Sam Kench
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Why John McTiernan Disappeared for 20 Years & Tracking Down His Lost Documentary
John McTiernan directed Predator and Die Hard back-to-back as his second and third films. He would make several other films over the next few years before stopping abruptly in 2003 after Basic. The reason for his disappearance and why he hasn’t made another movie in the 20 years since is a big, complicated affair. This… Read more
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True Detective Season 2 Deserves More Respect
“True Detective: Season 2” earned a reputation as one of the most disastrous follow-up seasons to an acclaimed TV show to ever hit the air. This video breaks down why it failed and why it is secretly far better than its terrible reception would indicate. Read more
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How Ruben Östlund Tracks the Ripples of a Moment in Triangle of Sadness and Force Majeure
Video essay examining how Ruben Östlund tracks the ripples of a seemingly insignificant moment in “Triangle of Sadness” and “Force Majeure.” Östlund won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival for “The Square” in 2017 then again in 2022 for “Triangle of Sadness,” which was also nominated for multiple Oscars and BAFTAs Read more
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The Misdirection of Throbbing Gristle & and the Gender Boundaries Broken by Genesis P-Orridge
A look into the history of the band Throbbing Gristle, the misdirection of their 20 Jazz Funk Greats album, the start of the industrial music genre, and the impact of Genesis P-Orridge on burgeoning LGBTQIA+ matters over the years. Read more
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The Father (2020) vs. The Son (2022)
Florian Zeller’s two movies The Father (2020) and The Son (2022) are similar in many ways but at polar opposite ends of the quality spectrum. In this double review of both movies, let’s break down why The Father is a great film and why The Son is a failure. “The Father” = 8.5/10 “The Son”… Read more
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The Psycho Sequels Deserve More Respect
Alfred Hitchcock left huge shoes to fill with his timeless “Psycho,” so the decades-later sequels were bound to be met with a rocky reception, but I’m here to tell you that “Psycho II” and “Psycho III” are far better than you may have been led to believe, and “Psycho IV” isn’t that bad either. Read more
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The Man Who Invented Independent Filmmaking
A tribute to and a showcase of the remarkable talents and accomplishments of John Cassavetes, a successful actor who used the money he made from appearing in movies to self-finance his own films independently. Truly one of the most important filmmakers of all time. Read more
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The Top 100 Best Action Movies Ever Made
The full list is available below the video and on Letterboxd. Read more
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Randy Quaid’s Star Whackers Documentary is the Worst Thing I’ve Ever Seen
Randy Quaid used to be a talented actor at the start of his career, as exemplified by his phenomenal performance in The Last Detail. Unfortunately, he got sucked down the conspiracy theorist rabbit hole and lost his mind along with all his acting ability and common sense. His Star Whackers “documentary” is genuinely the worst… Read more
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Jump Scares Suck (Except When They Don’t)
Jump scares are always terrible (except for the good ones). This video looks at jump scares from all angles and attempts to break down why they work or don’t work, why they’re so common, how to make them better, and also provides more in-depth breakdowns for a few specific movies and jump scares including The… Read more
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