I have many times explained about how we eliminate bad content from our viewing queues through effective curation, and that answer has very often been finding talented film reviewers.
Well, for me, Film Threat has been one of my favorite film reviewers who fill this need in my own life. But what makes Film Threat so special and so honored as to be my first reviewer to discuss? Film Threat is one of the few remaining film reviewers who have been doing this longer than most everyone else in Hollywood, and so they have seen Hollywood’s trajectory through history likely better than any other Hollywood reviewer.
Also Film Threat has a soft spot for indie filmmakers, which I think is a necessary aspect in what has kept them a more neutral and objective reviewer, as opposed to reviewers who appear to have “divided interests,” which is also what I call the “Access Media” (see our story on this here).
And also, Film Threat has supported good filmmaking, and building film community more and more, even after the Hollywood streamers began to withdraw their support from exhibitors by participating in the minimizing of the theatrical window. This, as most small-time filmmakers know, was a big mistake on Hollywood’s part to centralize films and series within streaming services, and branding it as “content” instead of marketing it in a dynamic way that suits that particular product.
Keep in mind, these are not reviews for kids, but for adults. They are also very punk, and anti-establishment in their style- and no, they are not faith-based. My favorite faith-based reviewer is Ted Baehr from MovieGuide.
More about Film Threat.
So Chris Gore, founder of Film Threat has championed TRUE filmmaking with an artist’s integrity since their inception in 1985. More recently he made a documentary called Attack of the Doc, which drew a connection to the once-popular Attack of the Show which Gore participated in, and was being produced from to 2005 to 2012.
And more recently, Gore made a special series of videos (called Star Wars On Trial) mimicking a court trial that convicted Disney and LucasFilm of destroying the legacy of the Star Wars franchise, purposefully, and with extreme prejudice. YouTube influencers from all around the globe joined in to make their cases clear against the megalith corporation and see what pretend advocates of the corp would say in advocacy of “the devil” (ie. Disney). This was both funny and somewhat enlightening, as it brought to light some actions that Disney has made, that many in the public had forgotten about or never knew, but Film Threat has not neglected, nor ignored.
And now, Film Threat has worked to build a fun indie-filmmaker-advocacy awards show called “Award This!,” likely intended to replace the long-in-the-tooth Oscars awards show in Hollywood, which continues on it’s downward spiral into irrelevancy.
Today, Film Threat has informed us, their subscribers, that a YouTube channel called PRISM has been working on AI videos that seek to reimagine Star Wars in a more authentic-to-original light, which even George Lucas might have approved of. It’s really quite shocking what could have existed, had Disney seen it right to reward their original fans of the franchise, instead of tarnishing the memory of what was before.
Fascinating stuff!
But even more than this, I just really resonate with and learn more from their reviews than I do from the mainstream media’s reviewers, who seem divided in their loyalties, between the studios, and to their own customers. Are they shilling in order to maintain access to their stars and celebrities in Hollywood? Are they pandering in order to remain relevant to society? Because how can they remain relevant (in their minds) if they don’t get access to their Hollywood celebrities, which must be what makes them popular?
So, forget about what criticism is about. Forget about integrity to their own sense of what makes art good. Who will even notice if they change their views in favor of the Hollywood party-line? Line up in that conga line and keep making that money in Hollywood! As Sally Field says, “You Like me! You really like me!”
This, my friends, in how you get bad art in Hollywood, and how that party conga line continues to perpetuate mediocrity in popular culture. This is how your objectivity and integrity dies.
Because who cares if people like it, because what matters is if it is really good.
Here is a short list of film reviewers I refer to, including Film Threat. Some of these may be discussed later…
- MovieGuide
- Hollywood in Toto
- Film Threat
- Daily Wire: Ben Shapiro, Andrew Klavan, Matt Walsh, Michael Knowles
- Bounding into Comics
- Christian Post
There are more reviewers available, including some I watch on YouTube, but I don’t tend to watch a film if it won’t at least pass these reviewers sniff-tests. I will tend to look at problem areas in trailers and in story that I see, such as signs that they uphold some sort of political narrative, and if they do, I will verify this in a review or two. Keep that sniff test going, and especially protect your kids from films that are not passing this kind of scrutiny.
As you get better at watching trailers, and finding directors you tend to like, this will also become far far easier for you.
Enjoy your search for your favorite reviewers!
Did you enjoy our breakdown of how to curate good film? Do you also have a list of your favorite reviewers? Let us know on our social media, or comment down below (with subscription).
