We’ve used up half of 2008, folks. We’d better start conserving or we’ll run out of 2008 within six months, seven tops.

As of the midpoint, I’ve watched 225 movies so far this year. Holy crap, can that be right? Wow. I guess it is. At that rate, I’ll have 450 by the end of the year. But that rate won’t continue, because the first half of the year was crammed with film festivals (Sundance, SXSW, CineVegas), while the second half will have one at the most. Still, the point is the same: I watch a lot of movies.

Not all of those were for review. Some were just me watchin’ a movie for fun. And two of them were “Anchorman.” (Why have I watched “Anchorman” twice so far this year? I dunno. Long story.) But of those that I have reviewed, here’s what I’ve liked the best. Please note that this list is non-binding, and if some of these don’t wind up on the year-end list, or wind up in a different order, you’re not allowed to yell at me or question my methods for YOU ARE NOT THE BOSS OF ME.

Top 10 Movies of 2008 So Far

1. “WALL-E”
2. “American Teen” (in theaters this month)
3. “Son of Rambow”
4. “Young @ Heart”
5. “Cloverfield”
6. “Dear Zachary” (see below)
7. “Snow Angels”
8. “Funny Games”
9. “The Signal”
10. “The Promotion”

Number 6 is a documentary that played at Slamdance and SXSW that I just barely got around to watching. It’s one of the most emotionally wrenching films I’ve ever seen. Last I heard, they’re looking at an August theatrical release for it. I’ll write up a review soon-ish.

Rotten Tomatoes, now celebrating its 10th anniversary, operates on a simple concept. It looks at all* the movie reviews on the Internet, translates each into either “Fresh” or “Rotten” (i.e., positive or negative), then tells you what percentage of critics liked a particular movie. If the percentage is 60 or higher, then the film is considered “Fresh.”

“WALL-E” is the “Freshest” movie of the year so far, with a current Tomatometer score of 96% — that is, 147 out of 153 critics reviewed it favorably. Those other six critics … well, they’re in the distinct minority.

And so I got to thinking: When have I been in the distinct minority? What is the “Freshest” movie that I’ve ever given a “Rotten” rating to?

Each individual critic’s page at Rotten Tomatoes (here’s mine) actually lets you sort his or her reviews by Tomatometer, making it easy to check: It was “The Pianist,” which has a 95% Tomatometer score. I gave it a C+, which is just barely on the “Rotten” side, but “Rotten” nonetheless. I’m one of only eight critics (out of 165) to review it negatively.

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(This post contains minor “WALL-E” spoilers.)

Many of you saw “WALL-E” over the weekend, and no doubt some of you noticed biblical themes in it. You can’t name a main character “Eve” without invoking the Garden of Eden, of course; nobody could miss that. But what about all the humans living on a ship and waiting for an envoy to return with a plant as proof that it was safe to go home? Did that remind anyone of Noah’s Ark and the dove?

In my review, I mentioned that there were biblical allusions along with the cinematic references like “2001: A Space Odyssey” and Buster Keaton. (I didn’t mention it, but writer/director Andrew Stanton is a Christian, and he discusses how that influences his work in this interview.) My review prompted a Methodist minister to write to me:

I have read 7 reviews so far all by the “top” critics, and while they are all excellent writers, they all, until you, have missed the biblical narratives so skillfully woven into the story. Thanks for having the guts to mention it.

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Hoo boy, if you read this week’s “Snide Remarks,” entitled “YM I So Tired?,” you’re definitely gonna wind up with a song stuck in your head. Just so you know.

Also of note: I saw “The Strangers” over the weekend, and it’s actually pretty scary. Weird, huh?

Also of note, too: Are you my Fat Brother Jeff? If so, then happy birthday! In fact, let’s all wish Jeff a happy birthday! He handles the technical side of this website, and he does it for almost no money. Of course, I handle the creative side of this website, and I do that for almost no money, too. But it’s not my birthday, so who cares? Happy birthday, JJ!

This week’s “Snide Remarks,” including the audio version, is here.
The audio version (i.e., the podcast) is also here.
Subscribe to the podcast’s feed with this URL.

