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"Cinema should make you forget you are sitting in a theater." - Roman Polanski

   Well, that's the cryptic name of this blog cleared up.

   While I have a lot of reservations about Polanski as a man, I believe it to be the austere definition of successful film-making.

   This is yet another valiant attempt from yours truly to commit to writing a blog. My strategy for this effort is essentially to narrow my focus to an area for which I have an unrelenting passion. 

   My childhood cinematic upbringing took the usual route of Walt Disney animation and live action children's fayre. To this day, I maintain a long-term obsession with Disney's Aladdin (1992). Indeed, for a long time in my family home there was a small picture of myself as a child, sat with Aladdin's VHS box in my hand, eyes glued to the screen. I firmly believe that one of the greatest moves the Disney corporation made in recent years was to finally release Ron Clements' classic on DVD. The 'Musical Masterpiece edition' is a cornerstone of my DVD collection.



Raiders of the Lost Cave of Wonders



   My first memory of a trip to the cinema was Antrim Cineplex to see the live-action adaptation of The Flintstones (1994). Perhaps an ill-advised film choice with the benefit of hindsight, but I am fairly certain that I enjoyed every minute of the experience as a 5 year old.




The Coen Brothers did not direct this.



   I remember every aspect of walking into that building for the first time. The ticket box, the neon lights and mirrored walls, the thick red carpet and the distinctive sweet smell of popcorn. The trailers amazed me, every short preview that I saw engrossed me as much as the next. Another distinctive memory is of leaving the Cineplex, practically begging my mother to allow me to see Mortal Kombat (1995). I am relieved to say she did not relent. It is fair to say that growing up has presented me with a steep learning curve in terms of the quality of film I pay to see.

   Sharing the common desire amongst children of my age to see films that had an age recommendation attached to them, I encountered some films that were perhaps ill-advised for a young boy, such as James Cameron's The Terminator (1984) and Stanley Kubrick's The Shining (1980). Both of these films are recognised as 1980s cinematic classics of sci-fi and horror respectively, but perhaps were not particularly suitable for me at that stage. Especially considering that I had been scared by Steven Spielberg's E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982).

E.T: The Extra-Terrifying

   I am approaching my 22nd birthday as a relatively unscarred young man who has not, under the influence of witnessing violence in cinema and playing Grand Theft Auto, decided to go on a murderous rampage. This is both a relief for my family and a large spanner in the works for the arguments of moral-panic embracers who strive to find a provable connection between media representations and violent crime. But I digress...

   In this blog I will be reviewing films I see in the cinema, on broadcast television and in recorded formats. I will strive to maintain regularity in my posting and present a wide variety of genres for critique (plus: bonus caption pictures!). I wish to combine astute observations and entertaining writing, and hope that keeping this blog will benefit my writing ability and my skill in studying film. 

   If you, dear reader, choose to read this blog and provide feedback of your own, I will be most humbled and appreciative.

James Erwin.