I‘ve spent a lot of Source Weekly pages over the years writing about why we go to the movies and if there’s any “wrong” reason or way to watch a film. The reason why I watch a movie is completely different than why my mom or the average moviegoer does. For most people, going to […]
Jared Rasic
Film critic and author of food, arts and culture stories for the Source Weekly since 2010.
Posted inCulture
May the Source Be With You
January Edition: Cancellations, cliches and chestnuts
You’ve heard that old chestnut, “New Year, New You” before, right? I always assumed that meant most people get depressed during the holidays (especially about themselves and their place in the world), so we look at the new year as a way to start living our best life. But here’s the thing: I’m not sure […]
Posted inCulture
Two Unicorns
"Skinamarink" and "The Devil Conspiracy" both astonish for completely different reasons
When I watch a movie I always hope for the best. I want to fall in love with every film I see and leave the theater drunk on the possibilities of cinema, but the older I get, the more I find those sensations to be fleeting. What’s even more rare than a film reverting me […]
Posted inCulture
2023 and Me: Part Two
The Source looks ahead to arthouse and international releases across the next year
Last week we took a gander at some of the bigger releases heading to theaters in 2023. All of those movies I listed are ones you should definitely be able to catch at the multiplex near you, regardless of where you might live. This week, it’s only fair that we look at some of the […]
Posted inCulture
2023 and Me
The Source looks ahead at the films to be excited for this year
I‘m not sure if my ever-encroaching sense of mortality is making time go by quicker, or if there’s something in the water that’s making each year seem about three weeks long, but I really do feel like I just wrote the article about the movies I was looking forward to in 2022. Looking back at […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Southside Sweet and Savory
Meadowlark impresses without pretense
Normally I have my finger fairly close to the pulse of any new restaurants opening, but this one completely slipped past me. Once I found it, I figured out why instantly: it’s in a neighborhood I never patronize, which is pretty inexcusable in a town the size of Bend. Meadowlark, opened by the folks who […]
Posted inCulture
So Much To Love
Jared shares his favorite movies and shows of 2022
I‘m not sure how it happened, but earlier this year I was lamenting the fact that 2022 hadn’t been a great year for cinema, but then in the last, like, four months, a dozen or so all-around amazing movies were released. So amazing that here at the end of the year making a Best of […]
Posted inCulture
Pandora the Explorer
Avatar returns after 13 Years with "The Way of Water"
Let’s get the elephant in the room out of the way really quick. The original “Avatar” from 2009 was absolutely stunning to look at but was so derivative when it came to the story, dialogue and characters that it left almost zero cultural imprint, while simultaneously making more money than any other movie ever made. […]
Posted inCulture
Napoleon Dynamite Turns 18
A chat with Jon Heder, ahead of his appearance in Bend
I don’t think it’s possible to overestimate how influential to pop culture “Napoleon Dynamite” was upon its release in 2004. I was working at a video store at the time and the number of copies I rented to teenagers and proto-hipsters wearing “Vote For Pedro” t-shirts is too many for me to even try to wrap […]
Posted inNews
We Wanted to Write About 'The Last Blockbuster' the Show, But Then It Got Canceled
The new show about The Last Blockbuster—not set in Bend ends before it really began
As anyone who has watched the documentary “The Last Blockbuster” by Taylor Morden and Zeke Kamm can tell you, Netflix isn’t technically the reason why almost all of the Blockbusters across the world rapidly went out of business. Apparently, it had more to do with the mega corporation getting rid of late fees and the […]