There are several reasons why I started up this site; finding a way to justify to my girlfriend my need to watch so many weird and random films, helping smaller independent filmmakers get even just a little bit more publicity for their films they work so hard on, even getting the occasional screener or two for films I would otherwise never get to see was a goal as well. But the main reason was simply trying to find new films to love that I wouldn’t have normally taken a chance on, and then hopefully convincing even one more person to watch that movie. Sure the discovery is fun, but it is sharing it with others that is what is truly worthwhile. This past weekend I found a film that firmly fit into this last category, and it is my extreme pleasure to present it to those of you who read this site.

Now as I mentioned in my previous review of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, I had a bit of a hectic week. And since I typically have to work at the theater on holidays, it ended up spilling into this weekend as well. When this happens Anna typically heads north to her family’s, content in knowing that I’ll be busy working and maybe watching the occasional terrible movie that she has no interest in seeing. This weekend was no different, and I had planned to watch a German horror film, but due to my not paying proper attention to our Netflix queue, a little known horror film called Intruder was shipped to us instead.

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If all goes well I will have another review posted tomorrow, this time on an obscure slasher film from the late 80’s that is best known for starring both Sam and Ted Raimi, as well as having a brief appearance by Bruce Campbell. Only this isn’t any ordinary slasher film, it is Intruder.

I bet you think running this site is all fun and games. Oh sure, I have an unhealthy addiction for Mahjong that I have been trying to pass off on Anna, but that is besides the point. I don’t get to just lay around all day, watching whatever I want whenever I want. I have, like, a system. A rigorous, temperamental system.

When I first started this column it was meant to be an excuse for me to finally watch certain films I had always wanted to watch when I was younger, but for whatever reason, had simply never gotten around to doing so. But while that selfishly worked well as an initial idea, that wasn’t going to be enough to fuel a column, let alone an entire site. So thus my initial idea inevitably began to expand.

Soon I began to look for films that would push me out of my comfort zone, as well as those that would have appealed to me when I was a youth. From there it was just a hop, skip and a jump to include reviews of true independent films and hard to find foreign films as well. Finally, I began to track down movies that were out of print or simply never released in the US. And as I added on each new group of films, the list of movies I planned to watch and review grew increasingly larger and more daunting.

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Next week’s film is one I have wanted to see for some time, only its limited release and subsequently falling out of print made this film incredibly difficult to find. But why do I want to see this film? Well, because it is the second film in history (the first being Alfred Hitchcock’s Rope) to attempt shooting the entire film in one continuous shot. Not only that, it stars the immortal Bruce Campbell. That’s right, next week’s movie is the elusive, immortal, Running Time.

There are worlds that man should fear to tread. Worlds that man should never see. But in spite of these warnings, several years ago I found myself trapped in a horrifying otherworldly dimension; the women’s restroom at Target in Downtown Minneapolis.

Unlike most Targets the Target in Downtown Minneapolis is two stories tall, making it a bit of an engineering marvel for those of us used to the standard storefront footprint. Now the store really is no different then any other, merely cut in half and stacked on top of one another. But there is something about it that draws people to it. I will say this though; the specially designed escalator for the shopping carts is pretty darn impressive.

But as much as I would like to keep the focus on the physical structure of a big box retailer in a blatant attempt at diverting attention from my terrible decision making skills and inability to pay attention to my surroundings. You see, I left my companion with the simple plan of meeting up a few minutes later in the toy aisle, yet due to my inattentiveness I would not be seen or heard from for over a half hour.

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Forgive me if my mind is somewhere else today. It is difficult to select new releases to recommend when I have recently received word that Bruce Campbell, The Chin himself, will be coming to the Twin Cities for the opening of My Name is Bruce. Which means I will get to meet him. This, along with meeting the Coen Brothers a few weeks ago, really makes me so much cooler then any of you. In my mind.

Anyways, it is slim pickings once again for DVD releases on Tuesday. I’m tempted to pick The Happening, which I actually did enjoy, but decided I’d pick a film I wanted to see but only had a split-second release in theaters. That movie being Boy A.

For theatrical releases it seems as if somewhere close to two dozen films are being released this weekend. While Flash of Genius, Appaloosa, Religulous and A Girl Cut in Two all look interesting enough for me to watch at some point, this week I am recommending a movie that I have already seen, enjoyed quite a bit and am quite confident most people will not like at all because nothing really happens in it. This movie is better known as Blindness.

As always trailers are after the break!

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