Movies I've Seen This Year

Top ten coming soon. Ending 2011 with 95 films, though expect to add many more to that with screeners in January. But the pool my top ten will come from is below!

After the jump, natch :)





No Strings Attached
Red Riding Hood
The Adjustment Bureau
Battle: Los Angeles
Hanna
Sucker Punch
Jane Eyre
Thor
Something Borrowed
Attack The Block
X-Men: First Class
Super 8
Bridesmaids
Green Lantern
Transformers 3
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two
Captain America
Melancholia
Cowboys & Aliens
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Crazy Stupid Love
Drive
Bellflower
Paul
Rango
Miss Representation
Fright Night
Finding Joe
The Roommate
The Sound of My Voice (2012)
50/50
Lion King 3D
Abduction (Because I had to. I promise.)
Moneyball
What's Your Number
The Dead
Like Crazy
Green
The Loneliest Planet
With Every Heartbeat
Beyond The Black Rainbow
The Adventures of Tintin
Extraterrestrial (2012)
Kill List
Light of Mine
Footnote
Haywire (2012)
Into the Abyss
Pina
Oslo, August 31
Target
Coriolanus
Jiro Dreams of Sushi
Kid with a Bike
The Dish and the Spoon
Michael
Jeff Who Lives At Home(2012)
Carre Blanc
Spark of Being
Shame
Attenberg
Kinyarwanda
We Need to Talk About Kevin
Griff the Invisible
Immortals 3D
Breaking Dawn
The Muppets
Hugo 3D
Midnight in Paris
The Guard
The Descendants
Albert Nobbs
A Dangerous Method
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Beginners
The Help
Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows
The Iron Lady
My Week With Marilyn
War Horse
Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol
The Ides Of March
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Young Adult
Margin Call
A Separation
The Skin I Live In
Take Shelter
Tree of Life
Horrible Bosses
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Artist
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Certified Copy
The Trip

Additional:
New Years Eve
Puss in Boots
Warrior

Win Win
Carnage

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The Definitive Differences Between Tintin and Rin Tin Tin

Cross-posted on and commissioned by Film.com

Image: alittlewhitenoise.com


With The Adventures of Tintin opening this week, I keep encountering lots of folks asking questions like, “What is it about? A dog? So what?! Who cares?!” “Yes, there’s a dog in it, but — stop — you’re thinking of Rin Tin Tin, aren’t you?” And I realized that way too many people actually don’t know the difference between Tintin and Rin Tin Tin. When I got to thinking about it, I didn’t really know the difference when the Tintin movie was first announced either. To add to the propensity for mixing the two up, a few months ago Susan Orlean’s Rin Tin Tin biography was released to stellar reviews and jumped to the top of the best-seller charts. So we figured it was time to break it down so no one will ever make this mistake again.

-Tintin is a fictional boy who owns a fictional dog.
-Rin Tin Tin is a real life German Shepherd dog who played fictional dogs, and was succeeded by Rin Tin Tin Jr., Rin Tin Tin III, Rin Tin Tin IV … you get the idea.

-There is a lot of debate over where the name Tintin came from. It was a popular name at the time, and there are quite a few theories as to why the boy scout meets detective meets reporter ended up with the name he did. Some say it is an homage to Benjamin Rabier’sTintin lutin, others think it’s simply short for Martin or Augustine, and some believe the name signifies “nothing,” referencing Tintin’s purposeful blank slate and cryptic nature. A popular theory is that the name is not even the character’s real name, but a pseudonym used to protect his identity. But, fun fact: Snowy the dog was supposedly named after one of Herge’s ex-girlfriends.
-Rin Tin Tin was named after Rintintin and Nénette, the woolen dolls that French children gave to soldiers in the war as good luck charms.

-Tintin is from Brussels, Belgium, and was created in 1929.
-Rin Tin Tin is from Lorraine, France, 193 miles away, born in 1918.

