Greetings, my darlings! Here’s what I have for you this week…

In honor of the 25th anniversary of Clerks, Kenneth Lowe looked back on the film and the career of Kevin Smith for Paste on the 28h:
“Watching it again in later years, it loses some of its luster, even considering Smith made it for essentially no money, using actors he knew personally and filming in black and white for the simple reason that he couldn’t find sufficient, evenly colored lighting. A lot of it (like Tarantino or Whedon or Sorkin joints) is centered around dialogue that is way too pleased with how clever it is. It’s disjointed and sort of lacks a clear payoff or stopping point—though you can argue that this is an artistic trick that highlights the nature of bullshit retail work, which ends at a prescribed time rather than when you complete any particular task. (I don’t argue this—the thing kind of meanders.)”

Jacob Trussell at Film School Rejects look at the longevity and ingenuity of The Blair Witch Project on the 29th:
“We take a lot for granted with The Blair Witch Project today, especially after the oft-debated merits of its sequels. But I find we take it for granted mostly because the fourth wall that the original tore down has been rebuilt. It’s a style now with an artifice we can see through. The subgenre has found its tropes, many built directly from some of the more lampooned moments of the first film. We don’t think for a second that these movies are real.”

On the 30th, Kyle Buchanan of The New York Times asked if the Oscars are ashamed of the Oscars:
“Does the academy understand why we still tune into this show? When I think back on the Oscars of yesteryear, I remember moments, not minutes: a speech that surprises, a musical performance that connects, an unplanned line that becomes a part of history. If the academy isn’t going to leave room for those moments to happen, it might as well issue a press release instead of a broadcast.”

Also on the 30th, Brian Grubb payed tribute to the catchy them song of The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt over at UPROXX:
“Well, guess what: The theme song for Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is in your head now. It will probably be there the rest of the day. I’m sorry. It’s not something I can help, really. The song is so powerfully catchy that even just the suggestion of its existence — in, say, a headline or a tweet — can burn it into your brain all over again, even though you just got it out of there a few hours earlier. It’s more viral than the flu and… do you know what? I lied earlier. I’m not sorry I got it stuck in your head. I’m glad I did it. It’s a fun song. You should have it stuck in your head. You could do a lot worse, really. You’re welcome.”

Finally, on the 31st Quinn Keaney at PopSugar reported on Netflix telling viewing to stop finding Ted Bundy hot, and I told Netflix, I’ll do what I want:
“Here’s a sentence I thought I’d never write: Netflix would like people on Twitter to stop describing very average-looking man and infamous serial killer Ted Bundy as ‘hot.'”

Enjoy!