Category Archives: Lisa’s Editorial Corner

WTF, Twitter!?

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

You know, I have really been pretty open-minded when it comes to Elon Musk’s twitter but the announcement, made about an hour ago, that there are going to “temporarily” be limits on the number of tweets that you can read during a day may be the announcement that breaks me.

I’m not going to share the tweet here because I’m not sure if someone seeing an embedded tweet on a website counts towards the new read limits but basically, Elon Musk announced that verified users are now limited to reading 6,000 tweets “a day”, unverified users (i.e., those of us who don’t want to spend money to do something that we spent 14 yeas doing for free) can read 600 tweets “a day,” and new users can only read 300.  Elon says that this is being done as a temporary measure to battle spam on the site.

(It is true that there is a lot of spam on twitter now.  Recently, a bunch of obvious bots — i.e., bios that read, “I’m just looking for love!” and such — lay siege to a live tweet that I was taking part in.  It got annoying pretty quickly.  That said, I’ve got a block button and I’ve got a mute button and that’s really pretty much all I need to battle them.)

Elon’s tweet was frustratingly vague.  How temporary is temporary?  By day, does he mean a day per sunrise to sunset or does he mean that you’ll be limited by the number of tweets that you looked at over the previous 24 hours?  If I scroll my timeline, does that count as reading every single tweet that shows up on it, regardless of whether I stopped to look at the tweet or not?  If I see a tweet embedded in a news story, does that count?  If I go back and read my own tweets, do those count?  If I re-read a tweet, does that count as two tweets?  If 600 strangers all reply to a tweet, does that mean that I’m screwed as soon as I click on my notifications?

It’s frustrating.  Hopefully, the backlash — and there is a big one — will lead to twitter backtracking.  Twitter’s habit of replying to the press with the poop emoji was cute at first but now, users have serious questions about their experience and Twitter’s refusal to be clear is no longer amusing.  This isn’t a case of some whiny reporter throwing a fit and demanding to know why Elon refuses to suspend anyone who tells them to learn to code.  This is a case of real users having legitimate questions about something that feels very arbitrary.

If this policy continues, it’ll be the death of live tweeting.  I’m going to continue to try to keep my live tweets going for as long as possible.  I don’t want to have to move everything over to Mastodon, where it seems like 90% of the users are competing to see who can virtue signal the loudest.  But, if it has to be done, it’ll be done.

For now, I will no longer be embedding tweets in my posts here at TSL.  I don’t want to accidentally send anyone over their limit.

Let’s hope this is resolved soon.

I miss the Fail Whale.

6 Things I Am Looking Forward To In May

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to the month of May!  Here’s a few things that I’m looking forward to over the next 31 days!

  1. Cannes Film Festival

The 76th annual Cannes Film Festival will be taking place from May 16th to May 27th!  Along with discovering which films will be honored by the Ruben Ostlund-led jury, we will also be getting initial reactions to Asteroid City, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and Killers of the Flower Moon.  While doing well at Cannes is hardly a requirement for being an Oscar contender, it certainly doesn’t hurt.

2. Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3

Admittedly, I’ve kind of grown a bit weary of the MCU.  I’m among those who feel like it all should have just ended with Tony Stark’s funeral at the end of Endgame.  However, I’m still looking forward to the third Guardians of the Galaxy film.  Seriously, who can resist Peter Quill, Groot, Drax, Rocket, and Gamora?  Plus, James Gunn is once again in the director’s chair.  Hopefully, they can bring some fun back to the MCU because, after The Eternals and all that, the MCU could definitely use it.  Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 is due to open on the 5th.

3. Fast X

I can’t help it.  I like fast cars and I like movies about fast cars.  Despite the fact that the franchise has started to show its age, I’ll always be willing to check in on the adventures of Toretto and the gang.  Fast X opens on May 19th.

4. Your Hurt My Feelings

I’ve heard very good things about the latest film from Nicole Holofcener and also about Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s starring performance.  You Hurt My Feelings opens on May 26th.

5. The Finale of Barry

HBO’s Barry is set to wrap up its story on May 28th.  I can’t wait to see how it all ends, even if I am a bit worried that all of my favorite characters are going to be dead by the time the final credits roll.

