tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post284490988554685085..comments2024-03-12T12:38:23.542-04:00Comments on The Kind of Face You Hate: Disconnectionbill r.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-5521645825145418352009-09-07T12:28:05.340-04:002009-09-07T12:28:05.340-04:00Bill - I guess what I meant is that the discomfort...Bill - I guess what I meant is that the discomfort level in the first half felt real and honest and painful, whereas the satire in the second half got a little too broad and less believable.Patricia Perryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15394997608325540950noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-43063693789969444672009-09-07T11:18:53.585-04:002009-09-07T11:18:53.585-04:00Pat, I don't think the first half is uncomfort...Pat, I don't think the first half is uncomfortable for the RIGHT reasons. I really felt for Robin Williams's character. I felt so bad for that guy about ten minutes into the film, and that didn't let up until pretty much the last shot.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-45464118489154311342009-09-07T11:17:52.263-04:002009-09-07T11:17:52.263-04:00Greg, I'm sorry to tell you that I think this ...Greg, I'm sorry to tell you that I think this means that your daughter is forming a death cult.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-1185532847540213832009-09-07T11:04:25.560-04:002009-09-07T11:04:25.560-04:00Bill -
I'm with you that the first half of th...Bill -<br /><br />I'm with you that the first half of the film, uncomfortable as it is, plays a bit better than the second half - which is uncomfortable too, but for all the wrong reasons.Patricia Perryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15394997608325540950noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-1974929013012581112009-09-07T10:52:57.885-04:002009-09-07T10:52:57.885-04:00the only people I ever heard getting excited about...<i>the only people I ever heard getting excited about the [Twilight] series was aggressively non-Goth teenage white girls</i>.<br /><br />Ha, that's the truth. My aggressively non-Goth teen soccer playing daughter read them. <br /><br />From what I've read I'm betting someday there will be a cult surrounding <b>World's Greatest Dad</b>, led no doubt by the <b>Apollo 13</b> fans.Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05730146625671701859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-25567265018212154852009-09-07T09:35:12.415-04:002009-09-07T09:35:12.415-04:00rwcg - I realize it's not an isolated case. I...rwcg - I realize it's not an isolated case. I've picked up on this stuff with Ebert for years, but never before have I seen him so completely bungle it. Never before, in fact, have I wondered if he actually saw the movie he was reviewing.<br /><br />Pat - I honestly took Ebert's reference to Michael Jackson as total filler. He needed some room to fill. It's not that he's completely off-base regarding how people reacted to Kyle's death, and to Jackson's, but I really don't think that Goldthwait had celebrity on his mind so much when he made this film.<br /><br />And you're right, to say that Kyle's death brought out "everyone's" better nature is completely wrong. I hadn't picked up on that. The death brings out the better nature of a <i>few</i> people, but hardly all. If everybody was a better person after Kyle died, I don't think Lance would have been quite so tortured. And there wouldn't be a hell of a lot to satirize, either.<br /><br />Fox - <br /><br /><i>But the Twilight thing confuses me even more. Twilight may appeal to goth-styled kids, but it seems to be a pretty anti-death cult series if you ask me. One of the refreshing things about it is that it isn't obsessed with death and terror. It's a love story. Oh well</i>...<br /><br />I know next to nothing about the series, but obviously Ebert knows even less than I do about who its core fans are. I've been in the bookstores when these books were taking off, and the only people I ever heard getting excited about the series was aggressively non-Goth teenage white girls. Which is not to say there are no Goth fans, because I'm sure there are, but Ebert could have made just as much sense if he'd said "led by <b>Harry Potter</b> fans, no doubt". But then, he likes those films more than he did <b>Twilight</b>, so...<br /><br />Also, I liked the movie pretty well, though I didn't love it. I actually preferred the extremely uncomfortable first half to the satirical second half. Strangely enough, Ebert gave it three stars, and that's what I'd give it, too. But the scene where Williams finds his son's body is really devestating. I'm not even close to being a Robin Williams fan, but when he's good, I'll admit it, and he was outstanding in that scene. He didn't just have to play straight grief and shock, he had to play disappointment and quiet disgust and shame, and he got it all out there, without a word.<br /><br />I also loved the song. "Don't Be Afraid, You're Already Dead" by Arkon, if anyone's interested.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-12928544594646322042009-09-07T04:16:10.902-04:002009-09-07T04:16:10.902-04:00Bizarre... and good noticing of Ebert's misste...Bizarre... and good noticing of Ebert's missteps here Bill, especially the miffed accidental death scene.