tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post114361485474659915..comments2024-02-23T05:17:08.682-05:00Comments on The Film Freak Central Blog: Democracy in Film CriticismBill Chttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14011398543859221282noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1144041000571165732006-04-03T01:10:00.000-04:002006-04-03T01:10:00.000-04:00(Hope I did this italic thing right, or I'm gonna ...(Hope I did this italic thing right, or I'm gonna look pretty silly...)<BR/><BR/>AJ,<BR/><BR/>gotta say I'm not that broken up about your not liking my writing... I think we've amply demonstrated that any point of convergence between our approaches would be well-nigh impossible. But since you're looking for reasons why the rest of us became film critics, I thought I may as well give you an idea andrew tracyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08766600984119133940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1144029706353850162006-04-02T22:01:00.000-04:002006-04-02T22:01:00.000-04:00Like I said, things might have wrapped up a lot so...Like I said, things might have wrapped up a lot sooner if you, John Landis, started here before ADT or Adam N. <BR/><BR/>You know, the kind of writing that Andrew Tracy does is a very good example of criticism that makes few real value judgments. We never wonder if he liked or disliked the film in question because basically if he disliked it he wouldn't be writing about it. <BR/><BR/>Impersonal, Alex Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13028946403342782184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143985623003830142006-04-02T09:47:00.000-04:002006-04-02T09:47:00.000-04:00Sorry about the math mistake, everyone. I started...Sorry about the math mistake, everyone. I started responding to Alex a little before 9:00 am, still awake from the previous day, and it began to show in sloppiness of many types. As soon as I read Dave’s post, I realized my mistake, though I’m not entirely sure that my analogy is incorrect just because I clarified it incorrectly. <BR/><BR/>Alex, <BR/><BR/>If knowledge should be thrown out as aO'JohnLandishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15560571840235787129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143958680454288012006-04-02T01:18:00.000-05:002006-04-02T01:18:00.000-05:00HP,sorry, my misunderstanding. Thought your commen...HP,<BR/><BR/>sorry, my misunderstanding. Thought your comment was directed at me as I know I have something of a penchant for windy philosophizing - though even after allegedly reading some of my stuff, AJ mystifyingly contends that I neglect philosophy in favour of something called "hardware" (qu'est-ce que c'est?)<BR/><BR/>I'll maintain the retraction of the "deadening hand," as that was based andrew tracyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08766600984119133940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143958620741959222006-04-02T01:17:00.000-05:002006-04-02T01:17:00.000-05:00ADT is a very fine critic and one of my favorite p...ADT is a very fine critic and one of my favorite people to argue with. His writing does reveal things -- about films and what's in 'em. If I want autobiography, I'll go elsewhere. Read this -- it's the best piece I've read about an absolutely crucial film. <BR/> http://www.reverseshot.com/winter06/yearinreview/bwa_darwin.html<BR/><BR/> Now,<BR/><BR/> AJ, <BR/> You're passionate about film, which Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143938270028501602006-04-01T19:37:00.000-05:002006-04-01T19:37:00.000-05:00Hi John, good to have you around these parts. At t...Hi John, good to have you around these parts. At the risk of parroting Walt, I don't really see any diplomatic way of participating in this conversation, although I do think some of you are swatting flies with Buicks. I might add that even though this is "The Film Freak Central Blog", its purpose was to extrapolate the individual personalities from the mother site, and it goes without saying thatBill Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14011398543859221282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143934775934938072006-04-01T18:39:00.000-05:002006-04-01T18:39:00.000-05:00ADT—I was unclear but thought the connections coul...ADT—<BR/><BR/>I was unclear but thought the connections could be made. The philosophy glosses are all Mr. Jackson’s own. Despite the resistance to book learnin', academic jargon finds its way into AJ's writings. There’s a definite odor of schoolyard nihilism in this thread. I can’t be bothered to scroll up, but I think the rejection of empiricism may’ve been cast in familiar terms (if only in a Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143931194644930362006-04-01T17:39:00.000-05:002006-04-01T17:39:00.000-05:00Hey Alex,Good to see you still stirring up trouble...Hey Alex,<BR/><BR/>Good to see you still stirring up trouble. Even though some of these people may be taking what you wrote a bit too seriously (Alex is always like this, stirring the pot for a reaction). <BR/><BR/>To touch on a couple comments, I fully agree that you really need to have a larger view of film to be a great critic. You look at someone like Dave Denby of the New Yorker, and he Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143925030252138152006-04-01T15:57:00.000-05:002006-04-01T15:57:00.000-05:00I'm ultimately saying is that audacity does, in fa...