Here is the work I'm most eager to share, divided into five categories: essays, videos, images, lists, and podcasts. This is a great place to start if you're curious about the variety of my topics and approaches. (I also recommend checking out My Conversations, which purposefully doesn't overlap with this list aside from a few exceptions.)
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Video
Exploration of the aesthetic and political implications of Ousmane Sembene's use of black and white in his first feature film
Cinepoem (full cycle)
Six nineteenth-century poems accompanied, illustrated, and counterposed by fragments from a variety of films
Six nineteenth-century poems accompanied, illustrated, and counterposed by fragments from a variety of films
Class of 2002
My short film in which five classmates are remembered via photos, home movies, and narration
My short film in which five classmates are remembered via photos, home movies, and narration
Quick trip through the entire color spectrum of Vera Chytilova's Czech New Wave romp
The Comedy Countdown - Modern Times
My video essay entry in a comedy countdown, juxtaposing the contending views of Graham Greene, Roland Barthes, and Otis Ferguson with memorable moments from the beloved Chaplin classic they are discussing
My video essay entry in a comedy countdown, juxtaposing the contending views of Graham Greene, Roland Barthes, and Otis Ferguson with memorable moments from the beloved Chaplin classic they are discussing
directed by Brian De Palma
A video tribute to the dark fusion of sex and violence in the director's cinema, accompanied by Kevin B. Lee's interview with me
A video tribute to the dark fusion of sex and violence in the director's cinema, accompanied by Kevin B. Lee's interview with me
I am My Brother's Reaper: A Video Essay on Fists in the Pocket
My first narrated video essay, discussing a fantastic Italian favorite from the sixties
My first narrated video essay, discussing a fantastic Italian favorite from the sixties
Journey Through Twin Peaks Parts 1 - 4 (+ Part 5)
My most ambitious project, an extensive video series analyzing the narrative of the Twin Peaks TV series & feature film
The Language of Birds
Offbeat tribute to an offbeat film - in my first audiovisual essay collaboration I exchanged "video letters" with Covadonga G. Lahera using clips from Jacques Rivette's Out 1
My most ambitious project, an extensive video series analyzing the narrative of the Twin Peaks TV series & feature film
The Language of Birds
Offbeat tribute to an offbeat film - in my first audiovisual essay collaboration I exchanged "video letters" with Covadonga G. Lahera using clips from Jacques Rivette's Out 1
Learning to Look: Eye Contact in Satyajit Ray's The Big City
One of my most well-received videos, exploring the use of eye contact to advance character, theme, and story in the journey of a young woman from obedient housewife to independent saleswoman
One of my most well-received videos, exploring the use of eye contact to advance character, theme, and story in the journey of a young woman from obedient housewife to independent saleswoman
Unusual experiment in which the soundtracks are swapped from two scenes: one from the Indian musical Pyaasa, one from the austere French film Au Hasard Balthazar
Visual comparison of Meshes of the Afternoon with Lynch's late films, in which dream blurs with waking life, characters split into doubles, and the laws of time and space are shattered
Dissection of how the great documentary covers sports, media, Los Angeles, class, abuse, police, and race, as well as a brief comparison with the TV miniseries of the same year
Montage without direct commentary, exploring the evolution of Jean-Luc Godard and Anna Karina through their seven features together
Side by Side: The Big Chill vs. Return of the Secaucus Seven
Two baby boomer reunion films, only a few years apart, present compellingly different portraits thanks to production context, directorial vision, and the characters' socioeconomic status
Two baby boomer reunion films, only a few years apart, present compellingly different portraits thanks to production context, directorial vision, and the characters' socioeconomic status
Two cult TV shows that couldn't seem more different, yet share a kindred spirit
A non-narrated video essay exploring the treatment of abuse, violence, and the presence of evil in Lynch's first six films and Twin Peaks
32 Days of Movies - "To Become Immortal, and Then, to Die." • "Reality Cinema"
Chapters 19 & 31 in video clip series - one closes off the 60s epoch with a bang (including a lightning fast montage featuring 60 years of cinema in 40 seconds) and the other scans the 00s, with its mixture of documentary and impressionism
Chapters 19 & 31 in video clip series - one closes off the 60s epoch with a bang (including a lightning fast montage featuring 60 years of cinema in 40 seconds) and the other scans the 00s, with its mixture of documentary and impressionism
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Essay
The Big Picture: The Movies and Me
A memoir, a confession, a manifesto, a declaration of principles...
