Putting the online community in the editor’s desk, digg.com asks its readers to submit stories from anywhere on the internet, or to “digg it,” and then other users can choose whether or not they “digg” it as well. The greater the number of diggs, the higher up the link is listed on digg.com.

One of the best things about digg.com’s front page is the size of the headlines and blurbs. Instead of employing the tactic many news websites use, cramming as many headlines as possible onto the homepage, Digg boasts a more than 200 page archive, searchable after scrolling down through the first few links. The top stories, videos and photos are often accompanied by a small picture and frequently tagged to a frequently smarmy blurb about the link. While some headlines, “129 Too Many Cats… At least for me” are certain to grab attentions, the blurbs that follow usually give entertaining pushes towards urging the reader to click on the link.

All of the links archived on digg.com are browsable through various categories visible on the top of the page. To further customize — digg’s “customize” feature allows registered users to decide which stories they want displayed on their digg.com. If the user is not interested in stories about technology, or even specifically, about online gaming, the user can choose to remove those kinds of stories from their digg.com feed.

When it comes to presenting the news to the people, digg.com has gotten it down to the t with their user-friendly design and specifications with the individual in mind.

I’m surprised I’ve successfully avoided talking at length about any films from my favorite director in this blog for so long. Truth be told, the average moviegoer may find the films of Swedish director, Ingmar Bergman a little inaccessible. I would argue that many of Bergman’s films’ style has been phased out over the years and, to modern audiences, may be a bit difficult to understand or even, to hold their interests. However, Bergman’s films are incredibly important to consider when developing a portrait of cinema since its creation. From his first masterpiece “The Seventh Seal,” made in 1957, to the director’s swan song, 1982′s “Fanny and Alexander,” Bergman has one of the most influential canons of cinematic work since the creation of the motion picture camera.

Known for his minimalistic approach and existential themes, Bergman’s “Fanny and Alexander” is probably one of the director’s most unusual films in terms of its presentation and its  similarity to Bergman’s previous work. For one thing, it’s extremely lush with color and movement. Originally a TV miniseries in Sweden, the film was cut down to roughly three hours for the theatrical version. Both are superbly shot, thanks to Sven Nykvist, Bergman’s almost personal cinematographer. Both versions are a treat both visually and intellectually, as there are numerous ins and outs to so many of the characters involved in the main drama. Oh, and did I mention that it’s my favorite film?

The plot of the movie follows young Alexander and Fanny Ekdahl, children of a happily married, well-to-do couple in early 20th century Sweden. The film begins with an incredible, theatrical scene as the family celebrates Christmas together with their extended family. However, when tragedy strikes the family, the children are thrust into a world that is the antithesis of their old life and must come to terms with what has happened.

I’m hesitant to recommend “Fanny and Alexander” as a first stop for Bergman… while it’s arguably one of his most accessible films in terms of its structure and presentation, its length and definite dissimilarity from most of the director’s other offerings may mislead viewers in assuming the director’s other work will be very similar. I’d argue that “Persona,” a psychological drama from 1966, while not as awarded as his other films, is the best place to start. It’s certainly one of Bergman’s most important works, and it’s more akin to his earlier works, yet pieces of it continue to be obvious within later films such as “Fanny and Alexander.”

But, of course, don’t stop there… and I’m not just saying so because I’ve been Bergman obsessed for years.

Would you rather check entertainment headlines from credited news organizations such as cnn.com, nyt.com or go where the stories you want will take center-stage? Mtv.com/news targets audiences who come to its homepage looking for the kind of news expected from the popular television station. While general news websites rarely feature an arts/entertainment article, you have to look hard to find something on MTV News’ website that isn’t related to pop culture.

From Kanye to new features on Facebook.com, MTV News markets itself to the young internet browser by not choosing to make its reporting too music-centric. The homepage hosts stories reaching all facets of MTV’s audiences from Hannah Montana fans to “cool moms” who want to catch up on the latest music trends. By choosing to center on just a few — four to be exact — headlining articles, the reader can easily see, without scrolling down, photos and informative blurbs leading to more information by clicking on the links.

