YouTube has changed the media landscape since its launch in 2005. It has given people a platform for their creations and showed that people didn’t need large amounts of money or resources to entertain and educate the public. People who have become video creators on YouTube have made it their full-time careers.
There have been plenty of people who have made movie and media channels. There has been an evolution in the YouTube movie sphere, going from angry reviewers and quick reviews to more in-depth long-form videos and essay content. Sadly, the YouTube movie scene has been infected by culture war content farms, led by a Scottish alcoholic, a neurotic ‘nerd’, and so-called geeky gamers. They have mined their hatred for profit and argue that everything is bad in Hollywood because of ‘woke’ politics, and they have become some of the popular critics on YouTube.
I aim to redress the balance by highlighting ten channels that are worthy of your time. There will be personal bias because of the subjects these channels look at, and since I am an Englishman, this list will lean toward British YouTubers.
As a disclaimer, as much as I like Mark Kermode and Joblo, they are big enough so don’t need my help.
Accented Cinema (Yang Zhang)
Kicking off this list is the channel Accented Cinema, hosted by Yang Zhang. Zhang is a Chinese-Canadian film critic and he focuses on Asian cinema, especially Chinese cinema. He has made videos on many topics, from looking at well-known Asian films like Ringu, Godzilla, and Train to Busan, profile actors such as Michelle Yeoh, Tony Jaa, and Steven Seagal, Chinese knock-off movies, and Western Films that appeal to the Chinese market. He makes intriguing video essays and can give people unfamiliar with world cinema a primer. Some of his videos are thoughtful pieces, other times they are entertaining as he highlights obscure films. His more recent video about African Kung-Fu Nazis was an entertaining video about a notorious film and looked at how Nazism is portrayed on film.
Calvin Dyson
I’m a big Bond fan, so gravitate to Bond YouTubers. The best is Calvin Dyson. Dyson started simply enough and reviewed all the Bond films and did ranking videos from ranking all the films to more specific subjects like the best Bond cars. Over the years he has expanded his content to other Bond media, like the books, video games, and even the forgotten animated spin-off James Bond Jr.
Due to his Bond focus, Dyson reports on major news reports and rumours. He approaches the subject with a healthy amount of scepticism, so avoids drama and sensationalism like other YouTubers. His analysis is thoughtful and conclusions are be generally logical.
As well as looking at the Bond series, he has reviewed other films starring Bond actors, spy movies and thrillers, and all the Indiana Jones movies.
Dan Murrell
Dan Murrell has been a presence on the internet for a time. Murrell first became known to film fandom when he worked for Screen Junkies. He started as an editor, then worked as a writer on Screen Junkies’ most popular series, Honest Trailers, and partook in debates on Movie Fights. Murrell left Screen Junkies in 2020 when Fandoms Inc brought the company and decided to go independent.
Murrell offers plenty of reviews of the big releases and I often agree with a lot of what he says. He also offers fun ranking videos: some of his ranking videos included all the Godzilla and Kong movies, and A24’s horror movies, trailer reviews, and reports on and analyses of major entertainment stories. I followed his reports during the 2023 Hollywood strikes, and he offers measured reporting on topics like The Brutalist’s AI Controversy. Murrell’s most well-known show is Charts With Dan where he analyses the weekly box-office.
What makes Murrell compelling is his knowledge and passion, and he’s able to analyse film and TV as both entertainment and as a business. Even when Murrell looks at a more controversial subject, like the drama between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, he does it in a balanced, thoughtful matter compared to his rage-baiting rivals.
Dark Corners Review
Dark Corners Review is a YouTube which deserves a lot more attention. Founded in 2012, Dark Corners Reviews started as a channel that rips into the worst B-Movies. Their targets have included Lady Terminator, The Clones of Bruce Lee, and Roger Corman’s Fantastic Four. Their Bad Movie Reviews are humorous, sardonic, informative, and condensed. They rarely release a review that’s over 10 minutes long. They don’t do a blow-by-blow takedown of a film like other bad movie reviewers have done.
The bad movie reviews are Dark Corners’ bread-and-butter and they have expanded their content. During the Pandemic they started reviewing movies released on streaming and physical media, and they have kept up the series. These reviews are more serious and informative and the subjects of these films have ranged from well-known classics to diamonds in the rough.
The third type of videos Dark Corners produces are long-form essays. These showcase a passion for cinema as they do deep dives into films like M and Witchfinder General, highlight a lesser known filmmaker’s career and list videos.
Good Bad Flicks (Cecil Trachtenberg)
Good Bad Flicks is run by Cecil Trachtenberg, a long-time YouTuber. He even produced videos for the online magazine The Escapist. As the name suggests, Good Bad Flicks looks at B-movies and cult classics. His long-running series is Exploring which looks at the production of a specific film. These videos look at the personnel involved in a film, how they came together and came up with an idea, and looks at various technical aspects like special effects and make-up. His early Exploring videos were fairly short, around 10 minutes, but they have become more extensive. The Exploring series has looked at all sorts of films, from big hits like Police Academy, well-known cult classics, such as Dog Soldiers, and more obscure films, i.e. Letters from the Big Man. Trachtenberg also does some shorter reviews of more recent films, and occasionally looks at video games, and more recently is Overlooked which highlights five lesser-known films or TV in a specific genre, like Folk Horror.