A memoir, a confession, a manifesto, a declaration of principles...
Boomer Baseball: Field of Dreams & the 60s • Sixties Reunion: The Big Chill & Return of the Secaucus 7
Two essays on a generation and its cinematic mythology: Field of Dreams seen through a prism of 60s nostalgia, and The Big Chill & Return of the Secaucus 7 examined against the rise of "baby boomer" culture (eventually adapted into video form, this written essay is much more expansive in its scope - half is devoted to an overview of the era and generation)
Two essays on a generation and its cinematic mythology: Field of Dreams seen through a prism of 60s nostalgia, and The Big Chill & Return of the Secaucus 7 examined against the rise of "baby boomer" culture (eventually adapted into video form, this written essay is much more expansive in its scope - half is devoted to an overview of the era and generation)
Cities of the Imagination
A prose/image reflection on city dreams, using Carl Jung, the Chinese film The World, Michel Gondry's music videos, and my own memories
A prose/image reflection on city dreams, using Carl Jung, the Chinese film The World, Michel Gondry's music videos, and my own memories
Citizen Kane
An analysis of how each narrator subtly shifts the tone and style, both cinematic and narrative, in Orson Welles' debut
An analysis of how each narrator subtly shifts the tone and style, both cinematic and narrative, in Orson Welles' debut
A two-part examination of Lynch's entire body of work, including features, shorts, music videos, commercials, and TV shows; the first part covers each film individually with a full review of each feature and capsules on shorter works, while the second part examines the evolution of Lynch's themes, narratives, and styles over the course of his career
A review digging into the visceral experience of watching this iconic anime, followed by a two-part conversation analyzing the story, style, and characters
Flight of the Red Balloon
A review of the French film, exploring its relationship to the earlier Red Balloon and the French New Wave, which kicked off my 'Best of the 21st Century?' series
A review of the French film, exploring its relationship to the earlier Red Balloon and the French New Wave, which kicked off my 'Best of the 21st Century?' series
4 Ways to Watch Fire Walk With Me: Art Film, Horror Movie, Lynch Project, Twin Peaks Episode • Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me and Twin Peaks: The Return
There are many prisms through which to view Fire Walk With Me; the first piece explores its place in a broader cinematic context and the other work of its creator, while the second traces its impact on the third season of the series after twenty-five years
The Great Movies
A tribute to one of my favorite movie books, an obscure, out-of-print coffee table tome discovered in childhood and relished ever since; includes many scanned images from the book itself
A tribute to one of my favorite movie books, an obscure, out-of-print coffee table tome discovered in childhood and relished ever since; includes many scanned images from the book itself
Hooray for (Hating) Hollywood: Sunset Boulevard
A review of Sunset Boulevard which concludes my series on early 50s films dishing the dirt on the film industry
A review of Sunset Boulevard which concludes my series on early 50s films dishing the dirt on the film industry
A re-examination of the holiday classic in light of its psychological darkness, political implications, and historical resonance
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Lawrence of Arabia
An essay on one of my favorite films, celebrating its expression of personal psychology through epic landscapes
An essay on one of my favorite films, celebrating its expression of personal psychology through epic landscapes
Let Them All In... Let the Right One In Book/Movie/Remake
History of all the different versions of Let the Right One In, a film about a teenage girl vampire and her strange friendship with a lonely little boy
History of all the different versions of Let the Right One In, a film about a teenage girl vampire and her strange friendship with a lonely little boy
Lucasfilm Lost
Requiem for one of Hollywood's last private empires, flawed but personal, in the wake of its sale to Disney
Requiem for one of Hollywood's last private empires, flawed but personal, in the wake of its sale to Disney
Observations on a massacred masterpiece, and how the studio's cuts
actually reflect the very theme of the movie: the descent from elegance
into the mundane
Secret Histories Return to Twin Peaks: Mark Frost and the Spatiotemporal Expansion of Season 3
Exploring connections between Mark Frost's 2016 novel and the Showtime series he co-wrote: geographical sprawl, historical context, achronological storytelling, and the thematic importance of aging
Exploring connections between Mark Frost's 2016 novel and the Showtime series he co-wrote: geographical sprawl, historical context, achronological storytelling, and the thematic importance of aging
Spade & Marlowe, Private Eyes
Comparing and contrasting the two iconic detectives and their creators, on page and screen
Comparing and contrasting the two iconic detectives and their creators, on page and screen
Summer Hours (Best of the 21st Century?)
