Hello!
First let me thank you for taking the time to check out my blog. The purpose of this blog is to supplement my podcast, “Here’s Johnny!!”, where my co-host Justin and I take deep dives into horror media. I am going to write up my film reviews for the podcast here, as well as reviews for non-horror films that I watch.
But first a little bit about myself. My name is Larry, and I work in the pharmaceutical research industry. There was a time when I was choosing my major in college where I REALLY wanted to pick Film Studies. I have always loved movies, and I always enjoyed reading Roger Ebert’s reviews when I was younger. However, my Dad convinced me that it would be best to pick a major that would actually pay the bills, and not one where a very real future could be making lattes and living in a really nice cardboard box. So I pushed my dream aside, majored in STEM, and got a good job. But through all that movies have always been there. I love discussing them, dissecting them, and ranking them. I like comparing Scorsese to Tarantino, and telling anyone who will listen that Leonardo DiCaprio is the greatest actor of all time. However it wasn’t until two things happened that made me truly realize that I wanted to start writing up my reviews and sharing them with a larger audience. One is more recent, starting “Here’s Johnny” with Justin, and the second is The Last Jedi.
Let’s start chronologically. The Last Jedi is an objectively bad film. The plot is garbage, the characters have no development, and the treatment of the legacy of the film and characters proceeding it in the series is appalling. But as I read reviews for the film prior to its release, none of this was disclosed. Hell, most reviewers gave it amazing ratings. And then the general audience got to see the film, and we all know what happened next. The impact is still being felt to this day, and I honestly don’t know where the franchise goes from here. I don’t want to get into all of that. My biggest take away was that reviewers who I used to trust lied to me, whether for political or economic gain. I don’t turn to film reviewers for deep political insight, just like I don’t turn to politicians for their opinions on the Oscar favorites. And I know that I am not the only person who felt betrayed. This is when I started to realize that there was an opening in the market to allow for an honest, average person to give his true take on films, both modern and classics.
Now let’s talk about “Here’s Johnny”. Justin posted on Twitter that he had a novel idea for a podcast, and if you were interested in joining the project and loved horror to reach out to him. Seeing as I treat Halloween how most people treat Christmas, I was instantly intrigued. After talking with him and fine tuning what we both wanted the project to develop into, “Here’s Johnny” was born. On the podcast we review classic and modern horror films and video games, and we split the genre into different subcategories based on the main monster. I would suggest anyone who loves games or movies to give it a listen and see what we have to offer to the discussion.
So on this blog, you will find my written reviews for horror films we watch on the podcast and hopefully reviews for new releases. Hell, I might even watch some classics or stinkers to keep life interesting (I potentially could be convinced to watch The Last Jedi again, although it would take A LOT). For the horror films, I will review the films using the following criteria:
Plot
Cinematography
Audio
How Scary
These categories will be given scores out of ten, totaled together, and then divided by forty. The final review will then be based on an A to F scale using 100-91 being an A, 90-81 being a B, 80-71 being a C, 70-61 being a D, and anything lower being an F. I have never been a fan of the star system, so I am going to do it my way. This is also the same way we review on the podcast so it will be consistent. When I start reviewing other genre of films, I will change the “How Scary” category for delivery of intended message. This way I can have a deep discussion on films that deserve it (think The Departed) or lighter discussions for films that are there to just entertain (think Avengers).
I hope that you found this first post informative. I am open to receiving criticism and hearing other’s opinions that differ from my own. You can reach me at heresjohnnypodcast@gmail.com or on the “Here’s Johnny” discord channel. I may even dedicate a whole post just to your feedback! Look for the first review of The Shining to drop around August 6th, to coincide with the podcast and to not reveal any show spoilers. I look forward to going on this journey with you, the audience.
Keep your popcorn salty,
Larry
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