Nightcap 8/9/15: On writing, the best/worst of Fantasia and Randi's links

The next eight weeks or so things should be slowing down. All of the big summer festivals are done and aside from some new releases and reposts I can go back to watching whatever the hell I want to watch. I haven’t really done that in a long while and I’m missed it. Honestly last Sunday night after my laptop crashed and I couldn’t watch any of the remaining Fantasia screening links I was thrilled to be able to just reach into a pile and pull out a film at random.

I’m largely burnt out. I’ve been for a while. I think my writing has suffered.

I do have to apologize that my writing has been up and down. I was thinking that most of it has been me- that I’ve been simply in a slump, but I’ve realized after some of the pieces I wrote up for and around Fantasia that my writing needs to be inspired by really good films… or even really bad films. I need the films to feed what I’m writing. Blah in front of me results in blah on the backend. I’ve also realized that my writing suffers when I have too many movies to review-like at a festival -Tribeca and NYAFF- showed that-on the other hand some of my Japan Cuts writing and as well as most of my Fantasia writing makes me smile.

As with most things concerned with Unseen I’m working on it so that I’m more consistent.

As to Alec’s concern about what I’ve been posting- he said Unseen has become my film diary- I’m going to take him at his word. Because of the way I have things planned out I had a hole in the schedule for September. I had nothing planned from September second until the week that the New York Film Festival starts (I’m definitely going I have a ticket package – I’m just waiting for my press pass). I had no idea what to put into the slots of the film-a-day. After much debate I decided that I was going to take up Alec’s idea and between September 2 and the start of our NYFF coverage I’m going to post journal posts about what I’ve been watching  each day in August. I’ll move things around as new releases drop in- but for about three weeks I’m going to give you a look into what I’m watching and how. I suspect it’s going to be all over the place quality- but it will be an interesting experiment that will almost definitely highlight a ton of films you’d never know I was watching.(Addendum-weirdly in the week since I wrote that paragraph I have watched almost no movies.  The result is September may end up a real interesting month because I may have nothing to post)

Keep reading because the next few weeks are going to be interesting.
--
This week we’re going to have a split week- the first couple of days are going to be some new releases and the back half of the week are going to be some silent films
----
With Fantasia finally all over here's my take of the best films I saw doing coverage specifically for the festival- If I included films I had seen previously the list would be different.

Fantasia's Best
HARD DAY- a non stop bad day
SHAMER'S DAUGHTER- one of the best fantasies I've ever seen on a big screen
POSSESSED- horror comedy animation done right
CASH ONLY- familiar ingredients mixed in a new way
HAEMOO (SEA FOG)- gripping doesn't begin to describe it
ON THE HORIZON- form makes content so much better
CRUMBS- intelligent science fiction of the highest order
SKULD- I'm still messed up by this

Fantasia's Worst
RAIDERS- an over extended DVD extra about a home movie that was no where as clever as it thought it was

Fantasia's  Wondrous Discoveries
WHO KILLED CAPTAIN ALEX- insane fun
BUNNY THE MONSTER KILLER- crazy- just cult movie crazy
BIG MATCH/ BLACK AND WHITE- awesome action
MEATHEAD GOES HOG WILD- the work of a director of great promise


---
And now Randi's links
In some series the later films are best (thanks John)
Why are people so outraged at comedy?
The history of the Fantastic Four in one image
Giant minion stops traffic
Richard O'Brien returns to Rocky Horror
Was the bombing of Hiroshima necessary?
Travel Photo Award Winners
Stalin's Purges
Optical illusion street art