Thoughts on Groggy's Fifth Anniversary

Five years ago today, I gave birth to Nothing is Written: A Film Blog. Reading this initial post, it's clear I had no idea what I was doing. Being "fairly eclectic" would come as a shock to readers, who know 90% of my posts are simple movie reviews. I also use my real name, something I've avoided where possible.

I take a lot of pride in this blog. Just maintaining interest in something for this long is a big accomplishment. With past blogs, my engagement was always hit and miss: periods of intense involvement, followed by neglect, repeat until I give up. (Heck, my T.E. Lawrence site isn't exactly thriving.) This follows through to my writing generally; the real reason I haven't gotten anywhere professionally, I suspect, is through this lack of focus and energy. Otherwise I'd have a dozen pieces on Moviepilot by now.

Yet I've never gotten sick of blogging about film, and don't plan on getting sick of it. There are way too many films to discuss, too many angles to explore. If I get sick of reviews, I could write about television or plays, as I've done recently. Profiles of actors or directors aren't off the table, either. Nothing is Written will live until I drop dead or someone hacks the site. Either would be a tragedy.

Why blog? For one, I was a wide-eyed film student then, still dreaming that I could be the next David Lean. I had a lot to say about movies and honed my knowledge through different classes. Freshman year I had Professor Marcia Landy, a decidedly eccentric scholar, for a class on Italian genre movies. Getting thrust into an advanced level course right away really helped my appreciation of film analysis. Sure, I reject the more obnoxious strains of literary theory: not everything is a metaphor for penises and Communism, guys. But encouraging me to dig beneath a film's surface level certainly helped.

Then there were the actual production classes. My strongest memory of the Pittsburgh Film Institute comes from standing in a blizzard juggling a book, a light board, a camera and tripod, then dropping them all in the snow just as a bus drove by. Then finding my film cartridges were defective, and having to re-shoot, develop and edit the project all in one day. Time and stress eventually put paid to that dream, or maybe I realized I wasn't cut out for it. Either way, my love of movies burns strong.

Reading film criticism certainly helped. Glenn Erickson of DVD Savant is my biggest influence. I love reading his reviews, which are both learned and conversational - a difficult task. When not actually ripping off his style (readers may judge for themselves), I certainly hew to Erickson's approach to movies: analyze the film while entertaining the reader. I like to think my pieces appeal to the casual reader and serious film scholar alike. If they do, I've succeeded.

I settled into the review groove with my Lean Quest in fall of 2008. It was easier to write about individual films than some of the ambitious ideas. My writing on those early pieces is verbose and obnoxious. I've even gone back and rewrote a few, because I'd rather have an articulate piece about my favorite film than some lumpen mass of unformed 19 year old thought stinking things up. Then I instituted the ratings system on reviews, something I eventually discarded (except for the index).

My current style developed junior year (2009-2010). A big part was my flirtation with journalism: I'm nothing if not a dilettante. I briefly wrote for The Pitt News, and having my reviews dissected and pared down by editors certainly influenced my style. No longer obnoxiously verbose, I decided a succinct, (relatively) economic style that I still use today. No long sentences dammit! Convey as much information in as little space as possible.

Any works that I'm especially proud of? I'm very happy with my Lawrence of Arabia pieces from last fall, the Seven Scenes from Seven Pillars of Wisdom article especially. That epic Charge of the Light Brigade piece from May took two months to research and write; I think it turned out well. Hard to pick a favorite among individual reviews, but my pieces on In Cold Blood and Dr. Strangelove hew closest to my ideal style. I enjoy writing the occasional bad movie article; one even got linked by AV Club. Finally, there's the review index, which I created one long May night during 2010's summer term.

I've no delusions that Nothing is Written is a timeless work of film criticism. But I take pride if only for putting so much time and effort into the blog. It's an expression of my love for cinema, passion for writing, and evidence that if I ever get off my ass, I can actually do something. If people read my reviews and enjoy them, gain a deeper appreciation for old favorites, heck if they put something new in their Netflix queue, I've succeeded. Thank you all for reading.