-Corrected: From the comments section, Tintin was a comic, then 2 plays, then a stop-motion film, then an animated TV show, then another animated TV show, then 2 live-action films, then 3 animated films, then 3 more plays, then a video game, then a third animated TV show, then 4 more video games, then a sixth play, then two musicals, and then a mo-cap movie and accompanying video game. Also 2 short films and 3 magazines.
-Rin Tin Tin appeared in a series of movies and was the subject of three radio series. After his death, other dogs took over and one of these starred in a ’50s TV series entitled The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin. Rin Tin Tin and his ancestry also had many the endorsement deal.

-Tintin was its most popular in the ’50s.
-Rin Tin Tin reached true popularity in the silent movie era of the ’20s — other German shepherds would later take his name and continue the tradition, but the true one, from a litter of shell-shocked pups found in WWI, only lived from 1918 to 1932.

-Tintin was translated into 80 languages and has sold over 350 million books.
-Rin Tin Tin was a huge star of silent film (and four color features!) and is credited with saving Warner Brothers from bankruptcy.

-Tintin solved the Secret of the Unicorn, found Red Rackham’s Treasure, and went to the moon. In Herge’s comics.
-Rin Tin Tin has a star on the walk of fame, a key to the city of New York, and was supposedly the true winner of the first Oscar for Best Actor by write-in vote. In real life.

-Tintin’s sidekicks were a terrier named Snowy and a drunken captain named Haddock.
-Rin Tin Tin had a variety of sidekicks in his films, but in life was loyal to one Lee Duncan. On television, Rin Tin Tin IV’s human companion was named Rusty.

-When Tintin creator Herge died in 1983 at age 75, he made it clear that the comic would not go on without him, but gave Spielberg his blessing to make a movie long before then.
-Rin Tin Tin allegedly died in Jean Harlow’s arms at age 13.

-Tintin can now be found on the big screen in The Adventures of Tintin, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, and Daniel Craig.
-Rin Tin Tin was buried in the famous pet cemetery in Asnières-sur-Seine, Cimetière des Chiens, and the current Rin Tin Tin is 12th in the line, the great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandson of the original. He still makes personal appearances.

It should also be noted that when pronounced with a proper French accent, Tintin *sounds* a lot more like any number of other words, but especially Tauntaun, a white furred biped native to the fictional planet Hoth, most famous for providing Luke Skywalker with a warm bed for the night after being attacked by a Wampa. While mixing up Tintin with Rin Tin Tin has become an acceptable reality, confusing Tintin with a Tauntaun is just plain silly, if not more aurally accurate. To diffuse further confusion, Tintin should also not to be confused with Tun Tun, who is known as the first woman of Hindi comedy; Tenten, a popular supporting character from the manga series Naruto; Tonton, a muppet in the Jordanian version of Sesame Street; or Tantans.com, your number one stop for indoor tanning lotion, dark tanning lotion, sunless lotion, and self-tanner!

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Geek Gingerbread Creations

I have the most awesomely geeky friends.

Battlestar Galactica Themed Creation by me and @thedanifesto

Game of Thrones Themed Creation by @scarletscribe

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December at the Movies

Cross-posted on and commissioned by Film.com

Well folks, this is it. The last month of 2011. In which we are bombarded with dozens of movies and told each one is the best of the year. So which of the vast variety of films being released in December should make it on to your radar and which should you leave behind? Take a look at our preview below.

A Break From Oscar Madness

A Warrior's Heart (Dec 2nd)

I don't even want to tell you, I just want you watch the trailer. Is that mean? Okay, fine. This is a film about a kid acting out cause his dad died in war, so he gets sent to Lacrosse camp. It stars Kellan Lutz as the slightly normally named Conor, Ashley Greene as the slightly ridiculously named Brooklyn, and Chord Overstreet as the okay-who-wrote-this-named Dupree. The quote ON the official apple trailers page is "Twi-hards out there are going to love this!" from PEREZ HILTON. Oh and the movie is rated PG. Gold. It's all gold.

Am I seeing it? Under no circumstances.

New Year's Eve (Dec 9th)

It's like Valentine's Day, but on New Year's Eve! And somehow, even knowing what Valentine's Day was and being fully aware of its (lack of) quality, 137,000 major stars still signed on. Some folks even RETURNED, like Jessica Biel and Ashton Kutcher. This time around though we get some Seth Meyers and some strange Zac Efron/Michelle Pfeiffer May/December action, so all is not lost. Oh wait, I forgot Lea Michele is in this. Yeah. All is lost.

