A Man About Film, A Post About a Substack
Same entertaining and informative movie reviews and commentary, brand new place to find them.
The spectacular otherworldly battle on Hoth in “Empire Strikes Back.” The Iron Giant taking to the sky, becoming Superman to stop an errant nuke and save his helpless human friends back on land. Heath Ledger’s remarkable transformation into the jubilantly chaotic Joker, making a pencil … disappear. A freshly gnawed Jerry O’Connell bloodily spitting out his final words – “Wet T-shirt” – in “Piranha 3-D.” I’ve witnessed some incredible moments on the big screen over the years – but some of my truly favorite movie memories came from beyond the masking, beyond the frame, just a little further away.
Standing around in the movie theater parking lot.
It was there, typically at some absurd hour of night, lit only by buzzing and flickering street lamps as well as the glow of the nearby theater lobby (and the glowering of the movie theater employee waiting in there, trying to close up for the night), that my friends and I would discuss, debate, dissect and deliberate everything we’d just seen on the big screen – and probably a few other movies we’d seen recently too. We’d turn that increasingly empty lot into “At the Movies with Siskel & Ebert,” movie lovers trying to parse what they’d seen, matching notes while also trying to inform and entertain one another about their experience. We’d fist pump a moment we loved, we’d cackle over ones that baffled us and we’d get a better understanding of what we – and others – felt about what we’d all just experienced, fueled only by what remained of our overpriced soda/candy and our united love of losing ourselves in a story told big. I’ve taken plenty of film classes and courses, read plenty of important books and tomes, but I never learned more about cinema, what I seek from it and what I love about it, than I did during those one in the morning diatribes and discussions.
And so: Welcome to my online movie theater parking lot.
For those who haven’t already been properly introduced, my name’s Matt Mueller, and after more than decade calling OnMilwaukee home, my movie-centric musings and writings are changing their address … to here! It’s a notable change for me, personally, but hopefully it’s not a significant change for you – save for finding even more of the movie reviews and conversations you (hopefully) enjoyed before, either in writing or on the radio/TV. My goal is that this new Substack becomes a place we can all meet up, share what we loved (or not-so-loved) about what we’ve all seen and have a lot of fun nerding out – whether you’re a hardcore movie obsessive whose Letterboxd logs thousands of films a year or a casual fan who maybe gets to a movie or two a month (if that).
How about giving them some slightly more specific expectations from this Substack, Matt? Great idea, hypothetical person I’m suddenly having a conversation with! So, here at A Man About Film, you’ll find:
Movie reviews
Yes, the bread and butter: sharing my opinions and thoughts about movies recent (and maybe not-so-recent) in a way that’s hopefully both informative and entertaining. So will that include the latest new releases? Or streaming movies, probably buried by Netflix and lost on the others? And what about discoveries at the Milwaukee Film Festival? Yes, to all the above – and then probably some more too.
Matt’s Monday Musings
Here’s something new! A lot of movie news happens over the course of a week, not all of it worth a whole-ass article. But it’s all definitely worth discussing (and likely complaining about, considering the industry these days). So here’s where that will go: Every Monday, I’ll gather up some of my takeaways from the news of the weekend and the past week, plus some stuff “beyond the frame,” in a little quick-hit round-up. This is where you’ll find weekly box office takes, casting news opinions, industry gossip, buzzy conversations and, I don’t know, maybe the occasional “what competition show trash did I watch on Netflix this week” update. It’s all the news that’s fit to print … just maybe not worth THAT much print.
Oscar talk and best of lists
One of these years, I’ll finally create my Letterboxd account. Every time I geek out with someone about movies, they inevitably ask me if I have one – and I always say no because I don’t need another social media network to rabbit-hole down. ESPECIALLY one about movies and listing things. There’s a non-zero percent chance if I started an account, I would disappear and re-emerge into society 11 months later with a gigantic Rip Van Winkle beard, no knowledge of current events and an encyclopedic knowledge of my thoughts on 2005 in film. Actually, that sounds great; I take everything back.
But really, until Letterboxd List-ageddon arrives for me, here’s where you can find my Best of the Year lists, plus any other lists that seem fun and worth the words.
Then there’s Oscar talk. No, I will not be talking awards season in June. Predicting Oscars when the last winners’ trophies haven’t even started collecting dust yet is a. a fool’s errand, b. annoying and c. a good way to look like a moron. And I have enough of c. without the Oscars help. But when it gets to awards season, yes, I’ll have plenty of commentary to share – from my predictions to takeaways from the show itself and more.
And then probably some other stuff too! Podcasts? Sure! Interviews? Why not! Local Milwaukee film culture chat? 100 percent! Personal essays? Absolutely! TV reviews? Sounds great! Recaps of “The Bachelor” franchise? Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuh, well, would you look at that, we’re all out of time!
So come hang out here with me in this online movie theater parking lot and let’s talk movies. Because when a film’s over, the fun’s just begun. (Unless you’re a movie theater usher – which in that case, it’s more like the coagulated nacho cheese-splattered nightmares have just begun.)