Kamala Harris at her closing campaign rally: "Donald Trump intends to use the United States Military against American citizens who simply disagree with him."

My son’s Creature from the Black Lagoon birthday cake. I let Costco make the cake; I made the Creature. It was my son’s idea to make him terrorize the Sour Patch Kids.

One glimmer of light in the darkness: I have to admit I approve of the modern usage of "cinema" to describe when something (not necessarily connected in any way to movies) rules. For obvious reasons, but still, it's nice hearing slightly confused people say "it was absolute cinema."

This made me joyous to read www.indiewire.com/criticism/mo...

LA Times on my new books, plus an interview. www.latimes.com/entertainmen...

Critic at large Eric Deggans says that in 2026, audiences have more power than they realize to determine the future of news and entertainment. n.pr/4jzd9NL

“Uruguay did what most nations still call impossible: it built a power grid that runs almost entirely on renewables—at half the cost of fossil fuels. The physicist who led that transformation says the same playbook could work anywhere—if governments have the courage to change the rules.”

NEW: Text messages reveal the strange relationship that John Davis, the former Mississippi official who directed millions in welfare dollars to sports celebrities, shared with WWE wrestlers Ted DiBiase Jr. and Brett DiBiase. "It is me who tried to buy your love," he wrote in one text read in court.

ICE as the New Vigilante Men open.substack.com/pub/gregmitc...

With Filipino filmmaker Lav Diaz setting sail for his new epic Magellan, Brandon Streussnig jumps aboard to hear about the film’s anti-imperialism—and the director’s newfound TikTok stardom. boxd.it/2UI

I'm still disabled. Still in danger of losing the apartment. We dropped the prices on all of the nerdy stuff on Ebay. www.ebay.com/usr/lu_415077

Just turned in my annual best of list. 14pgs. If you've ever considered contributing to the @flmfrkcentral.bsky.social fund, just the smelling salt budget at HQ is outrageous.

The Leah Chase School, New Orleans’ only non-charter public school, will stay open.

"Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI is set to spend $20 billion to build an industrial non-consensual pornography and child sexual abuse material factory in Southaven, Mississippi, Gov. Tate Reeves announced Thursday, calling it the largest private investment in the state’s history."

JUST IN: Reps. Massie and Khanna say "DOJ cannot be trusted" to release all of the Epstein files, urge a federal judge to appoint an independent overseer to make it happen. khanna.house.gov/sites/evo-su...

If you have the space, means and collection: a northern Texas warehouse full of proto-Redbox VHS vending machines from the mid-1980s is being evicted. The machines are free and whatever isn't taken will imminently be scrapped. www.facebook.com/commerce/lis...

Read our interview with Albert Birney on OBEX, what attracts him to specific technological tools, and where he sees connective tissue between cinema and video games.

Another lost film festival for Baton Rouge: www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/...

Oh my god, James L. Brooks SNAPPED!

NEW: Senate votes to display Jan. 6 plaque after House GOP refuses to hang it at Capitol www.nbcnews.com/politics/con...

Oh my gosh you guys! The House just passed my bill to extend the health care tax credits for three more years!

The Obamacare 3-year funding extension is sailing through the House now. Already 16 Republicans have broken with party leaders and voted YES on the bill with unanimously supportive Democrats.

***RELEASE DETAILS*** Coming on March 31st on #4K in the US from @kinolorber.com: #RunawayTrain (1985)! Tearing up the tracks at 100 miles-per-hour, Runaway Train features hair-raising footage and spectacular Oscar-nominated performances by Jon Voight (Deliverance) and Eric Roberts (Star 80).

Some news: I'm being laid off! After 11+ years and 48 issues, Friday will be my last day. I'm 100% looking for work and definitely not married to being in film. I have many transferable corporate/organizational skills. Email is first dot last at gmail

Remember the ending of 'The First Purge?' That was great.

Brian De Palma will finally return to filmmaking this summer.

Remember 'G.I. Joe: Retaliation?' Silly movie. Involved a power-hungry guy masquerading as the US President, holding all other countries hostage and demanding allegiance to his will. Absolutely silly.

Meanwhile...

On @reactorsff.bsky.social we kick off James Gunn's DC Universe with a new take on the man of steel that is really more of an old take, as it's full of Silver and Bronze Age goodness. The great superhero rewatch is really grooving on the 2025 SUPERMAN. reactormag.com/superhero-mo...

Today New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani unveiled a plan for universal child care across the state. Governor Hochul also announced that she’s “committing to fully fund the first two years” of Zohran's plan for free preschool for all 2-year-olds.

NEW STORY: Weed, aka bud, spiff, dank, loud, or as 1920s NOLAs officials called it, "a powerful narcotic," has grown in popularity over the century. However, there's a renewed war on the substance. So, in this piece, I tell you how we got here. antigravitymagazine.com/feature/sour...

I spoke with George Hawkins, Kerrice Brooks, and Sandro Rosta about joining the cast of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy.

There is a grave moral consequence to letting this go on. Shut down the government, have a general strike, grind the country to a halt, hit the streets. But not treating a demented administration lying about its thugs committing cold-blooded murder as an emergency? That is an emergency in itself.

More than wanting to watch 'Marty Supreme' in 70MM, I want to experience Abel Ferrara's grimacing attitude - big & loud.

there is no reason for ICE to exist. immigrants aren’t doing anything wrong by trying to live and work and provide for their loved ones. I don’t care how people got here. if they want to be here that’s good. leave them alone.

a few thoughts youtu.be/lERS4kJIQR8

I know people want democrats to use specific words but … I just want them to feel anger and let that drive them.

The system is fucked and should be dismantled

Just so you know, this extra $500 billion is enough to END POVERTY using a negative income tax with a 50% phaseout rate. It's also FIVE TIMES the cost of the enhanced child tax credit that cut child poverty in half, that was just too costly to make permanent according to all Republicans + Manchin.

"The impact will not only be felt by theater owners, but by movie fans and surrounding businesses in communities of all sizes.” variety.com/2026/film/ne...

MAYOR FREY: “They are already trying to spin this as an action of self-defense. Having seen the video of myself, I want to tell everybody directly: That is BULLSHIT.”

We need to bring back secrets, for the kids. Leave the helmets on the Boba Fetts. Don’t tell us the origins of the Wolverines. Let kids think and puzzle and theorize.

Top ten first-time watches is up on @brightwalldarkroom.com :)

Frey: I have a message for ICE: Get the fuck out of Minneapolis

A critic can't talk about the truly good movies without discussing the bad ones. Me, @reeljeffewing.bsky.social and Alejandra Martinez set out to list some of the movies just didn't like in 2025. thefilmmaven.com/worst-movies...

So here's what we're doing... www.drewmcweeny.com/2025-in-50-f...

the fact that this even needed to be written because the discourse has been so goofy. www.theguardian.com/film/2026/ja...

Masked ICE agents, it seems, are now killing American citizens on American streets. Any Democrat who doesn’t support abolishing ICE should be instantly primaried and run out of the party. This is non negotiable. You cannot support the continued existence of this fascist murderous secret police.