Zine Queenz #1

Death to Algorithms!

Introduction

I named this newsletter Zine Queenz because we’re going to talk about fanzines a lot; this is because fanzines consistently recommend excellent movies.

But there’s another reason I made this newsletter - it’s going to free you from the shackles of Big Algorithm. Nowadays, people just watch what’s in the Netflix Top Ten or whatever IP Disney spews out on Friday. These streamers - the Almighty Lords of Content - are deciding what we watch and like. It needs to stop now.

As you know, “recommendations” from streaming apps appear by way of an algorithm that supposedly knows what you want to watch. Maybe the algorithms work for you, but they sure don’t work for me. And besides, I’ll take a recommendation from a living, breathing human being over a bunch of numbers and letters Mark Zuckerberg strung together any day.

So you will find this newsletter helpful if you often struggle to find something to watch or if the shows you watch have felt unoriginal and boring lately. Not only will I recommend unique, lesser known films here, but I’ll also show you how to find new movies on your own. My hope is that this newsletter will eventually become unnecessary because you will have the right tools and know-how to confidently find something to watch without relying on algorithms.

Guides & Fanzines

Covers of Various Fanzines

The Golden Age of Fanzines between 1960 and 1980 is long gone, but some of you may have noticed it is getting a little Renaissance. Now I’ll admit, corporations appear to be championing the comeback yet I still sense a great opportunity here. But first, let me briefly explain why any of this matters.

It also started a few years ago. I heard Quentin Tarantino recommend the Psychotronic Video Guide on a podcast. Obviously, I immediately got the book; it turned out that its a film guide with very short, concise reviews of b-movies and exploitation films and it quickly became my bible. It also started an obsession with finding old, lesser-known films.

The B-Movie Bible

I sought more film guides with that goal in mind. Guides from Videohound and Scarecrow Video, and The Village Voice directed me to so many crazy movies I never knew existed. Each guide had a unique voice, almost like their own personalities.

A Twin Peaks Fanzine

The guides led me to fanzines, the really good stuff. A fanzine is an independent publication usually reprinted via xerox machines. They tend to emphasize and highlight the counter-culture of the time. Fanzine topics varied from politics to sex, from punk bands to horror films. Literally no subjects are off the table.

In addition to the guides, Psychotronic regularly published an excellent fanzine. Other great movie fanzines include Sleazoid Express and Shock Cinema. You’ll hear about them regularly in later issues.

Fanzine-Styled Issue of Fangoria

Each issue, we’ll go over the films in a new fanzine or film guide, but we’ll also review the source itself. One week may be about Sleazoid Express while another may be about Videoscope. We’ll even get into more commercial fanzines like Fangoria, the Darkside, and Rue Morgue because they’re leading the neo-fanzine movement charge. For example, Fangoria just published an issue on The Subtance in the style of a fanzine (see above).

Film Programming Schedules

Fanzines and guides weren’t the only way people learned about movies pre-internet. We also had newspapers. Growing up, I loved checking out the posters and run-times in the Post Dispatch’s movie section. Nowadays, you get all that info from a movie chain’s app.

Various Film Programming Schedules

Independent cinemas are a little different though. They’ll post a monthly programming schedule on Facebook or Twitter. Professional cinema programmers put those schedules together, so they’re usually pretty reliable. Check out a few examples above.

Letterboxd & Trakt Lists

Letterboxd List Example

Letterboxd and Trakt lists are also great sources for film recommendations. Generally, a real human puts a list together to be published on Letterboxd. Many lists are hyper-specific, whereas others broadly include complete film catalogues.

Sorting & Filtering Options on Letterboxd

The film catalogues are where its at because you can filter and sort the lists based on your needs. For example, lets take Kim’s Video’s VHS catalogue found here. I can narrow the list to horror films sorted by popularity or rating, among many other options. I feel like Trakt lists are a little more fancy than Letterboxd, but both work great.

Conclusion

Algorithms suck. We all know it. Click this button if you want to break free:

Next issue, I’ll start making specific recommendations based on the above sources. And I’ll let you know about the specific source.

My other newsletter, The Press Tour Whore, is almost ready for publication! In the broadest of terms, The Press Tour Whore will examine Hollywood news and gossip, whereas Zine Queenz will focus on film recommendations.

As always, CineVibez Magazine, our flagship newsletter, helps you set the right mood depending on your vibe-preferences. But is that enough?

I decided vibe-based film categorization is not enough. Nor are algorithms. As Cesar Catalina said, we need to question things, we need to create a dialogue. Algorithms and Vibes lack the essence of humanity; they aren’t real! They’re just marketing tools.

With all that in mind, I am happy to announce that we are publishing CineVibez Magazine’s final issue in 2024 so that something new can emerge from the ashes. That something will be CineVibez Fanzine.

CineVibez Fanzine will be your weekly source for obscure movie recommendations, new-release reviews, press tour news, Hollywood gossip, and changing trends in LaLa Land. You’re going to love it.

See you next time,

Murray