Slant Magazine

• 1. Introduction

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  Slant Magazine launched in 2001 as a scrappy American online publication with a mission to cover movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games. What set it apart was not just its range but its voice: critic A. O. Scott of The New York Times described Slant's reviews as "passionate and often prickly". That phrase captures something real about a site that never settled for safe opinion. How did a small online outlet earn a reputation fierce enough to provoke Roger Ebert, draw praise from established Village Voice writers, and get absorbed into a celebrated film blog that MovieMaker ranked among the fifty best in the world?

• 2. A Site That Sparks Debate

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  Ed Gonzalez's review of Kevin Gage's 2005 film Chaos became one of Slant's most talked-about moments when Roger Ebert quoted it directly in his own Chicago Sun-Times review of the film. That kind of citation from one of America's most prominent film critics placed Slant in a national conversation it had not formally sought. The New York Press also quoted Slant writer Keith Uhlich in a review of Michael Bay's The Island, signaling that editors at rival outlets were reading Slant closely enough to treat its critics as reference points. Nathan Lee, a former Village Voice critic, singled out Ed Gonzalez for his attention to politics and pop culture, calling his approach lively and interesting. Gonzalez wrote regularly for the Village Voice film section, giving him a foothold in print media even while Slant remained an online-only publication.

• 3. The House Next Door

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  On the 21st of January 2010, Slant absorbed The House Next Door, an entertainment blog founded by Matt Zoller Seitz, who had previously written for The New York Times and the New York Press. Keith Uhlich, who had been a film critic at Time Out New York, served as the blog's editor until 2012. The merger was not simply an acquisition: Slant relaunched on that same date, folding the blog's community and perspective into its own identity. Five days later, on the 26th of January 2010, the Village Voice named The House Next Door one of eighteen blogs it described as "obsessive, cantankerous, and unstoppable Gotham blogs worth going ape over". MovieMaker had already recognized the blog on the day of the merger, listing it among the "50 Best Blogs for Moviemakers".

• 4. Critical Reputation

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  KillerStartups.com, a web community aimed at entrepreneurs and investors, described Slant as "one of the most influential online sources of news, comment, opinion and controversy in the world of indie, pop and mainstream entertainment." That verdict from a business-focused audience reflected how Slant's cultural footprint had spread beyond film circles. The site also covered major events on the festival circuit, including the New York Film Festival, positioning itself as a publication that tracked serious cinema alongside mainstream releases. Slant's reviews carried enough authority that they circulated in media coverage, sparked online debate, and were cited by writers at newspapers with far larger readerships.

• 5. How Slant Rates

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  Slant Magazine uses two separate rating systems depending on the medium under review. Films and television programs are assessed on a traditional four-star scale. Albums, DVDs, and video games receive ratings on a five-star scale. The distinction is small but deliberate, reflecting a recognition that different art forms carry different evaluative traditions. That split system has remained a consistent feature of the publication since at least the time of its 2010 relaunch, giving readers a stable framework when comparing reviews across the site's broad coverage areas.