voguegasm

"I'll Make You A Mixtape": A Very Indie Christmas

2015-12-16T21:55:00.001-08:00

Binge-ful Watching: 2015's Great Pillaging of "Horror Classics: Anniversary Edition"

2015-09-28T21:43:00.002-07:00

As we all know, I'm a little nerdy for the lesser known horror film and this gigantic 50 disc box set that is "Horror Classics: Anniversary Edition" has been burning a hole in my DVD collection for awhile now. Having bought it 2 years ago, I really could never make time to sit down to at least watch a few of the movies I haven't seen in this set (hint, the movies I have seen is the number between 9 and 11).

It seems pretty perfect that I write about classic horror on this fixer upper of a blog and I needed to organize out how I will consume myself with these horror films. So for one time and one time only, I, B, the certified 30s-50s horror nerd, will become a TCM-like programmer. 1982's holiday special "A Disney Halloween Treat" and "Hocus Pocus" will be watched sometime during the gaps below,

**Most of the movies are clickable for a trailer/tease**

**Most of the movies are also on YouTube in their entirety**

October 4

Vincent Price

1. The Bat (1959)

2. Last Man on Earth (1964)

October 10

Boris Karloff Part 1

1. The Terror (1963)

2. Doomed to Die (1940)

October 11

Bela Lugosi Part 1

1. The Corpse Vanishes (1942)

2. Invisible Ghost (1941)

3. One Body Too Many (1944)

4. Black Dragons (1942)

Miscellaneous - Science-y, Wience-y

1. Maniac (1934)

2. The Monster Maker (1944)

3. The Indestructible Man (1956)

4. The Phantom from 10,000 Leagues (1956)

October 18

Miscellaneous - Creature Features

1. The Attack of the Giant Leeches (1959)

2. The Giant Gila Monster (1959)

3. The Killer Shrews (1959)

Miscellaneous - Zombies

1. I Walked With a Zombie (1943)

2. Revolt of the Zombies (1936)

3. King of the Zombies (1941)

October 24

Boris Karloff Part 2

1. The Fatal Hour (1940)

2. The Ape (1940)

Miscellaneous

1. Bluebeard (1944)

2. The Amazing Mr. X (1948)

October 25

Bela Lugosi Part 2

[ALL from the Bela Lugosi Collection: The Franchise Collection]

1. Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932)

2. The Black Cat (1934)

3. The Raven (1935)

4. The Invisible Ray (1936)

5. Black Friday (1940)

Miscellaneous

1. Swamp Women (1955)

2. The Screaming Skull (1958)

3. Bloodlust (1959)

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": Music for the Dark Half of the Year

2015-09-22T21:52:00.000-07:00

Binge-ful Watching: Turner Classic Movies October Schedule

2015-09-22T20:39:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again! It's that time of bags and bags of caramel apple milky ways, peanuts with candy corn, and every casserole made from my online recipe book. But most importantly, it is the time for all the classic horror movies that AMC and ABC Family just won't touch! Turner Classic Movies does not entirely knock it out of the park (How many times can a girl watch "The Devil Doll" or "The Dead of Night" without wanting to recreate a few classic murder movie scenes?), but a whole night devoted to Val Lewton! Halloween Disney things! Homicidal! Mark of the Vampire! The Haunting! The list only goes so far,

I do understand that Turner Classic can only acquire so many movies considering copyright, but maybe it's time to break out some Universal or, be still my heart, anything creepy lingering in the Warner Archives now forgotten. A night of German expressionism maybe? I find myself very excited for Val Lewton night (which will summon every ounce of my TCM Halloween marathon watching skills acquired in the past 5 years...), a little known British production of "Fall of the House of Usher", and the Spencer Tracy version of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" which I have not seen yet! This will prove to be a very productive October.

**CLICK ON TITLE FOR TRAILER**

Friday, October 2nd

TCM Spotlight: Haunted Houses

7:00 pm Two on a Guillotine (1965)

9:00 House on Haunted Hill (1958) *

10:30 The Haunting (1963) *

12:30 am The House of Seven Corpses (1974)

2:30 House of Dark Shadows (1970) *

Friday, October 9th

TCM Spotlight: Rogue Body Parts

7:00 pm Mad Love (1935) *

8:30 The Beast with Five Fingers (1946)

10:15 Hands of a Stranger (1962)

12:00 am The Brain That Wouldn't Die (1962)

1:30 Corruption (1967)

3:15 Eyes Without a Face (1959)

Friday, October 16

TCM Spotlight: Scary Kids

7:00 pm The Nanny (1965)

8:45 The Bad Seed (1956)

11:00 The Children of the Damned (1964)

12:45 am The Village of the Damned (1961)

2:15 The Curse of the Cat People (1944) *

3:30 Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970) *

Friday, October 23

TCM Spotlight: Literary Horror

7:00 pm Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)

9:30 The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939) *

11:45 The Fall of the House of Usher (1949)

1:00 am The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945) *

3:00 The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) *

Wednesday, October 28

TCM Spotlight: Treasures from the Disney Vault

7:45 pm The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949) *

9:00 (Short) The Old Mill (1937) *

9:15 Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color: The Plausible Impossible (1956)

10:15 Escape to Witch Mountain (1975)

12:00 am (Short) Lonesome Ghosts (1937) *

12:15 (Short) Frankenweenie (1984) *

1:00 The Ghosts of Buxley Hall (1980)

4:00 Return from Witch Mountain (1978)

Thursday, October 29

6:45 am Freaks (1932) *

8:15 The Devil Doll (1936) *

9:45 House on Haunted Hill (1958) *

11:15 Macabre (1958)

12:45 pm Suspicion (1941) *

2:30 Stage Fright (1950)

4:30 A Bucket of Blood (1959) *

Friday, October 30

7:15 am The Mummy (1959) *

8:45 Dracula, Prince of Darkness (1966) *

10:30 Frankenstein Created Woman (1967) *

12:15 pm Dracula Has Risen From the Grave (1969) *

2:00 Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed! (1969) *

3:45 Crescendo (1972)

5:15 Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)