<br /><br />But the <b>Twilight</b> thing confuses me even more. <b>Twilight</b> may appeal to goth-styled kids, but it seems to be a pretty anti-death cult series if you ask me. One of the refreshing things about it is that it isn't obsessed with death and terror. It's a love story. Oh well. <br /><br />BTW... I'm still unsure how I feel about <b>World's Greatest Dad</b> in total, but I thought the scene where Lance finds his son was crushing, maybe because I wasn't expecting it. I thought Robin Williams played it almost perfectly and Goldthwait handled it in a thoughtful way as well. It's a tough scene. I love the song that went with it.Foxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08067136509248849744noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-89054130794335686592009-09-07T00:09:59.420-04:002009-09-07T00:09:59.420-04:00Bill -
I just finished watching "World's...Bill -<br /><br />I just finished watching "World's Greatest Dad" and I hope you'll review it yourself, because I'm interested to hear what you thought.<br /><br />As for Ebert's review, which I just read in its entirety - it is totally fucked up. I can't believe he watched the same movie. The examples you cite are the most egregious - that <i>Twilight </i> fan reference is out-and-out bizarre - but Ebert's comparison of Kyle's death to Michael Jackson's is also out there. I also don't entirely get his statement that the phony death story brought out everyone's better natures - I'd say it brought out everyone's hypocrisy, especially Williams' on/off girlfriend.<br /><br />But overall, I was pretty impressed with the movie itself. I wouldn't guessed that Bobcat Goldthwait had a movie like that in him. And Williams is great.Patricia Perryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15394997608325540950noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-12331801160244904702009-09-06T18:57:39.307-04:002009-09-06T18:57:39.307-04:00This isn't an isolated case. Ebert regularly ...This isn't an isolated case. Ebert regularly gets details of movies wrong - big details and little details - in his reviews. I used to make a sort of parlor game out of 'spot-the-mistake', until I realized it was too easy and kind of sad.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-20557078447192330122009-09-06T15:42:14.097-04:002009-09-06T15:42:14.097-04:00And before anyone says anything, I realize that Eb...And before anyone says anything, I realize that Ebert meant his <b>Twilight</b> line as a joke, but it's also obvious that he meant it to be either based in some sort of reality, or in what's depicted in <b>World's Greatest Dad</b>, but since it's based in neither, the line just comes off as random and loony.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-67110700250827870872009-09-06T12:37:37.083-04:002009-09-06T12:37:37.083-04:00Well yes because of how he phrases it with the &qu...Well yes because of how he phrases it with the "no doubt" as if we should all slap our foreheads and say, "Of course idiot! Who else would lead a death cult? Duh!" It's just strange. Like if there was a plot in a movie where a bunch of people decide to plan a party in honor of a popular character and I wrote, "led no doubt by the Star Wars fans." And then people would read that and think, "what in the hell does that mean? Is Greg off his meds again?"Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05730146625671701859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-84216549356577392652009-09-06T11:52:46.381-04:002009-09-06T11:52:46.381-04:00Yeah, I sort of agree. As you say, a blog would g...Yeah, I sort of agree. As you say, a blog would give him time to really dig deep into the films he sees, which he currently can't really do. But he's such an icon now that no one really seems to want to call him on anything. Which is not to say that I'm some kind of brave knight, but rather I don't think he's going to retire any time soon.<br /><br />The <b>Twilight</b> thing is really bizarre. The first time I read the review, I kind of raised my eyebrows and moved on, but the more I think about it, the more nonsensical it is.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-34552731533210686352009-09-06T00:58:10.656-04:002009-09-06T00:58:10.656-04:00I have no idea what the Twilight reference means. ...I have no idea what the <b>Twilight</b> reference means. Are <b>Twilight</b> fans notable for leading death cults? Did I miss that somewhere? And the plot elements wrought so completely wrong does make one wonder. Is Ebert maybe watching DVD screeners and nodding off or worse (just speculation) not watching at all but getting the basics from a press release and writing it up? <br /><br />I've dissected a couple of reviews/posts by Ebert lately and I think it's time he retired. He's had a great career, multiple books, a Pulitzer Prize and now... well, he seems clearly past his prime. He could start up a blog (not the Sun Times sponsored one but his own personal one) and keep writing about movies he loves, that he has fully watched and paid attention to but the weekly reviewing of new releases - that should end. He's just not on his game anymore. And I'm no longer convinced he's getting through every movie he's reviewing.Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05730146625671701859noreply@blogger.com