Am I seeing it? Let's be honest. I saw Valentines Day opening weekend. So. Yes.

The Sitter (Dec 9th)

Inspired by the 1987 classic Adventures in Babysitting, but with a hard R edge, this comedy follows Jonah Hill on a wild night of babysitting. It's also the last film Hill shot before beginning his journey towards massive weight lost, so enjoy it while you can, folks. I love Pineapple Express, but am still pretty burnt from Your Highness, so I have absolutely no idea what to expect from this latest offering from David Gordon Green.

Am I seeing it? I've been terrible about seeing raunchy comedies this year, so probably not in theaters, but I wouldn't be against a rental down the line.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (Dec 16th)

These just keep happening, don't they? I haven't seen one yet and I probably never will (although The Chipmunk Adventure from 1987 is awesome), but man do kids LOVE these. In this, the third in the new Chipmunks series, the Chipmunks and Chipettes get stranded on a desert island and inevitably, wackiness ensues.

Am I seeing it? Why no, I am not.

Thrilling Thrillers!

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (Dec 9th)

British espionage thriller set during the Cold War, based on the novel by John le Carré, which was also the source material for the 1979 mini series starring Alec Guinness. It stars a collection of fantastic actors featuring Gary Oldman being awesome in the leading role, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt, Mark Strong, Toby Jones, and more. Oh and the director is Tomas Alfredson aka the genius behind Let The Right One In.

Am I seeing it? Oh yes, loves me a good spy movie

More after the jump



Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (Dec 16th)

A sequel to Sherlock Holmes! Yay? The first one was just fine, so….sure! But in all honesty, I think this is some of Jude Law's best work, getting to kind of dork out, Downey is always fun to watch, and Jared Harris RULES. He's a great pick for Moriarty. Should be a great deal of fun in any event.

Am I seeing it? Sure! Just not necessarily opening weekend.

Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol (Dec 21st)

The fourth mission impossible movie with a stellar cast including Tom Cruise refreshingly not being stupid, Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton, Simon Pegg and Josh Holloway. In this installment, the IMF is shut down, so Ethan Hunt and his posse go rogue to restore honor to their organization. Mmm. I love the word rogue. The trailer is increda-balls, but watching it once was enough. I'm convinced I want to see it, but don't want the chance to watch it again and accidentally start figuring out plot twists.

Am I seeing it? Date night!

The Darkest Hour (Dec 25th)

In this action/horror/sci fi flick inexplicably coming out in December, a bunch of twenty somethings try to survive after an alien invasion hits Russia. The young cast includes Emile Hirsch, Olivia Thirlby, Rachael Taylor and Max Minghella and not gonna lie, the film actually looks pretty scary and much better than Skyline, the film to which many critics are drawing comparisons based on the trailers.

Am I seeing it? I'm interested, but whether or not I bother to see it in theaters will depend on what I hear about the 3D.


Acting 101

Shame (Dec 2nd)

Steve McQueen's follow up to 2009's Hunger, starring Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan in this harrowing tale about the tolls sex addiction can take on a person's life. A difficult but beautiful film which such subtly magnificent performances, I fear they, along with McQueen's direction, will be all too ignored come Oscar time. A must see.

Am I seeing it? Already did and loved it

We Need To Talk About Kevin (Dec 2nd)

Tilda Swinton stars as a mother living her worst nightmare in this brilliantly acted and directed film. According to an interview conducted by Movies.com's David Ehrlich, director Lynne Ramsay has said if We Need to Talk About Kevin were named as Shame was named, it would be called Guilt or Pride. And that is all I think I want you to take with you when you see this movie for yourself. Because you simply MUST see this movie as soon as possible.

Am I seeing it? I've seen it, it's one of the best of the year, and I can't wait to see it again

Young Adult (Dec 9th)

Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody's latest about a writer who goes back to her small hometown after her divorce, and sets her eyes on her now married high school sweetheart, starring Charlize Theron in what seems to me, the role she was born to play. I'm normally very "meh" when it comes to Theron, but I love everything she's doing in the trailer and film itself seems like a hoot.