The design of mtv.com/news is one of the simplest I’ve ever seen for a news website. Each headline and blurb is accompanied by a photo, which is especially pertinent for entertainment stories when many recognize the faces of Hollywood. In addition to the daily news feed, the homepage features more long-term, investigative pieces that can perhaps stay on the page for days. Several links to videos are available and have a high placement on the page. I especially liked how, even though some of the videos could be attached to the news stories, they remained categorized with their media type.

Mtv.com/news may not be as saucy as perez hilton when it comes to delivering the juice on celebrities every day, but it presents reliable, to the point information in a streamlined format that anyone can easily navigate.

When was the last time you heard about the Australian film industry without mentions to Aussie A-listers, Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe and Naomi Watts (to name a few)? Even in art house theaters across this country, European films dominate marquees and its rare when an offering from down under surfaces.

It’s about time Peter Weir went back to his roots and served up something like 70s-fare “Picnic at Hanging Rock” or “The Last Wave.” You may know Weir as the director of “Dead Poets Society” or “The Truman Show,” but, despite being better known for these more recent titles, I think it’s Weir’s early films set in his native country that set him apart as a master filmmaker.

When I purchased “Picnic at Hanging Rock,” I had watched it once before and remembered being very struck by its eerie, almost other worldly tone. I hardly remembered the majority of its plot or any stand out performances by the cast but I was sure there was something in the film worth my $25 plus shipping on overstock.com. (Criterion Collection DVDs aren’t cheap…)

Now that I’ve owned this film for almost a year, I’m amazed by its replay-ability. I’ve watched it nearly seven or eight times in just a few months and there’s always something incredibly different to focus on with each new viewing. “Picnic at Hanging Rock” is Weir’s richest film in terms of use of tone, setting and the characterization of multiple individuals. It’s vague enough to warrant many interpretations yet concrete so that even passive move-goers can find something profound in the first viewing.

This is one of those movies that will have you hitting up wikipedia the moment it’s over to find out just what really happened and how this unusual story came to be. While it’s not as unusual as Nicolas Roeg’s, “Walkabout” another eerie story set in Australia, “Picnic at Hanging Rock” still pulls its fair share of twists and turns often left out of mainstream cinema. It’s a daring movie and certainly will leave some sort of impression due to its clever ambiguity and intriguing characters.

Never have I seen a news website so bottom heavy! NBC-17, a local broadcast station apparently likes to hide the bulk of its news several clicks on the scroll bar down to make the homepage appear as pear-shaped as a pregnant celebrity. But I’m going to give NBC-17 the benefit of the doubt and equate some of its lackluster design to how awkward my computer makes some websites look.

To its credit, the homepage has something for everyone in a small amount of space. From “Wacky News” to a syndicated AP video feed, you don’t have to go far from home to find the story you’re looking for.

Complete with rainbow peacock bullet-points, the site has plenty of opportunities for readers to remember that the station is a part of the larger NBC group. With a cnn.com-esque list beyond the top stories — at least the headlines are arranged in an easy-to-read format. Unfortunately, the writing in these headlines is lackluster and often attempts to squeeze too much information into the few words allotted. Perhaps if the web designers included brief blurbs to follow the headlines, readers would be more attracted to the story rather than turned off, having already gotten an idea of what the story is like through the overly-wordy headline.

At the deepest part of the page is a collection of various feeds and images designed to attract readers to other parts of the website. Using pictures such as images of popcorn to represent movies and a person taking a picture to represent “Images in the News,” NBC-17 advertises their articles outside of the breaking news. But these pictures and their generic blurbs give the impression that the sections are rarely updated. I would appreciate seeing a mention of what movie they recently reviewed or a thumbnail of yesterday’s big sports event to let me know that NBC-17 is just as concerned about its web offerings as it is its TV counterpart.

