The real victim may be the website rotten tomatoes; the chasm between the critics' evaluation of 93% and that of the audience at around 39% makes one wonder what relevance the website has any more. Do critics actually critique anymore or do they simply applaud in a socialist realist sort of mammer when the great leader passes by? Although they clearly feel they are doing it 'for the cause,' they risk losing all credibility in the eyes of the viewers: "go woke business croak".
You make the loss of credibility sound like an ongoing process. I would argue that their moment has aoready passed. I imagine the emperor parading around in his scivvies, while hordes of adoring sycophants opera-clap for his new wardrobe. I doubt seriously that the "reviewers" actually watch the "content". Instead, they are presented with a list of key words and phrases to sprinkle into an 800-word litany of adoration. Audiences are left picking through the dumpsters looking for a morsel of genius in a world full of rancid McD.
Chris: Those are the arty woke films the 93% positive critics comments are about. I don't pay attention to those as I don't watch the woke artsy movies. The critics give them positive reviews to keep their jobs. On the action movies and sci-fi films I like, the critics are pretty good. Now, comedy films... that's something else again.
This is the best synopsis of where art has devolved into that I have read in a very long time. It hits all of the low notes. Well done and thank you. As an artist myself, I look at the crap that sells with amazement. To your point, I do find a level of humor in such dreck. The "art" isn't serious and should be treated as such. To cleanse my soul I find it best to look/study the classics and get lost in one of my latest paintings. Pax
High praise from a fellow artist, humbly received with thanks.
I recently read an article about a 2-year-old boy whose "paintings" are selling for up to $7,000. I confess that were competitive with some of the best modern art, which is to say his smears show a primitive innocence that others will never find. A sad comment on the state of art in our age. I could almost be forgiving of the modern film if there were some redeeming quality, like well executed choreography or a creatively dressed set, but alas!
When desperate, I climb into a Monet or a Gentileschi to refresh my sense of rhythm and harmony, and when I need great film, "Amadeus" fills the bill.
Rufus: OH, NO! Not "Amadeus". That was produced by Saul Zaentz the Jewish businessman who ripped of Credence Clearwater Revival, made "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" which Ken Kesey hated, "The English Patient", and the film I worked on, "At Play in the Fields of the Lord."
I knew Saul Zaentz pretty well. Am not a fan. If you were around him, you watched your wallet.
Zaentz is a jerk, but even a broken clock is right once or twice a day. Even he couldn't crush the beauty of Milos' vision, with all the actually opera houses that Mozart used, and the MUSIC...well, what can one say, but Salieri. Speaking of whom, fellow Texan F. Murray's performance was sublime, and even Tom Hulce was brilliant. I even liked Jeff Jones as the Emperor. Plus, the stage show is one of my favorites, so that helps.
PS: Saul Zaentz won three Oscars for Best Picture:
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Amadeus
The English Patient.
"At Play in the Fields of the Lord" was after Amadeus. All the actors thought they were starring in another Oscar winning film. That's why Zaentz had such a good cast for "At Play" and they put up with 9 months or more in the Amazon.
David Jones, my boss, aerial coordinator, famous stunt pilot, and friend; told me that Saul Zaentz lost $18 million on "At Play". That was a lot of money in 1990.
It took Zaentz years to make enough money ( most of it from CCR royalties) to pay off his creditors and get enough money and investors together again to make "The English Patient."
Watch "At Play in the Fields of the Lord." Tell me what you think of the movie. My name is in the credits on the VCR tape (Zaentz never put the film on DVD), but Zaentz took my name out of the credits for the wikipedia entry on the film.
I sent Zaentz my Brasil book and I don't think he liked how I depicted him and the filming of the movie in the jungle outside of Belem.
I haven't seen "At Play" in decades, but I'll hunt it down. "Cuckoo's Nest" is also a great flick that very nearly captures the novel's flavors. I personally would not have cast Nicholson as RPM, but no one asked me. I think Milos is a genius and I can't hold it against Zaentz for hiring him.
I have found that a great many pure unadulterated assholes pretty much run the world. I'm sure Michelangelo had some choice words for Machiavelli and the Vatican. That said, they did finance some of his greatest works. As a producer and promoter myself, I'm sure there are many unflattering assessments of my character, but everyone got paid a fair wage and the investors were happy, so que sera.
I've never met Zaentz, but I have met and worked with plenty of big names, and a great number of them were complete jerks, but it's hard to argue with their creative output. Art rises above the character or the artist. In fact, "Amadeus" makes the point that a foul-mouthed, impudent, egotistical shit created some of the greatest music ever composed. I try (not always successfully) to separate the art from the artist.