Am I seeing it? As soon as I can.

I Melt With You (Dec 9th)

Four friends meet up for their yearly debauchery, but an incident forces them to think about the lives they've led and who they've become, starring Rob Lowe, Thomas Jane, Jeremy Piven and Christian McKay. But hey, it's mostly four guys talking and doing drugs, so it's probably fascinating from an acting point of view.

Am I seeing it? Let's just say, something major was spoiled for me that turns me off 100% from the film so….no. I'm not really interested in a bunch of men going through a mid-life crisis anyway.

Carnage (Dec 16th)

Roman Polanski's adaptation of the Tony winning play God of Carnage, about two sets of parents who meet up to talk after their kids get into an altercation at school. featuring an all star cast of Oscar nominated actors, three of them previous winners - Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz and John C Riley. I've heard mixed things about the film, as it's a story about rather unlikeable people and those kinds of movies aren't for everyone, but if you have an interest in watching great actors work their craft, this is the film for you.

Am I seeing it? Not rushing out to or anything, but yes

Albert Nobbs (Dec 21st)

Glenn Close dresses like a man in order to work and survive in 19th century Ireland in this film based on true events, also starring Aaron Johnson, Mia Wasikowska and Jonathan Rhys Meyers. It appears as though Wasikowska's character is involved in a love triangle with Close and Johnson which is all kinds of I've Gotta See This. Plus, Close is a shoe-in for an Oscar nod.

Am I seeing it? Between the great acting and Aaron Johnson playing a 19th century playboy? Of course!

The Iron Lady (Dec 30th)

The Margaret Thatcher biopic we've all been waiting for! Yes, that was sarcastic, but there's some truth hidden in all sarcasm, right? Frankly any opportunity to get to see Meryl Streep act her face off is one I will jump at, especially when she is portraying the only female Prime Minister in UK history. Plus, Tony Head is in it! Hashtag Buffy alums!

Am I seeing it? But of course! Love Meryl. Yeah. I call her Meryl.

Oscar Talk

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Dec 21st)

Based on the Swedish novel by the same name, starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara, directed by David Fincher, this was my "the Oscars just ended and I hate everything" prediction to win the big prize this year. Yes, I was laughed at, and yes, I was probably wrong, but a part of me wants this movie to be so brilliant, that Fincher gets nominated two years in a row and stupid Tom Hooper can just sit around and feel stupid with his stupid Oscar and everyone can think about how stupid The King's Speech is. Erm. Point is. I love David Fincher and I can't wait for this movie.

Am I seeing it? Yesssssss

Pina (Dec 21st)

This 3D documentary from Win Wenders chronicling the art of Pina Bausch is a majesty to behold. It's stunning, innovative, stirring, sad, joyous and wonderful. It moved me, someone who has no interest in dance whatsoever, so I have every confidence that it will move others as well. It's on the Documentary short list for the Oscars, and I hate to think it wouldn't get a nomination. Please go see it when it opens in limited release - unless you own a 3D television, this is *not* one you want to wait and see on DVD.

Am I seeing it? I already did and I adored it.

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (Dec 21st)

What happens when Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson, Joe Cornish and Edgar Wright team up? Nothing short of magic. This huge leap for both 3D and motion capture is the best kind of head trip, fun, if not a bit frenetic, from start to finish. Kids will eat it up, but there is plenty in there for adults as well. Could an animation Oscar be in Tintin's future?

Am I seeing? Already did, but absolutely want to see it again

We Bought a Zoo (Dec 23rd)

The return of Cameron Crowe! Huzzah! This drama is an adaptation of Benjamin Mee's memoir about a family who moves into an old zoo, starring Matt Damon, Thomas Haden Church, Scarlett Johansson, Patrick Fugit, Elle Fanning and more. There's lots of googley eyes and wild animals and Matt Damon looks fanTASTIC. The buzz has been pretty mixed, but I'm looking forward to it nonetheless.

Am I seeing it? Yesss, I want to see it nowwww, tigers and lionssss!!!