TCM Spotlight: Val Lewton Horror

7:00 Cat People (1942) *

8:30 Martin Scorsese Presents, Val Lewton: The Man in the Shadows (2007) *

10:00 The Seventh Victim (1943) *

11:15 The Leopard Man (1941) *

12:30 am The Ghost Ship (1943) *

1:45 The Body Snatcher (1945) *

3:15 Isle of the Dead (1945) *

4:30 Bedlam (1946) *

Saturday, October 31

6:00 am Doctor X (1932) *

7:30 White Zombie (1932) *

8:45 Dementia 13 (1963)

10:15 The Fearless Vampire Killers (1966)

12:15 Homicidal (1961) *

2:00 The Tingler (1959) *

3:30 House of Wax (1953) *

5:15 The Devil's Bride/The Devil Rides Out (1968) *

The Essentials: Happy Halloween

7:00 The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945) *

9:00 Curse of the Demon (1958) *

10:30 Dead of Night (1945) *

12:30 am Mark of the Vampire (1935) *

1:45-2:45 David Lynch Shorts

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": Songs About King Arthur

2015-08-21T22:48:00.000-07:00

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

2015-08-11T19:49:00.000-07:00

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

2015-07-27T23:59:00.000-07:00

"I"ll Make You a Mixtape... Kind Of...": Favorite Podcast Episodes, Part 1

2015-07-19T22:34:00.001-07:00

Forbidden City - Episode 1 (1:05:39)
Theory for Turntables - The Quietest Moment of the Softest Rock (1:19:03)
Dreadful Thoughts - Frankenstein Book Club Parts 1 (1:12:47), 2 (1:03:59), 3 (59.31)
The Nerdist - Paul McCartney (1:24:51)

My "Grimm" Theory: Questions That Were Not Asked During the Comic Con Panel But Should Have!

2015-07-13T22:01:00.002-07:00

I waited impatiently for the Grimm panel since last Thursday and as of yesterday at 5 pm, I finally had the pleasure of seeing that beautiful post-pregnancy glow on Claire Coffee (Adalind), the adorable nuttiness all over Silas Weir Mitchell (Monroe) and even Russell Hornsby had a strange giddy swagger about him. (Hornsby and wife Denise Walker just had a little boy, Walker, two weeks ago.) Although the panel I saw was edited, I couldn't help that the questions asked by both the moderator and the audience were a bit on the lukewarm side. It almost made me nervous about where the show is going considering my own fearful opinions. Sure, the questions asked were cute and expected with the giddiness of the impending Loch Ness Monster storyline, the lack of Juliette and Kelly, and of course the "Spoilers" teasing game of it all. In other words, the off season responses a fan would expect.

The truth is, with the ever growing phenomenon of Comic Con and the genre of fantasy/sci fi becoming very prominent in acting content, Grimm and the Grimm world should have every right to be lovingly nit picked. Who better to lovingly nitpick than me with my last two opinion pieces about the show? We all expect the cute young kids and young adults to ask about characters and make up logistics about Grimm or how magical and immersive SWM is as an actor and that's fine, but these are the questions I would have asked (in an imaginary world where I have the ability of confidence-ing)...

"I would like to ask a question considering the friendship of Nick and Monroe. In season 1 and 2 there was this fairly solid sense of masculine closeness, but now that there is basically this Grimm army, when, how, and will you [creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, director/producer Norberto Barba] come back to that focus between the two characters?"

"Are there any early editing choices you [Greenwalt/Kouf/Barba] made to the show that you regret now? And if there are, would you want to rework them back into the show somehow?"

"Where do you [Greenwalt/Kouf/Barba/Coffee/Turner] think Grimm stands on the Bechdel scale? Do you think changing Juliette into a hexenbiest and the whole "hexenbitch" phenomena made where you are on the scale better or worse?"

View image | gettyimages.com

"To Silas, I was wondering if in all of your magical Germanic-ness if you have more ideas of what you would want to bring to the show in terms of content and if they had not made it into Season 5, would you care to divulge future possibilities?"

"To Bree and Claire, as women where do you think Grimm ranks in terms of feminism both within the show and even in the broader genre of fantasy/sci fi? Do you think it could be better and how, either in terms of the writing or characters in general?

"David [Giuntoli], I thought you portrayed the duality between Grimm and cop brilliantly in the last few seasons just in terms of that pressure cooking acting. Now that it is no secret (and this also goes to the producers), what other aspects of the character will be his internal war now outside of all of the loss and bitterness or will that be the only highlights of who Nick is as a character? Where does his darkness go from here? Will things get psychologically worse before it gets better, if at all?"

"Not to throw out episode ideas which I'm sure you [Kouf/Greenwalt/Barba] hear plenty of, but what do you think about a first-Wesen account (as it were) of experiencing the Grimm-ness in Nick's eyes? Or do you think it's frightening alone just from hearing it from other characters or even just to divulge the unseen just once?

View image | gettyimages.com

"Claire, now that Adalind is insistent on being a better mother to Baby-Grimm now that Diana is gone, do you think she will lose her autonomy as a woman losing herself into the role of a mother? Now that Adalind has been weakened throughout the show in more ways than one, do you think she will jump back into some aspect of her old self at some point? What would you like to see paralleled or differentiated from her experiences as a daughter to an emotionally abusive mother to her own role as a mother? Do you think she can or will rise above her [mother-daughter issue] genetics?"

View image | gettyimages.com

"Sasha [Roiz], producers, speculate with me. I know that you said that the royal storyline will be put aside for a bit, but now that the King is dead, do you think Mia Gaudot will be back to make a power play? Will we also see just a tiny ounce of Sean's backstory, just a teeny bit?"

"Russell [Hornsby], you seriously crushed it in that tent scene during the "Mishipeshu" episode, is there more impending scenery chewing to expect from you in the next season? What would you like to have happen to Hank outside of being a friend/extension of Nick?"

BONUS! My new favorite person and one of the many in the current running to be my spirit animal, Yael Tygiel interviewed cast and crew for my favorite podcast, Afterbuzz TV. Check out this magic-ness. (Click on the playlist button for the others)

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": Songs About (Mid)Summer

2015-06-23T12:55:00.000-07:00

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

2015-06-06T22:51:00.000-07:00

My "Grimm" Theory: Theories, Choices and Bullet-Infested Shirtless Rage SPOILERS WITHIN*

2015-05-17T22:54:00.003-07:00

Last time I caught up with the voguegasm universe (which I know this blog title could be so much better), I bemoaned the episodic formula, Nick and Monroe's bromance, but especially Nick himself. But something happened in the middle of season 4. What was it exactly? Trubel? I don't want to think so. The writers? Not to throw them under the bus, but maybe. Burning the trailer? Kelly "dying?" Probably a big fat yes to both of those. But it seems I can't shake this feeling off as if they're starting to rewrite the show.

