GUEST EDITORIAL: The Relevance of "Fight Club"

In the last twenty years, however, it’s become something of a cult classic, and many have tried to dissect what the film actually means. To me, it’s mainly a satire on the American consumerist lifestyle, the prevalence of advertising, and masculinity. Some see it as a very political film, throwing around words such as “Marxism” or “propaganda.” To others, it’s about spirituality. Everyone has their own take on Fight Club. Personally, I think it’s some kind of combination of all of these ideas, and I’m dedicating the rest of this article to explaining why I believe that Fight Club has inadvertently become much more relevant now than it was in 1999.

2019, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, SPECIAL, RetrospectiveDonald ShanahanJuly 14, 2019Comment

GUEST CRITIC #30: Crawl

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews. Today, meet fellow Feelin’ Film contributor Jeremy Calcara!

2018, Foreign Film, Independent Film, GUEST CRITIC, MOVIE REVIEW, SPECIAL, Social Media, Vintage ReviewDonald ShanahanJuly 12, 2019Comment

GUEST EDITORIAL: How filmmaking companies make money

We all love to watch films and feel as if we’re the part of movie-making art. And every time we go to the cinema we try to imagine what stands behind all these scenes and how the magic is done. Well, only film-makers know these secrets but we definitely know that they cost a lot of money. Movie production companies know that you won’t cover all the expenses with the help of ticket revenue. Filmmaking doesn’t only include the involvement of celebrities, cameramen, and other staff but also development, production, promotion, etc. So, let’s find out how people make money in this industry.

2019, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Social Media, SPECIALDonald ShanahanJuly 9, 2019Comment

INFOGRAPHIC: Vacation destinations that are out of this world

Every town and city in the world employ various strategies to attract tourists to helps boost the local economy. If certain towns were lucky enough to be the backdrop of some of the most famous TV shows and movies, it’s only natural for the city councils to capitalize on the recent trend of tourists visiting set locations based on their favorite shows. Alpharooms, an online travel booking agent, has created travel brochures for FOUR of the most iconic TV and movie locations so fans can immerse themselves into these ‘out of this world’ holiday destinations browsing.

2019, Column, Editorial, Infographic, LIST, Social Media, SPECIALDonald ShanahanJuly 9, 2019Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: David Ehrlich's IndieWire Critics Survey on July 8, 2019

THIS WEEK’S QUESTION: What is the best ever horror performance and how did it leverage the genre to accomplish something that might not have been possible in a more grounded type of film?

Horror is not my cup of tea, coffee, cocktail, or even water, and I didn’t see Midsommar which inspired this week’s survey question, but I have dipped my toe in enough good and classic horror to pick out a great performance or two. I’ve seen no one unravel under the fictional stresses better than Mia Farrow in Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby.

CIFCC, IndieWire, Independent Film, Media Appearance, Social Media, SPECIAL, 2019Donald ShanahanJuly 8, 2019David EhrlichComment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Kicking the Seat" podcast talking "Spider-Man: Far From Home"

Ian Simmons of the Kicking the Seat podcast leads what has come to be lovingly called “Earth’s Mightiest Critics” to explore another big and loud comic book movie. Matching the fireworks of the holiday, Spider-Man: Far From Home was the entertainment coming off the grill to the picnic table for our talk. As always, Ian, David Fowlie of Keeping It Reel and Emmanuel Noisette of E-Man’s Movie Reviews, and myself bounce the ideas. Us unqualified old men are joined by a special guest from the target demographic, David’s teenage daughter Grace. This was a very fun and long show for all of us! Give Kicking the Seat, a subscribe, follow, and a listen:

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "You'll Probably Agree" podcast talking "Toy Story 4" and 1989's "Batman"

Let me be either the first or the next person to tell you how cool it is to talk to Mike Crowley about movies. Mike has recently revamped his “You’ll Probably Agree” brand and platform to include written and podcast content to go with his videos. This past week, Mike wanted to share a podcast discussion on Toy Story 4, especially with our differing takes between his positive one and my internet-reviled “rotten” tag. We also went from one box of toys to another to reminisce about the 30th anniversary of Tim Burton’s classic Batman. This was a damn good time with a damn good dude!

