Rosenbaum is such an interesting guy. Always willing to engage in discussion about movies and about his work. I can recall challenging him on a piece he wrote forever ago that (I believe?) made assertions about viewers of Verhoeven's work that I disputed, and he was up for a good back-and-forth. I still see him at screenings occasionally, but miss the time when he had a larger forum.
Down With Love can never get enough love. Has any movie played so well to Ewan McGregor's strengths? (Yes, even Trainspotting! And Velvet Goldmine!)
Always glad to see love for Bernie as well. (And again, Jack Black's strengths, though I might give School of Rock the edge there). I have a short list of movies in my brain that in my experience absolutely everyone will like, for use at large family gatherings where no one can agree on anything. Bernie's at the top of that list.
When Reed first got sucked into the Marvel machine, I held out hope that it would at least result in a bluray release for Down With Love. Now I'm just crossing my fingers that Criterion can convince Fox to license it.
Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World is a bold choice and it’s one I definitely respect Rosenbaum for. I thought it was fine enough when I saw it on its original release, but it’s grown in my estimation over time.
New York City's repertory screening hub Screen Slate launched a column during the shutdown by programmer Cristina Cacioppo called The Outskirts, which - well - champions half-forgotten movies.
It's since been turned into a monthly screening series at the Nitehawk Cinema, and they're always something special. Some I'd heard of but hadn't heard enough of (Bug, Foxfire) and some were totally off my radar and really blew me away (Video Diary of a Lost Girl, Vendetta).
This will sound like snark, and I honestly don't mean it that way, but...other than collecting links to a film's reviews in one place, what are the virtues of Rotten Tomatoes?
That's it. It has no other virtue, other than giving folks a thumbnail impression of a movie they might be interested in seeing. (And based on my experience, you don't even get much back in the way of links to the original reviews. Few click through.)
When a big movie fan like myself spends virtually no time on Rotten Tomatoes, you know its value is ridiculously overrated. I was a devoted follower of Siskel & Ebert back in the day, but I eventually came to dislike the “thumbs up / thumbs down” aspect of the show. Roger Ebert notoriously gave “Blue Velvet” a thumbs-down, and both he and Gene Siskel had their prominent digits pointing downwards for “Brazil” and “Reservoir Dogs.” Did that mean I shouldn’t have watched them? Thankfully, I went against their thumbs and discovered some brilliant films. Their discussions were at least more nuanced even if I disagreed with their assessments. I do think a critical consensus can be a good thing, but acknowledging underappreciated films that a few people cherish can be such a gift.
Good movies in the margins are too numerous to count. The first title that popped into my head was Lynne Ramsay's You Were Never Really Here, not that Joaquin Phoenix's career needs a boost from me. I'm scrolling through my histories in a couple of movie-ticketing apps and I'm startled by how many movies I've forgotten but that I really liked -- Colossal; The Death of Stalin; Dark Waters -- not to mention the ones that were deservedly forgotten.
I feel like this is a discussion that could be applied to all sorts of popular art forms. How many times have you seen a random band playing in some small club and thought, "Wow, these kids are really, really good. They should be getting noticed." Same with visual arts, same with dance, same with book publishing. Good art and talent are way more abundant than we often remember. The big problems are getting noticed and getting distributed. Almost every writer I know struggles with this.
When a genius emerges from a scene and gets big recognition -- and I've known more than one -- it's easy to look back and say, "Well, it was always obvious that she was going to succeed." But was it really? For every one of those cases, I know ten more people equally brilliant and talented and driven who struggle for the same recognition. Gurus who claim to be able to teach the elements of success rarely emphasize the part chance plays in it all.
Moby-Dick was one of those works that moldered in the margins for nearly three-quarters of a century, a half-remembered commercial failure, until champions like William Faulkner and D.H. Lawrence brought it back to light. The margins are where the most interesting treasures are lurking.
Yup, this is a huge problem in the world of music. There's too much new stuff out every single day, and the economics of streaming are designed to reward what's already popular.
I made a concerted effort at the beginning of the pandemic to only buy from local bands on Bandcamp Friday to make sure they were getting both a signal and revenue boost, and sadly two years later I've completely dropped the ball in that regard.
Oct 18, 2022·edited Oct 18, 2022Liked by Scott Tobias
Spanglish! I just read Scott's review of Spanglish on AVC, and though he makes a very convincing argument as to the positives of this film - so much that I almost wondered if I had been too hasty in my negative judgement... But then I remembered the kid in the movie. Goodness, I thought she was so insufferable...!