Nick and/or His Grimm Army

Once upon a time, an average yet intuitive cop realized he was victim to his genetics of being a paranormal profiler seeing into a half mythical half realistic Wesen world. Like the world of humans, the Wesen species has their good ones and bad ones. But with this came a greater world and a sense of loyalty where being a cop began and ended. With his Aunt's trailer full of Grimm artifacts and making an accidental friend out of a blutbad ("big bad wolf") and a fuchsbau (fox), he begins to attain all the Wesen knowledge available. He makes a mortal enemy out of a hexenbiest (witch) and his relationship with his boss gets compromising to say the least. But mysteries still remained between the Royals and an ancient myth that involves the crusades and 7 keys.

There's nothing wrong with making a one person narrative into an ensemble as long as the focus on your main character never wavers. Maybe therein has laid the problem for the Grimm writers. How can you develop dimensional characters when you only have 40 minutes and known to be the pit stop hour where commercials come to die? For season 4, the issue has been the following. What can we stretch and what do we have to put a roadblock on? [More on this question later]

In Season 4, Wu joins "the Scooby gang," as it were, in a fantastic realistic way and by the season finale, he leaves the badge at home truly earning his Scooby stripes. Hank deals with a Native American Mishipeshu spirit in one of the better episodes of this season. Even Adalind didn't make me cringe so much as the show incorporated her real life pregnancy, which tied into her own Mommy issues. I love how these characters have been stretched a little further. But the focus occasionally hiccups for Nick, who did lose his Grimm-yness and had five episodes to really decide what he wanted in making this fantastical thing surprisingly realistic. Luckily and conveniently, it was back in full force for #savemonroe aka. the two most stressful episodes of my life!

After Christmas break and the panic attacks that involved the Wesenrein, it was all Nick being a cop in the Wesen world which was a nice change of pace but without Trubel. Through the assorted cases, bringing back ex-Lieutenant Peter Orson to a natural MPD-suffering Wesen called the Huntha Lami Muuaji and may I repeat the Mishipeshu, Nick's psychology isn't so much a character after getting his powers back. Up until now there had always been a sense of internal struggle with Nick and we are to assume while he's off being a Grimm-Cop it shows how blindsided he is once Juliette comes clean about what Renard's mother or the process of re-Grimm-ing him did to her. But without that tension, whether it comes from the cases or the Portland mist or Nick's psychology, it all just becomes camp! I understand that delving into slight "Buffy: The Vampire Slayer" nods from Greenwalt's past life can be fun, but it doesn't have to be a moment to moment basis.

But let me back up since I kind of hit and ran on something back there. Let's go through the emotional teeter-totters of Nick's psychology in the past 3 seasons. Season 1 was the discovery and the slow evolution of balance between being a Grimm and a cop. Season 2 was how much of it would consume Nick and his home life as well as the balance of who he can trust with this knowledge. Season 3 was Nick's realization with amplified Grimm senses that he can be dangerous without a badge as well as the balance with the amplified senses. Where's the question of balance in season 4 exactly or are there more interesting questions to ask? Maybe instead of balance, Nick begins to unconsciously realize the dualities of everything: intentionally being dangerous leaving the badge at home, having to sleep with a shadow of his enemy in order to get his powers back, who Juliette is to him with or without the Hexenbiest powers, who Adalind is to him now that she's having his child?

But is duality an impossible abstraction to put into a TV show when it has been about disciplined balance? Or is that the risk the writers are taking right now in taking a chance on doing something different? But with doing something different also risks the show as a whole e.g. Glee. But at the same time, if Nick's psychology isn't so much a character, but instead duality, there is a sense that after those five episodes of just being resourceful that things have become dire as if there is no teeter totter anymore, it's simply polar opposites. In that case, then the show should feel a little off as both Kelly and Juliette's possible "deaths" will take Nick to that place I mentioned in my last post: should we feel sorry for that genetic rabbit hole of a Grimm or celebrate it because this is the old school Grimm that he could possibly come back from in season 6?

The Female State of Grimm

Where Nick and Monroe's relationship has been deflated by the lack of focus, it's been no secret that the gender equality or really just the role of women has strengthened. Obviously Juliette as a character has grown over the last 3 seasons either as a fault of the shallow writing, she has been given or what her character has gone through to bring her to this point. Between the coma and the shock of learning about the Wesen world (which she had been a great help with considering "Stories We Tell Our Young" and "El Cucuy"), Juliette was made fully comfortable in her character until Elizabeth found a way to give Nick his powers back. Unfortunately, it backfired on Juliette as we all know making her into a hexenbiest.

This is one part of the huge mess of what people have called "hexenbitch" that has been rather poetic. What would happen if someone was created Wesen instead of being born with it, what would be the differences? What would be the struggle? Balance? Duality? Perhaps it is because Juliette has never been a consistent character to begin with, it works as long as they keep it tight and disciplined in about 2 or 3 episodes. But, like The Grimm Podcast has said, this (and the Renard/Jack the Ripper storyline) could have been nailed in 3 episodes or less! Once again, it's all about those editing choices! Instead, it was stretched out to sixteen episodes right up to the possible "mercy killing."

Juliette only continued down this spiral of what it means to be Wesen and the balance of it throughout the rest of the season, it shifted from beating a dead nuckelavee (yep, went there...) into these really interesting moments. In the season finale, you can see her struggling between her human and Wesen side much like how Renard's mind was not completely his own. But she continues to do the evil thing because she does not know any better!

The issue I have ties Adalind into all of this from the moment Juliette tells Nick that she "will kill her." Since the start of the show, Grimm has kind of been a boy's club but with some sensitivity thanks to the guy love Monroe-style. Juliette was treated as something Nick struggled to keep separate from his Grimm and work life, someone who could see into the private places of himself, including the loss of Marie and the type of person he is having lost his parent(s) at an early age. Only through Adalind's continuing antagonism on Nick then Juliette, Juliette begins to hate her almost as much as Nick does.

