Oleg: I don't recall such a thing. I prefer not to argue, but to share love. Moreover, arguments in 99% of cases boil down to an attempt to hide one's "I didn't like it" behind walls of abstruse formulations.

Maria: I don't remember heated arguments about any films with colleagues, but there was a situation where everyone around tried to prove to me that "Showgirls" is outright bad cinema. I consider it a very honest portrait of a woman experiencing a crisis due to ageism, and Pamela Anderson's baptism as a dramatic actress. I think film criticism implies an individual position on a film, and it's normal when you alone like something and others don't. And vice versa.

Oleg: I only turn off a film in one case — when I realize it's excellent but needs to be watched in a different mood. The last time was with Fellini's "The White Sheik." The last one I WANTED to turn off was Hitchcock's "To Catch a Thief." Just so as not to see a genius in his mediocre form.

Maria: With films, this usually doesn't happen to me. If I'm watching a movie for work, I always go to the credits, and for myself, I somehow choose films that are close to me (good intuition). But with series, it's different — I have a whole list of projects I started but didn't get past two or three episodes. "The Sopranos" didn't grab me at all with its first episodes and put me to sleep, although I intellectually understand it's a cult thing from the must-see category.

Oleg: From cinema, it's by far "In the Footsteps of 'Shogun'". I've always gravitated toward colossal longreads, trying to make them as visual as possible and write in as simple language as possible. With this text, it seems to have worked out best. Overall, I haven't written anything better than the artistic analysis of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Simply because the game hit a dozen themes dear to my heart. And it allowed me to talk about itself as a big piece of art — much bigger than half of the so-called auteur films I've seen.

(I'm not naming the Ghibli history only because it still needs to be finished)))

Maria: I am critical of all my texts, periodically reread them and think about what could have been done better. But if we talk about articles written with great dedication, it's the piece for the anniversary of "A Nightmare on Elm Street" (it started my love for cinema) and the profile of Audrey Hepburn, where I show her as a light in the darkness on a global scale. Most of all, I love writing about cult figures in film history — I always get emotionally involved and choose the most interesting things from biographies. The article about the main female directors of the past and present is also worthy.

Oleg: None. I prefer to move forward. I open my watchlist and choose something new from a pool that is guaranteed to be a win. It could be a Hong Kong action film, another everyday sketch by Hong Sang-soo, or any classic with a rating of 4.0+ on Letterboxd — depending on what kind of blues has hit.

But if I were to treat myself with rewatches, it would definitely be "The Princess Bride" or Miyazaki's animated films.

Maria: There are two such films: "Twilight" and "What We Do in the Shadows." The first instantly calms me when anxiety hits. Returning to Forks feels so comfortable and homey that it soothes better than chamomile tea. "What We Do in the Shadows" works as an antidote to gloom on days when everything annoys and upsets me. I know every joke and dance for friends by heart. My favorite scene is when Vlad the Impaler literally withers before our eyes from the fear of meeting his ex.