Social Media, SPECIAL, 2019, Editorial, Podcast, Media AppearanceDonald ShanahanJune 28, 2019Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Every Movie Has a Lesson mentioned on ComicBook.com!

In the spirit of any press counting as good press, Every Movie Has a Lesson was mentioned in a news piece on ComicBook.com recently as one of the first and few Rotten Tomatoes-approved critics to give Toy Story 4 a negative or “rotten” review,. Cameron Bolomolo was reporting on the first wave of negative reviews hitting the Toy Story 4 Tomatometer, spoiling a 100% rating. Dubious as some might find it, it was still an honor to be noticed and mentioned respectfully.

2019, Media Appearance, NEWS, Social Media, SPECIALDonald ShanahanJune 28, 2019Toy Story 4, ComicBook.com, Media Appearance, Rotten TomatoesComment

CAPSULE REVIEWS: Feature films of the first ever Rom Com Fest

Founded by entrepreneur and romantic comedy connoisseur Miraya Berke, the goal is celebrating the joy to be had and the art on display in this undervalued film genre. I think this is a smashing idea for a festival and I jumped at the chance to offer some remote coverage for its five-film competition slate. Compiled below are my capsule reviews for the movies I viewed in order from highest to lowest recommendation:

MEDIA APPEARANCE: David Ehrlich's IndieWire Critics Survey on June 25, 2019

THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: With 2019 almost half-over, what is the best movie performance of the year so far?

With June soon swooning to July, critics will start making their halfway and “so far” lists of films and performances. David Ehrlich put performances on the table to measure for this week’s survey and an outstanding list was built. I love the selection of Lupita Nyong’o from Us. She would be my 1A choice, but I was wowed this weekend by Ann Lupo in a little movie call In Reality which just won the top award of the debut Rom Com Fest in Los Angeles. Give this week’s survey a look.

CIFCC, IndieWire, Independent Film, Media Appearance, Social Media, SPECIAL, 2019Donald ShanahanJune 24, 2019David EhrlichComment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Kicking the Seat" podcast talking "Toy Story 4"

It with Ian Simmons of the Kicking the Seat podcast where I no longer feel like an island after watching and review Toy Story 4. He and I sat next to each other at the screening and both shared a great deal of chagrin afterwards. We put that together for his latest podcast episode against the positive interventions of David Fowlie of Keeping It Reel and Emmanuel Noisette of E-Man’s Movie Reviews. In addition to talking out the highs and lows of the movie, I was invited to share my experience this past week of being one of the extremely few “Rotten” Rotten Tomatoes reviews for Toy Story 4. Great conversations here for my 20th appearance on Ian’s fine sh Give it a listen!

EVENT: Scenes from the "Toy Story 4" Ultimate RV event at Navy Pier

This past Friday in Chicago, the “Toy Story 4” Ultimate RV event came to Polk Plaza area of Navy Pier. Sponsored by GoRVing.com, the movie-themed event had an alluring array of free activities. Contestants young and old could spin wheels, take selfies with “Forky,” toss snakes into boots, or throw rings around rockets to win various prizes, Toy Story swag, and even Fandango vouchers for free movie tickets. Every Movie Has a Lesson (and my eager family) was able to get an early peek at the festivities and wanted to share some sights and sounds from the sunny display on a perfect June morning, just in time for the movie’s box office debut.

2019, EVENT, NEWS, Social Media, SPECIALDonald ShanahanJune 24, 2019Navy PierToy Story 4, Toy Story 3, Toy StoryComment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: David Ehrlich's IndieWire Critics Survey on June 18, 2019

THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: Best animation studio. Ghibli or Pixar. Pick one and only one and why.