War Horse (Dec 25th)

Based on the children's novel of the same name, which the Tony winning play was also based on, and Spielberg's second movie of 2011. Ultimately it's a war movie about the bond between a young man and his horse. And Tom Hiddleston is in it! And Emily Watson and Benedict Cumberbatch, but the horse is clearly the star. Looks like a classic Spielberg epic that is going to be gorgeous and awesome and make us cry. Oh and SCORE BY JOHN WILLIAMS duh.

Am I seeing it? YES. And in theaters. On a giant, pretty screen.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Dec 25th)

A story about dealing with grief from overrated director Stephen Daldry, who always gets nominated for an Oscar. Always. Like literally, he is 3 for 3. This is a 9-11 movie starring a little kid and based on an acclaimed novel, so expect major water works and lots of Oscar prognosticators having a grand ol time debating whether or not this will the first year Daldry doesn't get a directing nod. Remember when I said expect waterworks? The trailer just made me cry. Starring Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock playing an age appropriate role and newcomer Thomas Horn, who won Teen Jeopardy in 2009. Fact.

Am I seeing it? Yes. With tissues.

A Separation (Dec 30th)

The Foreign Language Oscar submission from Iran that I have heard nothing but wonderful things about. I missed the screening at AFI, but am eagerly awaiting the next opportunity to catch this film about a married couple who have to make a very difficult decision.

Am I seeing it? Definitely.

Other December Options:

The Lady (Dec 2nd)

W.E. (Dec 9th) (Oscar qualifying run)

Corman's World's: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel (Dec 16th)

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Holiday Gift Guide: Music, Book & Theater Edition

It's the giving season again! And if you're a procrastinator like me, then you're still trying to get your holiday gift shopping list together. So let me help you expedite that process! Here are my top gift recommendations for the art lovers in your lives:

Music:

Florence + The Machine's Ceremonials

Florence Welch is a rock-pop machine and Ceremonials is one of my favorite albums of the year. While lacking the raw, punk-like energy of the bands first album, Lungs, the new album is a more polished and whole achievement. All the songs sound connected and they flow to form a broodingly beautiful album that still makes you want to dance and sing along with at the top of your lungs. It's my wonderfully odd dark, upbeat soundtrack to the upcoming winter season. I couldn't recommend it to you more--buy it as a gift for yourself and your moody loved ones!

Books:

The New York Times Magazine Photographs

Aperture and The New York Times Magazine present this awesome photo book that surveys the photography published by the magazine over the years. The New York Times Magazine Photographs is this holiday season's ultimate coffee table book.

The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides

From the Pulitzer Prize winning author who gave us Virgin Suicides and Middlesex comes a new novel about Madeleine--a 1980s college student deconstructing 19th Century English novels with marriages at the center of their plots. She finds herself examining not only fictional marriage plots but also modern love and relationships. As an English major, this is the book I bought as a holiday gift for myself to read over my winter break. But if it's anything like Eugenides' previous novels, I suspect that it'll be popular with a diverse range of readers.

Theater Tickets:

Tickets to live shows make for the best gifts; you're giving entertainment and helping to create singular memories. So this year, consider giving the gift of theater! Already seen Sleep No More (a few times)? Looking for another off-Broadway gem? Go see New York Theatre Workshop's production of Once, a musical based on the film of the same name. This insanely popular show has been recently extended to January 15th. Get your tickets before they sellout!

Once
Based on the Film Written & Directed by: John Carney
Directed by: John Tiffany
Book by: Enda Walsh
Lyrics by: Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová
Movement by: Steven Hoggett
Featuring: David Abeles, Claire Candela, Will Connolly, Elizabeth A. Davis, Steve Kazee, David Patrick Kelly, Cristin Milioti, Anne L. Nathan, Lucas Papaelias, Andy Taylor, Erikka Walsh, Paul Whitty, J. Michael Zygo

For tickets, performance schedule, and more info, go here.

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Exit Carolyn at The Drilling Company Theatre

Sans A Productions and the Drilling Company Theatre present Exit Carolyn, a new play about loss and grief.