But it's the relationship between Nick and Juliette that has always concerned me. Because she was always the home life that was to never get in the way of Nick's profession, Juliette was never even given any characterizing agency until she is turned into a Hexenbiest. Sure, before the transformation she had her moments of extreme passion defending her fuchsbau best friend when the abusive boyfriend broke into the house, learning how to use a gun and fighting off the Siegbarste with nothing but boiling water! But it's through her passionate nature that also destroys her through internalizing the damaged person who Nick naturally is.

Regardless, it's a woman internalizing a man and with Adalind destroying that man and by extension Juliette, it's understandable why the Burkhardt unit would collectively hate her. But it's the first glance of it that has always made me queasy and one of the oldest soap opera rules known to mankind. The blond-haired woman is the good girl and the antagonist is either a redhead or a brunette fighting over a man. Grimm somehow managed to invert that to their advantage. With all the emotional ammunition, yes, it's more than fair that Juliette on the Wesen flip side would be amplified for her hate, but it all is still rooted in the empathy she once had for Nick which also made her Adalind's target. The amplified anger would be triply dangerous and now it's all for Juliette herself. Somehow we are to believe that is who Juliette is but for a character who was never given a set of attributes what are we supposed to believe of Tulloch's character exactly?

Where Juliette has become the antagonist, Adalind has fully settled into her role as the mother of (eventually) two children. I liked what they did to Adalind in the fourth season because of her stance as an antagonist and paying for it through the loss of her child. Whereas the last section of this post was about balance, it seems for the women their characterizing points are opposites. What was once the protagonist is now the antagonist and the antagonist's empathy would cure Juliette. What was once Adalind's biggest fear of having children and being a mother is now what she wants and realizing how ferocious she can be if she can't have them. After the scene she talked to her mother's grave in "You Don't Know Jack," however humorous, I got a sense that as someone of emotional abuse, it came full circle. There is something implied here that Adalind would struggle to be a good mother where Catherine just wasn't.

And here is where we are 4 years later. It's still a boys-club on some level (considering the uh-may-zing "army" scene, invading the Royal compound with all the guys and Trubel) with the women having more of a presence. Excluding Rosalee and Trubel, Juliette and Adalind wear their painfully archetypal attributes as two unfortunate extensions of Nick much like a madonna (Adalind) and whore (Juliette, only in a sense that she is independent and destructive). But perhaps that's rather a boys-club thing to say...

Dear Grimm Writers...

There is no nicer way to say this, but, you're getting sloppy. Other than the poor focus on Nick which would have been remedied by a PTSD like arc of reviving (super-)Grimm powers, there are a few other non-Nick-centric things I would like to discuss. But before I do, let me praise you first. I love how you brought Wu into all of this as well as the compound invasion which was probably the best thing I've seen this season next to the Wesenrein situation. I love the Mishupeshu (obviously), Monroe's speech at the camp after all that happened to him and the satisfying, although campy as hell Hexenbiest fight between Juliette and Adalind. I really enjoyed all the cases you brought to the table this season, but honestly, I can't make a favorite episodes blog post for a number of reasons!

As great as the cases have been, the B and the occasional C storylines could have been better, whether through just grabbing that red pencil and about five thousand read-throughs focusing on details alone. In "You Don't Know Jack," the sloppiness was the most apparent. Cops (both human and Grimm alike) who aren't versed in the legend of Jack the Ripper, really? If someone said something right away like a cop walking by the trio, "Gosh, this reminds me of Jack the Ripper" would have triggered something in their minds that the deceased room mate's life could have been next and to get her into protective custody! I really don't mind my worlds crossing being an avid "Ripper Street" fan, but another Jack element also bothered me just as much as the former. In "Double Date" Renard enlists Monrosalee to help find out what's wrong with him but they never follow through. How can you develop dimensional characters when you only have 40 minutes and known to be the pit stop hour where commercials come to die?

Another detail that really bothered me was when you decided to burn the trailer (which I understand for plot device reasons and even on an unconscious level, it does work but for the next week I actually thought of quitting you). From season 1, we are to believe of Nick's character that although very intuitive about people, he is also incredibly jaded from his family. First Aunt Marie dies, then he finds out his mother is alive, then the trailer burns up. Even if it was an extended scene, it would have been nice for Nick's reaction to literally be in tears as if he's losing Marie all over again. If we are to continue to play this back and forth of Nick's psychology between being Grimm and human then where was this emotional battle or are we so masked by the "Hexenbitch" arc we can't even have that moment?

I understand how badly the season wanted to physically pit Juliette against Adalind now having Hexenbiest powers, but as much as you made the rules of what constitutes a woge, you are slipping, I really felt throughout this whole sequence staying in woge was a little needless. A person can only stay in anger or absolute fright for so long, you even wrote season 3's "The Show Must Go On" over this theory! I just felt that Juliette and Adalind's woges were really just a device to mask the stunt people which I find very poor direction. I'm sorry, I just do!

In the past two sections I have mentioned what deserves to be expanded on and when you need to use that red pencil. It's like what I said in the first post: "How can you develop [...] when you only have 40 minutes and known to be the pit stop hour where commercials come to die?" Well, for one, you can cut down a C storyline like how you did with Adalind in season 3, you just have to be strategic! Secondly, you need one of the creators there in the writer's room, making executive decisions based on details and consistency from season to season! Thirdly, I more than understand that you want to experiment and test the limits of Nick, he's the central character of the show, but if killing aspects of what made him or rather, the show so atmospheric at the expense of camp or the occasional preachiness, I think we have a problem. Oh, and let Brenna Kouf at the helm more often! "Double Date" was really disturbing in a realistic MPD kind of way and "Chupacabra" was definitely something out of season 1 which is a standard to live up to that you're, I'm sorry to say, forgetting about! Like the 7 keys situation or the resistance!

And that promised, although bullet-infested, shirtless rage. You're welcome!

"I'll Make You a Mixtape:" New Favorite Songs

2015-05-16T23:11:00.000-07:00

The Early Films of W. Frank Brinton Comes Home to Iowa and Makes an Awesome Night Out of It!