It's funny - I'm a big fan of James Brooks, really digging both Broadcast News and As Good as It Gets, but there was a higher degree of sitcom-ness in Spanglish that I just couldn't overcome.
But this film sounds right up my alley. In August you reviewed Keane, which I had never seen, and wow, was that an excellent film. Big thanks to you for highlighting these gems.
On the Brooks tip, I had occasion to revisit How Do You Know, a film I dismissed back in 2010 that some of my cinephile friends really embraced, and I've really come around on it. A ragged little movie but it has more on its mind that I gave it credit for.
Brittany Murphy and Nick Searcy, two very good actors whose names make me very sad for very different reasons.
Richard Brody I don't find as being contrarian for its own sake: he gives the impression of at least approaching a work without prejudgement, unlike, oh, let's say Armond White. If there's one thing I honestly don't understand about this day and age, it's how criticism seems to provoke such deep-seated anger in some people to the point they spend a massive amount of time and energy gunning for the messenger.
I've been waiting to see people revisiting both Killing Zoe and especially Rules of Attraction now that Roger Avary's name is back in the culture with Video Archives, but I have not seen it happen yet. Based on a cursory glance at Amazon, Zoe still doesn't even have a US Blu-ray, which sucks because I imagine the colors in that movie would really pop in a new transfer.
One small film that’s been completely under the radar but deserves more attention is “High Tide” (1987). This is what I would call a genuine chick flick because it was produced by one woman (Sandra Levy), directed by another (Gillian Armstrong), and written by yet another (Laura Jones) and features excellent performances by three generations of actresses (Jan Adele, Judy Davis, and Claudia Karvan). The most notable male character turns out to be inconsequential in the long run, and the real thrust of the film deals with the struggle between the three female characters as they collide with each other. Judy Davis is particularly noteworthy, and I think it’s one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. But it’s apparently not available on DVD at the moment, so it’s damn near impossible for people to discover it years later.
The link to Jonathan Rosenbaum’s supposed website goes to a Facebook login page, at least for me.
Thank you for this. The link has been fixed.
Thanks!
This is exactly what I am here for. I really liked this.
Always love Rosenbaum's lists; his response/alternate list to the AFI 100 American Movies had a huge impact on me when I was in high school.
Rosenbaum is such an interesting guy. Always willing to engage in discussion about movies and about his work. I can recall challenging him on a piece he wrote forever ago that (I believe?) made assertions about viewers of Verhoeven's work that I disputed, and he was up for a good back-and-forth. I still see him at screenings occasionally, but miss the time when he had a larger forum.
Down With Love can never get enough love. Has any movie played so well to Ewan McGregor's strengths? (Yes, even Trainspotting! And Velvet Goldmine!)
Always glad to see love for Bernie as well. (And again, Jack Black's strengths, though I might give School of Rock the edge there). I have a short list of movies in my brain that in my experience absolutely everyone will like, for use at large family gatherings where no one can agree on anything. Bernie's at the top of that list.
When Reed first got sucked into the Marvel machine, I held out hope that it would at least result in a bluray release for Down With Love. Now I'm just crossing my fingers that Criterion can convince Fox to license it.
Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World is a bold choice and it’s one I definitely respect Rosenbaum for. I thought it was fine enough when I saw it on its original release, but it’s grown in my estimation over time.
God bless him for that. Very underrated film that was extremely misunderstood at the time.
New York City's repertory screening hub Screen Slate launched a column during the shutdown by programmer Cristina Cacioppo called The Outskirts, which - well - champions half-forgotten movies.
It's since been turned into a monthly screening series at the Nitehawk Cinema, and they're always something special. Some I'd heard of but hadn't heard enough of (Bug, Foxfire) and some were totally off my radar and really blew me away (Video Diary of a Lost Girl, Vendetta).
You can check out the archive here:
https://www.screenslate.com/articles/outskirts
This will sound like snark, and I honestly don't mean it that way, but...other than collecting links to a film's reviews in one place, what are the virtues of Rotten Tomatoes?
That's it. It has no other virtue, other than giving folks a thumbnail impression of a movie they might be interested in seeing. (And based on my experience, you don't even get much back in the way of links to the original reviews. Few click through.)
It provides links to a wide variety of reviews. That's great. But I don't know how often it's used that way.
It’s great to use for marketing a film
I might argue it gives people a quick answer to: "what's the consensus on this large, mainstream release coming out this weekend?"
I honestly don't consider that a virtue.