Lorna and Julie, lifelong best friends and current roommates, are coping with the death of their mutual best friend Carolyn in extremely opposing ways. Lorna masks her sadness by overworking and obsessively multitasking, while Julie wallows in hers by wasting her time away getting high (and a little fat) on the couch. Lorna fools herself into believing she's ready to move on from Carolyn's death, as Julie feels she's too paralyzed to do anything because of it.

As the play's plot unfolds, we discover that Carolyn was the middle, conjoining member of their group, and that Lorna and Julie both individually loved and depended on her charisma and strength. Without her they must reexamine their lives and decide who they are outside of their broken threesome (and if they even want to stay friends with each other). They must decide if they want to merely fill her void or truly deal with their grief and learn to live with themselves in Carolyn's absence. In the midst of Lorna and Julie's grief and dilemma, we're introduced to Carolyn's brother Matthew who is dealing with the immensity of his sadness. Matthew brings up some insightful questions as to the authority of grief; he wonders if it's appropriate for a brother to be so sad at the loss of a sister or if only parents and female loved ones (like Lorna and Julie) have the right to be as upset as he is.

Exit Carolyn captures the strange and chaotic layers of grief, while still managing to be a comical and warm show. The one outsider character, Avery, played by the freshly expressive Lauren Blumenfeld, offers some quirky lightheartedness. Laura Ramadei wonderfully embodies Julie's simultaneously funny and tragic slobbish couch-ridden state. For a play dealing with such a heavy theme, Exit Carolyn does a solid job of striking a believable balance of drama and comedy.

Exit Carolyn
Written by: Jennie Berman Eng
Directed by: Adam Knight
Featuring: Lauren Blumenfeld, Jake Loewenthal, Anna O’Donoghue, and Laura Ramadei

The Drilling Company Theatre for New Plays
236 West 78th St. (between Broadway & Amsterdam)
New York, NY 10026

Performance Schedule:
December 8-11 at 8pm
December 15-17 at 8pm

For tickets, go here.
And for a limited time, catch Thursday performances for just $10 (enter discount code: Danish)!

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What Should Be Considered A Spoiler? Musings From A Spoiler-Sensitive Blogger.

Cross-posted on and commissioned by Film.com


Spoilers.

What sensation just went through your body reading that word? For me 12 years ago, it was a sensation of excitement. Now, it's a sensation much closer to terror.

In my youth, I loved television and film just as much as I did now, but I wasn't concerned in the slightest with the element of surprise. Knowing what was coming never bothered me. I eagerly awaited the next installment of Watch with Wanda (now Watch with Kristin, on Eonline), would read plot summaries of episodes of Buffy and Felicity well ahead of when they aired, and would religiously check soap spoilers to see if this would finally be the week that Mike and Carrie on Days of our Lives would make love. (What? I was 13.) To me, spoilers were just an elongated version of "Next time on____" that prepped me for what was to come and filled me with anticipation.

Now, however? Completely different story.

Maybe it's because television has changed and Buffy was certainly a part of that (when I hit high school, I started skipping over the Buffy spoilers in Watch with Wanda), with mystery and development of story becoming a more integral part of television than simply being entertained. Maybe it has to do with the internet being so willing to reveal twist endings at the drop of a hat. But something has shifted. Over the span of 12 years, I've gone from a 13 year old who lives for spoilers to a 25 year old who lists "spoilers" as a legitimate fear when pressed. But maybe the difference is that spoiler means something different nowadays. With endless avenues of communication, constant advance screenings and screeners, and the weight that is now put on experiencing something fresh in order to have an honest opinion, the tiniest bit of information can now affect us as much as reading an entire, multi-page plot summary of a film we haven't seen.

Very often I get into arguments on Twitter about spoilers. Bloggers have gotten better about not straight up revealing plot points, but I, and bear with me here, happen to consider pre-release discussion of themes and lengthy, detailed opinions spoilers too.

Whaaaaat? I know. This is a little extreme. But listen.

