Happy Second Birthday Three Movie Buffs: Part Deux

The Three Movie Buffs

Eric:
Since we decided to give our opinions on each others reviews I thought we could do the same with our articles. I found this difficult in that none that I read stuck out as being really lousy. I did find it interesting that we all write both differently and have different subject matter. Patrick writes lists. Scott writes about the movie going experience. I just like to give my opinion about movies.

 So, in my opinion..... Patrick's worst article is his Silent Movie one. This is only his worst because I happen to know that he is and always has been fascinated by the silent film stars and era. Since the day he and I were kids and we stayed up one night and happened to watch Sunset Blvd, Patrick has been into the mystique of the silent films. He now collects silent films and has read much about them. So, with all that passion and knowledge I expected a much more heartfelt article. Instead it reads more like an introduction to "Silent Film studies 101." 

I think his best articles are the ones from his top 50 list that are from the silent era. When he puts a modern movie like Pretty Woman on the list I know the plot, so its not as fascinating. However, when he includes an old melodrama with Gloria Swanson or Theda Bara I eagerly read it because I know it will be something I have never seen before and I know he enjoyed writing about it. I almost get the feeling when I read his lists that he includes the modern movies out of some obligation to acknowledge them. He really seems to enjoy writing about those silent films more. The enthusiasm comes through in his articles. 

Scott worst article is his Amateur Movie-Goer article. Not a bad article by any means. It starts good and funny. I read the part about being at the ticket booth and was thinking to myself, "yes, that always happens. Don't these people check the times before leaving there home?" I liked the "How large is your small?" line. A sure sign of an amateur movie goer. The last half of the article seemed a rush job and didn't end as funny as it started. Still, not a bad article, it just could have used some more work on the last half.

 Scott's best article is his Movie Reviews. In this article he explains the value of a critic and how we should approach their opinions. I think he makes some great points about opinions. So often people either dismiss reviewers with a line like "I never read reviews. That is just someone's opinion." Or they put to much stock in a review. "I don't know if I want to see that movie. It got 2 thumbs down." Scott's article brilliantly explains that neither of these view points are really the true value of a review. According to his article, and I agree, the value of a review is to get a different opinion and perhaps add something to the movie by pointing something out that perhaps the viewer may have missed.

Patrick:
First of all I agree that this was more difficult than choosing best and worst reviews. The articles are almost all well thought out and entertaining to read.

Eric, known for his bombastic style, has never failed (at least to my knowledge) to have a strong opinion about any topic. Hence the name of his column. My favorite article he has written is his most recent, Hollywood on Hollywood. It is informative yet breezy without losing his trademark opinionated point of view. And as this article demonstrates he has a fairly extensive knowledge of classic Hollywood. In fact more than any other straight man I know.

His worst article is The Suspension of Disbelief. Although it is somewhat amusing he makes only two rather simple points. That actors should zip up their jackets when playing a cold scene and they should not shave their chest hairs. Well speaking personally I like a smooth chest.

Scott is probably the most professional writer of the three of us and it shows in the fact that by and large his reviews and articles are the longest and most thought out. My personal favorite article of his is On With the Show. It helps that the circumstances surrounding the writing of this article are very dramatic but regardless this is good stuff. He mentions quotes from several famous stars to support his main idea, compares Hollywood to Broadway and closes with two very inspiring paragraphs.

His worst are Top 50 Movies and Opening Weekends. Not because I have anything specific against either one of them but because the 'List' article is mine Damn it!

Scott:
Ok, I'll just jump right in with my picks for best and worst editorials...

Patrick is so right about Eric's worst.  It is definitely his Suspension of Disbelief article.  Which is sad, because he has a good point there, it's just not very well articulated.  All I get from it is that Eric has a worrying preoccupation with male movie star's hairless chests.

For his best, I chose The Nuclear Family in Movies.  What makes this article so good is that even though I disagree with his opinion about it and his views on single parenthood in general, he makes his point quite well and backs it up with examples from several movies.  His opinion, therefore, seems more rational and less of a rant.

Patrick's worst article is his Top Box Office Stars of the Twentieth Century.  This may be a little unfair since it barely qualifies as an editorial at all, but is instead simply a list, and lists are what Patrick lives and breathes.  My problem with this article isn't then that it is a list, but simply that there is very little presentation involved or commentary.  I would have enjoyed it more if rather than just a list, he had weighed in with his own comments and opinions on each decade.  Which is really a problem with all of Patrick's Editorials.  I see our front page articles as a chance to express an opinion on any movie related subject, yet too often, Patrick's are simply listed facts instead of opinions.

So what then did I chose as the best of Patrick's editorials?  It has to be his Tribute to Barbra Streisand.  Even though he holds back some what, it is impossible not to be aware of his adoration for this woman and therefore he expresses his opinion, even though it is smothered in statistics and facts concerning her career.  In this instance there are so many facts that together they build up to form an opinion, and that opinion is clearly that he worships this woman.