the M U T A N T deluxe issue #10
HAPPY ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY!
================================
the official newsletter (like there'd ever be an unofficial one, right?) 
of the Mutant Reviewers From Hell

ONE YEAR AGO...****************

One year ago Justin and Kym had a crazy idea about doing movie reviews.  
They were drunk, of course, and also contemplating programming an 
operating system called MAKE MY DAY (MMD).  Fortunately, they went for 
the former and the MRFH was born.

It's tough to say how many visitors we've gotten in the past year.  Best 
guess is around 5,000-6,000.  Not bad for a struggling little site 
trying to carve a niche out of all the movie critics on the internet.  
In any case, we are definitely makin' waves and continue to grow with 
your support.

GEOCITIES LIKES US*****************

Michelle Keller, a GeoCities Avenue editor, found our site and has 
placed it on the "Entertainment" section of GeoCities as a Featured 
Site.  We thank GeoCities for this prestegious award, and if you'd like 
to check it out, it's at:

http://www.geocities.com/Avenues/Entertainment/

NEW REVIEWS*****************

I can hear some of you getting ready to wet yourselves: "When are they 
going to have some new reviews?"  Well, in the past three days there's 
been a flurry of commotion about MRFH, and as a result we have a chunky 
handful of new reviews for you to enjoy.  And it's even rumored that Kym 
will once again come out from her hole in the ground (formerly known as 
Houston) and grace us with a new review or two.

JUSTIN: The Doom Generation, The Truth About Cats And Dogs, ...At First 
Sight, Hackers, The Princess Bride, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai 
Across The 8th Dimension

ANDIE: Scream, Hackers

JOE: The Long Kiss Goodnight

SEAN: Hackers, Waxwork II: Lost In Time, The Game, The Doom Generation

NEW GUESTBOOK******************

I know this isn't exactly new that will rock your world, but the MRFH 
has switched to a new guestbook because the old one died a strange 
death.  So far, we've gotten some interesting and very positive comments 
I'd like to share with you:

Cristine: great site... I love Inigo Montoya... Thanks for the chuckles!

Kathee: What an interesting twist of a web site!! Looks GREAT and LOVED 
reading the bios!

Margey: Oh gosh, this is some funny stuff. I've only seen about half of 
the movies, but you guys reviewed them to a tee. I couldn't have said it 
better my self. Keep it up! Chou'

Karen: What a great treat to come across your website! I was expecting a 
bunch of smart-arsed superior dancers stomping all over Hollywood, but 
found instead measured, thoughtful, and even emotional reviews (hey, we 
like the same things-- so must you not be a brilliant lot?). Keep up the 
good work-- grand to see such humor and independent thought! 

COMMENTARY: WHAT IS A CULT MOVIE?*****************
by Justin Olivetti

I was thinking about this lately, since thinking places virtually no 
strain on my physical body and it's a nice distraction from work.  What 
makes a cult movie?  In one aspect, it's rarely known movie that has a 
specific genre of society as its fans.  But some cult movies are VERY 
popular (i.e. The Princess Bride) and some lesser known movies with fans 
are NOT considered "cult".

I think we've stretched the definition on the page.  Some of us (I like 
to be ambiguous) are just recommending personal favorites that most 
people haven't seen.  I run the "PCU" website, where I've met thousands 
of fans.  It was a little-known failure that nevertheless managed to 
attract a large college fan base.  I consider that cult, although the 
specific genre the movie sits in is "College Comedy".  That's not too 
rare.  

Movies such as "The Crow" and "Buckaroo Banzai" are much harder to place 
in any one category.  They also aren't for a general audience, which 
most "cult" movies aren't.  

I think why the MRFH and like pages attract people to read our reviews 
instead of (sigh) "Girls On Film" is that the average surfer into our 
site *has* strange and inexplicable tastes, and *knows* we do too.  
Siskel and Ebert might be knowledgable film critics (that's for debate), 
but I wouldn't call one of them over to my house to view "Army of 
Darkness" with the same glee I get out of it.  We aren't the average, we 
aren't the majority, we aren't altogether normal.  And that's what I 
think cult movies are as well: A reflection of our strangely twisted 
personalities on screen.  With popcorn.