Review of the French film about a family letting go of their country home - maybe my strongest piece for the 'Best of the 21st Century?' series
Review of the French film about a family letting go of their country home - maybe my strongest piece for the 'Best of the 21st Century?' series
The Sunday Matinee - Before the Revolution
Bertolucci's hard-to-find classic, about a romantic young man who struggles with his Marxist beliefs and sleeps with his aunt, gets the 'Sunday Matinee' treatment, as part of my series on 60s New Wave cinema
Bertolucci's hard-to-find classic, about a romantic young man who struggles with his Marxist beliefs and sleeps with his aunt, gets the 'Sunday Matinee' treatment, as part of my series on 60s New Wave cinema
This Sporting Life, Billy Liar, and the British New Wave
Historical overview of British 'kitchen sink' films of the 1960s, focusing on two films which came out in 1963, representing a profound shift in the movement
Historical overview of British 'kitchen sink' films of the 1960s, focusing on two films which came out in 1963, representing a profound shift in the movement
Triumph of the Will
Reflections on Leni Riefenstahl's powerful and disturbing Nazi propaganda doc
Reflections on Leni Riefenstahl's powerful and disturbing Nazi propaganda doc
Overview and analysis of three seasons of Twin Peaks in a single long essay
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me • Discussing Fire Walk With Me: Twin Peaks is Dead, Long Live Laura Palmer! & Back Door to the Black Lodge
After watching this movie (the prequel to the TV series), I was impressed, upset, and uneasy with what I'd seen, and I wrote the first review; nearly six years later, I re-visited the film and its legacy in a 4-part conversation with Tony Dayoub
After watching this movie (the prequel to the TV series), I was impressed, upset, and uneasy with what I'd seen, and I wrote the first review; nearly six years later, I re-visited the film and its legacy in a 4-part conversation with Tony Dayoub
Twin Peaks: "Lonely Souls" • "Beyond Life and Death"
Write-up on two climactic 'Twin Peaks' episodes (the revelation of the killer and the finale), entries in my series on the TV show
Write-up on two climactic 'Twin Peaks' episodes (the revelation of the killer and the finale), entries in my series on the TV show
My most lucid reflection on Twin Peaks' climactic episode, in which the investigation is wrapped up in a compelling, dissatisfying manner
My reaction to the two-part finale of Twin Peaks' third season, written the night it aired
Waiting for the 25th Hour
Seven years after the movie came out (and at the exact time the main character would be getting out of prison) I revisit Spike Lee's 25th Hour, one of the few films to deal directly with 9/11, for 'Counting Down the Zeroes'
Seven years after the movie came out (and at the exact time the main character would be getting out of prison) I revisit Spike Lee's 25th Hour, one of the few films to deal directly with 9/11, for 'Counting Down the Zeroes'
The Way We Weren't: Art Under Bush
Polemical response to Newsweek's shallow 'Art in the Bush Era' piece, reflecting on culture and politics of the 00s - this one came straight from the gut
Polemical response to Newsweek's shallow 'Art in the Bush Era' piece, reflecting on culture and politics of the 00s - this one came straight from the gut
Who's Killing the Movies - and Who Cares?
