yada yada yada… I completely forgot to post the thing. Better early and late at the same time than never.

nighattheopera

Backstage at A Night at the Opera

Research has proven that the Marx Brothers have turned more people into classic movie fans than any other act in show business. There are pie charts and Venn diagrams to back this theory. It’s fact. Incontrovertible. Contained on certified documents stored in the vaults of the First National Bank of Freedonia.

I couldn’t have been more than six or seven when my parents first showed me a Marx Brothers movie – Animal Crackers. The result? A lifelong love affair with classic cinema. Well, I attribute that to the Marx Brothers and a whole bunch of Universal horror flicks I devoured one special Halloween. Special props to The Invisible Man.

But enough about this guy.
Get lost, guy. This isn’t about you.

At such a tender, innocent age, I couldn’t fully grasp Groucho’s wordplay or keep up with Chico as he sparred, in staccato fits and spurts. No matter how much I consciously understood, the Marx Brothers enchanted me through physical comedy and dialogue with the rhythm and unpredictability of a great jazz improvisation. Though I eventually grew to understand the finer linguistic machinations of Groucho’s acerbic wit, the brothers Marx were always immediately accessible. I’m embarrassed to admit, however, that it would be years before I realized Groucho’s mustache was actually *gasp* painted on. I was slow on the take there.

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