The basics - 31 years old, married with two kids, currently residing in Woodland Hills, CA. Aside from my day job (kind of a secret, but it’s independent contracting), I dabble in voice over and occasionally play around on the Improv scene.

I am simply a longtime film critic and pundit of sorts, especially in the realm of box office punditry. I also syndicate myself at The Huffington Post and Open Salon. Aside from the usual film gossip (not the US Weekly or Nikki Finke variety), I’ll be dealing with box office analysis and comparison and criticism of film criticism and journalism (watching the watchmen, as it were). I will dabble in politics here and there, but I'm sure there are many people on this site who can do that better than I.

For an archive of all of my work, go to Mendelson’s Memos (http://scottalanmendelson.blogspot.com). That site also contains pretty much every film review I have ever written, yes even some of the garbage I wrote when I was sixteen.

I will update as often as my schedule allows. Yes, I'm on Facebook/MySpace/Twitter, so feel free to find me there. All comments are appreciated, just be civil and try to keep a level discourse, as I will make every effort to do the same. Thank you.

Scott Mendelson

Blog Entries by Scott Mendelson

Because It Best Represents the Best Film Trends of 2012: The Oscar Case for Argo

(8) Comments | Posted February 24, 2013 | 02/24/13 01:01 PM ET

Argo (review) is not my favorite film of the year.  It didn't even make my best-of-2012 list.  It had to settle for the runners-up section along with...
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Weekend Box Office: Hobbit Tops, Jack Reacher Leads New Releases in Pre-Christmas Pile-Up

(8) Comments | Posted December 23, 2012 | 12/23/12 03:17 PM ET

 As I have been warning about for months, 10,000 releases all opened in this very weekend, with another 5,000 coming on Tuesday.  Let's just get right into...
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Despite Skyfall's Regressive Sexual Politics, Bond Girls Have Been 'Bond Women' for Decades

(19) Comments | Posted November 21, 2012 | 11/21/12 10:10 AM ET

Spoiler warning for Skyfall (non-spoiler review HERE)...


As happens every time a new 007 film opens, pundits and critics are generally quick to point out how this new 007...

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Weekend Box Office: Expendables Tops While ParaNorman and Sparkle Open Well

(0) Comments | Posted August 20, 2012 | 08/20/12 09:50 AM ET

It's no real surprise that The Expendables 2 (review/trailer) opened with about 18% less this weekend ($28.75 million) than the first Expendables on this weekend in 2010 ($34 million).  The...

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Good Is Not the Enemy of Perfect: In Defense of Dreamworks Animation

(15) Comments | Posted June 20, 2012 | 06/20/12 11:51 AM ET


As the initial reviews for Pixar's Brave roll in (again, I'm waiting till opening day to take the kid), it's clear that the film is both pretty solid and somewhat disappointing considering the uber-high standards that...

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Weekend Box Office: Madagascar 3 and Prometheus Both Open Huge

(5) Comments | Posted June 10, 2012 | 06/10/12 05:00 PM ET

As I often say, ranking is a relatively irrelevant stat that shouldn't be used as a barometer for box office success.  Both wide releases opened rather well this weekend, and in this case...
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Unconventional Wisdom: So Chris Nolan's Batman Films Inspired a Trend of Dark/Gritty Blockbusters? Such As?

(6) Comments | Posted May 29, 2012 | 05/29/12 04:08 PM ET

I've discussed this a few times over the years, so while debunking the concept in question I must accept guilt for believing it uncritically on prior occasions. If you've been reading reviews...
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Review: Dark Shadows

(44) Comments | Posted May 10, 2012 | 05/10/12 01:15 PM ET

Dark Shadows
2012
113 minutes
rated PG-13

Dark Shadows is a movie with pretty much nothing to say.  It uses its culture-clash and fish-out-of-water narrative not for any kind of social meaning or parable, but...

