// Category Archive for: Media

Movie Review: Lo And Behold: Reveries Of The Connected World

By Sachin Hingoo

In Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World, a ten-part essay film that’s as far-reaching and excessive as its title, Werner Herzog explains the Internet as though you’ve never heard of it. If I didn’t know any better, I could actually believe that Herzog never has. He approaches this sprawling, impossible-seeming project with the often childlike point of view of a complete outsider and, one might say, Luddite. This usually manifests itself in a funny way but it also allows Herzog an entry point that’s not bogged down with jargon and which never seems patronizing. In fact, it easily and readily walks the line between wonderment and revulsion.

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Today In Pop Culture: Como Goes Gold, But What Does That Mean?

By Jeffery X Martin

“Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket/Never let it fade away…”

Scientifically and astronomically, this is a terrible idea. Not only will you get burned, but that thing could be radioactive. While these instructions are no way to treat a meteorite, they are enough to get you a gold record. “Catch A Falling Star” by Perry Como was the first single ever to be awarded the RIAA status of gold record, and it happened on this date in 1958.

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Astron-6’s Divorced Dad Teaser Thrills and Confounds!

By Sachin Hingoo

At 2008’s After Dark Film Festival, I was part of an audience that went completely wild for a trailer for a nonexistent full-length feature from the demented minds of Adam Brooks, Steven Kostanski, Jeremy Gillespie, Matthew Brooks, and Conor Sweeney–collectively known as Astron-6. That film was called Lazer Ghosts 2: Return To Laser Cove and ever since then, asking people at these events about their favorite Astron movie is a bit like a secret handshake. If you already have a favorite, and especially if you share mine (it’s 2014’s The Editor), we’re probably going to be friends whether you like it or not.

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Mexican Wrestling Sensation Lucha Underground: A Primer

By Sachin Hingoo

I’ve always been fascinated by pro wrestling’s ability to tell a story in a non-traditional way. Mixing elements of a stage play, a circus, and a TV show, along with the fact that there are usually no traditional “seasons” makes for some potentially great and potentially horrendous narratives that are equally entertaining to me. Lucha Underground, however, is unlike any other wrestling product that I’ve seen.

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TV Is Dead, Long Live TV: December 7, 2012

By Elizabeth Keathley

In his keynote speech to the XOXO Festival this past September, Dan Harmon, creator of Community, had this to say about the death of television:

“You don’t want to monetize the Internet. You’re having fun right now because it can’t be monetized. You’re getting away with murder on the Internet. You’re doing wonderful Rodenberry-ish things on the Internet because it has eschewed money and all the crappy people are back on TV wasting everyone’s time while Rome burns to the ground.”

I disagree with Harmon about several things he said in this speech, but I’ll start with the money thing because it’s so easy to disprove.

Dan Harmon created a great television show, but now says TV is dead.
A video of his speech is at the end of this article.

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TV Is Dead, Long Live TV: October 19, 2012

By Elizabeth Keathley

The latest in our ongoing series on the life and death of linear television, a.k.a. old-style appointment television, TV that only moves forward in time. For previous installments, go here.

I had planned to write this week’s article on the topic of fan-produced web series, but The Rumble 2012 and the Presidential debates livestreaming are too critical to the death of linear television and the new life of Internet television to ignore. So let’s spend the next several paragraphs dissecting what has gone right, and what has gone wrong, in Internet TV over the past two weeks.

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Assemblog: August 10, 2012

Kim Novak in Vertigo, 1958

New this week on Popshifter: Part Four in Paul’s album-by-album articles on THE BAND appraises Cahoots; my (sorta) objective, glowing review of Redd Kross’s first album in 15 years, Researching The Blues; Paul reviews Paul Thorn’s What The Hell Is Goin’ On? using the phrase “smo’ chicken”; Cait provides a brief history of The Tubes in her review of the reissues of their albums Young & Rich and Now; Chelsea wants to like Jezzy & The Belles’ Compasses & Maps but is unable to; and Lisa has mixed feelings about Thor and Loki: Blood Brothers on DVD.

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Assemblog: August 3, 2012

Jonah Lehrer
Photo © Peter J. Thompson/National Post files

New this week on Popshifter: Paul calls The Very Best Of Sonny Rollins a “lovingly assembled” collection; J Howell thinks Jimbo Mathus’s new Blue Light EP would “benefit greatly from some sweat and whiskey”; Emily assesses the recently reissued albums of party pop princess Samantha Fox; I praise Anchor Bay’s recent reissue of superlative horror film The Entity on DVD and Blu-Ray; and Paul discusses violence and censorship in light of The Killer Inside Me.

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Metacritical Mass

By Less Lee Moore

Photo from Collider

It’s no secret that I’m not shy about criticizing other critics. In the last few days, however, I’m starting to feel more sympathy than annoyance.

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Assemblog: July 13, 2012

Red Lights, 2012

New this week on Popshifter: a follow up on Twilight and modern horror; reviews of Lex Hives, Keep The Beat: The Very Best of The English Beat, and the Looking Back box set; plus why Brave is great and a review of the new movie Red Lights.

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