<I>I'm ultimately saying is that audacity does, in fact, equal insight.” That’s another false and massively reductive statement. (I got the order right that time.) But it, at least, doesn’t invalidate the entire art.</I><BR/><BR/>Reductive, I'll buy - but I gotta maintain that it's insightful to me the way that things are audacious which might not be, in the final analysis, the same thing as Walter_Chawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14314737706201691225noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143922325786914182006-04-01T15:12:00.000-05:002006-04-01T15:12:00.000-05:00Read that line below the "Leave your comment" titl...Read that line below the "Leave your comment" title. I'll substitute <> with (). The text that you want italicized should begin with a (i) and when you want the it to end it should have a (/i). <BR/><BR/><I>AJ's absurdities could have been dismissed with a shrug and a disgusted shake of the head, as indeed they deserved to be, but a few smart folks decided to take the time to think hard and writeAlex Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13028946403342782184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143917622437903932006-04-01T13:53:00.000-05:002006-04-01T13:53:00.000-05:00I don't even want to respond to Jackson's latest p...I don't even want to respond to Jackson's latest post, as a great number of us have by now thoroughly broken down every rickety "position" he has purported to hold. Obviously, this thing could go on forever, which, as Adam noted, is the very nature of blogging. But I'm actually quite grateful that this discussion has been prolonged to this extent, because in between Jackson's refutations of some andrew tracyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08766600984119133940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143915974640602542006-04-01T13:26:00.000-05:002006-04-01T13:26:00.000-05:00Thank you for the excellent post Other John Landis...Thank you for the excellent post Other John Landis. Things might have been different if you came along earlier. <BR/><BR/><I>Even though you've claimed that no knowledge is required, you've also made the contradictory statement that a critic need only love something and hate something and not be willing to change. If this is the only requirement, it provides no safeguards to prove the critic has Alex Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13028946403342782184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143911918847982792006-04-01T12:18:00.000-05:002006-04-01T12:18:00.000-05:00When you multiply by zero, you do get zero, which ...When you multiply by zero, you do get zero, which sort of how I feel after reading this entire thread.Jefferson Robbinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05356665406917571985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143905866307479482006-04-01T10:37:00.000-05:002006-04-01T10:37:00.000-05:00Umm... if you divide by zero, you actually get inf...<I>Umm... if you divide by zero, you actually get infinity.</I><BR/><BR/>Actually, it's much more complicated and I can just barely restrain myself from delving into the details. A good summary can be found in <A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_by_zero" REL="nofollow">this Wikipedia entry</A>.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143905344286971722006-04-01T10:29:00.000-05:002006-04-01T10:29:00.000-05:00Umm... if you divide by zero, you actually get inf...Umm... if you divide by zero, you actually get infinity.Hollow Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16027400445729272871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143904470718960902006-04-01T10:14:00.000-05:002006-04-01T10:14:00.000-05:00When you divide by zero, no matter what you start ...<I>When you divide by zero, no matter what you start with, you always get zero.</I><BR/><BR/>Careful with those mathematical analogues, they have the awkward tendency to be wrong (although I agree with the rest of your post).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143902977527288522006-04-01T09:49:00.000-05:002006-04-01T09:49:00.000-05:00Alex, My post wasn't really intended for you, whic...Alex, <BR/><BR/>My post wasn't really intended for you, which, I know, is an odd thing to say about a post that attacks you. Rather than continue the nitpicking, though, I wanted to call out Bill (especially), Walter, and Travis. But I will respond to your questions:<BR/><BR/>1) You misuse "your/you're" and "it's/its" constantly. I am pretty sure I've seen you misuse "who's/whose" and "there/O'JohnLandishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15560571840235787129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143884229362223572006-04-01T04:37:00.000-05:002006-04-01T04:37:00.000-05:00I know this discussion is basically over, but befo...