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Why The Avengers' $207m Opening Weekend Is Even More Impressive Than You Think

(55) Comments | Posted May 7, 2012 | 05/07/12 12:49 PM ET

Ten years ago, Spider-Man shocked the industry by grossing more than $100 million in a single weekend.  Five years ago, Spider-Man 3 broke the $150 million weekend barrier.  This weekend,
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The Avengers Is an Often Grand, Occasionally Frustrating B-movie With Several A+ Ingredients

(28) Comments | Posted April 27, 2012 | 04/27/12 03:25 PM ET

The Avengers
2012
142 minutes
rated PG-13

In a film like The Avengers, which brings together strands of several prior pictures into a mostly...

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5 Superhero Comic Book Films That Bucked Conventions But Failed Anyway

(65) Comments | Posted April 24, 2012 | 04/24/12 04:08 PM ET

Actor Tom Hiddleston wrote an eloquent essay last week for The Guardian basically praising and defending the sub-genre known as the superhero picture.  Plenty of disdain for the genre comes from...
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Weekend Box Office (04/22/12): Think Like a Man, The Lucky One and The Hunger Games

(4) Comments | Posted April 23, 2012 | 04/23/12 08:27 AM ET


It was an 'everybody wins' weekend at the box office as all three openers outperformed even the most optimistic expectations. The number one film of the weekend was not...

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Review: Lockout Delivers Distinctly 1990s-style B-movie Action Goods

(1) Comments | Posted April 11, 2012 | 04/11/12 01:09 PM ET

Lockout
2012
95 minutes
rated PG-13

by Scott Mendelson

The...
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Review: We the Party Compensates for Its Threadbare Production Values With a Strongly Moral Viewpoint

(1) Comments | Posted April 5, 2012 | 04/05/12 02:44 PM ET

We the Party
2012
104 minutes
Rated R

At its best, Mario Van Peebles' We the Party feels like the director's overt thesis statement on today's youth culture.  The picture is at heart a somewhat...

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A Masterpiece Then and Now: Why James Cameron's Titanic Needs No Defense

(80) Comments | Posted April 3, 2012 | 04/03/12 08:30 PM ET

It was right at the opening credit sequence. That haunting footage of the various passengers embarking on the ship, with a sorrowful version of the theme playing in the background (a version that inexplicably was never been included on the soundtrack CDs back in 1997/1998) As...

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Weekend Box Office: The Hunger Games Powers on, Wrath of the Titans falls into the 'Tomb Raider trap', Mirror Mirror Underwhelms

(10) Comments | Posted April 1, 2012 | 04/01/12 04:00 PM ET

As expected, The Hunger Games (review/trailer) again topped the box office this weekend, but its relatively strong hold suggests that it may be a bit mightier than a conventional Twilight/Harry...
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Question of the Day: Why *Isn't* Twilight's Bella Swan a Feminist Creation?

(20) Comments | Posted March 29, 2012 | 03/29/12 07:08 PM ET

In a classical sense, Feminism is defined as believing that women should have the same rights, freedoms, choices, privileges, and benefits as men in a civilized society.  Under that relatively general definition, I would argue that most rational people, men and...

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Review: Wrath of the Titans Mostly Delivers the Big-scale, Cheesy Matinee Goods, in Genuinely Glorious 3D to Boot

(0) Comments | Posted March 28, 2012 | 03/28/12 09:48 PM ET

Wrath of the Titans
2012
99 minutes
rated PG-13

Jonathan Liebesman's Wrath of the Titans is arguably about as 'good' as a movie called Wrath of the Titans can be expected to be.  It is...

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Goon (2012) Earns Our Respect By Respecting Itself

(0) Comments | Posted March 27, 2012 | 03/27/12 01:59 PM ET

Goon
92 minutes Rated R


On the surface, Goon is an assembly-line underdog sports movie.  And yes the film hits a handful of familiar story beats along the way.  But...

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Weekend Box Office: The Hunger Games Opens With $155 million -- Why It's Good News for the Industry and the Moviegoer

(14) Comments | Posted March 25, 2012 | 03/25/12 12:51 PM ET

Besting any number of opening weekend records, The Hunger Games (review here) opened this weekend with a scorching $155 million.  That's the third-biggest opening weekend of all-time, behind The Dark...
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