ScottWeinberg Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Fantastic Fest continues to prove itself as the funnest film festival in the entire world, not only by programming weird and amazing movies, but also by hosting events like the "Fantastic Debates." This is where filmmakers, film critics, and even theater owners square off in a debate inside an actual boxing ring. After the opening verbal rounds, the format changes to boxing, with actual headgear, mouthpieces, and boxing gloves.

Sadly, no solid punches were actually thrown over the course of the debate, but the real barbs were exchanged verbally. To put it in perspective, one of the topics was "Michael Bay: Should He Win An Oscar Or Get The Death Penalty?" Even stranger was the fact that the main event pitted Drafthouse owner and Fantastic Fest main man Tim League against crappy video game adaptation director Uwe Boll on "The State of Independent Films."

Check out the gallery below and head beyond the break where you can hear the best debates from the evening. There's a lot of genius in here, including some verbal sparring from our very own Scott Weinberg. Head on through and give them a listen. Just try not to do it while drinking anything, because it'll spew out of your nose.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I had the audacity to put together a "Top 100 Horror Movies" list, mainly because I get numerous emails, tweets, and random requests for "a few good horror movies to rent." It's awesome that people turn to me for an opinion, and so I put a lot of time and thought (about two good hours) into this list right here at Horror Squad. It's been so popular that three separate people on the Twitter have called me a moron this week.

But then I realized that I was ignoring my other baby ... the one called Sci-Fi Squad. (And I further realized that I haven't been called a moron enough this week.) And since sci-fi runs a close second to horror in my favorite genre department, well, let's just say I've seen a whole freaking lot of science fiction films. Less than some, more than most, but a whole stinking lot. This list took a bit longer than the horror one, mainly because I didn't want to omit anything that was worthy, but also because I insist on including personal favorites like Species. Yes, the hot naked horny alien movie. I dig it. And here are the remaining 99 ... over at Sci-Fi Squad.

I eagerly await your incredulous gasps and challenges upon my sanity. One last time: Here's The Top 100 Horror Films of All Time, and The Top 100 Sci-Fi Films of All Time ... according to me, of course. Both crafted with love. And caffeine.

I feel no particular affection or nostalgia for the "G.I. Joe" brand-name. Yes, I'm well-aware that the toy hero has been around since well before my birth, that he's had several resurgences over the years, and that he and his massive team of friends and foes were huge cartoon stars when I was growing up in the 1980s. Yet I'm neither a fan nor a hater of the property, and so I approached his latest incarnation, the big-budget live action* film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra with no baggage whatsoever, aside from that "feelm critic" valise that is a permanent fixture inside my brain. My early verdict is this: Find the asterisked word in this paragraph, and that's all you need to know.

What many would call a "guilty pleasure" I'll simply address as a question of "intent vs. result." (Mainly because I refuse to feel guilty for enjoying a film, especially when I can back up my opinions with genius insights like this...) The intent of the mega-pricey, ultra-flashy and non-brain-taxing Rise of Cobra is this: To deliver two hours of colorfully kinetic lunacy, to be a live-action cartoon that pleases old-school fans and basic action junkies in equal measure, to present long sequences of amusing ass-kickery that are only briefly interrupted by several "exposition dumps" and a few (too many) character-building flashbacks. All coated with non-stop CGI spectacle, pulse-pumping noises, and a bunch of broadly likeable caricatures.

Remember the Venom spin-off rumors that were slithering around last July? They've now turned into something official. Sony is developing a Venom movie, and they've hired two writers to develop it: Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who have only just left the still-filming Zombieland. The project is in such early stages that we don't have additional details, though more might become clearer once Spider-Man 4 settles down.

However, our Scott Weinberg actually caught up with Reese and Wernick last week and has this to say: "Based only on the half-hour I spent talking movies with the screenwriters, I can say that IF there has to be a Venom movie, then these are the guys who can pull it off. They seem to understand the practical (studio) side of the project, the professional (screenwriter) perspective, and (best of all) the enthusiasm needed to make the movie cooool. They couldn't divulge ANY tidbits at all, sorry! But at this early point, I'm feeling a bit more optimistic about Venom."

