What is Material Ghosts?
Material Ghosts is home to longform film criticism that blends close analysis, rigorous research, and personal storytelling. It takes films from both the canon and the margins, from the recent and distant past, as points of departure for explorations into memory, history, and identity.
Written by a former professor with a Ph.D. in Film Studies, this publication is informed by a decade of teaching and research on cinema, and it strives for thoughtful, evocative writing that is approachable and jargon-free. In contrast to much of today's movie writing on the web, it is committed to engaging with films in-depth and at-length. That means no listicles, no link roundups, no hasty reviews of the newest releases.
Slow down. Dig in.
About the Author
Hey there! My name is Justin Horton. I’m a former professor and current writer and communications professional based in Atlanta. Material Ghosts is my return to film writing after an extended absence following my departure from the academy in 2018. In addition to here, you can find me on Lettrboxd.
About the Title
The title is adapted from, and an homage to, the late Gilberto Perez, a theoretical physicist-turned-film professor who wrote rapturous criticism. He argued that the allure of cinema stems from its “juncture of world and otherworldliness.” According to Perez, “the images on the screen carry in them something of the world itself, something material, and yet something transposed, transformed into another world: the material ghost.”
Consider Subscribing
Subscribers to Material Ghosts will get each new post delivered directly to their inboxes. For now, all essays are available to free subscribers and comments are open, but I do plan to place some longer pieces behind the pay wall in the near future. In the meantime, paid subscriptions are most certainly welcome.
Thank you kindly for stopping by!
