It’s so hot outside. Not the good kind of hot, but the muggy, all-day sweat fest that is July in Central Oregon. I’m normally an indoor kid to begin with, so I mostly compensate by drinking lots of mint juleps by my air conditioner while listening to podcasts and streaming goofy things from Netflix as […]
Jared Rasic
Film critic and author of food, arts and culture stories for the Source Weekly since 2010.
Posted inCulture
Halfway There
Checking in on 2018 Best in Show
Now that we’re a little over halfway done with the year, it’s nice to look back and see the highlights, lowlights and skid marks so far. It hasn’t been a classic year for film yet, but there are still plenty of upcoming releases that could make 2018 something really special in the realm of cinema. […]
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There’s Only One
A dispatch from an actual customer of the last Blockbuster—right here in Bend
When I called the last Blockbuster on Earth to set up a discussion with general manager Sandi Harding, a clerk had to take a message because she was in the middle of an interview with CBS. About 48 hours earlier, I was in there returning a copy of “Sicario” and buying Season 2 of “Mr. […]
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Size Doesn’t Matter
Ant-Man and the Wasp are growers, not showers
Warning: Vague spoilers for “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Civil War” follow. I know sometimes it feels like you need a flow chart to keep the deceptively interconnected Marvel movies straight, but now that we’re coming to the final bow for several of the actors whose contracts are nearing completion, the end game is finally taking […]
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Killing in the Name of
“The First Purge” shoots for the face
It’s kind of amazing how close the “Purge” movies come to being biting satires of modern American culture. All four films have some extremely powerful moments that elevate them into the rarified air of intelligent commentary, but also seem content to wallow in the excess of schlock and mid-’80s action movies. Sometimes it’s impossible to […]
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The Bad, the Worse and the Deadly
“Sicario: Day of the Soldado” will blow you away
When the announcement of a sequel to 2015’s sleeper hit “Sicario” landed last year, the controversy around the screenwriter ditching the lead female character completely overshadowed the novelty that movies for adults could actually make enough money to warrant a follow-up. Upon the release of “Sicario: Day of the Soldado,” the controversy shifted and became […]
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East Meets West
Post-Muslim ban approval, six films exploring Middle Eastern culture
A week ago, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld #45’s ban on travel for people from predominantly Muslim countries—even with extreme dissent from the bench, comparing the decision to the detainment of Japanese Americans during WWII. As of early 2018, the odds of being killed by an illegal immigrant terrorist is one in 138,324,873, and by a […]
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Everybody Schlock the Dinosaur
Is it better than the last one?
I can’t with any sort of seriousness state that “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” is a good movie. There really hasn’t been a great movie in the franchise since the original. Even though “Lost World” had its moments, the series has been too afraid to step outside of its comfort zone and escalate it into new and […]
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Good Neighbors
Mister Rogers really did believe you’re a special snowflake and that’s OK
One of my earliest memories was sitting in front of my babysitter (I mean TV) and having Mister Rogers teach me about death. He came home and got into his comfy shoes and happy sweater—but when he went to feed his fish, he found one floating near the bottom of the tank. He wrapped it […]
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The Ayn-Credibles
Superheroes as objectivist theory
I know it’s somewhat insane to search for philosophical meaning in cartoons, but something about “The Incredibles 2” rubbed me the wrong way. The movie is beautifully designed with several jaw-dropping action sequences and deeply immersive 3D, so the kids will probably love it, as will those who grew up with the original film. If you’re […]
