COOP COOPER is an independently syndicated film critic with a split personality. His “Southern Side” prints mainstream reviews that appear in various print publications across the mid-south. His “Dark Side” from Los Angeles befouls the site with reviews of horror and grindhouse flicks. Welcome to the site where COOP’s two halves (and his contributors) review and debate the latest film/DVD releases…

The 7^th year of the annual Oxford Film Festival in Oxford, Mississippi kicked off the night of Thursday the 4^th by taking over half of the Malco Oxford Studio Cinema and roping an area off for the media, filmmakers and other assorted guests. While I had attended screenings at large festivals during my tenure in Los Angeles, I was only moderately enthused about covering a local one. I figured I’d see a few underwhelming indie flicks and slink on back home to Clarksdale for some light writing and shut-eye. Boy was I ever wrong.

One very welcome side effect to blues music tourism in Clarksdale, Mississippi is that it attracts filmmakers to the area. Locals may have noticed an increasing amount of camera jockeys and boom mics wandering around downtown and the nearby tourist attractions. Get used to it, because if Tuesday night’s filming of “The Mud Dog Blues” feature promo trailer at Ground Zero Blues Club is any indication, Clarksdale may become one of the most filmed cities in the state.

I dig viral marketing for its innovation and the way it can emmerse you further into a fictional experience. While it reaches only the most tech-savvy of fans, a good campaign can cause an overnight sensation and facilitate unprecedented levels of interest in a film that might have been ignored back in the days before the internet.
Studios have embraced the practice as well. They now dump a portion of their budget into creating viral marketing for their new releases. This works best for the genre flicks that have either a mythology or a mystery to work with. Let’s look at a few of the best and most successful viral campaigns out there and through the process, try to determine which strategies studios and film pioneers will use next…

Ever since I saw the first trailer for MYSTERY TEAM, it’s been high on my must-see list. The idea of three Scooby-Doo, Hardy Boys wannabes still acting like their 10 while in high-school is funny enough, but throw them in to real-world crime and adult situations and you have a recipe for genius. For Comic-Con the “Derrick Comedy” group put together a short film titled “The Case of the Haunted Hotel” and it’s got some perfectly hilarious moments where innocence meets extremely uncomfortable situations…

Ever finish a movie thinking “What the hell was that?” only to have it slowly eat at you the rest of the day? What if after an entire weekend, you couldn’t shake that feeling. That’s only happened to me twice this year. The first happened after watching the outstanding French horror film Martyrs. The second after watching the short film Heart of Karl…

Got the heads up on this one from the fellas over at C.H.U.D.

This is nuttier than a fruitcake or a burlap sack full of squirrels.

Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong have entertained us with their pot-fueled antics since 1978’s “Up in Smoke.” It’s hard to believe the two have kept their schtick (and their liver/brains) alive since then. Now they’ve done something I’m not sure what to make of…

The project: ONEDREAMRUSH. The idea: To have a director create a stream of conciousness, dream-like, 42 second movie. The Purpose: To sell vodka. This reminds me of those mostly cool, but sometimes hit-or-miss BMW films featuring Clive Owen as “The Driver.” Each was by a different famous director and the sole purpose was to sell more Beemers. It was an ambitious marketing move that (I hope) paid off for the company. Now 42Below Vodka has hired the likes of Asia Argento, Abel Ferrera, David Lynch,…