2015-05-06T21:16:00.002-07:00

The Story

W. Frank Brinton and wife, Indiana on the right

The original avid film collector was an Iowan. Washington County native W. Frank Brinton was a known eccentric, inventor and more in likely the inventor of something like a traveling film festival. From 1895 until 1910 Brinton and wife, Indiana showcased short silent films across the Midwest and Texas. Taken from production companies such as Lumiere (including Georges Melies), Edison and many others, early film goers were treated to scenes from India or Egypt, pre-Chaplin comedies and for those weren't scared of clowns, a man dressing up as one.

After 70 years in Brinton's executor's basement, Iowa historian and archivist Mike Zahs made an impulse purchase with a box labelled "Brinton crap." Contained was sixteen tins of 35mm cellulose nitrate (labelled "explosive") in sad shape as well as magic lantern slides, ticket stubs, posters, etc. Although eventually preserved into 16mm and becoming less flammable, the currently in process-digitized collection is now in the safe hands here at the University of Iowa's Special Collections next to cool Gene Wilder papers and "Peyton Place" scripts.

Tonight, Tonight

Mike Zahs (so sorry about the pixelation!)

Naturally, Zahs and that majestic beard of his was in Iowa City tonight. Although choosing shorts as the hour-long event went along, the contemporary moviegoer saw...

Elephants (including the interactive moment with getting sprayed by water by the master of ceremonies....)
Camel Market
On the Farm (1902)
Iowa? (1901)
Sydney the Clown (1905)
Pullman Car (1900)
The Matrimonial Ceremony (1906)
At the Dentist (1907)
Mashing a Jersey Mosquito
The Good Story
All on Account of Eliza

All of these were to the tune of the Red Cedar Chamber Music, either adapted from popular music of the time or by the original orchestrator, Harvey Solberger. A guitar string broke and Mr. Zahs saved the moment by being a walking Brinton encyclopedia. There was a kazoo! A fight with a dummy pre-Tom Conway fighting with a stuffed cat in Cat People (1942)! Jump cuts between two men of the clergy giggling like little girls! A child, even giggled during the comedy shorts which is definitely a good sign for film history in the next 30 years. It was a magical night. (Including B shoving her face full of fried risotto corn balls at the reception, but that's a different story....)

"Saving Brinton"

The exclusive thing about tonight (besides the fried risotto corn balls...) was the reason why a film crew was lurking around Shambaugh Auditorium. Cofounder of the local art house theater FilmScene and Copartner of Northland Films, Andrew Sherburne along with Tommy Haines and John Richard are in the process of documenting Zahs and his awesome nerdiness about the Brinton silent films. To describe "Saving Brinton," Sherburne explains that "it is a film about film" where "the past is a constant presence."

Although clearly still filming, Sherburne and crew pulled together a 3 minute trailer that was full of that majestic beard on his movie tours much like the original Brinton ones. The icing on top of a huge movie nerd's cake was Zahs's room at his home that was devoted to all of these artifacts as well as his fantastic sense of humor and overall enthusiasm for this project. I expect a future screening at FilmScene!

(Thank you, IowaNow, for the supplementaries!)

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": A Very Caffeinated Playlist

2015-04-30T22:19:00.000-07:00

April 14th's Super Shiny and Super Overdue VSpot

2015-04-14T11:26:00.001-07:00

I know. It's been almost a month and a half since I have advertised a few of my (new) favorite things, but you know, life. In the lieu of life and wondering if anyone is actually reading this blog or this post, leave a shout out in the comments and make a girl feel good. Please? But since it has been a month and a half, there has been plenty things cooking in my Vspot folder...

Five of the Best Words in the English dictionary: Emmy the Great, New Album

Our favorite anti-folkster has moved to the West Coast from England and adopted a new sound, this we already knew from her "Swimming Pool" single from last year. Now there are three more songs attached to this new EP entitled "S" and they all are made of ambient, sensitive, honest, and electropoppy goodness. Even in the first few seconds of "Somerset (I Can't Get Over)" you feel that "oof" factor in the "tell me something that's real like please don't get over me." But that's what Emmy has done even in her previous incarnation of Regina Spektor's lyrical cousin with her cleverness. Case in point in the same song, "F. Scott Fitzergald, Tennessee Williams/Come on let's talk about something different..." I always find it fascinating that an album or an EP comes out around a life experience of hers and that's why I love her so much. Now Taylor Swift on the other hand....(j/k)

NEW TRAILER for

"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"

Ten of the Most Orgasmic Words in the English Language:

Josh Groban, Three New Videos and a New Album Coming

Josh Groban will be putting a new album into the world that sounds much more promising than "All That Echoes" (sorry!) IN TWO WEEKS! While it will be nothing original like "Illuminations," which I will forgive because my Joshy has been very busy for the last few years, he will tackle the Broadway standard. Already it's been reported that standards such as "Pure Imagination" (Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory), "What I Did for Love" (A Chorus Line), "Bring Him Home" (Les Miserables) "You'll Never Walk Alone" (Carousel), "Finishing the Hat" (Sunday in the Park with George), "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" (The Wizard of Oz), "Try to Remember" (The Fantasticks), "Not While I'm Around" (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street), "Children Will Listen" (Into the Woods) among many others. Oh, and "All I Ask of You" from Phantom of the Opera. You *do* *not* want to hear the noises I made when I discovered that one. This will be a VERY happy experience!

The Von Trapps Are Doing Indie Pop

The Sound of Music notwithstanding, "Kurt" or Werner in the real world von Trapp's great grandchildren, Sofia, Melanie, Amanda and golden hair God -- I, I mean -- August made a band and they're awesome. While the von Trapps have already released an album with the easy listening band, Pink Martini, they are putting out a more Indie poppy sound on their "Dancing in Gold" EP that will come out -- oh hey! -- today. Unfortunately, I missed the chance to see them in Des Moines a few weeks ago (but luckily I got the secondhand scoop from a friend who opened for them) but I'm ready to hear more than just the YouTube clip of their new song. Their genetic harmonies are just as genetically tight and I am so ready for this! [EDIT: (4/14 1:23) IT'S HEERREE!] My Homegirl Mackenzie Scott is Being Awesome Again...