6. The Televised Coronation of Charles III

Seriously, how often do you get to watch a coronation?  We’ll get our chance on May 6th!  If nothing else, it’ll remind those of us in America of why we had a revolution.  Or, depending on how Charles does, it’ll make us reconsider the revolution in the first place.  Either way, it’ll get some sort of reaction.

What are you looking forward to in the month of May?

8 Things I Am Looking Forward To In August

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Hi there!  Welcome to the wonderful month of August!

August is traditionally one of my favorite months.  August is when I plan out my final vacations of the year.  Usually, at some point in August, I spend a few days up at the lake.  August is hot but it’s usually not as hot as July and, perhaps most importantly, each passing day in August is another day closer to the holiday season!  I imagine that I will be spending the majority of August getting ready for the holidays and especially for TSL’s annual Horrorthon!  In order to try to give our readers the most reviews ever, I’ve started writing and scheduling my Horrorthon posts in July.  I can’t wait for you to see them in October!

Here are a few things that I’m looking forward to in August:

1. A Thousand Years of Longing — Idris Elba!  Tilda Swinton!  George Miller, making his first film since Mad Max: Fury Road!  Critical reviews that have run the gamut from hostile to reverent!  How couldn’t I be looking forward to this?

2.  Prey — It’s a new Predator film!  For some reason, though, it’s called Prey.  I guess the idea is that we’ll care more about the people being hunted than we’ll care about the creature hunting them.  That really doesn’t sound like the Predator fans I know.  Just about everyone that I know is Team Predator.  Well, anyway, we’ll see how this one goes.

3. Spin Me Round — This film is due to be released on August 19th.  It really hasn’t gotten much promotion but it’s directed by Jeff Baena and it stars Alison Brie and I really liked Horse Girl so I’m looking forward to seeing what their next collaboration will be like.  Plus, my girl crush Aubrey Plaza is in it!

4. The Tenebrae Blu-ray Restoration — Synapse is celebrating the 40th anniversary of one of Dario Argento’s greatest films with three-disc 4K UHD/Blu-ray 6,000 piece Limited Edition boxed set!  Invest in physical media, especially when it comes to the work of an artist like Argento because you just know that the latest group of moral scolds are going to come for him eventually.

5. The Better Call Saul Finale — Be careful, Jimmy/Saul/Gene!  Seriously, I’m so nervous about how it’s all going to end.

6. Watching Lots and Lots of Horror Movies — October’s coming up, you know!  It’s never too early to start getting ready!

7. Writing About Lots and Lots of Horror Movies — Again, it’s never too soon to start!  In my perfect world, I would write all of my reviews for October, November, and December in August and September and then I would spend the last three months of the year on an island somewhere.  But, that may not be a realistic goal.  Still, I can’t wait to share this year’s Horrorthon with all of you!

8. I Am Groot — I Am Groot is set to premiere on Disney+ on August 10th.  Oh, c’mon, Groot’s adorable!

What are you looking forward to in August?

Happy Independence Day From The Shattered Lens

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

cats-hate-fireworks

Happy 4th of July from all of us at the Shattered Lens!

Usually, when it comes to the holidays, it falls upon the TSL’s ennui-stricken kitty, Doc, to wish you a happy one.  But I like to handle the Independence Day posts because they provide a chance for me to offer up some advice.  If you live in the city or the suburbs, give it a rest with the fireworks!  I mean, a few fireworks are okay but if you’re still shooting them off at three in the morning, you’re an asshole.  End of story.  And don’t tell me that it’s because you love America because anyone who truly loved this country wouldn’t be keeping its citizens awake at four in the a.m.

I would also say this.  Check on your pets and your neighbors.  As much as most of us love fireworks, they can be terrifying for animals and for people suffering from PTSD.  I guess what I’m saying is treat each other with a little bit of respect.  

I mean, don’t get me wrong.  I understand why — especially after the previous year that so many have suffered through — many people are going to be tempted to go a bit overboard celebrating this Independence Day.  I’m planning on celebrating it myself.  I’m a Texas girl and, though I’m currently happily taking part in city life, I’m also enough of a country girl that I can understand the appeal of blowing stuff up.  My family loves fireworks.  I don’t think there’s a single fireworks stand in Oklahoma that hasn’t been hit up by one of my cousins at one point or another.  I’ll be watching fireworks tonight, assuming it doesn’t rain.

