Movie Review: Intensive Care (2018)

Intensive Care (2018) - USA - Action Comedy - NR (PG13)

Directed by Jared Bentley

Starring Tara Macken, Jai Rodriguez, Kevin Sizemore, Jose Rosete, Leslie Easterbrook, Darrin Dewitt Henson, Gunnar Sizemore, Austin Pollard, Ela Gavrila

Dumb, dumber and dumbest meet even dumberest in this comedy of errors masquerading as an action thriller, and yet it strangely succeeds.

An ex-special forces soldier takes up a new profession as a caregiver for a rich elderly woman. A seemingly innocuous job turns potentially deadly as thugs break in with the intention of robbing the woman but end up with more than they bargained for.

If the plot seems basic and especially in the category of 'seen it before', well it is. There's nothing new here from the standpoint of ex-whatever fighting machine having to face-off against a threat that we haven't seen in any number of Steven Seagal, Jean Claude Van Whatshisname or any action star's glut of dime a dozen movies.

In actuality this film seems confused at the outset as to what it wants to be. The setup is basically an action movie. The IMDb page lists it as a action/horror/thriller. But past the half hour mark, and I was less impressed with it up to that point, it takes a turn into an action comedy, and that alone saves it.

The filmmaking is competent, the acting is competent, as a matter of fact on the whole it's pretty competent and that's about the best thing that can be said about it. Yet the humor and action keep it going, even if at times it is interrupted by "WTFs" on the part of the viewer.

Throughout the film I had gone from a rating of 2 fingers during the first half hour to upping that to 2 Plus. My thoughts were it at least maintains itself. But then that became an important distinction as, with as basic of a premise and setup as it has, it rolls with its humor and action and is actually watchable and even enjoyable throughout its 80 minutes. There is an additional post-credits scene which nicely sets it up for a potential sequel.

My Rating: 3 Fingers; that's 6/10 for IMDbers

The Great Indie Film Promotion!

Well.. I might be overselling it.. just a wee bit.

A few problems have arisen over the past several months in trying to get indie film promotion and networking moving forward. At the heart of most of this is sucky internet. As of late I've actually had a good connection. Why? I don't know... but I'm going to follow the old standby of not looking a gift horse in the mouth.

Additionally just the scope of indie film. Big Hollywood is easy to promote as their output and associated output is far less than 1% of the films made every year. Even if you eliminate national cinemas from the pool the majority of films made every years are by indie filmmakers. That's a hell of a lot films and filmmakers.

Participation is also a key factor. Not everyone is Timothy J. Cox or Kate Davies-Speak. I'd be willing to argue nobody is. Both of them have been instrumental in the promotion of indie film. Timothy J. Cox actively promotes films he is in and the works of others. Kate Davies-Speak uses her social media, I'm most specifically familiar with her Twitter activity, to engage those in indie film to share among themselves and promote each other. Her #ShowreelShareDay and #TrailerShare days have encouraged me to use the indie film community, whether they know it or not, to promote themselves.

I've mentioned the use of hashtags before for different promotions. What I'm aiming to try now is to build this to a weekly indie film promotion where filmmakers, actors, reviewers and others can share links to trailers, interviews, reviews, and have others retweet their links.

Weekly? A bit too much? Not really, because my ultimate goal is to build this to a daily promotion. Obviously I can't do that on my own. But Hollywood gets almost by the minute promotion, and much of that is given to them for free. But ask someone to do that for indie films and many will want to charge for it. Yep... throw free money at the rich and charge the working class.

My intention, at least in this function, is to get others involved with promoting indie films. Ideally those who will be open to having a regular social media promotion. That could be a day a year, a day a month, but eventually those days add up and over time that could build into a daily promotion. As the promotion builds we will eventually trend the hashtag, and if it builds to the point it gets in the top 10 then it will be getting more attention due to that, and that certainly is a goal.

I am going to start of the promotion on Thursdays. Probably beginning around 9 a.m. (East Coast/New York time) and continuing throughout the day till like 11 or midnight. I fully expect the first time, or first several times to flop. It takes a while to build up anything and I will start with promo tweets for a handful of indie films throughout the day. Of course anybody else who tweets the hashtag with their own promo tweet will be retweeted by me and hopefully others.

The hashtag is #MyIndieFilmPromotion

I will be tweeting and retweeting from two Twitter accounts: @SexAndBloodShow (shut up... I've already commented it was a poor choice for a Twitter url) and @MIFilmAdvantage.

The reason for Thursday is to keep from conflicting with my work schedule and Thursday is not the weekend, not the first day of the week and not a church day. I'm wanting to keep it on a day when people will less likely be occupied with something else.

What to share?

Pretty much anything that helps promote your film or a film in which you are involved or someone's film you are trying to promote. Trailers, IMDb listings, interviews, reviews, etc. If they'll fit in a tweet, by all means include them all. You can also add up to 4 images in a tweet too if you want to include posters, screencaps or other promotional materials. Sometimes when I have promoted films in the past I would create an image with a summary of a film, cast, etc. so I could include more about the film beyond the Twitter character count.

A few things to note:

Filmmakers - Often when I try to collect info for promoting films on Twitter with a Tweet. Rather than actually 'reply' with info like I've requested most just click on 'like'. If I want to actually collect any info then I have to search it out as a result. This is time consuming. Nobody knows your film, cast, social media links, etc. better than you. Not only will providing information help me out, it's a good habit to get into when it comes to soliciting reviews as it helps out the reviewer. What you can provide in a minute or two can take somebody else an hour or longer to have to search for it.

Reviewers - Let me be specific about what is and is not indie film. Indie film is not made with millions of dollars with big name actors. Indie film is individuals and even small companies making their own films. The United States has a problem with multi-million dollar movies masquerading as indie films because they are not made by one of the Big 6 studios. You are welcome to join in and help to promote indie films, but if you are confused about what they are and instead use the hashtag to promote bigger studio films you will be asked to stop.

Why this particular promotion?

As I've mentioned, internet has been a problem here. I've at least had a fairly consistent connection, but bandwidth often sucks. As I have been using mobile internet more, it does not require as much bandwidth as my computer does. This is a way for me to become more actively involved in promotion that I can also do on a phone or tablet.

I will tweet about the date of the first #MyIndieFilmPromotion rather than springing it on you. You don't have to specifically tweet within the hours I am. I will search the hashtag and retweet any tweets. You can also use a tweet scheduler online or a social media hub to schedule tweets. Any retweets are encouraged and very much appreciated.