My enthusiastic response to David Denby's "crisis in the cinema" piece, not only affirming his despair but suggesting what the way forward will look like
My enthusiastic response to David Denby's "crisis in the cinema" piece, not only affirming his despair but suggesting what the way forward will look like
Observations
on Kenneth Grahame's classic book accompanied with images from film
adaptations: 'Toad Hall' explores the setting in light of British social
history; 'Dulce Domum' relates Grahame's personal biography to the
book's theme of 'home'
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Image
Civilisation in Pictures
Great works of Western art, in visual tribute to the wonderful British TV series
Great works of Western art, in visual tribute to the wonderful British TV series
A visual tribute to the stars of Twin Peaks
The Corruption of Michael Corleone
The descent of a character into darkness and evil, told using only images from the Godfather films
The descent of a character into darkness and evil, told using only images from the Godfather films
Anticipation, revelation, wonder, doom, and escape in four of Steven Spielberg's creature features
The Fall and Redemption of Anakin Skywalker
An image-only representation of Darth Vader's trip to the dark side
An image-only representation of Darth Vader's trip to the dark side
Fists in the Pocket: Shaking the Foundations • Lovely Paola
Two visual tributes to the Italian classic's vivid beauty (not least its leading lady)
Two visual tributes to the Italian classic's vivid beauty (not least its leading lady)
Four Worlds in Pinocchio
An exploration of all the nooks and crannies of four proto-Disneylands in Walt Disney's second animated feature: the shop, the town, the sea, and of course Pleasure Island
An exploration of all the nooks and crannies of four proto-Disneylands in Walt Disney's second animated feature: the shop, the town, the sea, and of course Pleasure Island
In the Beginning...
Nine great 'opening' images from movies - meaning these are the very first visuals we see onscreen; this post also kicked off an active and lively 'picture gallery' meme, and the other entries are listed at the bottom
Nine great 'opening' images from movies - meaning these are the very first visuals we see onscreen; this post also kicked off an active and lively 'picture gallery' meme, and the other entries are listed at the bottom
Explores the "Night and Day" number through Arlene Croce's prose & images from the film
Paper vs. Plastic
A visual tribute to old and new technologies in The Social Network
A visual tribute to old and new technologies in The Social Network
Top of the World
A visual tribute to Rocky's triumphant morning run
A visual tribute to Rocky's triumphant morning run
Two Things We Know About Pictures
Impressionistic tribute to Pierrot le fou, using Godard's famous quote and images captured from the film
Impressionistic tribute to Pierrot le fou, using Godard's famous quote and images captured from the film
A shot-by-shot breakdown of Asuka's meltdown in Neon Genesis Evangelion episode 22: "Don't Be."
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List
Art...on the March! (a visual mixtape)
Ninety great works of art from 1305 to 1998
Ninety great works of art from 1305 to 1998
Astaire and Rogers
Video clips of every single Fred & Ginger dance number
Video clips of every single Fred & Ginger dance number
Blog 10
In tribute to the blogosphere, a greatest-hits sampler of fellow blogger's work from 2010 (chosen by them), illustrated throughout with pictures and even the occasional video
In tribute to the blogosphere, a greatest-hits sampler of fellow blogger's work from 2010 (chosen by them), illustrated throughout with pictures and even the occasional video
A Century of Wonders • Cinema in Pictures... • Odyssey of Images
Three lavish visual lineups, featuring screen-caps from hundreds of classic film; each also serves as directory to a series: respectively, Allan Fish's decades countdowns, my own film clip collection, and Mark Cousins' documentary series The Story of Film
Three lavish visual lineups, featuring screen-caps from hundreds of classic film; each also serves as directory to a series: respectively, Allan Fish's decades countdowns, my own film clip collection, and Mark Cousins' documentary series The Story of Film
A dirty dozen
An imaginary lineup of double features, arranged thematically into six categories: 'Their Town,' 'Secret Societies,' 'She Did It Her Way,' 'Rising to the Top,' 'By Airplane or Submarine,' and 'Movement, Music, and Montage'
An imaginary lineup of double features, arranged thematically into six categories: 'Their Town,' 'Secret Societies,' 'She Did It Her Way,' 'Rising to the Top,' 'By Airplane or Submarine,' and 'Movement, Music, and Montage'
Organizing a decade worth of material into illustrated chronological chapters, describing each era in my site's history
Gone Fishin': A collection of commentary on Twin Peaks
Quotes from news and magazine articles, scholarly essays, blog posts, and other literature (as well as audiovisual media) on "Twin Peaks", stretching from 1989 to the present.
