Stomp Tokyo goes to 11

Each year about this time I write a self-congratulatory little essay about the achievements of the past year at Stomp Tokyo. This year is no different in that respect, except for the sad fact that Stomp Tokyo didn't accomplish much.

This is not at all to diminish the good work of those in the Stomp Tokyo family of sites who were productive this year: Ryan over at Reel Opinions is a cinema criticism machine, and if you're not one of those currently enjoying his weekly missives from the cineplex I encourage you to give him a chance. Attack of the 50 Foot DVD had a pretty good year as well, turning out thoughtful reviews of genre DVDs at a regular clip. Hell, Scott and I even managed to keep the podcast going on a semi-regular schedule. Bad Movie Planet shows occasional signs of life and the Bad Movie Report even saw a few updates (and might do so again now that Dr. Freex's turn on the stage as Van Helsing has come to an end).

When it comes to reviews from the Chris & Scott mothership, however, we clearly lost steam. Since this time last year there have been fewer than a dozen reviews. There are a lot of reasons why this is the case, and they're all the usual things you might expect from a pair of thirty-something snarkmeisters who no longer live in the same town and whose "real life" responsibilities have changed. Even with the best of intentions and multiple verbal rededications to the purpose, we just didn't come through.

I wouldn't say we've reached the point of a mature attitude towards the cinema or anything, but Scott and I need an official break from the site for a while. We've decided to take a year's sabbatical from Stomp Tokyo, using that time to pursue other projects and/or recharge our batteries. I think the hope is that some formal separation from the watch-and-review process (which instills a vague sense of guilt when I watch a movie with no intentions of writing about it later) will rekindle our enthusiasm for b-movies, and in particular the making fun of those movies "in print."

Not that we'll disappear entirely from the b-landscape, mind you. Scott and I each intend to post regularly to our blogs (here and, uh -- on the page you're reading) and we'll keep recording podcasts as our schedules permit. I'm still involved with B-Fest and my job keeps me in touch with the local Austin film scene and with film festivals around the world. I'll be posting occasionally at Slackerwood as well. So see? You'll hardly notice I'm "gone." What Scott intends to do with his time (besides watch high-def DVDs) is unknown; you'll have to ask him over on his blog.

There was some talk between the two of us about using the "extra" time to move the older reviews into the new Wordpress format. If that happens the front page will change from time to time as we throw those reviews into the new look. I wouldn't be surprised if some of those reviews got some additional polishing in the writing department as we gaze back upon our former language in horror. But that would be, you know, if we get motivated around that.

So that's what we're up to on the 11th anniversary of starting this crazy project. Not the most upbeat annual report I've ever given, but I'm looking forward to the official vacation we've granted to ourselves. I hope that this time next year you find us refreshed and ready to return with guns blazing.

Thanks for hanging in there with us, especially those who have been around since the beginning (and I know you're out there). We find your faith in us disturbing, but we're glad it's there just the same.