Do you enjoy listening to movie geeks talk about movies and TV and video games and movies? Me too! And the nice folks at Always Watching were kind enough to invite me on as a guest geek for this week’s podcast (which is entitled The Watchers). You can view a rundown of what we discuss, and also listen to the podcast itself, and also subscribe to the podcast, here. (A mild warning: I think there’s some naughty language at one point, though I don’t remember when or how much.)

We recorded it Tuesday night, at which time it also was being streamed live for whoever happened to be listening. The regular crew is David Chen (who’s a big fan of mine, inexplicably), Devindra Hardawar, and Adam Quigley; guests were me, Myles McNutt of Cultural Learnings, and Alex Billington of First Showing. A good time was had by all. I think they talked more than I did, though, because I’m nervous around strangers, especially when I can only hear the strangers and not see them.

Saw this online. Don’t know who did it. Made me laugh.

Peter Sciretta at SlashFilm posted something the other day that summarizes a thought I’ve been having a lot lately: People have changed the definition of what a “spoiler” is.

Peter writes:

Originally a spoiler meant something from a film that gave away a twist or turning point in the story. Basically, anything that would ruin your experience watching the story on the big screen. I don’t know exactly when, but sometime in the last year the tide began to change online, and [even] studio-released production photos began to be considered “spoilers” even when they didn’t reveal something major about the story.

Nowadays we have people freaking out if they see or read ANYTHING about a movie, no matter how minor. Peter’s article was prompted by some fans getting upset when he posted photos of the new Hasbro toy version of the “Cloverfield” monster. To them, seeing what the monster looked like constituted a “spoiler,” and he should have warned them before posting the picture.

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“Snide Remarks” is back from vacation with a timely entry entitled “A Message from Mike Huckabee.” I say it is timely because I suspect a year from now no one will remember who Mike Huckabee is. (Please?)

In other news, here are reviews of Hollywood’s Shameful Secrets© from this weekend, “The Eye” and “Strange Wilderness.” Neither is as bad as you might expect, given their Shameful Secret status. Certainly there are movies far worse that were screened for critics.

Also, here’s a review of “Falling,” the new film from Mormon Cinema godfather Richard Dutcher. The film’s two-week run at the Gateway in SLC is over, and I’m waiting to hear back from the publicist about future plans for it. I’ll let you know what I find out. It’s a good film, though quite different from everything Dutcher has done before.

This week’s “Snide Remarks,” including the audio version, is here.
The audio version (i.e., the podcast) is also here.
Subscribe to the podcast’s feed here.

My reviews of last weekend’s “Rambo,” “Meet the Spartans,” and “Untraceable” are now posted. Here’s hoping the reviews are more enjoyable to read than the movies were to watch.

In other news, I’m afraid I’m coming down with the Sundance Flu, a bug that started claiming victims near the end of the festival and has continued to wreak havoc on members of the press since then. Cooped up together in the same screening rooms all day, and then sharing each other’s needles and crack pipes at night — that’s a recipe for disaster.

I’ll try to produce at least the minimum amount of work the next couple days, but if I go away for a while you’ll know why. And if the masseuse shows up tomorrow and finds me naked and dead, I hope she calls 911 before she calls anyone else. (People with the Sundance Flu are allowed to make jokes about anything they want.)

Robert Reed was a classically trained actor whose most famous role was that of the dad on “The Brady Bunch.” He was evidently a prickly fellow and constantly harassed the show’s producers about its lousy scripts. I get the feeling that for him, working on the show was like a gourmet chef having to take a job at McDonald’s.

I’ve just stumbled across an amazing memo that he wrote to the producers in response to a particular episode. It is amazing for two reasons. One, analyzing “The Brady Bunch” with high-minded theatrical philosophies is funny, and the seriousness with which Reed treated it is hilarious.

But two, in the process of explaining why “The Brady Bunch” sucks, Reed actually does a really good job of explaining the principles behind comedy, and why violating those principles usually results in failure.

Here is the memo. It is long and academic-sounding, but I truly do find it fascinating.

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