by Dave Umbricht

There is a void in the world since Roger Ebert’s passing last month.  One of the great film fans and the world’s most famous critic is gone.  Roger Ebert amazingly transcended media.  He started in newspaper, evolved to television, and embraced the internet.  It was that last phase when he touched so many, interacting with his fans and creating an online community.  There are many wonderful remembrances of Roger on the internet and I urge you to seek them out.  This is not one of them.  This is not a eulogy.  This is a call for action.

We live in such a fast paced world.  Movies enter and leave our radar screens at an ever quickening pace.  With every passing year, there is an increasing film canon for fans to get through.  But what is worth our time?  What is just good and what is truly great?  Most of the words written are about the newest releases.   Fewer are written about older films, the forgotten flix.  Roger Ebert prolifically reviewed new releases, writing more in the final year of his life than ever before.  While his point of view will be missed this summer, there are many excellent critics to guide us towards the best new releases.  The true void is in the discussion of classics.

Roger Ebert’s list of Great Movies has kept many of the best movies alive for a new generation of fans.  I embarked on the list a few years ago, tackling quite a few.  I have watched films I would never have imagined.  I consumed film noir and French New Wave.  I learned that “Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia” was not just a line from “Fletch”.  And don’t even get me started about “El Topo” or “Santa Sangre”.  My world has been immensely expanded by following Ebert’s passion.

Now we come to the call to action.  Let’s keep Roger’s memory alive by keeping the discussion of his Great Movies going.  Here at Forgotten Flix we will be starting a monthly film club.  Each month a different movie from the Great Movie list will be chosen to be discussed.  But it can not be done without you.  Just as Roger created a community, that’s what we want to do here as well.  I invite you to take a look at the list at the following link.

http://www.rogerebert.com/great-movies

Explore it, be inspired by it, and let’s learn together.  Comment below or email me at dave@forgottenflix.com  and let me know what movies you would love to dive into.

On June 1 we will embark on our journey with the revealing of the first monthly title.

Who’s with me?