CHANGES

Longtime readers (all twelve of you, minus the ones who refuse to think of a year as "long") may be wondering why my output has decreased so significantly in the past month or so.  The simple answer to that question is this:  I was getting bored with it.  Now, on to the more complex answer. . .

You may notice a couple of changes that I've made to the site.  First off, I'm no longer going as Frederick Frog, but as my actual name, Phil Dean.  Seeing as how the vast majority of my regular readership comes via my Facebook page, this animalistic ruse seemed particularly ridiculous.  It was really the remnant of an earlier design for the site, and I've made the necessary correction.

Secondly, my review system - if you'll but take a gander at the right side of the page, I'll save myself the redundancy of explaining it twice.  The short version is that I was getting sick of the perceived elitism and condescension inherent in my previous judgmental wordings.

Thirdly, I've made a huge, HUGE, HUUUGGGEEE, change in my life. . .

Huge.

I've decided to no longer seek out movie news.  In fact, I've decided to intentionally shelter myself from it.

I'm doing this for a number of reasons.  One has to do with the negativity of the online film nerd community.  Much vitriol has been spent towards maintaining the hegemony of the nerd film dynamic - i.e., a film involving wizards or superheroes either "Sux" or "Rox".  I'm interested in a reasoned, open discussion, not a shouting match.

I also just miss the ignorance that I used to have.  While I stay clear of spoiler material, I still absorb information about casting, basic plot synopsis, and "buzz" on scripts, ofttimes several years before the movie in question is to be released.  How fun would it have been to see X-Men: First Class and not know ahead of time that Jennifer Lawrence was in it, thus being pleasantly surprised by her appearance as Mystique?  Would it be possible to make myself isolated enough so that immediately before release, I could say "Holy shit!  They made a Green Lantern movie?!".  Only time will tell.  Either way, I think that the less I know going into a film, the less likely I am to subconsciously pre-judge it before I see it.

And most importantly?  I often go on little "diets", taking away elements of my personality that I consider vices.  That's how I quit smoking.  How I cut down significantly on drinking alcohol.  Movie News is, when I came to think about it, how I waste a great deal of my time.  Time which I could be spending on other pursuits.  I'm getting back into my screenwriting in a big way, and closely following who the frontrunners are to direct Jurassic Park 4 is simply another distraction that prevents me from realizing my actualization.

So where do I go from here?  I'd like to continue doing Blunderbuss, but I don't know what form it will take.  Reviews will continue, but perhaps in a more laid back style.  Ideally, I'd like this site to be more of a conversation piece than a polemic, so let me start by asking this:  What would you like to see?  What would you be interested in me writing about?  What's been working for you so far?

Thanks for reading my erratic posts this past year!  I hope to continue the madness into 2012 (and the end times).