In/Frame/Out
In/Frame/Out is an English video essayist who uses his film studies education to offer deep dives into specific films. He has looked at everything, from big budget films, to recent releases, to cult classics, to utter trash. He looks at production history and has a more scholarly approach since he looks at aspects like sociological, economic, and political context. Whilst In/Frame/Out does look at films in a more academic matter, he does inject some humour into the videos, he does like to use clips from The Simpsons, and he will tear a bad film apart. I completely agree with his takedown of The Boondock Saints.
As well as looking at specific films, In/Frame/Out has made videos that look at unmade sequels to Se7en and Fight Club, the disputing background of Bumfights, and looking at whole series of films like Wrong Turn and The Crow. A yearly tradition for In/Frame/Out is his Best and Worst Movies lists. His Worst Movies lists are particularly interesting since he often finds the obscure that are usually buried on streaming services or VOD.
Mathew Buck
Mathew Buck started his film criticism during the ‘angry reviewer’ era of video critics. He was a member of a popular website. His original show was Bad Movie Beatdown which as the title suggested he reviewed bad movies, from big hits like Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and A Good Day to Die Hard, to more obscure offerings. I enjoyed it when he looked at a more obscure film like Parting Shots, Bear, and Reckoning Day, as well as ripping into Steven Seagal. I share his views with Equilibrium that it’s an overrated sci-fi film.
When Buck was an angry reviewer, he took a more analytical approach and looked at the background of a film’s production. He didn’t become dependent on sketches and cutaways like some other angry reviewers.
Buck has moved away from angry reviewing. He started with a secondary series Projector where he initially reviewed films that were released in the UK first. His reviews of new releases have become his main focus and he is an insightful film critic. There has been an evolution in his film criticism because his early reviews were three minutes long and they now normally reach the 25-minute mark. Buck also does short-form reviews, usually of smaller releases.
Beyond his film criticism content, Buck does podcasts with guests like Ryan Hollinger, Oliver Harper, and Stuart Ashen, and video essays, such as his video about Independence Day’s alternative ending. I would like to see him do more video essays.
There is some local bias for me because Buck has become a part of the film scene in Bristol. He has relationships with the Bristol Bad Film Club, 20th Century Flicks, and the Forbidden Worlds Film Festival.
Rowan J Coleman
I ripped into a Scottish Youtuber in the introduction, so I should balance things out by showcasing a good Scottish media Youtuber: Rowan J Coleman. Coleman is a sci-fi specialist and his channel offers a wide variety. As a film nerd, I enjoy his reviews/retrospectives that look at the production history of sci-fi movies like Avatar, Independence Day, and The Matrix as well as offering his opinion. Coleman is informative and passionate and doesn’t sound like he is simply reading off Wikipedia.
Coleman’s channel also offers a deeper analysis of films, TV, and writing. He gave a bold defence of the characters in Avatar by saying they were well-written and deserved more respect. He is a fan of many sci-fi franchises and makes videos on Star Trek, Red Dwarf, and Babylon 5. Coleman is a Trekkie so produced many videos such as retrospectives of the shows and movies, and discussions about these series, such as what Gene Roddenberry’s vision was, looking at in-universe information and lore.
Ryan Hollinger
Hailing from Northern Ireland, Ryan Hollinger is a horror specialist. His videos focus on specific films and provide a deep analysis. He looks at everything, from the story, direction, fear factor, and the wider context that influences a film. He reviews sorts of films, like big-budget chillers, well-known horror films, cult classics, hidden gems, and infamous trash. Even when Hollinger looks at notoriously bad films, he attempts to find the positive, such as what themes a film is exploring and interesting scenes or scares. It’s a more thoughtful approach than saying ‘look at this piece of crap.’ It is enjoyable when Hollinger highlights a lesser-known film and gives it some oxygen. Hollinger has occasionally looked at other media, like TV, video games, and books. Hollinger will admit he uses the word ‘however’ way too often.
Val Verde Broadcasting
Richard Jackson and Duncan Casey are the duo who front Val Verde Broadcasting. Jackson and Casey first became known to YouTube movie fandom when they worked with Oliver Harper and went independent in 2018. They named themselves after the fictional country that featured in films like Commando and Die Hard 2 and they have branded themselves as a faux dictatorship.
Val Verde Broadcast has offered in-depth discussions about popular genre films, made commentary tracks of these classics (i.e. Die Hard, Star Wars, Alien, etc) reviewed big releases, and had discussions about the film industry. They have brought on guests like filmmaker Marc Price (Colin), lecturer/screenwriter Toby Venables (His House), and Hollywood Special Effects artist Rob Meyers. During the Pandemic they did weekly watch parties. The pair do interact with their fans and they have cultivated a loyal fanbase.
Jackson and Casey are professionals in the British film industry, Jackson is a director of photography and Casey is an actor. They have used their experience to discuss what it’s like to work in the film industry and give advice to anyone contemplating a film career.
What makes Val Verde so special is the friendship between the main pair, their relaxed nature, and having interesting yet funny discussions. For me, they do cover topics of interest, have shared sensibilities, and have a juvenile sense of humour. I like to think I would have hung out with Jackson and Casey if we had gone to college together.
