Review of C I N (( E )) Z I N E™
For a change from the previous week, this week I'm going to review an excellent film review e-mail-zine called
C I N (( E )) Z I N E™ .
E-zine Description: C I N (( E )) Z I N E, The Reel Thing™ - a review of film and film related goings on. Each issue has projects in progress rumours, latest weekend US box office grosses, film reviews, various other top/bottom picks and reader mail. Mailed out weekly in plain text via two separate messages.
Frequency of Publication: every week, with the occasional bonus issue
Subscription Instructions:
Address: CineZine@aol.com
Subject: subscribe
WWW location: http://members.aol.com/CineZine/main.html
Contact Information:
e-mail - CineZine@aol.com
C I N (( E )) Z I N E, The Reel Thing and Gas Monkey are trademarks of
Belair/Boyns/Escobar/McCarthy. (Whether Gas Monkey likes it or not.)
C I N (( E )) Z I N E, c/o Michael McCarthy, P.O. Box 298, Dracut, MA 01826.
Cost: Free
Review
Another one of my favorites, so it's easy enough to figure out how this review will end up. The CineZine crew (currently listed at 9) put together a consistent but highly enjoyable issue every week. The timeliness of this e-zine make it worth a read whether you're a typical movie goer or a raving flick-geek. Excellent film reviews and the "Word Around the Campfire" keep you informed on what happening in the "industry". And true to any decent review e-zine they don't just stick mainstream films, and cover independents as well, including true independent films and film makers. The info you can get from here is an excellent substitute for paper rags like "Empire" or "Neon" (not to say you shouldn't go out and buy those as well).
One of the best film review e-zines out there. No high-bandwidth pictures and the like to bog it down, just the info you (should) want. Keep in mind, if you like Macauley Culkin or pot roast recipes, you'll probably be wasting your time.
Rating:
Content - 5
I'd subscribe for any _one_ of the different sections in this mailer. "Word Around the Campfire" covers rumours on films in progress, the people involved and why you should care. "Shaking the Money Makers" box office top ten, including US gross, shows you what the American (and hence Canadian) public is wasting their money on. The Reviews section covers a wide range of new releases and has more than enough depth to be compelling. "The Top Shelf: Selections" and "Bottom of the Barrel: Rejections" allow the contributors to rant (up and down) on anything that struck them over the previous week. And of course the Letters section lets reader write in and blab about INDEX.
I trust this group, they have rarely steered me to an average movie, and give good reasons, technical and otherwise, why a movie is a waste of cash. The whole issue is worth reading as you don't know where you'll pick up an interesting technical note or tidbit on your favorite directors and writers.
Writing Quality/Style - 4.5
Clean style, not wordy, written conversationally. I've never had to stumble over sentences with this group. In fact I've never spent a lot of time thinking about the writing here, and when I do it's to recognize a decent turn of phrase. Either they're all very competent writers or they've got an excellent editor.
Regularity - 5
Every week, every Monday. Without fail (as far as I can remember), makes a decent read over the first orange juice in the morning (I'm not a coffee drinker; a coke once and while before 9:00 but...)
Extras - 5
Full subscribe, unsubscribe and contact information in every issue, and as far as I can tell the mailing list is handled by a human (lotsa work). Every issues is well laid out and organized. They also ship out the occasional bonus issue once in a while for big events like the Oscars and Golden Globes.
Overall - 5
I personally don't know where these guys find the time to put this out so consistently without charging some bucks for it . I figure they must divvy up the freebies that come in the door (of course, one of the best reasons to start a pop culture type review e-zine) and call it even. If you like films, a decent dose of impudence and some decent rants once and a while, use the subscription instructions above to get yourself a weekly dose of relief.
INDEX