By this point, you all know my deep homegirl affection for Mackenzie Scott. She's adorable and awesome and honest and can rock a Kum and Go trucker hat like no one's business. But I digress. That honesty has come back in a more vibrant way via "Sprinter" coming out May 5. While her first album was painfully truthful and beautiful in that melancholic kind of way, this time around (if her singles "Strange Hellos" and "Sprinter" is any indication), it's raw and as autobiographic as the first album. In an interview with pitchfork, she explains the lyrics come inspired by her family (she herself being adopted as well as the mother who raised her).

"Whether it be abandonment, or fear of rejection, or perhaps inability to connect with people, comes down to that fear of isolation, of not being good enough. Those are themes that have cropped up in my personal life, in my writing, and my Mom can definitely understand that herself."

Sold!

Essie (plus Rebecca Minkoff) Spring 2015

2015-04-13T19:07:00.000-07:00

(From Left to Right: Garden Variety, Blossom Dandy, Flowerista, Petal Pushers, Perennial Chic, Picked Perfect)

Now this is pretty cool. Fashionista extraordinare Rebecca Minkoff has partnered with Essie, not only as the Global Color Desiger but also creating some magnificent colors with the nail polish line. If the names are not any indication, it's definitely a garden of bright and floral....ness. My faves? I'm definitely into Garden Variety and Flowerista and rather curious of Petal Pushers. You never know about the undertone or thickness of a polish until you are at CVS with your scotch tape. Completely normal!

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

2015-04-13T18:48:00.000-07:00

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": Spring Mix

2015-04-10T11:15:00.000-07:00

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

2015-03-10T18:53:00.000-07:00

87th Academy Awards Round-Up VSpot (And the 300th Post!)

2015-02-22T21:58:00.001-08:00

All the "N.P.H."

Pretty much all of this. All. Of. This.

" "American Sniper" alone is responsible for over $300 million of that. So congratulations to them. To put that in perspective, everyone on this side of the theater is the 7 other nominees and American Sniper is Oprah."
"Tonight on this stage we have come together to celebrate and hopefully fall in love with moving pictures all over again. OK, maybe not "Smurfs 2.""
"An actor [Channing Tatum] who is as appealing playing a male stripper as he is playing a wrestler in a onesie. He's the real deal, pants down. Hands down. Did I say pants? I meant pants. "
[on Dana Perry's pom pom dress] "I like that dress, it takes a lot of balls to wear a dress like that."
[After coming on stage in his underwear via "Birdman"] "After that last entrance, I am a changed man"
"In "A Million and One Ways How to Die in the West," I pooped in a hat."
"Benedict Cumberbatch is not only the best name in show business, it's also the response when you ask John Travolta to pronounce Ben Affleck."
"The original title for "Gone Girl" was "Bitches Be Trippin', Yo!"
The Best Moments

"To every woman who gave birth, to every citizen and taxpayer, it’s our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women of the United States of America!" - Patricia Arquette
and Meryl's response....

[Describing five actresses in Best Supporting Role as four actresses and...] "In accordance to California state law, Meryl Streep" - Jared Leto

[on "Birdman" director, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu] "Who gave this son of a bitch a green card?" - Sean Penn

The Best Wins
Best Supporting Actor: J.K Simmons (Whiplash)
Best Foreign Language Film: Ida [Poland]
Best Supporting Actress: Patricia Arquette (Boyhood)
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Eddie Redmayne (Theory of Everything)
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Julianne Moore (Still Alice)
The Best Tweets

‏@voguegasmic

After that Sound of Music/Julie Andrews moment, I think I need to go lie down. in the fetal position. #Oscars2015

‏@fortunefunny

If Jared Leto doesn't walk away from this Oscars with a Garnier Fructis commercial then life has failed him. #Oscars

B. retweeted

Patton Oswalt @pattonoswalt ·

Um...@ladygaga is

Completely

Unarguably

Nailing it. 

Sorry. I know I supposed to be snarky, But that's what's happening #Oscars

‏@voguegasmic

Julie Andrews: the only human being that can nail the correct pronunciation of Budapest. #Oscars2015

‏@NathanFillion

. @ActuallyNPH has a switch on the small of his neck. It goes to "Likable" or "More Likable." #Oscars

‏@pattonoswalt

Idris is so goddamned handsome. Did I just Tweet that? I dunno. Fuck you. Shut up. #Oscars

B. @voguegasmic ·

When a director/producer just needs someone 2 shake their head sarcastically 2 the camera, do they immediately think Questlove? #Oscars2015

‏@fortunefunny

I love that all of Hollywood laughed when Patricia Arquette mentioned taxes. #Oscars

‏@BoobsRadley

Those two empty seats next to Leto are for me and our shared-custody cat, Noodles.

‏@voguegasmic

Maybe the doormen have some off stage water bottles to take care of their business during commercial breaks? #Oscars2015 #AcademyAwards

‏@rejectnation

Chloe Grace Moretz has on a dress with pockets. That's how millennials roll. #Oscars

‏@hellogiggles

The #BardenBellas would have crushed that opening number 
#Oscars2015

B. retweeted

BUST Magazine @bust_magazine ·

Where's the Oscar for John Travoltas wig?

8
retweets21 favorites

87th Academy Awards Best Dressed

2015-02-22T17:29:00.000-08:00

Anna Kendrick in Thakoon

Rosamund Pike

Rita Ora in Marchesa

Anna Faris in Zuhair Murad

Jennifer Hudson in Romona Keveza

Jennifer Aniston in Versace

Bingeful Watching Valentine's Day Edition: My Top 10 Most Memorable Movie Kisses

2015-02-12T14:03:00.008-08:00

Kissing, that human mating dance that can literally sniff out if the second person of any gender is deemable a suitable mate to the first person. Sometimes it's a release of emotions or it's a proclamation of love or just simply foreplay. But thanks to the New York Times, they have inspired me to really think about my top 10 favorite kisses in cinema and what better time to put this out than before Lupercalia, I mean, the Western World's Valentine's Day? Here are my top 10 most memorable movie kisses and I do not discriminate!