I will admit that I love the whole ritual of Independence Day.  I love getting together with family.  I love the cook outs.  I love the fireworks, as I mentioned before.  Even the oppressive July heat really doesn’t bother me.  Last year, because of the pandemic, all of my usual Independence Day traditions were cancelled and I spent the weekend at a cabin up at Lake Texoma.  I got to watch fireworks explode over the water.  It was a beautiful sight and I’m glad that I go to do something but it still didn’t feel quite right.  Independence Day is perhaps the only day of the year when I don’t hate crowds.

Don’t get me wrong, of course.  Independence Day, for me, does not mean blindly worshipping the government.  (I certainly won’t be doing that as long as our current administration is in power.)  Nor does it mean ignoring some of the troubling realities of America’s past.  If you’re someone who refuses to celebrate Independence Day, that’s your right and I support you, regardless of how much fun I’m going to have today.  No one should be forced to celebrate anything and nothing makes me cringe more than when I see people doing the whole, “This person dared to criticize America on her birthday!” routine.  The whole point of Independence Day is that everyone has the right not to celebrate it, if they so choose.

So, do what you want this Independence Day!  But, seriously, go easy on the late night fireworks, okay?

Happy 4th!

Happy April Fools Day!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Hi, everyone!

So, just like last year, I was originally planning on writing a lengthy post about why you shouldn’t play any April Fools jokes on anyone today and I was going to come up with a list of really important reasons why it’s just not a good idea to do this sort of thing when everyone’s already on edge.

At the very least, I was going to suggest that you keep your jokes simple and short. I had a friend who used to come up with elaborate pranks for April 1st but she never knew when to stop. So, you’d laugh and then she’d just keep going and going until people weren’t laughing anymore and then she’d still keep going until people actually felt ashamed and resentful for laughing in the first place. She was like the human equivalent of a Seth MacFarlane show.

But then I thought about it and I realized that the main reason why I wanted to tell everyone not to play an April Fools Day joke is because I always end up falling for them and feeling foolish afterwards. I’m the one who always ends up wishing people a happy birthday on April 1st, even though I can plainly remember celebrating their birthday on June 16th. I’m the one who gets all excited and teary-eyed when someone tells me that they ran off to Vegas and got married. I’m the one who believes every pronouncement of death. I’m the one who always falls for these tricks and it’s left me totally bitter and angry….

April Fools! I never fall for your jokes! Ha!

Okay, see how annoying that was?

Seriously, I hope that if any of you played an April Fools joke today, it was better than that. I hope you gave some thought to it. I hope you put some effort into making it believable. I hope that your friends and your family eventually forgive you.

Anyway, April Fools is the most annoying day of the year but if you want to take part in it, go ahead! Don’t let anyone else tell you what to do! If you want to pretend to get married, do it! If you want to fake your own death to get out of paying taxes, do it! Do whatever the Hell you want and stop taking advice from people online who are just trying to hit a certain word count.

Finally, if you need something to do today that doesn’t involve personally playing any pranks on anyone, might I suggest one of the best slasher films of the 80s? The 1986 film, April Fool’s Day, is currently on Prime and that’s no joke.

Happy April Fools Day everyone!

Happy Cinco de Mayo from The Shattered Lens!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

¡Feliz cinco de mayo!

When it comes to the U.S.A., is Cinco de Mayo a big deal outside of the Southwest?  I honestly don’t know and, to be honest, I can’t say for sure that I really want to know.  All that really matters, to me, is that it’s a pretty big day where I come from.  It’s always been one of my favorite holidays and the idea of celebrating this day in lock-down, shelter-in-place quarantine really, really sucks.  Cinco de Mayo is a time when people should be gathered together and not forcibly separated.  It’s also one of the few times that I ever drink.  That’s how much I love Cinco de Mayo!

(My fondest Cinco de Mayo memory comes from a 2006 party that I attended in Denton, Texas.  Everyone gathered on the roof of a house and celebrated.  There are a lot of stories from that night.)