Movie Review: Gunderson's (2011)

Gunderson's (2011) - USA - Comedy - NR

Short Subject - Dial Tone Pictures - 14 mins

Written by Phil Primason, Max Azulay, Mallory Westfall and Matt Porter

Directed by Matt Porter

Starring Max Azulay, Timothy J. Cox, Dan Azulay, Jeremy Fernandez, Eoin Cahill, Mike DeGasperi, Nicolina Capitanio, Jeremian Fox, Alex Michaelopoulos, Lexie Morin, Daniel Murphy, Phil Plucinski, Yemaya Rich, Robert Rossi, Cody Schmidt, Cassidy Steinhilber, Marley Sternberg, Linsay Tierney

Not quite fully erect but it's enough to get the job done.

Starting his first week of teaching health class as a substitute teacher at middle school, Max discovers he has a sexually transmitted disease called Gunderson's. Gunderson's may only have one symptom but the consequences of having it may be more trouble than the symptoms.

Gunderson's strength is in a talented cast, not lacking in production values and a natural sense of humor infused in the dialogue. Max Azulay and Timothy J. Cox, if I could just remember their characters' names, are wonderful in their respective roles as teacher and principal. Timothy J. Cox shines as an over-bearing principal and takes the opportunity to chew the scenery in a most delightful way. Max Azulay evokes a natural responsiveness in his scenes coming off as a real character and not as an actor portraying a character. The hallway scene between Cox and Azulay is classic and I get the feeling at least some of Azulay's responsiveness in the scene is him trying to hold it together while Cox pushes his buttons as he can do so well.

Another of the charms of this short film is a wonderful group of young actors playing the students. There are enough students in the classroom to make for a full class. There are no shortcomings in making this feel like any average school day or classroom. What interaction there is between Max and his students is well played.

A downside for me is that Gunderson's feels incomplete. Don't get me wrong, it successfully tells a story, but it is quick in doing so. I felt like I had started down a trail and abruptly came to the end of it and wondered what I had missed. I found myself wishing there was more.

Gunderson's, for me, may be lacking in its story development but it does ultimately succeed. It provides humor and tells it in an entertaining way.

My Rating: 3 Fingers Plus; that's a 7 out of 10 for IMDbers. I would give it more if there was more.

The Coming Blacklist: Sites You Should Block

I will be adding a page to this site. It's a page that's not going to make some people happy. It's simply a page containing a list of websites you should avoid.

Let me be as up front with something I have said till I'm blue in the face:

ONLINE ADS ARE THE NUMBER ONE SOURCE OF MALWARE INFECTIONS!

I have stressed this time and again. If you don't use an ad blocker (and dammit, they're free! Adblock Plus), you are putting your computer at risk. And yet people gleefully surf the web without an ad blocker. And when their computer gets infected they are at a loss to figure out why. For those people, please reference the previous statement.

Are the ads the problem? No. It's the source of the ads where the problem lies. The majority of online ads are third partied from ad providers. Not all ad providers allow the ads they sevre to be third partied to them, which makes it safer. But enough do, and don't give a damn from where it is coming, what scripting is being used, or what kind of special delivery of malware is being made via a browser visiting a site running their ad scripts.

Years ago almost everyone I knew with a computer had their computers infected by a fake anti-virus malware that would tell the computer user their computer was infected (well that sure as hell was correct, they infected it), and of course offer to remove the infection for a price. Most of those computers had to have windows re-installed; and one had to have the hard drive replaced. Which computer didn't get infected? The one running an ad blocker.

The internet has evolved from the days of simple HTML sites. The advances in scripting has allowed considerable interaction with websites making it easier to use them and allowing the website to be more useful. The danger from loading a website in your browser has evolved just as well.

Not all websites with ads or ad providers have malicious intent, nor represent a threat. Sites such as Google (and their associated services), Amazon and Facebook source their own advertising. In order for their ads to be a threat their own servers would have to be attacked. Such companies, being that the internet is their business, have firewall teams to protect their servers and deal with problems.

Most of us with our own websites do not have that capability. Yes, the hosting providers do protect their servers and have the people to deal with problems. But a blogger or webmaster pasting code into their webpages does not. What that code is serving has nothing to do with the hosting provider; they have no control over it.

Advertising has been around for a long time. Ads in magazines and on television are not a threat to anyone (unless you're stupid enough to swallow their BS). Online ads are not the same thing.

The list I have referred to is a blacklist of websites that either request for you to disable your ad blocker or add them to your whitelist, or, especially, sites that won't allow you entry unless you disable your ad blocker. This is usually given with a BS spiel about how ads make the internet happen and how you are stealing money from these poor greedy bastards by using an ad blocker rather than being truthful and say they don't give a damn about the risk to you so long as they make a few pennies before your computer crashes and burns.

Some of these are big websites with a long standing brick and mortar business like national newspapers. Some are popular websites started by fans in some hobby, say like horror movies, and have grown into an authority site. But it seems like 90% plus of the internet has ads, and many of the bigger sites don't need them as their income comes from sources other than internet ads, they're just being greedy by using the 'accepted norm'.

The blacklist will just be a suggestion of sites to boycott/block, unless they remove their walls and warnings in which case they will be removed from the list.

I'm not suggesting avoiding all sites with ads. I'm just strongly suggesting you use an ad blocker to protect your computer and blacklist those sites that want you to do otherwise.

If after all this talk, and I can be quite long-winded, and you get your computer infected and have not used an ad blocker, please reference the all caps message above one more time.

Movie Review: Far from the Apple Tree

Far from the Apple Tree (In Post) - Scotland - Thriller - NR

Directed by Grant McPhee

Written by Ben Soper

Starring Sorcha Groundsell, Victoria Liddelle, Lynsey-Anne Moffat, Margaret Fraser, Adrienne-Marie Zitt, Scarlett Mack

A tour de force of visual indulgement with more up its sleeve than it lets on.

Attending an art exhibit, Judith not only becomes enthralled with a work, the artist herself takes notice of her. Agreeing to become the artist's archivist and protege to eventually show her own work, she discovers many films and videos of the artist's daughter, perhaps not coincidentally to whom she bears a resemblance... and develops an obsession.

Akin to Grant McPhee's directing style that I first saw in Night Kaleidoscope, the first foray into Far from the Apple Tree is like being dropped into the middle of a situation you don't understand. Your natural survival instinct tells you to get out, yet something compels you to stay. To follow the narrative you have to go into the next room. Perhaps you might not want to, but yet again you're compelled to do it, because you have to know. You may even end up back where you started, momentarily, but that's part of the journey.