The rest after the jump



It used to be a given that when you saw a movie, it was with relatively fresh eyes. Maybe you read a review in the paper. Maybe. Maybe you've seen the trailer, but trailers used to, you know, not reveal everything about the whole movie. But it was your choice. No one was bombarded with opinions, no one accidentally caught an entire online exchange on the themes and hidden meaning of a film weeks before its release, no one knew already going in the third act stumbles, but the twist ending sort of makes up for it.

In this increasingly technology based community of movie bloggers and movie fans,  so much information is thrown our way, often completely unsolicited, that it becomes a hazard to even USE the internet if you wish to experience something fresh. And because now, analysis and discussion of a film happens so regularly before its release, I believe they have become as detrimental to the viewing experience as spoilers in the form of opinion free plot points. Controversial maybe, but I'm not the only one in this boat, and perhaps this is a good standard to consider.

Recently, there has been a lot of hubbub over folks who got to see The Muppets early spoiling cameos. Some argue "How can naming an actor who is in the movie, whose name is on IMDB as in the movie, be a spoiler?", but this disregards where the Muppets come from (a world with no IMDB, a world where every cameo was a surprise and was *meant* to be a surprise) and disrespects anyone who wished to preserve the experience. Sure, you personally may think reading the last line of a book makes reading the whole thing more exciting, but does that give you the right to tell everyone else what the last line is?

Thanks to carefree spoiling like this, I now feel like it's pointless to watch Dexter because so many twists have been accidentally revealed to me over the years. What's the point if some of the things that make the show so great (the shocks) have already been ruined for me?

I've heard "Oh, she dies in the first five minutes of the movie" so many times in regard to one movie released this year, I haven't seen yet. My question is this - did the first people who saw this movie know this person died in the first five minutes? No. So why is it okay that I know?

In line for an AFI screening a couple weeks ago, a woman I didn't know said to me "I bet he commits suicide in the end" - Not a typical spoiler, no, but putting thoughts in your head about what you think is going to happen puts those thoughts in your head, and when it actually ends up coming true (it did), you feel like your experience was spoiled.

Long story short, I think nowadays in this climate, anything about a movie can be considered a spoiler - it's a personal thing, and better to be safe than sorry. At least check with the group you are chatting with before diving into talk about a movie someone present hasn't seen yet, and for the love of god, just adhere to the standard internet spoiler rules if nothing else. Quickly - a week for television shows, a day for competitive reality shows and until the DVD comes out for movies. Gawker's manifesto nails it for the most part, as at least a place to start, although be warned, there is a season one spoiler for Treme in there, one that the author thinks shouldn't be considered a spoiler anymore because it aired so long ago.

Of course, we all stumble from time to time, sure. Earlier this year in a coffee shop, a friend asked me to explain why Rise of the Planet of the Apes was so awesome. She was never gonna see it and wanted to know. So I explained the whole movie. Unfortunately, there were some people near us in the coffee shop who hadn't seen the movie yet and were visible upset that I had just divulged the entire plot, and I kicked myself for being so blind and inconsiderate. It may help to think that being a part of Twitter is like being in a coffee shop. With 10 million people. If someone has their feed open, it's like someone walking in to take an order in a coffee shop. If you're standing right there, wouldn't you stop for a second and lower your voice, making the conversation more private aka taking it to DM?

Am I a lot more sensitive than your average blogger when it comes to spoilers? Abso-freaking-lutely. But hey, I know some people that consider running time a spoiler. Do I think that's lunacy? Yes. But I've learned when seeing movies with this person to keep the running time to myself. One gal's basic facts are another gal's spoilers, and when you really think about it, isn't our responsibility to preserve the experience for movie goers as much as possible? In a review, all bets are off, throw in a spoiler alert if you're worried, someone can choose whether or not to read a review, but on Twitter, Global Filter only works so well, so like in life, try to be careful and conduct yourself with respect towards your followers.

How that ultimately manifests is up to you, and my sensitive standards may go too far, but you know, waiting until, say, the week of release at least before openly analyzing a film and generally refraining from openly spoiling plot points and surprises aren't going to hurt anybody.

How about you, readers? Where is the spoiler line drawn for you? Without revealing the spoiler itself, has any important movie, tv show or book ever been unwittingly ruined by someone else? Very interested in your thoughts on this one.

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