CineNiche

April 19, 2021 - April 25, 2021 Hello readers. The big night has come and gone. 41 features and 15 short films competed for an eight-pound statuette. We did not complete the so-called Oscar death race. We finished at 26 features and 11 shorts, that's a 66% overall grade. We just got fatigued. Once you see all the contenders for best film, actor, actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, director, adapted screenplay, original screenplay, editing, and throw in a couple shorts, you feel confident going into Oscar night. But no one was ready for what happened, or were they?  I knew Nomadland would win best picture, it has won across the board. The same can be said for Chloé Zhao winning best director. Which, can you believe this is only the second time a woman has won a director award? But the upsets came first when Sound of Metal won best film editing an award that should have clearly been the only award for The Father . But The Father won best adapted screenplay which should...

April 12, 2021 - April 18, 2021 Hello readers. What a sh*t storm of a week we've had in Chicago! The Civilian Office of Police Accountability released all the videos associated with the police shooting of 13 year-old Adam Toledo. Video #1 BWC1-Shooting Officer shows officer Eric Stillman chasing after Ruben Roman and then after Toledo. When the kid stops, the officer tells him to turn around with his hands up. As the kid complies, raises his hands, and turns around, the officer shoots him. Officer Stillman runs up to the child and asks where he's been shot and attempts to help, but it's too late. Most media outlets are torn on how to report this. Some networks will lean on the fact that a gun was found mere feet away from Toledo. Other networks will lean on the fact that Officer Stillman attempts to assist directly after he makes the mistake. I've talked to older officers who remember a time that you had to actually be shot at in order to return fire - what a simpler ...

April 5, 2021 - April 11, 2021 Hello readers. I'm guessing this has already happened for most of you, but I finally got around to Euphoria and it was perfect. The wife and I were supposed to go out of town together this week, but I had my second vaccination scheduled for Saturday. I learned quickly that one doesn't just reschedule. I was laughed at on the phone when I inquired about such things. I knew that upon my second dose there would be a good chance I would feel like sh*t. So I carved a couple days into my schedule where I allowed myself to do NOTHING. It has been so long since I've granted myself that kind of freedom. Whether it be work, social obligation, or that incessant need to ABC - always be creating. Prior to the wife leaving, we watched the first episode, and we were both hooked. I knew at that moment, this was going to fill my nothing schedule. After episode one, we both felt dumb for holding off for so long. We were fans of Dare Me when we should have be...

March 29, 2021 - April 4, 2021 Hello readers. Born in 1982, I was a 90’s teen. For me, my sacred ritual was the weekly rotation of video stores. There was no Blockbuster, but there was Box TV, LTD, Spotlight, Music Unlimited, and one other I always forget the name of. From junior high on, I’d walk the rotation of stores. On Tuesdays I rented new releases from Box TV, LTD, and Music Unlimited. For the weekend I’d rent the 4 X 4 from Spotlight which was four movies, four days, and four dollars. It’s not an exaggeration that I usually had up to 10 tapes rented at any given time. And I recently mapped out the walk on Google Maps, it was 2 miles to hit all the stores. But that was a small price for my passion. Freshman year of High School was 1996 for me. It was the same year Scream came out. I was 14 and I was livid. I didn't have a certain clique at school, so I floated from table to table during lunch. I kept hearing 'experts' talking about slasher movie rules. They had a...

  Welcome back to Retro Flashback. Today, we have a special treat for the nature vs. man enthusiasts. We will encounter issues of overpopulation, ecological balance, and of course gigantic rabbits. You may ask yourself, “How does watching Night Of The Lepus make me a better horror fan?” The simple answer is: “it doesn't.” We have learned that sometimes the best way to find great films is to sit through the ones that are absolutely horrible. As if to say, they make the good ones that much better. “How many eyes does horror have? How many times will terror strike?”