The arrival of 2025 brings a mini landmark to Every Movie Has a Lesson. This little website that I dreamed up and started way back on Google Blogger turns 15 years old in May of 2025. Before start a year of celebration, I owe you a “10 Best” list for 2024. I couldn’t (and can never) see everything, where I have my blind spots and gaps, but, as you can see, I specialize in digging for treasure behind the mainstream.
Read MoreAs I have grown in press credentials and professional affiliations nationally, I have found myself landing in circles with other film critics of various levels. Recently, I was included in a poll for voting critics for Jordan Ruimy of World of Reel, a fellow Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. His survey was to collect picks for the best films of the 2020s so far from over 120 critics and other industry folk. I was honored to chime in with my top five selections to be included with some very high professional company.
Read MoreAs I have grown in press credentials and professional affiliations nationally, I have found myself landing in circles with other film critics of various levels. Recently, I was included in a poll for voting critics for Jordan Ruimy of World of Reel, a fellow Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. His survey was to collect picks for the best film to date by Christopher Nolan from over 120 critics and other industry folk. I was honored to chime in with my top selection of Memento to be included with some very high professional company.
Read MoreAs I have grown in press credentials and professional affiliations nationally, I have found myself landing in circles with other film critics of various levels. Recently, I was included in a poll for voting critics for Jordan Ruimy of World of Reel, a fellow Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. His survey was to collect picks for the best film of famed director Francis Ford Copolla (The Godfather series, Apocalypse Now) from over 100 critics and other industry folk. I was honored to chime in with my vote for 1997’s The Rainmaker to be included with some very high professional company.
Read MoreAs I have grown in press credentials and professional affiliations nationally, I have found myself landing in circles with other film critics of various levels. Recently, I was included in a poll for voting critics for Jordan Ruimy of World of Reel, a fellow Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. His survey was to collect picks for the best films of the 1950s from over 120 critics and other industry folk. I was honored to chime in with my top five selections to be included with some very high professional company.
Read MoreFor me, 2023 was the embodiment of the Ferris Bueller quote: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” Yup, that was my year as a husband, father, school teacher, podcaster, editor, and movie critic. The continuing stresses of my work-life balance occasionally morphed into joys where, when the flow was right, chasing movies didn’t matter. Normally, I would regret the blind spots, but this was a year where I didn’t completely.
Read MoreAs I have grown in press credentials and professional affiliations nationally, I have found myself landing in circles with other film critics of various levels. Recently, I was included in a poll with over 110 voting critics by Jordan Ruimy of World of Reel, a fellow Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. His survey tallying votes for our choices for the best Martin Scorsese films. He asked for our Top 3 and did the math from there. It’s an honor to be invited and included!
Read MoreAs I have grown in press credentials and professional affiliations nationally, I have found myself landing in circles with other film critics of various levels. Recently, I was included in a poll for voting critics for Jordan Ruimy of World of Reel, a fellow Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. His survey was to collect votes for the single best Christopher Nolan from over 110 critics and other industry folk. I was honored to chime in with my vote of Memento to be included with some very high professional company. Enjoy the article and list. Check out your boy!
Read MoreAs I have grown in press credentials and professional affiliations nationally, I have found myself landing in circles with other film critics of various levels. Recently, I was included in a poll for voting critics for Jordan Ruimy of World of Reel, a fellow Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. His survey was to collect the best films from the first half of 2023 from over 100 critics and other industry folk. I was honored to chime in with my top five selections to be included with some very high professional company. Enjoy the article and list. Check out your boy!
Read MoreClosing a year, as usual, means getting out the scorecard and making a “10 Best” list. This one didn’t take much agony and neither will my second year of voting for the Critics Choice Awards and Hollywood Film Critic Awards and seventh year with my own Chicago Indie Critics group with many of these movies in mind. I’ve had this list up on Letterboxd and presented them on TikTok, but the homebase deserves its annual post.
Read MoreIn an annual series, Every Movie Has a Lesson is going to look back twenty years to revisit, relearn, and reexamine a year of cinema history to share favorites, lists, and experiences from the films of that year. When measuring back as far as twenty years or more, I feel like “favorites” that have stood the test of time have aged to become some level of “best.” I feel like a bunch of those populate my reflective look back at the best of the rest of 2002.
Read MoreIn an annual series, Every Movie Has a Lesson is going to look back twenty years to revisit, relearn, and reexamine a year of cinema history to share favorites, lists, and experiences from the films of that year. When measuring back as far as twenty years or more, I feel like “favorites” that have stood the test of time have aged to become some level of “best.” I feel like a bunch of those populate my reflective look back at the best of 2002.
Read More