Where this story is going to end up is foreseeable. How it's going to get there... well that's a different case entirely, and it's the journey that's the story. Grant doesn't just take the road less traveled, he goes where there was no road and builds one with his narrative. Linear the story is, but pastiches of past, present and who knows when invade each moment onscreen.

Visually, and you don't know how complex that singular term is in relation to this film until you have seen it, there are elements that reminisce of satanic and witchcraft films of the 70s with an austere and muted presence. Elements that hearken to giallo in untransfixed vision underplayed by a melody of a lost childhood. And full of esoterica brimming the lid off of this cauldron of visceral extrapolations. And yet I may have just been describing the passage of only 20 seconds.

A relatively small cast delivers good performances throughout. Sorcha Groundsell as Judith immerses herself in her role and likely will be a rising star soon enough. Victoria Liddelle compounds her role as a character who wafts between impassive and receptive. Her character's intent is not for me to tell but for the viewer to decide.

From my first viewing I was at a solid rating of 4 fingers. The story is complete which alone would have me giving it a 3, and the journey Grant takes us on abrogates the nominal in narrative to traverse its own original path, taking my rating up to 4. It would be nice if things were so simple, huh? A trivial question, so I thought, that I posed to Grant just out of curiosity... well the answer floored me. I shall not reveal what that is, but the performance and production that colluded to carry that out, that takes it up another finger.

My Rating:  5 Fingers. I give it a high five!

Movie Review: Five Fingers for Marseilles (2017)

Five Fingers for Marseilles (2017) - South Africa - Western Thriller - Not Rated

Directed by Michael Matthews

Written by Sean Drummond

Starring Vuyo Dabula, Zethu Dlomo, Kenneth Nkosi, Jerry Mofokeng, Mduduzi Mabaso, Lizwi Vilakazi, Hamilton Dhlamini, Dean Fourie, Kenneth Fok, Anthony Oseyemi, Warren Masemola, Garth Breytenbach, Aubrey Poolo, Brendon Daniels

A compelling film filled with stunning sights and sounds that from opening shot to final frame moves like an unstoppable locomotive.

Five boys in the township of Marseilles in South Africa form a pact to fight against the corrupt police oppression. They call themselves the Five Fingers, vowing not to become like their oppressors. But one day one of them crosses a new line in defending one of their own resulting in the death of two police officers. A self-imposed exile from Marseilles for him leads to a life of crime and violence, until some 20 years later he returns to Marseilles, a stranger, in what seems on the outside to have won the fight against oppression. But what lurks within, even within themselves, is a greater threat than what they overcame. Will he and his brothers in the Five Fingers be able to stand together... or apart?

Struggle is a word for many of us that we can only imagine... for others, that word is life. Oppression is a privileged tool of conquerors and raiders throughout history. Keeping people in check with brutality and despoiling of their property and goods is a significant part of that history and of colonization. The oppressors may have brought their names and infused their ways on a people, but within churns a spirit that was there long before they came. Dress them in different clothes, teach them a new language, a different religion, but inside people know who they are and that can't be taken away.

Opening upon a simple shot of the plains, the air is brisk, the sky is clear and a crackle in a voice sets the tone for what will follow. The narrative is a delight of sight and sound, not telling its story but revealing it. Filled with character and stylings, and permeated with a dynamic soundtrack ticking the mood, unveiled before the viewers eyes and ears is a visceral symphony. A contemporary western set in South Africa it is, but you haven't seen this before.

The story itself is highly allegorical. Most potent of these is the Christ figure represented by the central protagonist of the story, Tau, as well themes of crucifixion and resurrection. Ironically, central to the antagonist is one of entrenched legacy. The mixing of a western with socio-political and spiritual themes dates back to the beginnings of cinema. Perhaps that's why this seems such a good fit for Five Fingers for Marseilles.

For me the final act fizzles a bit. Yet it ups its pace at the same time, so it's give for take. From opening frame to closing shot Five Fingers for Marseilles is consistent in its delivery. So compelling it is that it grabs you by the [please insert preferred genitals here] and doesn't let go. A complete story it is, but just as ambiguous in places it is that too. This works well for it as I can't tell you what you should make of this. Five Fingers for Marseilles provides the ingredients for you to savor for yourself.

Five Fingers for Marseilles features a wonderful South African cast, and obviously a skilled crew. Sight and sound are beautiful to behold. The music throughout is tempestuous. It is subtitled, but this keeps the film text in check as even with reading the dialogue you can get a feel for what the actor is saying without having to understand the words.

My Rating: 5 Fingers

You can find out more on the film's official Facebook and Twitter pages.

Watch the official trailer on YouTube.

An Interview with Bigfoot Erotica Author Virginia Wade

Some of the damnedest things come out in politics. Most especially with this current administration we've had strippers and playmates and pussy grabbing... oh my!

But Bigfoot erotica?

A congressional race in the state of Virginia and a candidate named Cockburn (really?!) tweets about her opponent and his alleged interest in Bigfoot porn with a picture taken from his Instagram page (now private) of a Bigfoot with an enormous and censored... shall we say organ?

Of course social media ran with this, myself included. And of course with the number of news articles popping up online about this, many can't help but mention Virginia Wade, the best known author of Bigfoot erotica with 16 books in her Cum for Bigfoot series alone. And naturally I couldn't help (honest, ah couldn't) but chide her about being a bad influence on politicians.

For those of you not familiar with Virginia Wade the author, let me introduce you to her.

Virginia is, or has been, a stay at home mom of two children, now grown. She is also a mother of an autistic child which any mother of an autistic child can relate to. Brought up as an army brat her childhood and teen years were spent in many places, but now she makes Colorado her home. Her father helps out in editing her writings while her mother, a German teacher, has translated her writings.

Writing can be profitable for a good writer who not only finds their niche but also gets out and promotes themselves. "Build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door", a saying attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson in part is true, but should be appended "but only if you tell them about it."

Her better mousetrap is erotica, and more specifically Bigfoot and monster erotica. Known for not only fringe premises like sex with aliens, demons, an assortment of movie monsters, and even a murder mystery where the weapon was a dildo, her trademark fun approach to storytelling and sense of humor brings her readers back.

Fletch: Why Bigfoot? With a variety of potential human companions in erotica, what interested you in writing about Bigfoot instead?

Virginia: I had already written about Tarzan and Jane and my version of Jane Austen, with the Filthy Classics, so it made perfect sense to tackle Bigfoot. It was a crazy idea, and I ran with it.

Fletch: Cryptozoology in essence has been around since cavepeople. Imagining what was beyond the known world, and the creatures that inhabited it, has sparked many a journey. Your Bigfoot fiction most definitely has its readership. Is it this age old curiosity, or what is it, that attracts readers?

