Don't Be a Slave to the Age! part 2

Free yourself from mental slavery!

My biggest reason for writing this retro-minded blog (besides my obvious passion for Things That Are Old) is to expose others to the vast, seemingly endless surprises and joys of Old Culture and to help them break out of the chains of their current media imprisonment by going back in time to explore the pleasures of Retro.

You see, media today is so pervasive, so flashy and belligerent, that it's almost like we are slaves to what the big media masters want to give us. We can't escape from the mindless filth and idiotic pablum that gets served up by the MSM, so we either acquiesce or we simply tune out altogether and go read a book.

Sure, there are more CHOICES out there than ever before, but we have to willfully MAKE those choices and pursue alternative media on our own -- the MSM isn't going to hand it to us on a shiny Obama Inaugural Collectors Edition platter. And I'm not just talking about the MSM in terms of political media. The entertainment/pop culture mainstream media is as narrow and agenda driven as the political MSM.

But thanks to the Internet and to cable channels like TCM, it is easier than ever to enjoy truly different, truly individual, non-mainstream forms of media. But even though there are endless choices out there for people looking to break out of the cycle of dreck that populates the mainstream culture, it's not an easy thing to do to go exploring off the beaten path. It takes a conscious act of the will to break free from the grasp of the MSM and go looking for Old Stuff, or Unpopular Stuff, or Un-PC Stuff. It's not an easy thing to do to move beyond the superficial and lowest-common-denominator pop culture that the MSM confronts us with everyday. It's not easy to break the bonds of media slavery and free your mind.

But it did just get a little easier. LIBERTAS FILM MAGAZINE is a "new online film magazine that focuses on the idea of freedom as expressed in movies and popular culture." It's a new, updated and expanded version of the old Libertas blog, founded by filmmakers Jason Apuzzo and Govindini Murty, that features tons of film clips, short films, webisodes, trailers, podcasts, and more from independent filmmakers and artists who are interested in the ideas of freedom and liberty.

It also happens to feature me. I've been asked to contribute "visual essays" about classic films in my typically obsessive, crazed-old-movie-fanatic style. My first essay is up now. It's a piece about the Phil Karlson film noir SCANDAL SHEET, which aired recently on TCM as part of their Donna Reed Star of the Month tribute.

What I love about Libertas Film Magazine is the positive attitude the editors take towards cinema and culture. Libertas is interested in providing a platform for filmmakers and independent artists to share their work. It's a website that's interested in having a discussion about film and art and culture and it's not afraid to look outside the mainstream and give voice to independent ideas and pro-freedom artists. It's an antidote to the mental slavery that the current pop culture gatekeepers have tried to keep us in.

And it's not just some place for people to tediously bitch and moan about Hollywood and Hollywood Liberals. I've done my fair share of ragging on Hollywood and its garbage, sure, but after awhile, that kind of negativity gets boring.

Libertas is different. Libertas is interested in championing new films and filmmakers and celebrating the good stuff that's out there (including the good stuff that just happens to be Old Stuff, which is what I'm all about, of course). It's about being a positive force in the arts instead of a negative force. As the editors of Libertas put it: "Libertas’ goal is to show our readers movies they can enjoy – not just to warn them about movies to avoid."

So don't be a slave to the age -- and you can start by reading Libertas Film Magazine.