Black Dog Newsletter for Week Ending January 6th
This is it. The last newsletter. For the year. But fear not, we’ll be back to celebrate and mock films and life and hobos and whatever else we may come across in the year 2014. I hope that everyone had a swell 2013. Or at least the end portion of this year. I hope that it ended better for you than it did for us. I hope that there were less rocks thrown through your windows early Christmas morning than us. Yes, that’s right, some son-of-a-grinch chucked a huge rock through the window of our Commercial location. My sprog, Swanson, answered the phone at 6:30 am (he’d been awake since four because Christmas) to tell the police that he couldn’t wake me up because we had a plan that we wouldn’t get up until 7:30 to open the gifts. I ambled down to the store, still a bit drunk from making merry on Christmas Eve to chat with the Heat and view the damage. Yep, there was a big hole in the window with a huge rock laying on the floor. We slapped up some plywood (thanks, Garn!) and then had the window replaced the next day. Of course insurance didn’t cover the cost. I love insurance! Anyways, it was a shitty thing to have happen but in the big scheme of things, it’s not all that big of a deal.
We’re open noon until 8 New Year’s Eve if you need/want to drop in and grab some flicks to celebrate the passing of 2013 and the birth of 2014. We’re also open New Year’s Day noon until 11pm to provide you with all of your hangover film needs. What’s your favourite go-to film for that type of occasion?
There’s only a couple of films released over the past two weeks so we’re going to start our staff picks for best of the year today!
New Releases this week
Don Jon – Joseph Levitt-Gordon, or Gordon Joseph-Levitt writes, stars and directs this romantic comedy about a studly ladies-man that’s addicted to internet porn. Then he meets Scarlett Johansson. Might she be able to divorce him from his right hand and have him see her as a potential mate? I think that what this film is about anyways. Also on the Blu Ray.
Insidious 2 – More insidiousness from James Wan and some ghosts and a skinny Rose Byrne and a perplexed Patrick Wilson. Didn’t think all that much of the first one but I’m willing to give this a try. I love me some horror! Also on the Blu Ray.
Black Dog Video’s Staff Picks of the Year
Here are some links to what I enjoyed the most this year. There’s a lot of ones I didn’t get to see yet (Before Midnight, Her, Inside Llewyn Davis) and some of these may not be the best films, but the following are what I had the most fun with. Listed in alphabetical order…
John’s Picks
Upstream Colour
The Hunt
Blue is the Warmest Colour
White House Down
Frances Ha
The Great Beauty
I’m So Excited!
Hannah Arendt
Much Ado About Nothing
Before Midnight
Josie’s Picks
In no specific order other than the goofy ass category I give them. I watched probably the fewest movies in any given year of my entire life in 2013. Very little TV watching either.
Best Giallo Influenced Art-Film disguised as Ryan Gosling porn.
Only God Forgives – Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, owned by Kirsten Scott Thomas as Cruella De Mob Mother.
Best Stupid Summer Blockbuster
Pacific Rim – Rock em Sock em giant Robots fights a terrible script and Alien Kaiju. You don’t care that Idris Elba has to say things like “We’re cancelling the Apocalypse.” And, you shouldn’t care. mindless big screenery. I think it may suffer on disc unless you have a huge ass TV, which you probably do.
Laugh Out Loud Funniest Movie that I expected to be really lame
This Is The End – The best Apocalypse Buddy movie of all time, The Citizen Kane of Apocalypse Buddy Movies. (sorry Vertigo, you don’t yet have the best movie ever swagger for that joke, yet) Most heartfelt nonsense of the year. Also: Danny McBride. nuff said.
Best Movie that was on Everyone’s list last year, because they saw it in the theatre and I didn’t Memorial Trophy
Django Unchained – Obviously. Completely over the top: Samuel Jackson should have got an Oscar for his most complex role ever. Too much DiCaprio (not always a bad thing), to my mind, but otherwise, it stays with me more positively than Inglorious Basterds.
Most disappointing movie that had potential to be really awesome.
Man Of Steel – I want a movie about Jor-El – Space Dad Adventurer. The stuff on Krypton is the best sci-fi all year. It goes downhill slowly from there until the third act where it gets slightly less subtle than the ending of any number of Matrix movies. What is it with Superhero movies and their inability to have decent third acts, these days? Sheesh. I do love that both his dads are “Robin Hood.” That may be the best thing about it. I spent half the movie doing my nails.
Worst use of Wolverine in 2013 award
There is some stiff competition for this award. In the comics Wolvie is every second thing you read from Marvel. Some of the best Wolverine comics are about his ties to Japan, and Bushido, Yakuza, Silver Samurai, The Viper, Lady Deathstrike, etc. But this flick is such a muddle. Weirdly paced and dull. Wolverine might be over saturated to many of us nerds, but we’re still waiting for an actual “Wolverine movie.”
TV Shows that I actually Still watch
Best New Show that I realy hope keeps on being as awesome in season 2.
Orange Is The New Black – Light years ahead of Jenji Kohan’s Weeds, which I also loved. But this show is the real deal, at least Season 1, Sopranos, Wire level TV.
Most Consistently Interesting Network show
Person Of Interest. Great ensemble, a show that is willing to grow and change up its story as the concept matures, making it a very Meta show.
Most Disappointingly ‘Network’ of all the SF that is happening on TV right now.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – It’s okay, but has yet to except a few moments here and there really capture what I personally want out of such a show. More Steranko, less Whedon.
Torten’s Picks
Fave 10 movies of the year:
1) The Wall (Germany)
2) Graceland (Phillipines)
3) Post Tenebras Lux (MEX)
4) The Deep (DK/Iceland)
5) Only God Forgives (DK/USA)
6) Amour (FR)
7) Silence (Germany)
Great movies were in short supply this year so the last 3 are TV!
8)Parade’s End (GB)
9)Rectify (USA)
10) Top Of The Lake (NZ)
Shobi’s Picks
The Hunt – best film of the year for me, how easily someone’s words can have everlasting consequences. Mads Mikkelsen is gold.
Ain’t Them Bodies Saints – out on DVD in the next few weeks. One of my favourites from VIFF this year. If you like Badlands this is a great contemporary film with the same feel.
The Gatekeepers – a documentary on the Shin Bet (Israel’s CIA). Candid interviews with past heads of Shin Bet. Highly political but incredibly interesting.
Frozen Ground – My main man Nicolas Cage plays opposite an evil john Cusack based on events of Alaska’s most notorious serial killer.
Broken – Tim Roth plays a good guy in this! Great dark, dark British film with some heart centred around a cul de sac and the people that inhabit it.
Killing Them Softly – filmmaker Andrew Dominik has made only perfect movies (Chopper, The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford). This film about the current underbelly of America is so good, watch it and go watch his others if you haven’t seen those! (Be warned though, strong subject matter as they say)
I hope that everyone has a safe and happy New Year’s and I hope to see you all in 2014. Viva la Video Stores!
Black Dog Video
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