Virginia: It might be a healthy curiosity about Bigfoot’s sex life, and what that might entail. He is especially well-endowed, after all. Sex is one of his favorite things, that and food. His needs are few, but they drive him to take risks, especially when it comes to kidnapping young ladies for his pleasure.

Fletch: Porsche and Leonard are the two main characters in your Cum for Bigfoot series. Writers often, if not to some degree always, put a little of themselves into their work.

(1) Are there any inspirations for Porsche and Leonard from your life or people you know?

(2) Considering that question and knowing that, compared to you, your husband is a big guy, has this been an influence, or pointed out to you if it wasn't?

Virginia: I think it’s most women’s wish to have some strong, big guy protect and care for them. Real life expectations might’ve gotten mixed in with the fiction. Leonard, although insatiably horny, always took very good care of his women.

I didn’t model Leonard or Porsche after anyone in particular.

Fletch: Vampires, werewolves, demons, the Invisible Man, you've written erotica involving many of the standards in the monster codex, and of course not so standard too. Kind of like the Universal Monsters of erotica. Have you been influenced by movies in your writings?

Virginia: I’m sure I have. Watching Pride and Prejudice inspired me to want to know how Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy behaved in the bedroom. The Filthy Classics sprang from that.

Fletch: Being I brought up monster movies, your new Sasquatch series brings into being a lab created Sasquatch. A spin on Frankenstein? Why a new Bigfoot series?

Virginia: I wrote it for the fans. It had been years since I had published monster sex, so I wanted to put something new out there that didn’t have anything to do with the original series, yet there would be more Bigfoot sex.

Fletch: Bigfoot and politics. Aside from that run for the presidency in 2015/16 you made*, is Bigfoot erotica being discussed in the light of congressional campaigns, or any political campaign, something you would have ever anticipated?

Virginia: No. I’m as shocked as anyone else that we are mixing politics with monster sex, or maybe I shouldn’t be surprised.

*Virginia didn't actually run for president. Another erotica author created a Twitter account and ran a tongue-in-cheek campaign for her.

Fletch: I understand since the political race in Virginia (What a coinkydink!) brought up the subject of Bigfoot erotica that you've been getting some mention in blog articles, tweets (ah swears I don't know who's been doing that), and interview requests. Have you been getting much attention as a result of this?

Virginia: I’ve had several requests for interviews in the last two days. Older interviews I’ve done are swirling around Twitter and other social media sites. Sales are up too!

Fletch: Cum for Bigfoot has been your trademark series with 16 books. It's been a while since number 16. What have you been writing lately?

Virginia: In January I published Namaste with Sasquatch, which is a 4-part series of Bigfoot erotica set at a yoga camp in the Rocky Mountains. A new group of young women discover the pleasures of being kidnapped and seduced by Bigfoot.

You can find Virginia Wade on Twitter and Facebook. Check out her books on Amazon and Smashwords. Her series include Cum for Bigfoot, Namaste with Sasquatch, The Coven, Cum for the Viking and her Stacy stories. Individual titles include Cum for the Invisible Man, Who Killed Cole Custer in the Library with a Dildo?, Bred at Bible Camp, Breeding the Lusty Babysitter, Pride and Penetration, Cum for the Phantom, Cum for the Demon, The Demon in Alice, Crissy's Naughty Daddy, Sweet Melissa, Dirty Preacher Daddy, Island Curves (A BBW Romance) and many others too numerous to mention.

A Plea for Sanity: Buy a Book

Before the internet there was a wonderful invention called a book. When we needed to know the meaning of a word we looked it up in a dictionary. We could learn about history and the people who populated it in an encyclopedia.

Oh... there's an online encyclopedia for that today? Well those encyclopedias we used were written by people studied in their particular fields, not by Billy Joe Jim Bob Jr. who gets his facts from a bathroom stall.

The internet used to be called the information superhighway, but has more realistically become the misinformation superhighway. Somebody starts a rumor and before the internet when we were kids we could ask our parents if it was true. Somebody starts a rumor online and people gobble it up and accept it as fact, pell mell.

What got me thinking about this was the latest definition floating around the internet about the word "tag" meaning "touch and go". Look it up in a dictionary and you will not see that as a definition. But you will see it floating around online as though it is fact, even though you can just go to the page about it on Snopes to get the lowdown on this latest internet misinformation.

I just wonder where we are headed as a generation brought up on the internet. Our parents would tell us not to get into cars with strangers... and today there is Uber. Somebody would write about someone giving good head on a bathroom stall... and today there is Facebook. And of course with Fox News and a compulsive liar for a president facts just aren't what they used to be.

If you want to know something about a car you ask a mechanic. If you're concerned about your health you go to a doctor. If you want to know about poverty and homelessness you sure as hell don't ask a rich person. But the age old warning of not accepting candy from strangers has faded, and the internet is filled with candy and almost all of it from strangers.

For goodness sake. Don't take your advice from Facebook, Twitter and fools. Look it up. Find it for yourself. A good place to start is in a book or a library... not a bathroom stall.

Fletch 

Indie Film TV: Coming to a Browser Near You... Sort of

Friday Night Indie TV

A new project I'm working on in the vein of my Friday Night 80s Party I used to run. Looking for it to be a six hour block of programming to be tweeted on Friday nights from 6pm to midnight E.S.T. featuring short indie films, web series, and a feature length indie film; all available to watch for free on YouTube, Vimeo or other video sharing sites.

What started this?

Frankly myself becoming sick of network TV. With what seems like a pell mell cancellation of shows and changes in shows without one ounce of regard for the fans, network TV has picked up bad habits from "big retail". Network TV's response of "we don't answer questions about our program changes" (paraphrased) illustrates without a doubt that the viewer does not matter and the viewer is just someone to be played like someone being sold a used car or time share.

There are far more indie filmmakers, and I mean FAR more, than there are big studios. No, indie filmmakers are NOT investment firms that spend millions to make a film strictly for a return and call themselves independents. Indie filmmakers work out of their homes, even rent time in small studios, and investments are small and only offset what they have to spend out of pocket often putting it on a credit card. 

Far more filmmakers are making better and by far more original films than what is coming out of big studios. It may not be as high gloss and CGI filled as what Hollywood wants to force feed you, but all that gloss and CGI is replaced with things like story, heart and sweat.

With all of what is being produced by indie filmmakers, and there is a gargantuan lot that is being produced by indie filmmakers, and ignored by self-ploclaimed Roger Ebert wannabe film critics (and if I hurt anybody's feelings with that... GOOD!), why not organize some of that content into a programming block like TV does?

