Knockdown. Everybody Loses.

Kinda depressed tonight about the state of what passes for film journalism these days.

What the hell good is a fistfight between a blogger and a filmmaker?

I’m sure the folks at FantasticFest were very much entertained, and I look forward to seeing footage of he supposed debate that preceded it, but I can’t help but think this is a low point for the craft of criticism.

When I was in acting or directing class in college, and when I taught drama to high schoolers, I always took the role of critic very seriously. Not as an advocate for the audience, but as a guide for the performer or director. I believe, deep down inside, that everyone has some kind of excellence in them. It’s a noble thing to try and draw that out.

Instead a lot of what passes for criticism this days is bitching and moaning about how the material in question wasn’t entertaining… or worse still that it went over their heads.

To be honest, that’s lazy fucking criticism… god knows I’m probably guilty of it too. It’s criticism as consumer reporting. It does fuck all for the craft of filmmaking.

Maybe tonight’s festivities have nothing whatsoever to do with this… but something deep down tells me they do.