I can’t remember the name of a website that used to amuse me way back when. I’m fairly certain it is no longer with us. My details are a bit sketchy, so bear with me.
It was primarily a movie review site, but it may have eventually evolved into other content. It was written in an extremely casual manner - many of the movie reviews covered more about what was going on in the reviewer’s life that day than the movie itself. He would talk about waking up late, wolfing down some chili dogs for breakfast, then meeting his buddy at the such-and-such theater (but the film was sold out so they played video games until the next showing, and he had mustard on his shirt from the chili dog).
The site owner/main film reviewer was an obese slob who started out as a nobody but eventually gained the attention of the media (I think Roger Ebert got to know him?).
That’s about all I have. I want to say the word ‘rotten’ was in the name of the website, but I may be conflating it with Rotten Tomatoes.
I hadn’t thought about this in, well, ten years or so. I have no idea why it just popped into my head.
mmm
ETA: I thought I had the dude’s name for a moment - Harold Knowles - but Google doesn’t seem to indicate that is correct. But it sure looks right. I shall keep searching.
That’s what I was going to say… so I’ll add some links:
Looks like no Harry K. any more. The reviews are by names like Freddy Beans, Madame Revenant, Pekosa Peligrosa, Veronica Rampant… and Big Eyes, who “Saw/Played Netflix’s Interactive Experiment BLACKMIRROR: BANDERSNATCH.”
Harry Knowles had to leave the site awhile back due to sexual assault allegations. I believe a number of the quality writers of the site had already quit and those that had not quit at that point. His sister runs the site now.
He was a sellout as well. He gave The Grinch(Jim Carrey) a positive review before it came out because they flew him out and wined and dined him, so to speak. He promoted screenplays and works of people who worked at the site.
It used to be a site for breaking news on movies. Relied on rumors and so forth. Now, it is almost the last site for anything to turn up on.
When I was maybe 18-25 years old I can assure you that was a primary reason most of my peers would choose to watch a movie or tv show. We probably wouldn’t talk to our families about it or write about it openly on a website, but amongst friends the talk would be much raunchier than what is quoted. And none of us were any more “pigs” than any men who find women attractive and want to make sweet love to them.
Here’s another former writer for AICN who’s done alright for himself: C. Robert Cargill, writing under the pseudonym “Massawyrm,” was an early movie reviewer for AICN. He seemed to have a lot of writing talent and a sincere interest in movies (as opposed to the outlandish fanboys in the AICN stable).
Cargill has gone on to co-write the screenplays for Marvel’s Doctor Strange (2016) as well as Sinister (2012) and Sinister 2 (2015), and he’s co-written screenplays for an The Outer Limits film as well as one based on Deus Ex; he has also published several well-received novels and a collection of short stories.
Man…I had no idea that Harry Knowles had scorching red hair, nor that he is not much older than me.
My mental image of him was always as a cartoon of a guy (literally a cartoon, as the AICN logo) with long hair and a bear and glasses, but the hair in the cartoon was white. Coulda been a black and white drawing, maybe. I looked around and couldn’t find such a logo so maybe I dreamed it.
No idea why I woulda dreamed it…I never read his reviews. I was just aware that the site existed.
Trust me, you would smell him LONG before you saw him. Imagine the grossest combination of BO, stale sweat, piss, fresh sweat, athlete’s foot, dandruff and bad breath. That’s Harry Knowles. You could literally follow the trail of his stench through a convention hall or hotel corridors.:(:eek:
