Coolerversary

What with our job hunts, health concerns, ennui about the dying newspaper business and the stolen attention of Michelle's new journo-training blog, Print to Online, it's been awhile since we've given more than a passing glance at M&M. Both of our readers have pointed this out. It's too bad too, since there is actually stuff to talk about here sometimes. I vow to be a more regular visitor to this site.

For now though, I just want to send a quick shout out to my friend Jason Bellamy over at The Cooler, my favorite film site, which this week celebrated its one-year anniversary.

In his birthday post the other day Jason gave me a smidge of credit for encouraging him to launch The Cooler. That's nice of him, but having read his ink-on-paper film criticism I thought Jason and blogging were a no-brainer combo. As I said in a comment over there I'm not surprised he has turned out to be such a good blogger, but really The Cooler is better than I thought it would be. In addition to regularly and insightfully reviewing new releases -- check out his takes on "Revolutionary Road" and "The Wrestler," two recent 4-glioma flicks on my scale -- Jason has found interesting ways to develop and engage an audience. He discusses filmmaking with other critics, invites readers to debate and help solve mysteries like "Where's Chigurgh?" and, during down periods at the multiplex, recommends DVD rentals in an ongoing feature called "Queue it Up."

All great stuff. Along with The Night Note -- updated almost as sparingly these days as M&M -- it's one of the few personal blogs on my must-read list.

If you haven't already, I encourage you to check it out. Congratulations, Cooler!