Welcome to Unseen Films

Even though the blog has been up for a while now I just want to take this moment and say welcome.

Thanks for stopping by.

This is the place where we stay away from the big hits (unless we noticed them first) and we look toward those films that are off the beaten track. Think of these as the films in the faded covers on the video store shelves, the good films that you've forgotten about and cause you to go "hey that was pretty good" when you see the title. Even though these films don't get taken out every night, they are still worth the occasional test drive. Actually some of these films are going to be the sort of thing you'll want to see repeatedly and force upon your friends. Trust me I've been fobbing off some of these films on people for years.

Oh yea, I'm DB, you're master of ceremonies and I welcome you.

What you're going to get here is a different film every day or so that you may want to take a look for. Some of the films will be easy to find, some will require looking, and some will be things to put on your list of films to keep an eye out for (These will probably be the films from the occasional film festival we will be visiting over the course of each year). Don't worry we won't leave you hanging, we'll post clues as to where you can look to find them.

While almost everything we post are going to be films that are going to worth seeing, there are going to be a few that aren't worth the effort. Last week I posted a review of Koyishi Kurosawa's The Revenge films which are little seen and should have remained that way. Also later in the week I'll be posting a review of a film I'm very ambivalent about (I've even created a tag for that sort of a film)

I should take a moment and explain why I'm shifting tenses from"me" and "I" to "we". As much as I am the face of this blog I'm not going to be the only one posting. I've lined up three really great writers to help me with this project. They will be appearing shortly and each will be properly introduced they take their turn in the spotlight. (The loose schedule is for some of the reviews to appear later this week). I've also got someone coming into do something special that will really shine a light on different Unseen Films. (This is going to be really neat)

I'm hoping that we, can actually make this into something really special. What I'd really like is for this to be some place that isn't hip deep in fan boy gush, where intelligent people can talk about movies they love that are under appreciated or just under the radar. I want this to be a place where its more than films being good or bad or described in 140 characters. It doesn't have to be deeply analyzed or described in detail, rather its a place where a mad passion for a movie can be expressed simply in ways that aren't like a film student who would go on about technique and rhyming shots (though admittedly sometimes I will speak like that).

Personally I can't wait to see what my cohorts come up with and where they take this.

For the immediate future the plans are as follows:

This week you'll be seeing reviews of films from the New York International Children's Film Festival. Over the last few days I saw a two stunning films, Summer Wars and the Oscar nominated The Secret of Kells, at the festival and I'll be posting reviews. (The short version see them both). Those reviews will be followed by some flashback reviews of films from previous NYICFF. And as I continue to attend screenings over the next few weekends more reviews from the Festival will follow.

Speaking of Festivals, I'm going to do a series of posts on the various Film festivals that I think are worth attending. If you want to see stuff no one else has seen then Film festivals are the way to go. I've posted some links to some great festivals in the sidebar and I'll be writing pieces on why they are great.

I'm going to do a piece on the various sources you can use to get these films. I've posted links but I'll take the time to tell you why they are good sources for off the beaten track films.

I'm going to tweak things here and there. Somewhere down the line I'm probably going to change the look a bit, but for right now I think I'm going to stay with the white and black (ethereal and ghostly like the light from the projector in a darkened theater). I'm also going to work on getting a nice header, something appropriate.

I think that's it.

So far I've posted a handful of reviews and everyone of the films really touched me. Some are truly great, some are just okay, but all were worth the time to see, to write up and to share. Hopefully that sense of hidden treasures that touched me will come through to those who are reading the pieces. Hopefully you will find a film or two here that will make you feel the same way. If not check back because more movies are coming, more voices are coming and if you give this blog a chance I think you're going to find a reason to keep coming.

Comments and suggestions are always welcome.

Thank you for reading.