After basically a four-year-long absence from this blog, naturally I have a lot to say. But, I'm not sure where to start. I abruptly abandoned writing about film to focus on screenwriting, but in the four years since I stopped regularly updating this blog, I've always been consuming and thinking about the movies I've watched. A lot has changed. Seriously. The world has changed. Films, too. And, myself. Even my passion for films is different. I don't love movies more or less, it's just different.
When I stopped blogging regularly, it was mostly just an issue of time. I enrolled at Chapman University in the Fall of 2015. At the time, I was writing reviews for The Playlist and attended Q&A's for the site (which I then transcribed and turned into articles). But at a certain point, I had to cut all that out and focus on grad school. For the following two years, I plunged myself into the world of writing. I stopped looking at movies from an critical perspective and started seeing them (for the most part) from the perspective of a screenwriter.
And it was annoying.
Once you learn and become fully aware of the mechanics of moviemaking, it's hard not to see those mechanics when you watch films. Where's the inciting incident? When does Act II begin? Taking classes in screenwriting, I was initially resistant to formula. I'd balk at the idea of making sure my "inciting incident" was at page 15 and that Act II began at page 30. Over time, I wouldn't say I adapted or warmed up to the screenwriting formula, but I understand its purpose more. In the summer of 2016, I re-wrote the script I started writing in my first year at grad school with structure in mind. I then wrote my thesis screenplay making sure it adhered to the three-act structure. Now, I wrote comedies each time. Comedy films often must adhere to a three-act structure. The key is making sure you're not writing a film that's so reliant on formula that you can feel the machinations when you watch the movie (or read the script).
I also worked as a script reader in the Fall of 2016 and I gotta say - reading poorly structured scripts is a chore. If you're not a master writer with the ability to play your audience like a violin, you better stick to the fucking three-act structure. That experience made everything crystal clear. Understand structure. Learn it. Learn to love it. Then, find ways to bend, or break, the rules.
So, how does this apply to how I watch movies? Well, I can still love and enjoy foreign, art, indie films. For me, it's all about whether the filmmakers are able to suck me into the world, or story/characters, they're creating. If they can do that, then everything I learned at Chapman doesn't matter. It matters in terms of me understanding why some scripts/movies work and some don't. But I don't consciously apply my deeper knowledge and experience in screenwriting to how I watch movies. Turns out, I watch and enjoy movies the same way I always do. I just happen to understand the machinations more, which gives me a deeper appreciation of movies that are... a.) successfully able to follow the rules without making me think about the rules and... b.) movies that are able to bend/break those rules.
After graduating at Chapman University, I started working a 9-5 type job. Between that and my continued pursuit for a career in writing, finding the time to write about movies has become increasingly difficult. And nearly impossible. Because on top of those things, I'm also a husband and a father. So, it's just hard.
That said, I do miss keeping track of the movies I like and seeing which ones I like more than others. So, as the 2010s draw to a close, I will make more of a concerted effort to write about the movies I see from here on out. I also want to make a "top 100 movies of 2010s" list, among other things. Ken On Cinema will live on. It'd be interesting to make an honest attempt to write some movie reviews and see if I got any better at evaluating them. We'll see. I definitely don't want this blog to continue collecting dust. I also don't want Google to unceremoniously delete it.
I guess what I'm trying to say is... I'm back, baby. Let's get funky up in here! KenonCinema is back! Woo!
I also want to start a youtube channel at some point. And I'm also on Letterboxd. ...I'll talk about those things at a later time. Til then, hope everyone's enjoying their summer!