When a big movie fan like myself spends virtually no time on Rotten Tomatoes, you know its value is ridiculously overrated. I was a devoted follower of Siskel & Ebert back in the day, but I eventually came to dislike the “thumbs up / thumbs down” aspect of the show. Roger Ebert notoriously gave “Blue Velvet” a thumbs-down, and both he and Gene Siskel had their prominent digits pointing downwards for “Brazil” and “Reservoir Dogs.” Did that mean I shouldn’t have watched them? Thankfully, I went against their thumbs and discovered some brilliant films. Their discussions were at least more nuanced even if I disagreed with their assessments. I do think a critical consensus can be a good thing, but acknowledging underappreciated films that a few people cherish can be such a gift.
Shame on whoever wrote that condescending letter to the Last Picture Show crew.
Good movies in the margins are too numerous to count. The first title that popped into my head was Lynne Ramsay's You Were Never Really Here, not that Joaquin Phoenix's career needs a boost from me. I'm scrolling through my histories in a couple of movie-ticketing apps and I'm startled by how many movies I've forgotten but that I really liked -- Colossal; The Death of Stalin; Dark Waters -- not to mention the ones that were deservedly forgotten.
I feel like this is a discussion that could be applied to all sorts of popular art forms. How many times have you seen a random band playing in some small club and thought, "Wow, these kids are really, really good. They should be getting noticed." Same with visual arts, same with dance, same with book publishing. Good art and talent are way more abundant than we often remember. The big problems are getting noticed and getting distributed. Almost every writer I know struggles with this.
When a genius emerges from a scene and gets big recognition -- and I've known more than one -- it's easy to look back and say, "Well, it was always obvious that she was going to succeed." But was it really? For every one of those cases, I know ten more people equally brilliant and talented and driven who struggle for the same recognition. Gurus who claim to be able to teach the elements of success rarely emphasize the part chance plays in it all.
Moby-Dick was one of those works that moldered in the margins for nearly three-quarters of a century, a half-remembered commercial failure, until champions like William Faulkner and D.H. Lawrence brought it back to light. The margins are where the most interesting treasures are lurking.
Yup, this is a huge problem in the world of music. There's too much new stuff out every single day, and the economics of streaming are designed to reward what's already popular.
Exactly, popularity becomes its own feedback loop. It’s incredibly difficult to break through that.
I made a concerted effort at the beginning of the pandemic to only buy from local bands on Bandcamp Friday to make sure they were getting both a signal and revenue boost, and sadly two years later I've completely dropped the ball in that regard.
At least you did something conscientious and helpful! And it’s never too late to start back up. I think I’ll take a page from your book.
Spanglish! I just read Scott's review of Spanglish on AVC, and though he makes a very convincing argument as to the positives of this film - so much that I almost wondered if I had been too hasty in my negative judgement... But then I remembered the kid in the movie. Goodness, I thought she was so insufferable...!
It's funny - I'm a big fan of James Brooks, really digging both Broadcast News and As Good as It Gets, but there was a higher degree of sitcom-ness in Spanglish that I just couldn't overcome.
But this film sounds right up my alley. In August you reviewed Keane, which I had never seen, and wow, was that an excellent film. Big thanks to you for highlighting these gems.
On the Brooks tip, I had occasion to revisit How Do You Know, a film I dismissed back in 2010 that some of my cinephile friends really embraced, and I've really come around on it. A ragged little movie but it has more on its mind that I gave it credit for.
Just place a hold for THE DEAD GIRL at my local library
Brittany Murphy and Nick Searcy, two very good actors whose names make me very sad for very different reasons.
Richard Brody I don't find as being contrarian for its own sake: he gives the impression of at least approaching a work without prejudgement, unlike, oh, let's say Armond White. If there's one thing I honestly don't understand about this day and age, it's how criticism seems to provoke such deep-seated anger in some people to the point they spend a massive amount of time and energy gunning for the messenger.
I've been waiting to see people revisiting both Killing Zoe and especially Rules of Attraction now that Roger Avary's name is back in the culture with Video Archives, but I have not seen it happen yet. Based on a cursory glance at Amazon, Zoe still doesn't even have a US Blu-ray, which sucks because I imagine the colors in that movie would really pop in a new transfer.
One small film that’s been completely under the radar but deserves more attention is “High Tide” (1987). This is what I would call a genuine chick flick because it was produced by one woman (Sandra Levy), directed by another (Gillian Armstrong), and written by yet another (Laura Jones) and features excellent performances by three generations of actresses (Jan Adele, Judy Davis, and Claudia Karvan). The most notable male character turns out to be inconsequential in the long run, and the real thrust of the film deals with the struggle between the three female characters as they collide with each other. Judy Davis is particularly noteworthy, and I think it’s one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. But it’s apparently not available on DVD at the moment, so it’s damn near impossible for people to discover it years later.