If you’re a fan of scary movies, you may be hard pressed to choose your favorite. But oh. my. lord; the worst scary movies of all time have turned into jokey, pop culture icons.

The trailers of these films look promising, and then the movies crash and burn. Big time. And they become the laughingstock of twelve year old kids everywhere who thought they were being daring by watching that movie that mommy and daddy told them not to.

But, wait. That movie was a joke.

In the spirit of Halloween, my friends and I were recently trying to list the best scary movies of all time, but in doing so, we ended up creating a list of the 5 worst. It seems like those were easier to come up with because usually there’s no argument; they are unanimously bad. These movies don’t send chills down your spine or make you jump when someone comes up behind you. These not-so-scary movies make you laugh. Hard.

In no particular order: Read More »

So we are finally in the dog days of summer (which I realized when I went for a run at noon). Some of us are working, going to school, or schlepping around interning. Others are laying by the pool sipping sangria (*jealous*). But, I think we can all agree that a break of any kind is welcome. Especially when that break is a trip to somewhere cool, offbeat and–the best part– cheap. So pack your favorite flip flops, airy sundress and camera and head somewhere, anywhere but here. Might I suggest any of these destinations:

Isla de Vieques, Puerto Rico.
This 21 by 5 mile island is referred to asIsla Nena by residents, loosely translating into “virgin island”. Located only 6 miles off Puerto Rico’s coast, it is a hotbed of natural beauty and tropical activities. You fly onto the island after flying into San Juan, Puerto Rico, so be prepared with a your iPod, a magazine, eye mask or Valium–whatever it takes to get you to board an 8 seater plane to Vieques Airport.

Once you’re on the island, you can stay anywhere ranging from $90 a night B&B’s to luxury hotels, so whether you’re on a typical college budget, or you happen to have a trust fund, there are accomodations for you.

Activities on the island include: hiking, snorkeling and diving, biking, fishing, sightseeing and dining in Bravos de Boston, Vieques’ most fashionable town. However, the highlight of this destination is definitely its Bioluminescent Bay. The bay is filled with phosphorescent microorganisms, that glow in the dark when disturbed. Nighttime charter boats take you on a guided swimming and kayaking trip to the brightest bio bay in the world. If you’re looking for a tropical getaway that won’t break the bank and is off the beaten path, Vieques is it. Read More »

I like superhero movies. They’re rad. Growing up in the rural North East, there wasn’t much to do once the sun went down, and so instead of huffing paint thinner in the backyard like our neighbors, my brother and I turned to comics. X-Men, Batman, Spiderman, Aliens…and all the 701 offshoots of each. Many hours of my childhood were spent sitting in a Ninja Turtle tent in my brother’s room, passing the newest issue of X Force and a box of Hostess cupcakes back and forth with him.

I’ve seen the X-man movies, watched every single Spiderman (even though I have this huge issue with Kristin Dunst), drooled over Christian Bale as Batman, and recently had the ultimate pleasure of watching Iron Man – and Robert Downy Jr. – kick ass on the big screen.

[Okay, slight tangent: can we talk about the scene where RDJr. is in the cave, and he’s all mad and sweaty and dirty and hammering STEEL? Lord. Pass the HOTsauce please]

I’ve loved all of these movies. They were great fun. But being a writer, and ALSO being a chick, I’ve noticed a really sh*tty trend: in almost all of these films, women are pretty useless. Read More »

As a huge horror fan, I delighted in this great article from the Guardian about women and horror movies. It seems like a genre tailored for men, who anecdotally enjoy violence and nudity more than their female counterparts, but women have just as visceral a reaction to the films as men do. The article offers an interesting theory about why people watch horror movies:

According to Dr Glenn Wilson, a psychologist at King’s College London: “Horror films, for men and women, are about learning to cope with emotions that would threaten to overwhelm us if they happened in reality.”

I would even go so far as to say there is a more nuanced point to be made, that horror films, and film in general, help us understand the difficult realities that people face daily. The following horror films have themes that relate to women and women’s issues especially. And, disregarding whatever deeper meaning they may have, all these movies totally kick ass.

5. The Craft: Four teen witches band together to get revenge on the popular kids who made them outcasts. Follows a theme that is very persistent in horror–coming of age. Magic is the means by which these girls become women and address their changing bodies, minds, and perceptions of the world. Read More »

Sesame Street is no longer safe for kids.In a hilarious New York Times article, Virginia Heffernan jokes about the very real warning on the DVD for volumes 1 and 2 of Sesame Street: “These early ‘Sesame Street’ episodes are intended for grown-ups, and may not suit the needs of today’s preschool child.”

After subjecting herself and friends to an “all-ages” screening of the 1970’s version of the kids show, Heffernan bemoaned the “damage” the show’s gritty early years caused her psyche.

“The show rolled, and the sweet trauma came flooding back. What they did to us was hard-core. Man, was that scene rough. The masonry on the dingy brownstone at 123 Sesame Street, where the closeted Ernie and Bert shared a dismal basement apartment, was deteriorating. Cookie Monster was on a fast track to diabetes. Oscar’s depression was untreated. Prozacky Elmo didn’t exist.”

Even though I was nothing but a faraway dream in the 70’s, I remember tuning into Sesame Street during my early years, somewhere around 1986. While I’m pretty sure Elmo had been ‘born’ by then, the images my pre-school eyes witnessed were not the saccharin filled pictures that flood PBS today. Read More »