<I>I know this discussion is basically over, but before everyone moves on, I have a request for you. I want to know whose side you're on, or as Alex would say, "who's side your on." (Cheap shot? Ahem, "Did you ever consider that if you didn't write like a friggin' simpleton, people might actually one day give a shit what you have to say about something?" - Walter Chaw)</I><BR/><BR/>Cheap shot Alex Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13028946403342782184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143877718078534182006-04-01T02:48:00.000-05:002006-04-01T02:48:00.000-05:00Bill, I was going to send this as an e-mail and ke...Bill, <BR/><BR/>I was going to send this as an e-mail and keep it private, but I've decided I want it on the record. <BR/><BR/>I know this discussion is basically over, but before everyone moves on, I have a request for you. I want to know whose side you're on, or as Alex would say, "who's side your on." (Cheap shot? Ahem, "Did you ever consider that if you didn't write like a friggin' O'JohnLandishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15560571840235787129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143848754442093062006-03-31T18:45:00.000-05:002006-03-31T18:45:00.000-05:00HP,do pardon my "glosses on intro philosophy"... m...HP,<BR/><BR/>do pardon my "glosses on intro philosophy"... my inheritance from Stanley Kauffmann, who was far more concise (and maybe pertinent) about it than I. Funny how responding to a twit can lead one to ponder (ponderously) the worth and meaning of this life our ours...<BR/><BR/>As to the "deadening hand of academia," that's more a knee-jerk holdover from my more Jackson-like days andrew tracyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08766600984119133940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143839389777780542006-03-31T16:09:00.000-05:002006-03-31T16:09:00.000-05:00I think you're confusing film critics with first-y...I think you're confusing film critics with first-year art students, Dave. More likely one gang would all resemble Homer Simpson and the other Smithers.Bill Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14011398543859221282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143836145286863412006-03-31T15:15:00.000-05:002006-03-31T15:15:00.000-05:00And the wheel goes round and round…Exhausted from ...And the wheel goes round and round…<BR/><BR/>Exhausted from the thread but, I am amusing myself with the image of a Film critic street gang, hanging out in front of the TIFF festival offices, clove cigarettes dangling from their curled lips—wiping their sweaty, judgmental brows with their Michael Haneke hankies---busting the balls of everyone attending the non–stop “Resident Evil” festival next Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143836051219358662006-03-31T15:14:00.000-05:002006-03-31T15:14:00.000-05:00"In any case, it is an Absolute Truth that this th..."In any case, it is an Absolute Truth that this thread will never get anywhere. Any reasonable human being that hangs around does so at the peril of getting lost in one of AJ's viscous whirlpools..."<BR/><BR/>HP, I couldn't agree with you more. I hereby propose that you, me, Adam and Dave gather together for milk n' cookies n' Kuleshov. (Adam, can you bring some chairs from your place?)andrew tracyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08766600984119133940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143835225101639042006-03-31T15:00:00.000-05:002006-03-31T15:00:00.000-05:00Lordy, you know it's bad when he's calling declara...Lordy, you know it's bad when he's calling declarative sentences rigid absolutes (perhaps the use of an ellipsis is advisable) and good, sound advice an insurmountable, self-contradicting paradox. <BR/><BR/>The things some kids'll do to get outta their homework... <BR/><BR/>If, by "deadening hand of academia," adt meant glosses on intro philosophy dumped into discussions of what it means to be a Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9668842.post-1143834700663091882006-03-31T14:51:00.000-05:002006-03-31T14:51:00.000-05:00There’s also nothing wrong with developing and sha...<I>There’s also nothing wrong with developing and shaping your opinions in a public forum—but, starting off with the grandiose and asinine, (There are THREE kinds of film experts! THREE!) Then working your way down to subtlety is a futile and increasingly galling tactic.</I><BR/><BR/>What's the point of film criticism? What's the point of discussion? <BR/><BR/>How are we SUPPOSED to start off? (Alex Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13028946403342782184noreply@blogger.com