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Join film critic and essayist Lucas Hardwick as he explores the hearts of gold buried in some of cinema’s most confounding contributions and (obnoxiously) peels back the layers of tried-and-true classics like Apocalypse Now, mutant hillbilly showcases like Terror Circus, and logic-defying wacko samplings like American Rickshaw.
Collected from five years of film writing that began during the COVID-19 pandemic, Death By Snails Volume 2: How to Watch Anything Through the Art and Majesty of Film Criticism is a journey through Lucas’ most personal musings on movies from across cinema history. More than just a collection of essays, it’s an invitation to explore what you like, and why you like it.
Featuring essays and reviews on over 100 films including titles such as American Psycho, Red Rooms, Night of the Juggler, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, The Killing, Dressed to Kill, Cruising, The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue, King Kong, The Birds, To Live and Die in L.A., The Caller, The Sadness, Creature, The Dead Mother, Warriors Two, Messiah of Evil, Glengarry Glen Ross, The Mosquito Coast, Assault On Precinct 13, and many more.
Lucas began writing about film during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. With nothing much else to do but watch an ever growing pile of movies, Lucas shared his thoughts on what he was watching on social media. His unique perspective and charming approach made his writing informative and accessible. Many of his social media friends and followers encouraged him to continue writing about film, and he soon began his own personal blog on Medium and quickly built a library of material to submit as samples that earned him the role of contributor to several film and entertainment websites such as the entertainment column on the UK blogs The Indiependent and Filmhounds.
In addition to writing about movies, Lucas has found minor success as a screenwriter achieving finalist in several short horror screenplay competitions. One of his shorts, “The Ogalaquatsi,” is included in the feature-length Appalachian cryptid anthology script Creature Country which has also placed as a finalist in many contests.
Lucas currently contributes to “Apes On Film”, Trylon Cinema’s Perisphere blog, SCREEM magazine, and the UK publication We Belong Dead.
A collector of physical media, Lucas has curated a large collection of DVDs, Blu-ray, and Ultra High Definition releases as well as many vinyl records and books. Lucas is a voracious, if slow, reader, always having a book nearby. Much to the surprise of many, he prefers non-fiction writing and averages reading 10-20 books per year.
Lucas’ folksy charm and engaging insights make his writing entertaining and thoughtful. Avoiding regurgitating trivia and rehashing plot, Lucas enjoys mining subtext in his film analysis, often discussing what he sees happening in the film and if and how it does or does not work. His goal as a film writer is to discover a movie’s “heart of gold.”
Lucas lives in Evansville, Indiana with his wife Rachel and their two sons. Death By Snails Vol. 2: A Guide for How to Watch Anything Through the Art and Majesty of Film Criticism is his first book.