Cinema Sidenotes

Hi everyone,

Although I did have an exciting weekend and checked off TWO things from my own personal to do list, which I'll blog about later this week, I want to take a second and talk about one of my favorite things: movies!

Over the past few days, movies have been in the news. I don't normally consider Perez Hilton "the news" but nevertheless he has posted a very exciting and interesting story about one of my favorite horror trilogies: Scream. Scream 4 is officially in the works! Some people may not appreciate scary movies, but I am not one of those people. The scarier the better. It makes for such an exciting and fun movie-going experience.

Scream, the original, although seemingly a typical slasher film, was pretty revolutionary. It challenged traditional horror films by pointing out their so-called "rules" and attempting to operate outside those rules. It also addressed social issues of the time, like the worry of kids becoming delusional as a result of too many scary movies or too much exposure to violence. Plus, it marked the come back of Drew Barrymore (see famous opening scene: "Do you like scary movies?"); Courtney Cox and David Arquette met on set and later married; and some of the biggest stars were in the trilogy--including GW Alum Scott Foley. Lastly, Scream was memorably spoofed in the film Scary Movie, and you know what they say, mimicry is the sincerest form of flattery...

Needless to say, when I go see Scream 4 in theaters, it will have big shoes to fill. The three main characters, Neve Campbell, David Arquette, and Courtney Cox are all on board, according to writer Kevin Williamson, as will Wes Craven, undoubtedly.  I am super excited for this release but I'll be waiting awhile as the script has just been finished. But there is definitely going to be a Scream 5--it may seem excessive to some, but I am totally onboard until Wes Craven doesn't want to make any more Screams!

You can see the story here.

If you don't identify with horror films, that's okay too because in bigger movie news, the Oscar Nominations were announced this morning. They returned to the original format of 10 films nominated for Best Picture, as opposed to the 5 film format that was adopted in more recent years. I've seen several of the nominated films, and tonight, thanks to Program Board, I'm going to see Precious for free! They'll also screen Up in the Air, The Blind Side, Sherlock Holmes, Invictus, and The Lovely Bones later this spring. You can watch Anne Hathaway announce the nominations below. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNsGy7FhTq8

--Abby