It’s images and entire sections of the website that are undoubtedly large that weigh the homepage down and take away from some of the positive aspects of the site.

If you’ve been reading my blog and noticed where I frequently link back to the films I offer commentary on, you may already know a little bit about The Criterion Collection. The Collection includes hundreds of film titles and “is dedicated to gathering the greatest films from around the world and publishing them in editions that offer the highest technical quality and award-winning, original supplements.” While a majority of the titles are foreign and were made pre-2000, Criterion includes recent offerings such as “The Royal Tenenbaums” and “Traffic.” With its impressive list of titles and often astounding transfers of very old films, when I pick up a Criterion Collection DVD, I expect a piece of cinema that is more often than not, of the highest caliber.

Sure I’ve run into titles that were preserved for their innovations in some obscure method in filmmaking and didn’t feature any superior elements in my opinion, I usually agree with Criterion’s idea of what should be deemed an “important film.”

Naturally, when I chose “Sweet Movie,” a 1974 Yugoslavian film from director Dusan Makavejev to watch with a bunch of friends a couple weekends ago, I was surprised when it was anything less than a good film.

*A quick warning, do not watch this film unless you want to be completely deterred from eating for about a week.*

Does a food orgy complete with human excrement and a gynecological competition need to be seen together and across the span of less than two hours? “Sweet Movie” definitely begs the viewer to be disgusted and disturbed minute after minute.

I tried to find meaning behind the madness that was the soft-core pornographic film coupled with a plot line as confusing as any low-budget indie art house flick but I was too distracted by “Sweet Movie’s” complete disregard for the traditional film experience. I assumed its ability to make me squirm and cover my eyes yet fail to turn it off completely was the reason why it became licensed by the Criterion Collection.

While I can’t actually recommend the film, I can say that if you have an unhealthy addiction to chocolate or ever wanted to be covered entirely in sugar, “Sweet Movie” has the power to cure you forever of these desires.

What are some of the most shocking movies you’ve seen? Were you ever driven to stop watching because they were so disturbing?

Close enough to the heart of this blog, take a look at npr.com’s Arts & Culture section. I love how the web designers kept the format as close to that of the homepage as possible. When I originally clicked on the tabbed section, I wasn’t completely sure I’d left the original page but I was happy to see how I didn’t have to learn another filing and sorting system just to view one of the website’s sub sections.

Even the photographs on the page are streamlined. Only one — the featured story — is larger than the rest and it’s instead the text and formatting that serves to separate how the stories are organized. While the page isn’t as colorful as many of its competitors, the link text helps the reader to know what they’re in for when they ask for more.

The “Movie Reviews” section is played up top without redundant images of the films the text describes. Each review links to a subsequent audio recording of the text which appears on the page with small images.

Overall, I was impressed with how pleasing the site was to look at and how easy it became to navigate. While the website did seem unfriendly to breaking news and multimedia, for a radio station, npr.com proved to be a welcome surprise to me.

image from pastemagazine.com

As a senior undergraduate, I’ve tried to begin the job search (read: rat race) early. I’m one of the lucky ones who knows what profession to at least look for a job in and I’ve begun working on narrowing it down to companies I think may hire me. Unlike many of my peers, I’ve known I wanted to work in magazine or book publishing for quite some time now. Looking further back, I’ve pegged New York City as my final destination since the ripe age of 11 years old. Paste Magazine, a monthly arts & entertainment magazine is probably the only publication I’d tear myself away from New York to work for.

Located in HOT-lanta, Georgia Paste Magazine is what Rolling Stone has been and should still be. While it’s more focused on music than film and literature, Paste has its fair share of harsh critics and has already gathered up a significant following since its first official magazine was published in 2003.

