Friday, June 3, 2011

Celebrating the 5th Anniversary of Jeremy The Critic


Well, here we are. It was June 2006 when I posted my first review so now Jeremy The Critic has officially been online in some form or another for the past five years. In that time I've agreed with you on many movies, bashed some you liked and praised some you didn't. It's been a fun ride and also an unexpected one, considering I never thought it would be in the cards for me. But first thing's first. I want to thank all my readers for helping to make it possible, especially those who've stuck with me from the very beginning. I do think the real victory isn't in the quality of the actual work, but rather in finding a hobby I immensely enjoy.

While I'm usually my own worst critic I do take some pride in the fact that I'd try to give the same amount of space and analysis to the latest dumb romantic comedy as I would an Oscar contending drama, acknowledging the hard work that goes into making all kinds of films (yes, even the bad ones), and the huge commitment from those involved in doing it. I can only hope that appreciation comes through in the reviews.

On the other hand, I have to be honest and admit that doing this is more aggravating and difficult now than when I started, perhaps due to the film industry being in far worse shape than when I started in '06. Great movies are still being made, but it's just so much harder to get at them, leaving me frustrated at sometimes being the last to the party and feeling like I've only regurgitated what others have said. Knowing my initial perception could shift or become irrelevant a week later is both frustrating and exciting at the same time, as I've discovered a review is only the first step in determining any movie's shelf life. That I'm still constantly searching for my own voice is actually great news because it means there's still work left to be done and improvements to be made. I wouldn't have it any other way.

I'm not usually one for marking milestones but recognize that this one presents as good excuse to change things up and deviate some from the usual routine. So here's the tentative plan. Expect the same reviews of recent releases but alternating with them will be special posts celebrating the past five years and earlier. With nostalgia seemingly running rampant lately, I'm frequently asked why I don't delve into cinema or television's past very often so it seems silly not to use to rest of the year to explore that avenue a little. Expect LISTS, as well as sequels to popular posts and a surprise or two you'd never expect to see on this site.

I'm open to suggestions of anything you might want to see for this blowout so feel free to hit me up at the blog's e-mail (jeremythecritic@yahoo.com) which I've been better about checking more regularly, or just tweet with any ideas. 

As always, thanks for reading!

3 comments:

Ben K said...

Happy Anniversary Jeremy! Keep up the great work!

Franco Macabro said...

Great to see your going to be trying new things with the blog man! I know what you mean about reviewing films that everyone has already talked about which is probably why I dont enjoy so much reviewing the latest film thats in theaters, I try to go into the past often in terms of my reviews. Good to hear your adding lists man, people love those and its also a good way to empty all your movie knowledge, I mean, all those movies you have seen have to be good for something! And making lists is one of those things! Keep up the great work man.

jeremythecritic said...

Thanks guys! Yeah, for the rest of the year at least I'm gonna try to shake things up a little. Lists and such seem to be a good way to do that.