Skip to main content

Hey Newspapers, do full reviews of movies that only play for one night, just the way you write about bands that only play for one night

So, as some of you indie filmmaker/distributor types know, most newspapers require a week long run of a movie in order for them to review the movie. Now, if the movie is screening for one or two nights in a given city the major newspapers (mainstream & alterna) may write some type of a story about the movie, but there won't be a full review. Not sure how this practice evolved, but it is with us.

Now, in the music world, a well regarded musician or a band can play one show in a given city & the local newspapers will write a story about that show & they may also publish a review of the show the next day. This practice should be adopted for film reviewing. Otherwise the newspapers are mostly going to be writing about Hollywood product (as they do now), not new indie movies or foreign movies that are being self-distributed or are being distributed by small distributors (unless they are playing for a week).

On the bright side, the internet is around. Here we can write about whatever screening event we want, whether it's happening for one day or for a month.

But it would be useful to have newspaper reviews of movies that play for less than a week. A lot of people still read newspapers, and there are a lot of good movies that can afford to play for a couple of nights but can't afford to play for a week or more.

- Sujewa

Full Movie - SNEAK PREVIEW - Cosmic Disco Detective Rene And The Mystery Of Immortal Time Travelers

NEW - COSMIC DISCO DETECTIVE RENE (2023) - TRAILER!

Popular Posts

Written notes/review plus live video review of By the Stream (2025) by Hong Sang-soo

By the stream review - from Lincoln Center, NYC viewing - no spoilers The hype is real - By the Stream is very good by Hong movies standards and also normal comedy-drama standards. There were like 30-40 people at Lincoln Center for the 1PM Fri 8/8/25 (opening day) screening of By the Stream.  People in that neighborhood are serious about their foreign films. Cinematography is very simple, from a canon XA small sensor HD cam, I could see familiar details, how those cams film the moon, scenes at night - it’s like a 1980s or 1990s early indie cinematography style that we do not see much these days - works well for Hong’s movies. No color grading, very simple video/cinematography. A more fleshed out movie than some recent Hong movies. In the movie a skit is prepped, and we actually get to see it performed. A couple of serious issues are discussed.  Some unexpected, light things happen. It’s a comedy-drama chill hangout movie w/ creative South Korean people - good times. Probably o...
Read more

Review - doing difficult things well - making a period movie about the early 1980s with teenagers - Blake Calhoun's CASEY MAKES A MIXTAPE

By Sujewa Ekanayake * Blake Calhoun is an experienced indie filmmaker - but, it's very difficult to do period movies well - movies set in another era - on a low indie film budget, and it can be difficult to have several teenagers in your cast as the main characters - to get great performances. Calhoun has managed to do both things well in his new movie CASEY MAKES A MIXTAPE. The early 1980s Texas in Calhoun's movie looks - and more importantly feels - believable.  Great cinematography and color grading work.  And his teen actors do a great job bringing their characters to life.   I think the movie is being promoted as a mainstream accessible, realistic, light comedy-drama.  And perhaps it is also being marketed to a teenage audience. But, as an old person in NYC, I found the movie to be almost an observational movie - documenting a summer in the life of the main character (played in a low key, somewhat dramatic, and overall an entertaining way by the excellent Presle...
Read more

Canon G60 daytime and nighttime test videos - excellent camcorder for indie filmmakers

 
Read more

Reading Material

Show All