So, there you have Weinberg's take on the project and you know he'll probably be right. In the interests of keeping things balanced in cinematic geekdom, I shall remain skeptical about the symbiotic spin-off. Admittedly though, my bias may be purely based on how many jerks I know who sport Venom t-shirts.

"I believe that children are our future
(Thank you)
Teach them well and let them lead the way..."
-Randy Watson (Eddie Murphy), Coming to America

It might be presumptuous for someone as young as I am to offer up words of wisdom to any fledgling film critics out there, but in an age where print critics are only dwindling in number and online reviewers are subjected to constantly shifting standards of the industry, the prospect of constructive advice is my effort to provide something that wasn't necessarily there when I started in the field. Just because anyone can start their own review site doesn't mean that they should, but hopefully, some of the following tips will help encourage those of you still determined to give this a go to hold yourself and your work to a higher standard.

It seems that not long after audio leaked of Christian Bale losing his cool on the set of Terminator: Salvation, Cinematical Managing Editor Scott Weinberg had some choice words for yours truly about our site and my work on it -- only for his oft-dormant temper to flare up similarly and suddenly.

As such, I can't say how long this post might remain up, but you can listen in on most of the phone call below. The profanity contained within has indeed been censored, but the volume alone might be NSFW, so keep your fingers on those volume knobs.

I hope you're proud of covering Cinematical in this poison, Mr. Bale. I really do.



(And if that weren't silly enough for you...)

Warning: Video contains foul language and is NSFW

Scott Weinberg and I are the Cinematical night owls. You're probably reading this at a very sensible time of the day, enjoying something called "sunshine" and a "blue sky," and we're probably sleeping. That's how dedicated the folks at Cinematical are -- we work around the clock!

I tell you this because you might be wondering why one Cinematical writer is posting about another. That's because Mr. Weinberg likes to shyly send me links to prove he never actually does sleep, and instead works 24/7 watching, reviewing, and compiling the best and worst in horror films all year long. He's gone and done it again over at GreenCine, compiling the Top 50 Horror DVDs of 2008. I've seen maybe three of these, because I actually do require sleep.

So heck -- I decided to be the Pepper Potts to his Tony Stark and write up a little something, since he was too modest to do it himself. Plus, the real reason Weinberg sent me the link was to show me GreenCine, which I'm itching to explore further. This place is like an indie-Netflix, with the added benefit of being able to access a community of lists, reviews, and recommendations. You can rent, download, and buy movies here -- it's going to be a lot of fun to watch this place grow. Between this and Netflix, movie fans may be leaving their houses less and less. I know you and I will -- we've got to beat Weinberg at his own movie watching game!

Above: Cinematical's Scott Weinberg with his celebrity stalker Jennifer Connelly.

Whenever there's an editorial change here at Cinematical headquarters, it's our tradition to announce it live on the site. That said (gets up on his tiny stool with a glass of sparkling apple cider), it is my pleasure to congratulate the new Managing Editor of Cinematical.com! You know him as "That guy who's always making fun of Jewish people", however his official birth certificate reads: Scary Spooky Spice Scott Weinberg (aka Scott Weinberg).

(Waits for loud roars from the crowd to subside ...)

Our former Managing Editor, Kim Voynar (whom we love, cherish, honor, adore, obsess over, crush on, etc ...) will remain with Cinematical, but segue into a Festival Editor role. That's right, our festival coverage kicks so much ass, we need someone with sharp skills and plenty of wit to run the entire show. In all seriousness, both Scott and Kim are tremendous assets to our team and have taken a huge part in our growth over the past three years. I'm ecstatic to be working with each so closely from here on out, and you should be happy because, with their help, this little movie site will become that much more enjoyable to read in the coming weeks and months.

We here at Cinematical wish you a wonderful, sun-drenched weekend, and, as always, we thank you for your continued support.

