We spout opinion, comment on the current zeitgeist and overanalyze pop culture and mainstream movies. Whether in the form of lists, survey questions or straight editorials, we hope to make thinking deeply about film a fun and stimulating activity for all.

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Morning Pour: Remake Roundup with "Scarface," "Akira," "The Raid," "Knuckle," "Oldboy" and More

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 30, 2011 11:26 AM
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  • 0 Comments
Morning Pour is your daily stop for quick links, news commentary and trend-spotting. Here are your five discussion topics involving remakes for Wednesday, November 30, 2011:

"Khodorkovsky" is an Extraordinary Documentary Thriller That Challenges Your Current Feeling About Capitalists

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 29, 2011 7:45 PM
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  • 1 Comment
Is this really a good time for a documentary that sides with a jailed billionaire? Cyril Tuschi’s extraordinary “Khodorkovsky” is not even the first nonfiction film I’ve seen this season that sympathizes with the rich. But it is a very different sort of doc than “Unraveled,” which infuriatingly (yet still captivatingly) allows the corrupt American lawyer Marc Drier to tell his story and claim victimhood (read my review from DOC NYC). Tuschi’s film is about a once-wealthy protagonist, the former head of Russia's Yukos Oil Company, who seems more legitimately a victim, one who might even be able to win over a few Occupy protesters. Maybe.

On DVD: "The Smurfs," "Friends With Benefits," "Cave of Forgotten Dreams" and More

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 29, 2011 2:02 PM
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  • 0 Comments
Looking for something to rent this week? Here's what we had to say about the films out now on DVD/Blu-ray today:  
More: Home Video

Morning Pour: Indie Awards, Darth Vader is a Grinch, "John Carter" Buzz

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 29, 2011 11:41 AM
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  • 0 Comments
Morning Pour is your daily stop for quick links, news commentary and trend-spotting. Here are your five miscellaneous discussion topics for Tuesday, November 29, 2011:

Is "The Muppets" a True Muppet Movie?

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 28, 2011 12:33 PM
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  • 17 Comments
I finally caught "The Muppets" over the long weekend, and while I did enjoy a lot of it, I was bothered by how little it actually qualifies as a true Muppet movie. How so, if the film does feature Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie the Bear and the rest of the gang (minus Rizzo, sadly)? Well, the Muppets are really just costars, supporting roles in a Jason Segel film rather than the main characters of their own. Some, like the barely present Rolf, seem as much to be celebrities making cameos as do Neil Patrick Harris and Selena Gomez.

Watch: Genie Becomes a Real Boy in "Aladdin" Alternate Ending

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 28, 2011 11:41 AM
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  • 0 Comments
I never was a fan of Disney's "Aladdin," mostly because I thought Robin Williams went way overboard as Genie. Now I get to finally laugh, with College Humor's alternate-ending parody cartoon "Aladdin's Mistake." Did Aladdin think this was "Pinocchio"? Or was he just as annoyed with Williams/Genie's awful hammy scene-chewing and anachronistic impersonation gags? Either way, this is a hilarious turn of events:

Morning Pour: Leftovers, Mostly of the "Twilight" Kind

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 28, 2011 11:26 AM
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  • 0 Comments
Morning Pour is your daily stop for quick links, news commentary and trend-spotting. Here are your five miscellaneous discussion topics for Monday, November 28, 2011:

Short Starts: Watch "Shame" Actress Lucy Walters in the Creepy, Kinky "Prickles" (and watch a documentary starring Steve McQueen)

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 28, 2011 9:47 AM
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  • 1 Comment
Short Starts is a column devoted to kicking off the week with a short film, typically one tied to a new release. Today we look at a film starring Lucy Walters of "Shame," which opens in limited release this Friday.

One Little Problem with "Hugo" (Spoilers)

  • By Christopher Campbell
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  • November 25, 2011 9:10 AM
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  • 4 Comments
Let me start off by saying that I love Martin Scorsese's "Hugo." It's the perfect blend of "Amelie" and "The Sandlot" and "Cinema Paradiso" and the spirits of Charles Dickens and Jules Verne and of course the works of George Méliès and the rest of film's origins. But there is one little problem I have with the movie, and it's hard to make a fuss about it but when a movie is this wonderful the seemingly minor negative elements taunt you until you get them out in the open. So this discussion is a real necessity for me as a fan of this film and cinema in general. I'm not trying to be a complaining jerk about it. I swear.

Guest Post: 10 Unknown Facts About the Muppets

  • By Joe Riska
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  • November 23, 2011 6:03 PM
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  • 2 Comments
It’s time to play the music. It’s time to light the lights! It's time to learn 10 Things you might not know about the Muppets!

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