The Moviesite Spotlight: Public Transportation Snob

Welcome to this week’s Moviesite Spotlight. For those who wonder what this is:

Every week I read a lot of great movie related blogs and I thought it was time to give the ones I visit regularly a chance to shine in the spotlight, by interviewing its writers.

This week’s interview is with Dan, writer of Public Transportation Snob.

What’s the history of your site, why did you start it?
I’ve written about films on a few websites over the past 10 years or so, but they’ve mainly been DVD reviews following a standard format. I started a blog to try different styles of writing and gain more control over which movies to discuss. Another reason was to check out those films that have sat in my watch list for years but always get pushed back. With that in mind, I organize my blog around short monthly marathons covering a specific theme. Examples so far include the That Crazy Nicolas Cage, We’re All Dead! (post-apocalyptic), Take the Money and Run (heist), and When Am I? (time travel) marathons.

What makes your movie blog different from the other ones out there?
I try to use different approaches for my blog reviews to avoid becoming too conventional. It also makes the writing process more interesting for me. I use a question-and-answer format for each marathon and then craft the main posts around the responses. Also, I don’t cover movie news and generally skip writing about movies that are currently in theaters (with a few exceptions). I’m still tweaking the format as I go along and keep looking for ways to improve the blog.

What do enjoy most about your site and what is the reason you keep doing it?
I’m enjoying the chance to catch up with movies I’ve wanted to see for years while discovering lesser-known gems that were completely off my radar. Another fun part is creating top five lists each Friday, which help me to spotlight some past favorites. On a different note, my college degrees were in English and Journalism, but I’m not currently working in that field. The blog is a creative outlet that keeps me sane when the mundane corporate world is wearing me down.

In which ways has your blogging changed the way you watch movies?
I’ve always watched a lot of movies, but the blog has changed the way that I pick which movies to see. The marathon theme is going to dominate what I decide to check out at home. Also, knowing that I’ll be writing about a film keeps me focused when I’m watching it. It’s easy to get distracted and miss something if I’m not careful.

What’s your favorite article you have written?
During my The Year 1984 marathon, I caught up with Sergio Leone’s epic Once Upon a Time in America for the first time. I didn’t love the movie due to some major flaws, but the post is one of my favorites. It can be found here.

Could you name five of your all time favorite movies?
This is a very tough question, and my opinion changes all the time. I struggle to balance the truly enjoyable movies with the epic “great” films. Sticking with the first approach, I would pick:

Casablanca

City Lights

Goodfellas

L.A. Story

Almost Famous

How many movies do you watch on average each week?
I generally watch three or four movies a week. We have a two-year-old at home and I’m currently attending grad school one night each week, so my schedule is crazy at times.

Do you own any movie related items that you are very proud of?
I’m not really a memorabilia guy beyond the DVDs and Blu-rays themselves. I am proud to wear my fine Filmspotting t-shirts.

Anything else you want to tell us about yourself?
I started the blog as a personal project and didn’t expect to have so much fun interacting with the community. Getting comments and feedback from readers is always great and an added bonus to catching up with so many interesting movies.