True. This is not a TV network or channel. But it is a basis that maybe someone else can build on and rather than the usual star and smug filled content big studios and networks want to proffer, they might be able to run with it and provide an indie only web channel. Just a thought.

My initial idea for a block of programming, naturally likely to change, is to have:

1) A horror show/hour featuring several short subjects.

2) A comedy show/hour featuring several short subjects.

3) A non-themed showcase featuring other short subjects.

4) A regular web series episode

5) A full length feature film for the Friday Night Movie of the Week

6) A video podcast review or interview show.

I would also like to fill in gaps with music videos from up and coming indie bands and some retro TV commercials just for fun.

In addition to the block of tweets on Friday nights I also want to set up a blog specifically for the show in which I'll post each week's programming block so you can access it anytime at your leisure.

This is not content exclusive to me. These are shorts and films that you could find on your own if you knew what to search for and where to search. I'm just doing the work in putting it together and hopefully will be able to depend on indie filmmakers to provide me with links to their films I can use. This is simply another way to help promote indie film and at the same time give a finger to network TV.

This will take some time to set up, most especially with my internet being as poor as it is. Right now I'm looking at it being a few months away. I'll keep you updated.

*Addendum - I cannot use VOD, Prime or any other paid or subscription services for this. The idea is to make it like a block of TV programming someone can just tune in and watch. This means free to watch and publicly accessible videos only. The advantage to you as a filmmaker is getting your work seen and also being introduced via this promotion to people who may not be familiar with you or your work.

Fletch

Reviews and Indie Film and Root Canals, Oh My!

The past few months have not been very productive. I have a better internet connection, for now, than I did. It's still not up to par like it should be. Some changes have come about causing delays, and I've made some decisions that hopefully will get me back to a more productive status and more regularly promoting indie film and filmmakers like I used to do.

I had planned to get a newer model laptop in May. As what seems to be the norm every time I try to get ahead so far this year I get kicked back. This month, actually two weeks as of this coming Friday, I've had a dead nerve crop up in a tooth. I have been able to stay the infection and the pain. An extraction of the tooth itself is not costly but the x-rays are and I can't afford that. And a root canal would be even more expensive, and the one time I had one done it went south six months later. Certainly my own treatment has worked, but for how long I don't know. I'm putting off getting the laptop, both because I've had to spend more these past two weeks to treat the tooth and am trying to set something aside in case I need to seek emergency treatment.

This year so far has completely wiped me out with what seems like an unfortunate surprise coming every month which has cost me, and how in the hell I made it through April with this month's expenses... well, I sort of didn't because I had to borrow from my neighbor to make it through.

I'm wanting to get a newer laptop because it will just make things easier. This one I'm using, as I've said in a previous article, has a busted screen and I'm using an external monitor with it. Having to keep it in a certain position to do his also requires having my head tilted down to use it. Not normally a problem but it did become such with the tooth problem as the position of my head increased the pain. I recently reviewed a film and it took me three hours or better to screencap it, having to step away from the computer ever now and then to ease up the pain.

As I said the tooth issue for now is resolved as best I can do and I need to focus more on how to be more productive. I have come to realize that my improvised method I used before is not working too well as I just got into a routine of trying to do everything I could, and when I hit a wall when my internet got interrupted, well there was no plan I was using and trying to get back to what I was doing has been like looking at a blank page and not knowing what to write.

For now I think after having written a few reviews again, I was afraid I had forgotten how, I need to plan a minimum of a review a week. This is less than I was doing before, but then I was trying to keep up a ridiculous goal for myself in how I review movies and just kept falling behind.

With a regular routine of reviews I think that will help to keep my mind more focused, certainly more than constantly trying to play catch-up with a queue that has gone from backlogged to one that could support several reviewers for months. Movies I need to get reviewed include Sarah's Room, Whatever It Takes, and The Misguided; all of which have been in limbo review-wise.

With regard to the indie film site I am going back on, for now, asking filmmakers to submit their own film listings. Without me completing already submitted listings and listing films for filmmakers, there is not really that much for a filmmaker to go on for an example of what to do, and the more listings there are on the site, the more valuable of a resource it is to filmmakers. Again, if you are a filmmaker, these listing are for you to be able to use them as presskits for reviews and the promotion of your films, and they cost nothing.

Listings do take a while. Even with submitted listings, as often the very important social links are not there, and that was my fault because of the template not having been mobile friendly, it can take an hour or better for me to complete the submission, per submission, having to search for those links on my own. If I have to create the listing on my own then it can take quite a bit longer depending on what kind of resources I have to start with, like stills, and having to search out information on various sites. 

Of course this stresses the importance of My Indie Film Advantage and the listings as anybody reviewing a film has to go through this same process if this information is not made available to them, and if their site is generating any income due to them keeping a steady flow of new reviews on it then they aren't going to go through with hunting it down because it's a waste of their time. It also stresses the importance of social media to those in indie film as it seems kind of contrary at the least to want to promote your film and yet people can't find you.

The film listings are the tip of the iceberg. Things are going to take a while. Magic doesn't happen online. A neighbor of mine had asked me to set up a website for him to promote products he sells. I set it up, but he thinks somehow his products are going to show up magically, even though I keep telling him he has to list his products and upload pictures to get them on the website. Websites don't build themselves, they have to be built.

One thing I'm going to do is put together a listing of filmmakers and actors which I can also divide geographically and I'll see if I can also work something in that includes by genre. Now this is a personal project that I'm hoping will allow me to better organize listings on the site. It's not an easy project as if you could well imagine what such a listing of Hollywood types alone would entail, then consider how many more indie film types there are than Hollywood types. That's something, among other things, that makes me want to smack self-proclaimed film critics in the head every time they snub an indie filmmaker with an attitude like they only review "real", to be read as "mainstream", movies when far less than 1% of movies made come out of Hollywood. Yes, far less than 1% doesn't sound very "real" to me.

Keeping things on a schedule, such as reviews, ideally will allow me to focus better and keep regular updates on the sites rather than always playing catch-up and falling behind. If I get ahead of what I have planned for a week then maybe I can add an extra review or film listing.

I also need to get back to the indie film promotions on social media. I've been thinking of creating a unique hashtag for some of these promotions. This is not an original idea, just more borrowing on something that has been used fairly regularly, but trying to make it more specifically ours to allow filmmakers to promote each other more efficiently, and therefore promote themselves in the process.

