Before the MCU. Before the DCEU. Before every major studio started scrambling to stitch their films together into a grand shared mythology with its own timeline, its own rules, and its own inevitable crossover event, there was a quiet suburb of Chicago that most people drove right past without realizing it. There was Shermer, Illinois. … Continue reading Welcome to Shermer, Illinois
The Breakfast Club
From Joke Writer to American Icon: The Filmmaking Evolution of John Hughes
I have a specific memory of watching Ferris Bueller's Day Off for the first time and thinking — probably at an age when I wasn't yet sophisticated enough to articulate this — somebody made this movie who actually remembers what it feels like to be young. Not young in a generic, greeting card sort of … Continue reading From Joke Writer to American Icon: The Filmmaking Evolution of John Hughes
The John Hughes High School Universe: Still Detention-Worthy?
Somewhere in the vast cultural wasteland of the 1980s, between New Coke and shoulder pads, a filmmaker named John Hughes decided that teenagers deserved more than just slasher films and sex comedies. What emerged was a collection of movies that would define an entire generation's understanding of high school—and occasionally make that same generation wince … Continue reading The John Hughes High School Universe: Still Detention-Worthy?
Life Story: Chapter Fifty Seven
Welcome to a series of stories that basically make up my autobiography. It’s not entirely thorough, but I’ll do the best I can with the memories locked away inside my head. Could be therapeutic for me. Could be humorous for you. Either way, enjoy… Previously on Life Story... I spent most of my senior English … Continue reading Life Story: Chapter Fifty Seven
The Confusing Middle 