Full disclosure: I’ve never seen a Studio Ghibli film, but I know their reputation and impact. I know what they stand for and how much they have inspired other creators, including the fine folks at Pixar. With Pixar settling too often for sequels lately (and this was before Toy Story 4), I feel like a small measure of their quality and importance has faded or shrunk a little. I voted on principle in the blind to what I felt was more important.

CIFCC, IndieWire, Independent Film, Media Appearance, Social Media, SPECIAL, 2019Donald ShanahanJune 21, 2019David EhrlichComment

EVENT: "Toy Story 4" Ultimate RV comes to Chicago's Navy Pier this Friday

Sponsored by GoRVing, the “Toy Story 4” RV is rolling into Chicago’s Navy Pier and bringing the ultimate summer road trip event on Friday, June 21 from 10am to 2pm. With the release of Pixar’s newest family film, start your summer off right with Woody and the gang with a carnival including the “To Infinity and Beyond” rocket ring toss, “There’s a Snake in My Boot” bean bag toss, a prize wheel with “Toy Story 4” plush prizes and tickets to see the film in theaters. Guests can also jump in the “Forky photo booth” to take a picture featuring the gang’s newest friend to join the fun.

2019, NEWS, Social Media, SPECIAL, EVENTDonald ShanahanJune 16, 2019Navy PierToy Story, Toy Story 4Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Kicking the Seat" podcast talking "Men in Black: International"

Three-fourths of the “comic counsel” crew of Ian' Simmons’ Kicking the Seat podcast came together to talk after F. Gary Gray’s Men in Black: International. Emmanuel Noisette of E-Man’s Movie Reviews, Ian, and myself vented on how this summer is not making lemonade with the lemons that have been rolling through this summer. Our surprise and exasperation really shows from the retread tone and mostly vacant fun of this franchise reboot. Listen to our podcast session and commit it to memory!

NEWS UPDATE: "Every Movie Has a Lesson" has joined 25YL

In my social media circles of participation, I discovered members of the website 25YL, which is short for “25 Years Later.” They specialize in theory and analysis across personal experiences and creative influences spanning all sorts of media forms and genres. I answered an open call for writers and my press credential standing here in Chicago helps me see films early and give the site timely content. Look for my mainstream and Netflix Original film reviews appearing often as a staff writer.

2019, Media Appearance, SPECIAL, Social Media, NEWSDonald ShanahanJune 16, 2019Comment

INFOGRAPHIC: Mapped: The Real Life Settings Of Your Fave Fictional Characters

The setting for a good story is as crucial as the characters that inhabit it. Wherever that fictional place may be; be it small town America or the dark and brooding alleys of Gotham City, the key factor is always believability. With that in mind, it's no surprise that some of the most famous movie, TV and comic book locations were inspired by real life locations. The fine folks at Vibrant Doors have scoured the internet (and our comic book collection), following the clues and fan theories to pinpoint the real life locations of some of fiction's greatest places. Enjoy!

2019, Editorial, Infographic, LIST, Social Media, SPECIALDonald ShanahanJune 13, 2019Comment

INFOGRAPHIC: The films of Bill Murray

Folks, let me introduce you again to John Rooney. He is an illustrator from Ireland. Last year, John complete a project in which he watched every single Nicolas Cage film for 89 days and did a caricature sketch for each role. The results of range and variety are striking and I was happy to promote his work with a post here on Every Movie Has a Lesson. He is back again with a new piece on Bill Murray, right in time for The Dead Don’t Die. His phenomenal work is worth sharing below and a his art is available for sale on Etsy!

Checklist, FUNNY, Infographic, LIST, Social Media, SPECIAL, 2019Donald ShanahanJune 11, 2019Comment

EVERY MOVIE HAS A LESSON

by Don Shanahan

BRINGING YOU MOVIE REVIEWS AND MORE SINCE 2010