Featured Writing

THE FILMS

An alphabetical listing of every individual film about which we've ever written.

<< click here for an index of the INDIVIDUAL REVIEWS >>

VIDEO ODDITIES, or VHS: VIDEO HOUSE SAFARI

With DVR On Demand, HD disc technology and online rental services as well as comprehensive movie databases changing the home entertainment market seemingly every second, the days of seeking something odd and interesting aren't just waning, they're pretty much gone. So these days Cribbs returns to Alexandra's Video Vault to do something he always took for granted: to browse. He's bringing home VHS weirdness and writing about it.

<< click here for an index of the VIDEO ODDITIES >>

FIVE FROM THE FIRE

Stored in a single warehouse are the complete works of five filmmakers, their entire bodies of work, every last 35mm & 16mm print, dvd disc and vhs tape together in one place. When the warehouse goes up in flames, you have the chance to save five films - which ones do you keep and which ones do you let burn? Each installment features a different list of directors and a different writer taking on the enjoyably pointless theoretical exercise.

<< click here for an index of the FIVE FROM THE FIRE >>

LISTS

As an internet website, we are legally required to compile thematically linked lists. Fulfilling this requirement are article like the good director/baffling project rundown 8 Inexplicable Cinematic Miscalculations, the woeful performances marring masterpieces in Awful Performances in Classic Films and our 100 Movie Moments series highlighting some of the best individual moments in cinema history.

<< click here for an index of every LIST >>

LIMITED RUN SERIES and one-off's

From their celebration of Ray Bradbury to their look at the films that truly mattered in their lives (The Whole History of My Life) The Pink Smoke has frequently assembled series with a fixed endpoint focusing on a single subject or idea. Also, orphan articles that don't fit in anywhere else: a discussion of the Elmore Leonard t.v. adaptation Justified or a look at Godard and Truffaut's Favorite Films of 1957. Honestly, if you want to read the best stuff they've ever written, you'll probably find it in this section.

<< click here for an index of every SERIES and OPRHAN ARTICLE >>

THE MOVIE SHELF

A series that compares the films on our dvd shelves to the novels on our bookcases, exploring what a script writer takes from the original source material, what he changes, how the two different works vary from each other and what the existence of the movie itself says about the book and vice versa. Begins with a look at Wim Wenders taking on Patricia Highsmith's famous Ripley character in The American Friend...

<< click here for an index of everything on THE MOVIE SHELF >>

FRUSTRATING FILMOGRAPHIES

An experiment dedicated to great directors. Great directors ...who've transgressed. Disappointed. Befuddled. But not to the point of being written off entirely. In the course of long careers these filmmakers have made the occasional slip and this ongoing column will try to figure out what their motivation might have been in choosing projects that proved questionable, wrongheaded or outright embarrassing. Think Sidney Lumet's The Morning After.

<< click here for an index of the FRUSTRATING FILMOGRAPHIES >>

FESTIVALS

Every year Cribbs and Funderburg make the drive up to Canada for the Toronto International Film Festival and come back with their TIFF in Review. Theoretically, they could go to some other festival and write about that. They haven't yet, but trust me, they've thought about it.

<< click here for an index of every FESTIVAL preview and review >>

ACTORS

All of our series looking at specific actors or actresses, including the Lee Marvin on tv project LeeTV, character actor spotlight I'll Never Forget Ol' Whatsisname and the true-crime stories of Murdered Actresses. Also, Christopher Lambert junkies will find their fix in Lambertathon right here...

<< click here for an index of every article about an ACTOR or ACTRESS >>

OBSCURE GENIUS

This on-going series takes a look at some of the most obscure works by cinema's acknowledged geniuses, the films that even fanatics have over-looked. For instance: if you love Luis Buñuel, you've seen Belle de Jour, you've probably even seen EL (This Strange Passion) – but have you seen his sophomore effort The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz? Same came be said for George Armitage fans and his "black Get Carter" flick Hitman. Focusing on films not readily available on VHS or DVD with English-language subtitles, it's an attempt to dig deep into the filmographies of cinema's greats and explore the rarest of rarities.

<< click here for an index of all the OBSCURE GENIUS articles >>

SEASONAL THEMED

Who can resist a good Horror Movie Marathon in October or a heart-warming list of The Worst Movies to Watch on Mother's Day? Certainly not The Pink Smoke. A round-up of every article we've ever written associated with a specific date or time of the year: a list of A Short List of Films About Love for Valentine's Day, our Summer Movie Previews, movies for every occasion.

<< click here for an index of all the SEASONAL articles >>

SECOND CHANCES

Despite their reputations, some films and filmmakers just don't do it for the writers of The Pink Smoke. This series, Second Chances, follows Funderburg and Cribbs as they actively make an effort to appreciate esteemed artworks for which they currently have a distaste. They give cult favorites like Let the Right One In another shot and dig deep in the filmographies of beloved auteurs whose appeal baffles them (like Nicholas Ray) - and sometimes, they even emerge as newly-minted fans...

<< click here for an index of the SECOND CHANCES >>

200 DAYS AND 200 MOVIES

In October 2006, Funderburg and Cribbs set out to watch at least 200 Movies over the course of the next 200 Days. They both watched a different slate of films and wrote about every single one; from epic high art masterpieces such as Fassbinder's 15 & 1/2 hour Berlin Alexanderplatz to goofy teen comedies like Savage Steve Holland's worthy One Crazy Summer to idiotic dreck like Open Water 2. In sections spanning 10 days at a time, The Pink Smoke is reprinting their writings about the grueling experiment in cinematic endurance.

<< click here for an index of the 200 DAYS AND 200 MOVIES entries >>

THE GENTLEMAN OF LEISURE

Noted gentleman of leisure Paul Cooney can normally be reached at the beach in Sunny Fort Lauderdale Florida - when he's not there, he can be found writing controversial, laid-back tirades about movies here at The Pink Smoke. He musings on films like MacGruber and The Fast and the Furious series are simultaneously some of our most popular and most despised articles. Much like cavier or midget hookers, he's an acquired taste. Whatever your reaction to his thoughts, because of his aversion to work and beach-intensive lifestyle, Mr. Cooney remains America's greatest hero. There's just no arguing that.

<< click here for a list of THE GENTLEMAN OF LEISURE's musings >>

YEARS IN REVIEW

Our annual looks back at previous year; the best, the worst, the instantly forgettable. Monstrously lengthy breakdowns of the years that were.

<< click here for an index of every YEAR IN REVIEW >>

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