One of the first hashtags I'm wanting to create is for crowdfunding. An obvious obstacle to getting a film made is funding for it (like anybody needs to be told that). With the huge number of indie filmmakers out there, there ought to be a way to network to get each others' crowdfunding efforts spread farther. I want to come up with a simple hashtag that has not been used so that when others see it they will know, if they're paying attention, to retweet it. To make it successful I will have to promote it regularly to get others to recognize it, but with the idea that retweeting it for someone else is going to get theirs retweeted when they are seeking funding.

I am not "the source" for networking. Just someone seeking to find ways to network others. I will keep updates coming on this blog and on My Indie Film Advantage. And as always, if I have made sense, it is most likely purely by accident.

Movie Review: The Jurassic Games (2018)

The Jurassic Games (2018) - USA - Sci-Fi  Action - NR (L-V)

Directed by Ryan Bellgardt

Starring Ryan Merriman, Adam Hampton, Perrey Reeves, Erika Daly, Katie Burgess, Luke Wyckoff, Cate Jones, Kyle Penington, Rett Terrell, Dylan Cox, Tiger Sheu

A tech savvy update of the last man standing theme lethally injects fun into the worn premise of reality games while giving a sardonic poke in the eye to commercialism.

In the near future the popular TV show is The Jurassic Games in which ten death row inmates compete with the grand prize being freedom for one of them, but immediate execution of the other nine. The twist is they are competing in a virtual reality world populated by dinosaurs. The other twist is one of them may be innocent, but what is the chance of them surviving not only against man-eating lizards but also against nine of society's worst denizens?

Sound familiar? Well yes, it is. Many of us have seen Death Race 2000 and The Running Man. And many could argue, and are probably right, that today's reality TV overload is a retooling of not only those films but earlier "last man standing" films as well; The 10th Victim (1965) and The Challenge (1970), e.g. So is The Jurassic Games in the sense it's convict against convict against their environment. But added to that is that extra Jurassic element so popular in a certain series of movies (gee, the name escapes me) and a virtual reality world where anything can happen.

Like its predecessors there is a dystopian element of a corrupt government, though it is comparatively underplayed in this in favor of focusing on the consumerism of bloodlust and the commercialism which drives it. The game show element takes front and center with the gloss and glam of network TV production as a wrapper for the carnage of entertainment. In front of the cameras the host of the show is smooth and charismatic, as is the presentation, but behind the scenes the producers may even be worse than the killers in the game.

Two performances that help drive this movie are Ryan Merriman as the host of Jurassic Games and Luke Wyckoff as the cannibal. Merriman panders to the audience while his composure is cool and his confidence high, and brings to life that all too smug and insincere TV host like we see on entertainment shows. Wyckoff plays a character you wish would die horribly from the moment you first see him; a disgusting performance for sure and one that rises to a high point in low-life.

The characters in this are near as one-dimensional as the ones in one of this film's predecessors, Jurassic Park. This conflicted me in my rating. Certainly I would give it a 3 or better in my first response. Then the disposability of the characters struck me as intentional. It fits right in with the satire of commercialism at the heart of the film. Deep it is not, and off the shelf it is in many places, yet contrarily these very elements work for the film rather than against it. With a presentation that moves swiftly and Ryan Merriman's performance leading the way, The Jurassic Games is simply a fun movie that succeeds in making a point, maybe even despite itself.

My Rating: 4 Fingers

Get more information from their Facebook page.

Follow Ryan Merriman on Twitter

Movie Review: Butterfly Kisses (2017)

Butterfly Kisses (2017) - USA (Maryland) - Documentary Horror - NR

Directed by Erik Kristopher Myers

Featuring Gavin York, Matt Lake (himself), Eduardo Sánchez (himself)

Want to scare the hell out of yourself?

No need to bother... this film will do it for you.

In an unusual move on my part, being I don't believe I've done this before, I am changing the usual format of my review. Mainly because this is how I wrote my review and feel the more freeform style fits better with film I'm reviewing anyway.

Fear's greatest resource, the very essence of its existence, is the unknown. From childhood we scare ourselves with stories. We tell of legends and folk tales of things that will happen if we say someone's name so many times and look into a mirror. It's amazing how many legends involve mirrors and reflections, the ability to catch a glimpse of something that nobody else sees. But in today's high tech world of digital video is it possible to catch that fleeting moment of the unknown beyond the mirror? Or like a reflection in a mirror will others not see the same thing?

Gavin more than asks that question as he is about to come face to face with it. A filmmaker whose very existence is doing wedding videos stumbles upon a box of older digital video tapes. On the tapes is a story about to unfold of two film students exploring a local legend called Peeping Tom, and of the tragic consequences of encountering it. Or is it?

Found footage films are nothing new, especially in horror movies where the mystery behind the found footage has something even more frightening to reveal. First used as a plot device in the 1980 film Cannibal Holocaust it would come into its own sub-genre with the wildly successful 1999 film The Blair Witch Project.

"Found footage" though is not really an appropriate category for Butterfly Kisses as it takes a different approach in documenting Gavin's excursion into making a found footage film based on this box of tapes he claims to have found that were made 10 years previous and had its own investigation into the supernatural involving this folk/urban legend known variously as Peeping Tom or simply Blink. And that "claims to have found" becomes a central part of the documentary for as compelling and frightening as is the footage, getting people to believe him, and even the audience to believe him, is an additional tension beyond the horror of the story at hand.

Gavin faces many obstacles in trying to get support for his film project in even the most basic level of getting people to believe him. You know you are up against a wall when believers in the implausible, between marathon sessions with boxes of Twinkies and recounting past glory days as 8th level paladins and wizards, mock you.

The found footage itself is analyzed by various experts in their particular fields including video editors, psychologists, as well interviews are conducted with noted folklore expert Matt Lake, author of Weird Maryland and others in the series, and Eduardo Sánchez, director of The Blair Witch Project.

In taking in the subject of a legend, of folklore, perhaps even more than ghosts, you may have to ask yourself if you believe in non-corporeal entities? Legends are at their core simply that... stories. It's hard to pin an origin on a legend or even associate it with an historical context or person. It is simply other-worldly.

Ghosts are one thing. Lots of people believe in spirits that walk the earth. Of course lots of these same people believe in fairy tales and things like god. And that's despite that the two beliefs are diametrically opposed. There is a potential of psychometric imaging of events, especially tragic events, but events have no consciousness, and for a spirit to have a will and an intent there would have to be a consciousness.

But what about something that never existed outside of tales and legends? Something that existed, was invented perhaps, out of stories and fears, and things we use to scare little children under the pretense to get them to behave rather than admitting to feeding our own sadistic cravings. Is it possible for something to spring from a collective consciousness?

