The history of American film criticism.The history of American film criticism.The history of American film criticism.
Photos
- Self
- (as Harry Knowles)
- Self
- (archive footage)
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- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaBoth renowned film critics, husband and wife Andrew Sarris and Molly Haskell each, at one time, was the film critic at The Village Voice.
- Quotes
Molly Haskell: "Diabolique" was the first French film I ever saw. First of all, it was set in this girls' school and I went to a girls' school and you had Simone Signoret and Véra Clouzot sulking around having some sort of strange relationship... it sort of vaguely reminded me of some of the teachers in the girls school. And, then, the bathtub scene, which was the most terrifying, even after seeing "Psycho" or everything else, when you think someone's dead and then they rise. When Paul Meurisse rose, and I screamed, everyone in the audience screamed. I knew then, if I hadn't known before, that the totally convulsive affect of the immediacy of movies.
- ConnectionsFeatures A Trip to the Moon (1902)
The long span of the subject matter has both benefits and drawbacks. On one hand, viewers are introduced to now obscure film critics such as Otis Ferguson. You will inevitably come up with a reading list of critics you'll want to track down. However, many of the critics, especially from the first half of the twentieth century, are dealt with in passing, so that it is easy to confuse them.
The film goes into greater depth from the 60s onward, as it examines figures such as Pauline Kael and the debate over auteur theory. However, there are distracting elements such as periodic 'questions' which interrupt the narrative, such as how the critics got their jobs.
Furthermore, it would have been interesting to learn more about how the critics evaluate movies, what criteria they use, and so forth. In the end, the film is worth a rent if you stumble upon it, but is not worth seeking out.
- TheExpatriate700
- Aug 21, 2011
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- Also known as
- Por amor a las películas: La historia de la crítica cinematográfica americana
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 20 minutes
- Color