Oh boy, did I like Gravity. I know, I know - so did everybody else. I don't care. I liked it. When I walked out of the theater, they asked for my reaction. I said, "I'm still thinking. Sometimes it's …

Matthew Lickona: Tell about how you conceived of the film. Peter Landesman: I didn't want to go down the path that so many people have gone down, the murder mystery and conspiracy nonsense [surrounding the Kennedy assassination]. There's no point. …

Oh, good grief. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/oct/03/54188/ Because you have been counting the days until you could buy tickets to this sequel. Sometimes I think I could do okay in movie marketing. Then I see something like this and realize I'm just not …

Part one is here. Part two is here. First, a final note in support of the notion that Cameron was, um, inspired by Alien when he made Piranha Part 2, so much so that he managed to snag the sequel, …

He must have been so tickled to do a remake and call it Aliens.

(Part 1 is here.) You all remember the chestburster from the first Alien movie, right? http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/sep/30/53953/ That nasty little fellow poked his head out in 1979. Two years later, James Cameron gave us this in Piranha Part 2: http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/sep/30/53954/ I'm …

The 1981 sequel was Cameron's first feature-length outing as a director.

Hello, and welcome to Origins, a look back at the early work of noted directors, with a special emphasis on how those early efforts foreshadowed what came later. I can't think of a better first subject for this column than …

In a hurry to have a good time? Rush to your local theater and see Rush, the new film from Ron Howard, director of such hits as The Da Vinci Code and The Da Vinci Code 2: Veni Vidi Vinci, …

http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/sep/20/53498/ This is the first result when you Google Image search for "women." Well, the cocaine and the cash arrived just now in a satchel on my front doorstep, so I guess I'd better get to work. GYNO is the …

The big releases this week are Prisoners and Thanks for Sharing. Neither was dazzling. Prisoners did a hell of a job giving us cloudy skies with 100% chance of wincing, and Thanks for Sharing did a hell of a job …

Ladies and gentlemen - but mostly gentlemen - I give you: the internal clitoris: http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/sep/19/53438/ "It's sole function – its singular, wonderful purpose – is to make a woman feel good!!" And now let's do a Google image search for …

The publicist broke into my interview with Blumberg to let me know I had time for one more question. "Hm, got to choose," I said, scanning my notes. "Any questions about the movie?" asked Blumberg. It was a fair shot, …

All you haters just settle down and fire up the dream factory.

Some people weren't happy to hear the news that the upcoming slew of Star Wars films are going to include origin stories. And given George Lucas' idea of an origin story, I can understand that. [Language alert]. But Lucas is …

Look, Destin Cretton went to SDSU film school and made good. And he even had the grace to put up with grumpyman Marks on the whole jigglycam thing. Go see his film, Short Term 12! (It's good!) There really isn't …

Just watch this. It's not even three hours long.

A snippet from somwhere around 1:45: "Somebody said that Touch of Evil seemed very unreal and yet real. And I corrected that statement and said what I was trying to do was to make something which was unreal but true. …

I can remember when people read books instead of stealing them.

No, it doesn't look great, but everybody loves Kurt Russell, right? All I know is, I've been away from this blog for a while - the doctors say the scarring should be minimal, thanks for asking - and I need …

I thought Afternoon Delight was a smart movie. And I enjoyed talking to the woman who wrote and directed it. I came this close to liking Riddick. Scott? Scott got stuck with Terraferma, which was about forty times too earnest …

http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/aug/30/52357/ This is really Scott's week. I mean, every week is Scott's week, but he usually doesn't make it quite so obvious. He's kind that way. Anyway, let's get the big news out of the way: FIVE STARS FOR ONE …

C'mon people, you think that suit was an accident? We're through the looking glass here.

Okay, so Miley Cyrus apparently saw Ke$ha get hot and heavy with some furries in her video for "C'Mon" and thought, "Ooh, me too!" http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/aug/26/52070/ But in the interests if keeping it real, Miley decided to make her public proclamation …

To err is human, but (contrary to the thesis advanced near the end of The World's End) that does not mean that erring is the defining difference of humanity. So perhaps it's not uniquely human that I seem to have …

But hey, everybody else is having fun with it, so...

Yeah, yeah, people have seen Filner and Goldsmith together in the same room. But I still like this notion. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/aug/22/51821/ Yes, yes, your first thought is, "Wait a second, Lickona. You've got Filner in the role of the Narrator, which …