D. Scott Rogo was a psychical research investigator and journalist, as well a contributing editor to Fate magazine. He purported certain theories of sightings being a projection of the observer and was generally open-ended about survival of consciousness after death, preferring to examine the evidence itself rather than pell mell taking the evidence as certifiable proof. He also researched into the question of whether religion can be something we're born with.

If religion through the ages can be infused into our genetics, we can project very real, to us, corporeal images and even interactions into a physical plane, is it feasible life, essentially consciousness, can be given to a folklore? Of course we'll never be able to ask D. Scott Rogo his opinion on this question as he was murdered in 1990 at the age of 40...

...and it has never been solved.

Butterfly Kisses stays true to its documentary format as everything on screen is on camera or otherwise part of the documentary. There is a vague linear timeline in that the events concerning Gavin follow chronologically, but to up the tension the documentary takes forays into different aspects of the found footage exploring angles from a hoax to terrifying moments that will bring you out of your seat. I would highly recommend emptying ones bladder before sitting down to watch the film.

It is a tense and frightening film that will not only render killing somebody who tries to sneak up on you while watching it as justifiable homicide, maybe even a misdemeanor, it may even have you questioning just how real the unreal can be. And unlike so many horror films that have a good build-up and sputter out in the end, Butterfly Kisses is consistent throughout.

My Rating: 5 Fingers, I give it a high five!

Movie Review: Bus Party to Hell (2018)

Bus Party to Hell (2018) - USA - Horror Comedy - Mature (Most Definitely)

Directed by Rolfe Kanefsky

Story by Michael Mahal and Sonny Mahal

Starring Tara Reid, Sadie Katz, Stefani Blake, Shelby McCullough, ViDonna Michaels, Devanny Pinn, Richard Hochman, Ben Stobber, Demetrios Alex

*Though IMDb and some other sites list the year for Bus Party to Hell as 2017, I have opted to list it as 2018 being it was not released until April 13, 2018 and the copyright in the screener I have also lists it as 2018.

Not just a bus ride but a fun ride of a movie overflowing with comedy and brimming with more breasts than you can shake... well something at.

A young woman hitchhikes to Las Vegas, dropped off by a disgruntled ride coincidentally as a bus is boarding to take people to the Burning Man festival. Offered a free ride she accepts, but that free ride may be more costly than anything she could have paid as, taking an off-road detour, the bus and riders become stranded and bombarded by a large group of cultists.

It's Race with the Devil meets Mad Max with more tits and cheese than the state of Wisconsin. Completely tasteless and with its tongue not just firmly planted in its cheek but permanently stitched there, Bus Party to Hell makes no apologies for itself at any point in the film. It is here to do one thing and that is entertain the right audience. If you like comedy, horror and lots of tits (and frankly on that last point...who doesn't) then you're in for a treat as it doesn't let up on any of those ingredients.

From the outset it's obvious that the objective of this is to have fun. There are things that make little if any sense but will still garner a laugh, and at that point you don't give a damn whether it made any sense or not. The performances in this are B-movie all the way. Nobody in this is trying to do Shakespeare but they are simply having fun and keeping the humor rolling with good performances that consistently hit their mark. Its big strength is the humor in which the jokes fly faster than the women in this take off their tops.

Added fun is the homage to horror films throughout. Certainly the inspiration from Race with the Devil is the first thing you notice, and of course the Mad Max influence and even Burning Man influence. But, whether intentional or not, I picked up on references to Night of the Creeps and The Lair of the White Worm. What you might pick up on in it may make it more fun for you.

I do need to point out that 'right audience' thing again. There are beheadings, tits, disembowelments, tits, lots of blood, tits, gore... oh, and did I mention tits? In addition if you are particularly bothered by snakes, spiders or tits (yeah, I just couldn't resist mentioning that again), then this may not be your cup of C... err... I mean tea!

Throughout the film I was at a rating of 4 just from an entertainment perspective. Certainly it should fall somewhere between a 3 and 4. But to grade it on anything other than what it aims to be and succeeds at, and that is just being sleazy fun, would be nitpicking. So I'm sticking with my original feeling.

My Rating: 4 Fingers


You can get Bus Party to Hell on Amazon Video and most video on demand services including Playstation, XBox 360 Live, Verizon, Dish Network, Insight, AT&T and more. Check with your provider.

Find out more on their Facebook and Twitter (Sonny Mahal) pages. If you are a reviewer you can contact them via these pages for a screener.

Follow the stars on their Twitter pages: Tara Reid  Devanny Pinn  Sadie Katz  Stefani Blake

If you have seen Bus Party to Hell and liked it, give them a rating on the film's IMDb page. You don't need an IMDb account; you can sign in to IMDb using your Facebook, Google or Amazon account.

If you are a reviewer, here is a poster and some additional stills you can use for reviews:

A Hopeful Solution for Computer Issues

While trying to get back into the swing of things with an at least better internet connection, but still limited on bandwidth compared to what it was, I'm looking to get some much procrastinated organization done. 

I've been lazy for some time with using this busted laptop connected to an external monitor. It's not for lack of having an alternate computer; I have at least enough in my closet to put together three desktop systems, plus a few laptops. 

I've been putting off doing a mass transfer of all the files I've collected, created and composted on this machine. In addition to the file transfers I also have multiple accounts I'm signed into. With my Google account in particular I don't want to chance signing into it on a different computer as the last time I did that they forced me to change my password and jump through other hoops just to get access to my account again. Being this blog and other blogs of mine are part of my Google account, getting locked out of it would basically finish my online presence.

What I'm considering doing, if it's doable, is a browser backup. Basically backing up cookies and saved passwords so that ideally I can transfer them to the new computer and not have to sign into accounts all over again. I don't know if I can do that but browsers do store files in the Windows system and I know the files are there. It's a matter of duplicating them or perhaps a browser plugin that might specifically do that.

I had been considering getting my desktop computer up and running. One issue is space. The computer desk is there. Presently it has stacks of DVDs on it, imagine that, and no place for them to go. And that's the lesser of the stacks of stuff I have to go through to get the space organized before I can setup the desktop system.

The other issue that has come to light recently with the warmer temperatures we've had is remembering how warm it can get in this room with but a single output vent. There is hardly any ventilation in here and running a desktop setup in the summer would probably turn this room into an oven.

This home is used as a warehouse, so there is plenty of product in here, on shelves and anywhere else it will fit. This home has central air, but it is ill-equipped to handle a warehouse, being that matter absorbs heat and it's not just a case of cooling the air but of also cooling the product that is stored in here. This is something I have not been able to get across to the people who work here during the day as I try to impress upon them not to shut off the A/C because if it gets warm in here and it's hot outside I cannot get it cooled back down effectively and it works the A/C unit harder. Never let people who wear jackets when it's in the 70s near a damn thermostat.