Oh well.  This year’s Cinco de Mayo celebration will be different from previous years but still, I look forward to celebrating the day.  I may just end up celebrating it by just watching a lot of movies and writing a lot of reviews but that’s just the way of the world right now.  As I wrote to a friend of mine yesterday, quarantine sucks but at least I’m getting to watch a lot of movies.  Plus, my friend and TSL collaborator, Case Wright, was wonderful enough to send me an audible of Lonesome Dove being read by western actor Lee Horsley.  I just got started listening to it but I’m enjoying it so far!

As well, Dillon Francis is doing an online benefit concert so I’ll definitely check that out.  Erin makes the best margaritas.  And, of course, I can always watch the Cinco de Mayo episode of King of the Hill.  That one is a Texas classic.

No, today will not be a typical holiday but that won’t keep us from celebrating!

Anyway, my apologies for this rambling post.  This is not exactly a typical TSL article, is it?  But sometimes it’s good to just be able to vent a little.  We’re staying safe here at TSL and we hope you are too.  Happy Cinco de Mayo to all of you.

Lisa Marie

P.S. Today is not Mexican Independence Day, despite what many people seem to believe.  Instead, today commemorates the Mexico’s victory over the French Empire at the Battle of Puebla.

Happy Independence Day!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Hi, everyone!

So, usually, whenever a holiday rolls around, Doc, the ennui-afflicted TSL Cat, writes a celebratory post.  Every year, I get people asking me how Doc, with his big paws and his lack of a formal education, can handle typing out a 500-word post.  And every year, I say the same thing: “Doc can do anything he puts his mind to!”

That said, I wanted to write today’s holiday post because I do have a very important message that I want to share with anyone who might be reading this.  I share this every year but, judging by the thunderous explosions and crackling bangs that kept me away last night, it needs to be said again.

First off, it’s great that you have fireworks but you know what?  You don’t need to shoot them off in your back yard!  GET OUT OF THE SUBURBS IF YOU’RE GOING TO SHOOT THOSE THINGS OFF!  Go out to the country and drink your beer and blow your hands off out there.  A few years ago, we actually had some drunken idiots who tried to shoot off fireworks in the middle of the street and it’s the closest I’ve ever come to calling the police on anyone.

Seriously, fireworks are fun and America’s great.  But neither one of those is an excuse for being a dick.

Secondly, remember that most animals aren’t going to be aware that today is Independence Day.  What we think of as being a celebration is going to sound like the end of the world to them.  Take care of your pets and make sure they’re safely inside tonight.  Doc’s probably going to spend tonight under my bed, as he often seems to do during the noisy holidays.  Fortunately, after about an hour, he forgets why he’s hiding and instead concentrates on trying to play tag whenever he sees my ankles.

Finally, the sounds of this holiday can bring back terrible memories for some people.  Please keep our veterans in mind before you try to make your neighborhood sound like a war zone.

So, I guess my 4th of July message is this: Be kind.  Be considerate.  Let’s be the best that we can be.

Happy 4th of July, everyone!

Shadowbanned Again, Naturally

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Well, I’ve been shadowbanned on twitter.  Again.

Shadowbanning is when you still have a twitter account but, for whatever reason, twitter goes out of its way to hide your tweets.  Right now, people can read my tweets by going to my profile page or by following me.  That hasn’t changed.  However, my tweets do not currently show up under most twitter searches nor will they be found under any hashtags.

So, for instance, let’s say that someone decided to go on twitter and search for which film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes earlier today.  They’ll probably find a lot of tweets about it but what they won’t find is the post that I wrote for this site or the link that I tweeted out earlier today.  Or let’s say that someone was searching to see if anyone on twitter had written a review of the new Netflix film, Maria.  Again, I have.  And, as always, I posted a link to it on twitter.  But only those people who are already following me are going to see that link.  A random person searching for “Maria review” will not.

Why have I been shadowbanned?  I don’t know.  As you may remember, the same thing happened to me three years ago and the shadowban was lifted after three days.  From my own research, I imagine that it’s because I post a lot of links (mostly to this site) and I’ve been doing some automated tweets as my way of wishing everyone a good morning.  Here’s an example of one of them:

https://twitter.com/LisaMarieBowman/status/1132247439967178752

The Twitter Algorithm has apparently been set to treat with suspicion any account that posts a certain amount of links or which posts any automated tweet.  A human being, of course, could just look at my profile and see that I’m a very real person who talks to a lot of other very real people.  The Algorithm, however, doesn’t have to worry about any of that or any of the damage done by its decisions.  For a film blogger, being shadowbanned from the country’s biggest social network — even if it is just for a limited amount of time — can seriously and adversely effect that number of daily page views that their site receives.