Cheers! Mazel Tov!

(Now who the hell brought the sparkling apple cider -- this stuff sucks!)

July 1 means that the year is officially half-over (figured that out all by myself), so I figure it might be fun to pick back over the past six months and offer a list of my very favorite flicks of the year. I've long since given up trying to differentiate between "the best films of the year" and "my favorite films of the year," but seeing as they'd both originate in the same brain, I figure they're pretty much the same thing. Some of my choices will be obvious, but (hopefully) some won't. And get this: Some of 'em are horror movies. (A film must have received a North American theatrical release prior to 7/1 in order to qualify.)

January -- Not many choices, really, but I'm an enthusiastic supporter of both Cloverfield and Teeth. I also enjoyed Cassandra's Dream a bit more than most folks seem to, but it's hardly among Woody Allen's best movies. Beyond that, January was as lame as ever. (Thanks for nothing: One Missed Call, First Sunday, Mad Money, Rambo, Untraceable, and the execrable Meet the Spartans.)

February -- Things certainly started getting a little better around groundhog time. I found In Bruges to be a stunningly unexpected treat; The Spiderwick Chronicles a very fun cross between Potter and Gremlins; Diary of the Dead a very welcome departure from zombie lord George Romero; The Signal a mico-budget mini-masterpiece, and Semi-Pro to be very funny and entirely forgettable. Special mention to the (surprise hit, but critically underrated) Vantage Point, which really deserves a second look. (Stinkers: The Eye, Strange Wilderness, and Jumper.)

I've already done an "official" top ten list and all that year-end movie-critic jazz, but since today's my birthday I figured I'd spend an hour or two on a piece I'll simply enjoy writing. Most of the solid horror sites have done their own top / bottom lists, so I thought it would make sense to try a different approach. So let's start waaaay back in January and just tiptoe through the year in horror together. And then at the end we'll figure out how the horror geeks were treated in 2007. (All links lead to my review of that particular film, be it from FEARnet, eFilmCritic, DVDTalk, DVD Clinic, or right here at good ol' Cinematical.)

January!

01/02 -- Snakes on a Plane arrives on DVD. "The internet" still refuses to make it a hit. (0)
01/12 -- Giant croc flick Primeval advertised as a serial killer film. Doesn't help the box office. (-1)
01/16 -- Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning arrives on DVD. Thousands give it a second shot and realize it still sucks. (-1)
01/19 -- A predictably horrible remake of The Hitcher arrives in theaters. Nobody cares. (-1)
01/23 -- Saw 3 hits DVD and sells a whole bunch of copies, despite the fact that all the horror fans know a double-dip is arriving in 11 months. Weird. (0)
01/26 -- Blood and Chocolate. Ew, no thanks. (-1)
01/30 -- Forgotten Ricci flick The Gathering (finally) arrives on DVD. Turns out it was shelved for good reason. (-1)

January Total: -5 horror points!

February!

02/02 -- J-horror knock-off latecomer The Messengers hits theaters. With a PG-13. (-1)
02/06 -- The Grudge 2 hits DVD. Thousands realize oh yeah, there was a sequel. (-1)
02/09 -- A well-shot but horribly unnecessary prequel arrives in the form of Hannibal Rising. Collective yawn. (-1)
02/13 -- The "so good it's gotta be remade because it's foreign" 13 (Tzameti) arrives on DVD. (+1)
02/16 -- The comics nerds get a little (very little) horror infusion with the very silly Ghost Rider. (-1)
02/20 -- Lionsgate slaps the words "Open Water 2" onto a movie called "Adrift." (-1)
02/23 -- After Dark (brilliantly) chooses their dullest flick (The Abandoned) for a solo theatrical release. (-1)
02/23 -- Jim Carrey tries to get grim (and ends up goofy) in The Number 23. (-1)
02/27 -- The Return arrives on DVD. Hundreds remember that the movie exists. (-1)

February Total: -7 horror points!!