Aaron Davis (Steve Sandvoss) and Christian Markelli (Wes Ramsey)

in Latter Days (2003)

We all know I love my gay romantic comedies, but this one, including the fantastic Joseph Gordon Levitt, never disappoints me. To sum up "Latter Days" in a sentence: Mormon Salesman goes to Los Angeles and finds himself attracted to the biggest playboy who may or may not be falling for him over time considering the bet he made with a friend to take one of the Mormon boys to bed. Maybe it's the intensity Christian (Wes Ramsey) gives off that makes that first kiss so powerful which ends up making my knees weak. It seems boy on boy make outs are much more beautiful to me than any other gender combination.

Jane Falberry (Judy Garland) and Joe D. Ross (Gene Kelly)

in Summer Stock (1950)

Their names say it all. Gene Kelly, who Judy Garland once dubbed her favorite leading man to kiss and well, Judy f***ing Garland. In "Summerstock," Jane's (Garland) family farm is in crisis and it only "seems to get better" when her sister comes back with a whole theater troupe in tow including her boyfriend and troupe leader, Joe Ross (Kelly). It's all chemistry between Joe and Jane until it finally accumulates after Joe sets the scene that Jane can do the show just as well as her sister could including a very romantic serenade of "You Wonderful You."

Lukas (Rick Okon) and Fabio (Maximillian Befort)

in Romeos [Romeos... anders als du denkst!] (2011)

In the German-made "Romeos," Lukas (Rick Okon) is finally taking on the transition from male to female and it's all erratic hormones and v-logs of his progress. But Fabio (ugh, I know, that name!) (Maximillian Befort) comes into his life and Lukas finds himself completely enamored but the question remains: is it better that he tells Fabio that he is in transition or let him simply see him as male? The movie is mostly awkward and full of violent empathy over of how much Lukas is struggling, but it doesn't stop the puppy dog obsession with Fabio. But the payoff? Oh, the payoff! If there was ever a sexy-sweet award for a kiss, "Romeos" wins hands down!

I apologize for the video, but the kiss starts at 3:17, the song isn't bad though!

Margeurite (Greta Garbo) and Armand (Robert Taylor)

in Camille (1936)

Some of the picks for my memorable kisses are purely based on one scene or the build up throughout the movie, but choices like "Notorious" and "Camille" are just consistently knee cap melting! The 1936 MGM production is based on a great book (in fact, one of my favorites) by Alexandre Dumas, fils 's although in the movie, the courtesan Marguerite is more in her mid-20s than the original age of 16. But it's Greta f***ing Garbo and she can do whatever she wants, including that amazing piano scene with film great Henry Daniell but I digress. Marguerite is slowly dying of consumption, but trying her best to keep her finances afloat by making "friends" with as many men as possible. But the "Lady of the Camellias" (hence "Camille" if you were wondering...) as she is known never expected to fall in love with the naive Armand who just wants to take care of her but it's more complicated than that. In a style that is purely 30's MGM and Cukor, the kissing scenes feel otherworldly at least for people who find these old movies a hobby.

Ennis del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal)

in Brokeback Mountain (2005)

"Brokeback Mountain"'s kisses are like a box of bottlecaps: you seriously can't pick just one! Maybe it's that first kiss before Ennis (Heath Ledger) goes into having sex with a man more consciously or maybe it's that reunion kiss where Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) is pressed against the wall or one of the more dramatic kisses before all goes to hell at the end. No, it's definitely the first kiss in the slight and shockingly real resistance of Ennis pulling back but eventually giving in. Maybe it's more beautiful like that instead of the whole gay cowboy jokes.

Veronica Fisher (Judy Garland) and Andrew Larkin (Van Johnson)

in In the Good Old Summertime (1949)

Much in the tradition of the movie before them ("The Shop Around the Corner") this is the part where the man (Van Johnson as Andrew Larkin) finally reveals that they've been writing letters to each other for the past year and that he is in love with Garland's Veronica. And oh the results as he speaks those adapted lines from the 1940s Frank Capra film! Although James Stewart spoke them straight with a beautiful romantic intensity, Johnson does one better as he is directed to incorporate the whole room as he backs her underneath the Christmas tree mocking the imaginary man that Veronica thought she was writing letters to. And the touching of her hair and kissing her temple just, ugh! Why can't they make beautiful choreographed kisses like that nowadays?

[starting at 3:54-5:28]

Astree (Stephanie Crayencour) and Celadon (Andy Gillet)

in The Romance of Astrea and Celadon (2008)

The last film from the great French director and writer Eric Rohmer, the period comedy "The Romance of Astrea and Celadon" does more than just represent two lovers breaking up to only fatefully come back together. It is about building a person into the best version of themselves. Adapted from a collection of serials from the 1600s by Honore d'Urfe, the kiss at the end after spending years apart is just a huge relief. The passionate "mini-make out" between Stephanie Crayencour and Andy Gillet is, believe me, a huge relief and a beautiful way to finish a very arbitrary stylistic movie.

Alicia Huberman (Ingrid Bergman) and Devlin (Cary Grant)

in Notorious (1946)

Who knew that Hitchcock could direct romantic scenes so well? The chemistry between Bergman's Alicia and Grant's Devlin is so electric that even the great Claude Rains's presence is almost upstaged! Bergman plays Alicia Huberman, a party girl and daughter of a German convict, ends up being roped into becoming a spy. She watches over her father's Nazi friends who are stationed in Rio de Janeiro while falling helplessly in love with the government agent (Grant) she works with. Alicia finds herself married to Alexander Sebastian (Claude Rains) and struggling to play both sides of the very dangerous spy game. But those kisses between Bergman and Grant, I just, there are no words! They are romantic yet sexually fueled and even the final scene as they walk down that staircase you know it's love, but somehow you feel really bad for Claude Rains! Only Hitchcock. Only Hitch.

Diane (Juno Temple) and Jack (Riley Keough)
in Jack and Diane (2012)

I understand this movie is very misunderstood, but there is nothing better than a layered kiss. After just a few hours of knowing each other and trying to figure each other out, Jack (Riley Keough) finally kisses Diane (Juno Temple) and much like their relationship throughout the movie, the kiss seems to progress. What starts out curious and kind of fascinated ends up becoming passionate but ends up creating a symbolic monster (not a werewolf, people!) that is a relationship or a tie from one person to another that you can't get rid of.