I’ve been told that the best way to get unshadowbanned is to basically just go silent for a few days.  Apparently, under the new rules, these shadowbans usually only last 48 hours from the moment that you stop tweeting but they can last up to 5 days.  To me, this seems like bullshit and it also seems rather unfair but I guess that’s what I’ll do.

It’s frustrating.  Twitter says that they want to promote “healthy conversation” but this isn’t the way to do it.  A look at my twitter timeline will show that I’m probably one of the nicest, most positive people on twitter.  I don’t pick fights with people.  I don’t send abusive tweets to anyone, regardless of whether they’re verified or not.  I’ve studiously avoided getting involved in any of the political fights that have come to define social media as of late.  My only sin is that apparently I tweeted too much, I posted too many links, and I thought it would be cute to wish everyone a good morning.

I’m mad.  I’m hurt.  I’m sad.  And quite frankly, I’m not alone in this.  There are others who have been shadowbanned for the exact same reason.  They did something that tripped up the algorithm and they were shadowbanned without warning.  Tweeting at @Twitter or @Jack or @TwitterSupport, as so many people do, will not make any difference.  But you have to wonder how exactly we’re supposed to follow the twitter rules when no one knows what the rules are?

It’s easy to just shrug and say, “Well, forget twitter.  Who needs social media?”  Realistically, though, social media has become too important to be ignored or causally dismissed.  My fear, though, is that twitter’s foolish attempts to control “healthy conversation” will ultimately just make society sicker.  If you want to know why so many people end up on social media sites like Gab (where most of their interactions will likely be with Neo-Nazis who were previously kicked off of twitter), it’s because of stuff like this.

Anyway, I guess my twitter silence begins now.  I’ll be back in a few days, hopefully.

Fortunately, however, I will never be silent on this site.  TSL forever!

That too.

(And, by the way, check out this Shadownban Test, in case your curious about the status of your own account!)

Happy Independence Day From The Shattered Lens!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Hi everyone!  Lisa here!

Usually, whenever a holiday rolls around, the TSL’s mascot — Doc the Ennui Kitty — will post something wishing all of you a safe and happy holiday.  Some people have pointed out that not only are we one of the few sites to feature a cat as a contributor but also that most cats aren’t capable of writing complete sentences.  I’m not sure what they’re trying to imply.  Doc’s a very smart cat.

Anyway, for this holiday, I’m handling the honors because I actually do have something serious to talk about.  I love fireworks.  My entire family loves fireworks.  Up until I turned ten, I always used to enjoy summer trips through the Southwest, during which my father would pick up the latest in illegal fireworks.  It was fun and it taught me a very important lesson (as my father put it, “Nobody tells a Bowman what to do!  Nobody!”)  On July 3rd, the Mayor of Los Angeles attempted to illustrate the importance of firework safety by posting a video of a watermelon getting blown to bits by a firework that he claimed was the size of a stick of gum.  I watched that video at work and I literally yelled out, “That is so fucking awesome!!!!”

That said, if you’re planning on shooting off fireworks or firecrackers tonight, be smart.  Four years ago, some people who lived across the street from us decided to get drunk and shoot off fireworks in the middle of the street.  This was on a residential block and they came close to setting my neighbor’s front yard on fire.  Someone called the cops on them.  It wasn’t me because I don’t believe in snitching.  Me, I was just planning on slashing their tires after they all went to sleep.

Also, animals do not like fireworks.  Keep that in mind.  For a cat or a dog who has no idea that it’s Independence Day, fireworks are terrifying.  If you own pets, keep them inside.  If you’re driving home, keep an eye on the road for any of our furry friends who might, at that moment, be out of their mind with fear.

Also, keep your neighbors in mind.  One person’s fun can be another person’s trigger.  During Independence Day, we always talk about how much we love our veterans.  Prove it by considering what they’ve gone through before you set off those firecrackers at 3 in the morning.

I guess what I’m saying is the best way to celebrate the 4th is by not being a jerk.

Thank you and, from me, Doc, and everyone else here at the Shattered Lens: happy holidays!