The idea of doing an indie film podcast has been put off until winter. At that time I can setup my desktop and audio equipment and not have to bother with the heat so much. I will probably have to record marathon podcast sessions, doing several within the same week for later publication.

For the time being my focus has shifted from getting the desktop setup to getting a new laptop. This current model is old and busted. I have to connect an external monitor to use it, and there's not enough space to keep it connected. Though I have a good laptop, it's a beast and is more of a desktop replacement than something you would want to carry around. I'm looking for a more portable and comfortable solution that would make it less of a chore to get online and get some work done.

Getting a newer laptop is the first step in getting myself back into a better position to be more useful. The second step of doing the transfer is likely to cause some downtime of some kind or the other; not like that's going to be very noticeable anyway with what little I've accomplished over the last 2 months. During the transfer my internet access will be limited to my Android phone/tablet and netbook. That's certainly not device poor, but none of them compare to accessing the internet on a normal computer, and are very slow comparatively.

I live in the dark ages computer-wise. My desktop I plan to setup for winter runs on Windows XP, as does this laptop. Vista sucked to high heaven, and unfortunately that crap is on one of my laptops, and the programs I most prefer are older programs that run very well on XP, and I'm afraid some of them won't run on a newer system with the current Windows. I may get a secondary computer with a newer Windows install to use mainly for internet and some newer programs that won't run on XP.

The transfer is becoming more necessary as this old laptop has been a trooper, but with a busted screen if I have an issue with it that forces it to start in DOS or maintenance mode, I won't be able to see the screen as the monitor requires Windows to start before it's activated. Getting the files off of it and transferring them to a new computer before that happens is key.

I hope to be able to do this sometime in May or June. I also hope to be able to find the drivers for the wifi adapter or else I'm going to have another problem with which to deal.

Smartphones and The New Universal Incompatibility

Smartphones have most definitely been an eye opener. Things I'm used to on a Windows computer are vastly different, largely due to size differences, or just simply not being there. If you have a Windows computer or laptop you have basics like Textpad and Wordpad built in among other basic programs that make it usable right out of the box. Then along comes Android.

Being based on Linux, Android has adopted Linux's most universal feature; a lack of user friendliness. Linux itself is not an operating system but a kernel upon which other open source software is used to build a system. Red Hat, Ubuntu, MEPIS, Fedora, and SUSE are operating systems or distros of Linux. There are hundreds of distros of Linux, most can be downloaded for free to install as an OS, and they vary widely by their bits and pieces included which make up the distro.

Android uses a modified Linux kernel with bits and pieces added to it to make up the OS. What's standard for those bits and pieces I don't know, but apparently the ability to natively edit text files is not. I'm sure Google has a service online you can use to edit text files and documents, which would fit with what seems to be their philosophy (I don't speak for them) of keeping you connected to them so you don't stray. Certainly Android exemplifies this philosophy as about the only thing guaranteed to be included in Android are ways to connect you to Google.

Google is simply a monopoly and they intend to keep it this way as any successful monopoly would. This is not news to anybody. Monopolies will always exist despite the best efforts of some to break them up. This is part and parcel of societies raised on monotheistic theology. We are raised from the time we can utter a word to accept a singular authority. Monotheism was never about any god but was instituted as a way to keep people under greater control. The proliferation of monopolies like Walmart and Google is a result of this as we unconsciously flock to whomever is number one, without reason or rationale.

Android is what it is. It is a shrewd marketing ploy on Google's part that allows others, due to profit for them by using a free OS for their devices, to automatically create shrines with an instant connection to Google. Greed has a tendency to override reason and phone providers have freely optioned to stick with using their phones as Google shrines and as a result we're stuck with either the poor operating system that Android is or the other shrine that is iOS. Both are too freely controlled by their respective and intrusive motherships.

Poor operating system? Android reminds me more and more of Windows 3.1 every time I use it, with the exception that Windows 3.1 was friendlier and better. A lack of multi-tasking, a lack of basic features such as multiple file selection when doing a copy and paste, and no guarantee that you can open a simple text file without having to install software for it. Sure, there are online forums where you could probably go to find a workaround for such issues, but the overriding important part to that is it's not consumer friendly; it should not be up to you to make your phone more usable but to the provider of the phone.

There are apps available for Android that can be used to read and edit text files. Ted Text Editor and Jota Text Editor are among the best choices as they lack the BS so prevalent in Android apps such as ads and are basic and small apps that are easy to run without hogging system resources. And yes, some providers include a note taking app that may allow you to at least read if not edit a plain text file.

What brought about this rant over a lack of a universal way to read and edit plain text files in Android out of the box? I've been involved in a conversation about how we should distribute the bulletin for the indie film site and what file format to use. I found myself asking about the compatibility of certain files with Android and what apps are available to read them. I have come to the conclusion that there is only one file format that you can be guaranteed to be able to read on Android or any smartphone, Android or not, and that is an HTML file. Every smartphone has a web browser.

It should be an embarrassment to Google that Android does not by default have a way to read and write plain, emphasis on 'plain', text files. This hearkens back to the days of 8-bit computers in the early 1980s when even something like a basic text editor was a separate program you had to load from a floppy disk.

Oh sheesh, Google! Really? Your shrines don't even have the friendliness of Windows 3.1? And this is an advancement... how?

As I said, it is what it is and we're stuck with Android if you want an affordable, to be read as 'cheap', smartphone or tablet. With adding apps, and one has to be very careful about those, you can get a lot of use out of an Android device. There's a lot of pure BS out there in the Android marketplace, more than I've ever seen in any one place on the internet outside of a warez site, but there are some genuine and useful nuggets to be found if you don't mind the stench of the trek.

Once again my smartphone consciousness has been upgraded and something I had come to assume with my desktop experience doesn't apply to smartphones. I sometimes do interviews via email and have traditionally sent out questions in RTF format, my preferred document file, so the interviewee can just type in their answers, save it and send it back to me. The assumption was that RTF files were compatible with the basic editor on any computer...

Ooops!

If Android is included in that equation it suddenly changes. Another realization on my part and I have to adjust the way I do things to more accommodate smartphone users. I have never been one to ever suggest someone install software. If I send out a document I want it to be as universal as possible. Adapting to smartphones unfortunately means that file format has to change to HTML and I have to adjust my interviewing to be even more basic allowing the use of the email text itself and even DMs on social media.

Thanks for making that possible, Google (sarcasm).