Marnie Edgar (Tippi Hedren) and Mark Rutland (Sean Connery)
in Marnie (1964)

Only Hitch. Only Hitch could get past the censors in "Notorious" creating a series of small kisses throughout a scene exceeding the Hayes Office's required three seconds. Only Hitch could zoom into a very intimate kiss between his ingenue and Sean Connery with no subjective intent, but you feel uncomfortable and yet fascinated all at once. After Marnie, a psychologically messed up thief and liar, is caught trying to break into a safe at her work by her boss Mark Rutland (Connery). Before getting fired, she finds herself having a psychotic break and the boss ends up comforting her, but it is he who is kissing her more than she is. Who wouldn't want James Bond to kiss down their faces? Oh, well, me but that's a completely different story.

[starts at :53-1:10]

"I"ll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

2015-01-26T23:40:00.000-08:00

January 17th's Junk Food Fuelled VSpot

2015-01-17T21:33:00.000-08:00

Between slices of a cheap frozen Mexican pizza, homemade chocolate chip cookies and a big bottle of Lipton tea limeade while simultaneously watching the Marvelverse and creating essays in my mind on what drives me stupid crazy about it, I give you the things that have filled up my "vspot" bookmark folder for the past few weeks.

Penny Dreadful Season 2 Trailer

... and it's absolutely beautiful! John Logan's love letter to the depths and dark places of the human condition and the struggle to be authentic is just as Gothic and beautiful as ever! Maybe even more so as Eva Green goes deeper into herself with those stunning Bitsie Tulloch-like cheekbones. But after season 1 being so spottish I am both excited (mostly the gift of visual editing does that to this girl) and worried that Logan's strange plot devices might blow up like it had prior. But this immersing show for the senses does not disappoint with Helen McCrory's "An Unquiet Grave" playing in the background until you realize... holy shit! ... it's Madame Kali having an Elizabeth Bathory-esque bath.

In Season 2, at least from first glance, Logan's "League of Literary Gentlemen" seem to break up, Ethan Chandler starts to realize the repercussions and comes to grips with his blublad -- sorry, wrong show -- werewolf ways, Dorian Gray (Reeves) pines for Eva Green who seems to go on sabbatical to a more colorful but equally desolate landscape. Caliban feels human touch, Chandler cleanses the "LLG" headquarters, and the Bride of Caliban experiment works (of course).

Season 2 looks like it will be shaping up to be a wonderful feast for Victorian old souls of this world. But it's my hope as both a serious writer and obviously a little of a Victorian old soul in myself hopes for an overall arc that will not stop dead in its tracks like season one. Plus, the use of Danny Sampani (Sembene) as Murray's faithful servant in the trailer gives me hope that maybe it won't entirely be the "Eva Green Show" but "Penny Dreadful" can go so many different directions. I only ask, Logan, bring me on as a script writer!! Pretty please?

It May Not Be Christmas Anymore, but This Live Version of Hey Rosetta's "Carry Me Home" is Absolutely Beautiful!...

... and They Also Have a New Video!

Here on muchmusic.com
Because a "Backstreet's Back" Reference is Just too Easy...

I am so excited for this, you have no idea! Basically documenting the time five best friends and brothers (oh, how many times have we read that in the thank you notes!) moved into a house in London, where they composed and recorded their newest album "In a World Like This." Like all reality shows that show multiple personalities living under one roof without their families or wives, magic happens, music is made, friendships solidify harder but not without a little drama. This is where I cue the trailer where Nick blows up, "I'm not afraid of you anymore." Online commenters speculate that might be directed towards my Backstreet Boy, the strong and silent Kevin Richardson. STWYMO will be full of the Backstreet history of boy band-dom (whether or not it will be intertwined with the modern day is anyone's guess), the fantastic songs that came off the latest album, including "In a World Like This," "Madeline" and the title song, and basically exhibiting the question asked in the trailer, "What do you do when you're a full grown man in a boy band?" If anyone needs me January 30th, you can find me at one of the local movie theaters. Hey Geronimo's Lazer Gun Show LIVE

Although this video is a few months old my favorite Australian band Hey Geronimo literally JUST put this video up on YouTube. Promoting 2 songs on Australia's The Children's Hospital Telethon, this is one of the rarest moments to see the band in live form with less crappy audio. I so approve this it hurts! You can also find all of the lyrics to their songs on their website, finally! Linnea Olsson Fleeting Performance on P3 Guild

I had a conversation with a friend a few weeks ago that while she seemed to be more of a violin personality, I seem to be more of the cello although I do love the violin. As the list of my favorite cellists grows, Linnea Olsson is my current cello-girl-crush at the moment. Literally just today, this quirky performer posted a fleeting but beautiful performance on Sweden's Top of the Pops-esque "P3 Guild." The performance only runs until 2:15.

voguegasm

"I'll Make You A Mixtape": A Very Indie Christmas

Binge-ful Watching: 2015's Great Pillaging of "Horror Classics: Anniversary Edition"

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": Music for the Dark Half of the Year

Binge-ful Watching: Turner Classic Movies October Schedule

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": Songs About King Arthur

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

"I"ll Make You a Mixtape... Kind Of...": Favorite Podcast Episodes, Part 1

My "Grimm" Theory: Questions That Were Not Asked During the Comic Con Panel But Should Have!

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": Songs About (Mid)Summer

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

My "Grimm" Theory: Theories, Choices and Bullet-Infested Shirtless Rage **SPOILERS WITHIN***

"I'll Make You a Mixtape:" New Favorite Songs

The Early Films of W. Frank Brinton Comes Home to Iowa and Makes an Awesome Night Out of It!

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": A Very Caffeinated Playlist

April 14th's Super Shiny and Super Overdue VSpot

Essie (plus Rebecca Minkoff) Spring 2015

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": Spring Mix

"I'll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

87th Academy Awards Round-Up VSpot (And the 300th Post!)

87th Academy Awards Best Dressed

Bingeful Watching **Valentine's Day Edition**: My Top 10 Most Memorable Movie Kisses

"I"ll Make You a Mixtape": New Favorite Songs

January 17th's Junk Food Fuelled VSpot

My "Grimm" Theory: Theories, Choices and Bullet-Infested Shirtless Rage SPOILERS WITHIN*

Bingeful Watching Valentine's Day Edition: My Top 10 Most Memorable Movie Kisses