Quotes from news and magazine articles, scholarly essays, blog posts, and other literature (as well as audiovisual media) on "Twin Peaks", stretching from 1989 to the present.
Island of Lost Pictures
A massive image dump, collecting all the striking screen-caps and stills I'd uploaded but never posted (previously), this also doubles as backward-moving, entirely visual alternate history of my early blog, its interests, and its approaches
A massive image dump, collecting all the striking screen-caps and stills I'd uploaded but never posted (previously), this also doubles as backward-moving, entirely visual alternate history of my early blog, its interests, and its approaches
Just because you are a character, doesn't mean you have character... Part 1 • Part 2
Two posts, taken together comprising 100 favorite characters in film history, from Nosferatu to King Kong to Mrs. Robinson to E.T. to the Dude
Two posts, taken together comprising 100 favorite characters in film history, from Nosferatu to King Kong to Mrs. Robinson to E.T. to the Dude
90 Years of Cinema: my "alternate Oscars", 1923 - 2012 • 100 of My Favorite Movies
Two explorations of my personal canon: a list of favorites complete with pictures and brief capsules & a massive illustrated lineup of year-by-year picks for film, actor, director, and other miscellaneous categories
Two explorations of my personal canon: a list of favorites complete with pictures and brief capsules & a massive illustrated lineup of year-by-year picks for film, actor, director, and other miscellaneous categories
Reading the Movies
My ten favorite movie books, with the stories behind each one, fifteen runners-up, and an invitation for other bloggers to participate (they did)
My ten favorite movie books, with the stories behind each one, fifteen runners-up, and an invitation for other bloggers to participate (they did)
Remembering the Movies, Dec. 3 - 9
Probably the most interesting entry in my movie-history series, this covers a Siskel & Ebert conversation on Edward Scissorhands, two classic cartoons from Warners and Disney, my capsule on Flash Gordon, memories of films seen when I was 7 and 17, and extracts from a contentious debate between Pauline Kael and the Maysles Brothers on the truth of Gimme Shelter
Probably the most interesting entry in my movie-history series, this covers a Siskel & Ebert conversation on Edward Scissorhands, two classic cartoons from Warners and Disney, my capsule on Flash Gordon, memories of films seen when I was 7 and 17, and extracts from a contentious debate between Pauline Kael and the Maysles Brothers on the truth of Gimme Shelter
The Restoration: Glimpses of the Past - and Future?