That said, its website needs a little kick in the pants to keep up. I’ve never understood why websites find it necessary to smash as much material as possible onto their homepages. Especially since ads are a given for revenue purposes, when text and picture features are forced in tiny spaces around these ads, they look like them. With pastemagazine.com, there’s simply too much on the homepage to attract the reader and many of the links could be compiled under the tabbed categories visible at the top of the page. These already serve as destination pages with homepages of their own — why can’t the unnecessarily long list of options plugged into the bottom of the page be transported into the broad categories visible immediately when the page loads? Also, there’s no need to jump these tabbed links just to the bottom of the page. Why not create more attractive looking pages to host blog URLs and recent reviews?

To its credit, Paste Magazine is extremely attractive looking in its monthly form. Unfortunately, they’ve got this friendly, concise entry on their online FAQ:

Is Paste hiring?
No.

Usually, I used to check my local newspaper for showtimes in order to plan out when and where each film is playing, but have since graduated to hitting up websites like Rotten Tomatoes that allow readers to see schedules next to film “grades” which are compiled reviews from various publications and critics. But recently, the website has been having trouble gathering schedules from the cinemas in my area.

That’s where this lovely application included on my computer comes in:

When I installed OS X Leopard on my 15″ MacBook, this lovely widget came along to solve all my problems. On the left, it shows all the movies available in theaters in the area and, when you select one, it shows the theatres it will be playing at and all of the times available. The menu is easy to navigate and incredibly simple in design, allowing users to go back and forth between films and theaters.

Once a film is selected, the program offers up a short synopsis of the film, a link to its most recent trailer and general information about the film such as length, starring actors and rating.

If you’re in a hurry and want movie showtimes fast, this program is just what you’ve been looking for. I’ve yet to see a website with a simpler design that offers the same information in such a compact structure. Unfortunately, it’s only available as a feature of OS X Leopard, but I can’t imagine that something so practical will go un-copied for long.

If you haven’t heard already, Joel and Ethan Coen’s “No Country For Old Men” may be one of the best thrillers to hit screens in years.

Of course, coming from the same duo who offered up “Fargo” and “Blood Simple,” it was already on the horizon. “No Country’s” commanding cinematography and detail-oriented twists solidify this story of a dry Texas community facing change in the early 1980s as Academy Award fodder. I very much enjoy the slow, sensitive pace the Coens employ even during chase sequences — it’s what keeps audiences a part of the story while allowing a message most cookie-cutter thrillers let slip to reign supreme in the film’s conclusion.

When I saw “No Country” last week, I couldn’t help but think of “McCabe & Mrs. Miller,“a Robert Altman directed drama from 1971. Classified at its release as an anti-Western, this film may come off a little like a character piece with certain touches and embellishments. However, it was Altman’s genius control of pacing and overall mod through the film’s setting that immediately struck me several years ago when I first watched it. Using Winter and all its brutality to his advantage, Altman creates the town of Presbyterian Church in exact opposition to the traditional arid desert setting of popular Westerns. Much like the Coens utilize the emptiness of the desert and the crusty, overlooked corners of the U.S., “McCabe & Mrs. Miller” hones in on Presbyterian Church as a living entity that has just as much of an effect on its characters as they do on each other.

If we’re getting into specifics, check out how unusually each film presents its sheriff character. Tommy Lee Jones is excellent as Sheriff Ed Tom Bell, who comes from a long line of law enforcers and must come to terms with the changes time has brought to his community. In “McCabe,” there’s no sheriff at all! Devoid of Native Americans, law enforcement or dangerous outlaws, Altman usurped the Eastwood and Denver standard from years before. In their own way, both films show a diminishing effectiveness or importance of the officers who have traditionally defended a clear cut law.

The average moviegoer may find the films a little slow in the beginning, especially if it’s the first time experiencing Altman’s often difficult over-lapping dialogue techniques or the Coens’ meticulous attention to detail, but the spellbinding conclusions are rewarding.

Of course, don’t expect many “O Brother Where Art Thou” moments, this picture may be the most serious the pair has ever offered. Still, “No Country For Old Men” has my vote for best picture of the year so far.