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URL: http://hammerfilmreviews.blogspot.com/
Site Name: Hammer & Thongs
Categories: Reviews, Horror, Classic Film
Rating: PG
What is the main focus of your site?
The raison d’etre of my blog is to exclusively review Hammer Productions and focus upon their war, horror and thriller/suspense films, from THE CAMP ON BLOOD ISLAND to THE LADY VANISHES.
What are your blogging goals, personally and/or professionally? In other words, what, if anything, are you trying to get out your blog?
My name is Alex DeLarge and I currently blog on classic film (both domestic and foreign) at The Korova Theatre. I am a member of the LAMB and have been nominated for best classic film blog this year. Though I didn't win, I am happy that others enjoy my unique writing style and poetic insights into Auteur's such as Bresson, Antonioni, Godard, Tarkovsky, etc...
Though I view and expect cinema to be something more than mindless entertainment, I do have a soft spot for Hammer Films. I don't consider Hammer a guilty pleasure because many of their films are expertly crafted, well acted, and though formulaic project a professional passion for the genre! Just take a look at Joseph Losey's THESE ARE THE DAMNED: though narratively weak, the cinematography isn't far removed from Godard's influence on the French New Wave. I discovered the wonderful photography of Freddie Francis through Hammer films and he rates as one of my favorite members of the B.S.C. And he turned out to be a decent director reminiscent of Nicolas Roeg (though not as esoteric)!
I hope my knowledge of cinema helps others enjoy Hammer films as more than just simple genre excursions; it's a bloody crime that they haven't been considered important enough to achieve status for formal criticism.
Do you prefer an interactive community for your blog or are you the teacher and your readers the students?
I prefer to be interactive with a knowledgeable film community because learning and teaching are two sides of the same coin. I always discover some new slice of information and am always happy when I recommend a film that another viewer would otherwise have missed.
How long have you been movie blogging for, and how frequent do you post updates to your site?
I’ve been blogging at THE KOROVA THEATRE for a few years now, primarily writing on classic cinema. HAMMER & THONGS is a secondary site created to separate these films from my extensive library of reviews. I post three time a week.
Name up to three of your favorite movies (and no more).
Of course, I’ll only mention Hammer films here: QUATERMASS AND THE PIT, THE DEVIL RIDES OUT, THE NANNY.
How did you hear about the LAMB?
My Classic film blog is already registered, so I’ve been a member for two years or so.
Any additional comments, or give yourself an interview question that's not listed above.
I don’t write formal reviews and I don’t rehash plots. What I do is apply Aristotle’s Poetics to my essays, taking the reader on a journey of self-discovery within the film’s frame of composition and reference, and sometime imbuing my own life experiences into the body of the work. My treatise should be a companion piece to the experience of watching the film, even if we don’t agree on the final grade.