A smorgasbord of screen-caps, stills, and posters from unavailable films, in tribute to the 'Film Restoration' blogathon
A smorgasbord of screen-caps, stills, and posters from unavailable films, in tribute to the 'Film Restoration' blogathon
Seven American Generations: iGen, millennials, X, boomers, silent, greatest, and lost
An illustrated guide to the living American generations (excluding those born after 2013) and the unique periods of the past century they experienced at different ages
An illustrated guide to the living American generations (excluding those born after 2013) and the unique periods of the past century they experienced at different ages
Sheryl Lee: illustrated filmography
Most of the actress' film or TV appearances, accompanied by an image from each
Most of the actress' film or TV appearances, accompanied by an image from each
They Once Were Coming Attractions... (memories of my movie past, 1988 - 1998)
Sheer nostalgia for my generation (born circa 1983), a lineup of movie posters from everything I saw in theaters between ages 4 - 15
Sheer nostalgia for my generation (born circa 1983), a lineup of movie posters from everything I saw in theaters between ages 4 - 15
Top 30 "Hidden" Characters of TWIN PEAKS
My favorite characters who only speak in one or two scenes of the old Twin Peaks - or who never speak at all
My favorite characters who only speak in one or two scenes of the old Twin Peaks - or who never speak at all
Two massive collections: a complete visual diary of everything I watched digitally between Feb. 12, 2013 and
Feb. 12, 2014, with screen-captured images and captions, plus a collection of 500 extra pictures
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Patreon Podcast
Another podcast on Blue Velvet explores the film's relationship to Twin Peaks in many facets and revels in an avant-garde documentary about its production
The turmoil of 2020 - and earlier historical flashpoints - finds expression in film capsules, podcast recommendations, archive readings, feedback from listeners, and explicit reflections on the past year (in my longest political discussion thus far)...even the small-town-with-dark-secrets Hollywood classic, which I compare to Twin Peaks, stars a future U.S. president
January 2020 LOST IN THE MOVIES #63 - The Longest One Yet w/ Bernie 2020 endorsement, Class violence in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, The Irishman, Joker, Parasite & Twin Peaks Cinema: What Did Jack Do?, Wiseguy, Twin Peaks directors' films (Halloweentown, Zelly & Me, Now and Then, The Escape Artist, The Wizard, Frances, Pay the Ghost, Heaven, After Dark My Sweet, Code Name: Emerald, Losing Isaiah & Matthew Blackheart: Monster Smasher... + Midsommar, Shin Godzilla, Ah Wilderness, My Brilliant Career, listener feedback, podcast recommendations, the 60s in the 80s, Twin Peaks Reflections: Bobby, Einar, the Log Lady, the Log Lady's and Jacques' cabins, The Ghostwood Deal/Part 1 & much, much, much, much more)
The highlight of this podcast, Class violence in 4 films is now a short public standalone podcast, with additional thoughts on the films in light of 2020
(8 of the Twin Peaks Cinema capsules are also public now, here and here)
The highlight of this podcast, Class violence in 4 films is now a short public standalone podcast, with additional thoughts on the films in light of 2020
(8 of the Twin Peaks Cinema capsules are also public now, here and here)
My most massive monthly podcast, by a long shot, encompasses the bloody climaxes of four recent releases, a feature film each by a dozen contributors to Twin Peaks, and a survey of the political landscape leading up to the 2020 presidential election among many other subjects - ten hours of material divided over five full-length chapters plus another five bonus mini-episodes
The Last Weekly Patreon Update: John Thorne conversation, Pt. 1 / Before Midnight & Boyhood (+ Kevin B. Lee/video essay history, La Vieja Memoria, La Haine, Lost in Translation, Celine and Julie Go Boating, Dogville, Persona, Death by Hanging, All the President's Men, Emak-Bakia, Faust, Cria Cuervos, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Cold War, BlacKkKlansman, La Religieuse, Mary Sweeney's short film, AOC hits Congress, podcast recommendations & much, much more)
(My review of Before Midnight has now been released publicly as a standalone)
(My review of Before Midnight has now been released publicly as a standalone)
An unusually long podcast, split into three episodes, covers recent viewing, political topics, a couple Richard Linklater films, and Twin Peaks theories...indeed, everything listed above - including the "much, much more"
Tracing connections between two of David Lynch's most celebrated works
Patreon update #11: David Lynch's Cinema - Connecting Eraserhead & Inland Empire, bonus: Blue Velvet (+ Diane Evans in Twin Peaks, Everything Sucks!, Frontline on Iran & Saudi Arabia, The Wind in the Willows & more)
(My review of Blue Velvet has now been released publicly as a standalone)
(My review of Blue Velvet has now been released publicly as a standalone)
Ten different elements to unite or divide Lynch's first and last feature films
To celebrate the anniversary of the site, a tribute to its history, a list of some of my works, and a preview of upcoming projects (includes illustrated video segments)
Wrapping up my Return rewatch by talking about the finale for nearly three hours