I know, as a producer/promoter, that I need vast sums of money to achieve anything worth doing. For that reason, I am forced to kowtow to deeply unsavory and disturbing personalities to get anything done. I have been reduced to tears, and donning sackcloth and ashes, over the compromises I have made to pursue the creative arts.
In the end, when the tickets sell and the audience applauds, I feel cleansed and absolved, catharsis if you will. I think of the great performances by Tom Courtenay and Albert Finney in "The Dresser," and particularly the chaos backstage during "King Lear" -- it is only what the audience sees that matters.
Rufus: "Art rises above the character or the artist." I disagree with this statement. And I think the way Mozart was portrayed in Amadeus was harsh. Was not envy the downfall of Mozart? Envy of Mozart by a lesser composer. Mozart was a great composer. If he made fun of lesser composers, well, golly gee. Humans do this. They say politicians should never "Hit down." but they do. Everyone does.
And no, it is not only what the audience sees that matters. As in "The Dresser" what happens behind the scenes is just as important as the performance.
I worked on the one film. I did not go to the premiere even though I was offered a flight and tickets. It took me years to watch movies again. I kept seeing what was going on behind the camera.
"I’ve passed many a mouthful of wine and cheese through my sinus cavities" I just can't come up with the words to tell you how much I enjoyed that! Thank you!
Methinks we are kindred spirits.... I also look to Van Gough for how he pushes values and the use of color. I adore Dali as an artist because he could so it all without selling out. If you ever want to spend a day being blown away....go to the Dali museum in Figueres Spain. Despite the garbage that is produced there are people creating beauty...one just has to look for it. This modern art crap will fade away as it has no "staying power". Pax
Van Gough also had a unique way of introducing noise into his images in a way that is hard to describe. It's almost as if a thousand ants are crawling over the canvas. As for Dali, I have been to the museum...spent an entire day, in fact. I love his imaginative landscapes, and I've used his trademark melted clocks as inspiration for set designs. It is the mavericks who define great art. They refuse to be bound by convention, but they do it in such a way as to flaunt the rules, not toss them completely. That is one of the key points where Bumbledicks fail.
Roger S. : I agree. What gets me is that Van Gough never sold a painting. Shows how stupid art critics and patrons are. I can look at Van Gough's art for hours. But I also like Vermeer who was a perfectionist.
"You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension: a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You’re moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You’ve just crossed over into… the Twilight Zone."
Nothing says it better. I'm reminded of another Serling creation, "Night Gallery". One episode had a former Stalag guard, who escaped his mental torture by transporting himself into a painting, with a shocking twist(ed) ending.
Excellent choice! I kept one of his compilations, along with a collection of ghost stories compiled by Hitchcock, on my bedside table as a kid. "A View from the Hill" is one that stands out in my mind. What a wonderful imagination he had.
Growing up in Lincoln, Nebraska, me and my friends all watched Twilight Zone. We'd re-enact episodes and discuss them at school. "To Serve Man." was a favorite. We had fun with that theme in the cafeteria at Catholic school the next day.
"Look, cornbread and chili dogs again for hot lunch."
"Yeah, looks like the nuns are fattening us up for their summer barbecue."
I always thought my ancestors came from another world. I certainly feel as if I did.
The Twilight Zone led me into The Outer Limits which lead to Night Gallery and then on to Boris Karloff presents, ad infinitum. Then there was The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Haunting (original version), Soylent Green, They Live!, etc. All analogous depictions of the world theatre which is being presented to us.
Interestingly, the latest remake of The Invasion of the Body Snatchers in 2007 (retitled simply The Invasion) postulates an alien viral infection. What is the percentage of the world population that has been "Spiked" and, thus invaded?
"Body Snatchers" is an interesting series to zero in on. Both the 50s and the 70s versions were allegories for the invasion of Stalinist/Maoist doctrines, first in the working class, and second in the academic and social classes. I haven't seen the third version, but it would seem to have similarities, with the invasion via the medical/professional classes. It's interesting (to me) that all three renderings would place the blame on extraterrestrial entities, though I suppose trying to establish a hidden cabal's manipulations behind the scenes would require a lot of set-up that aliens can just wave away. I'll have to look for "The Invasion" and compare them all.
Having read the book by Jack Finney, I was struck by the information that was coming out from body workers, Reiki practitioners, etc. after the vaxxines were released. Many noticed a soullessness, some intrinsic lack and alteration in the being of their clients who had received it.
Gwyneth: I suppose the total percentage of world population that has been "Spiked" is around 30%. Most Africans and Indians didn't take the jabs. The Chinese did but what was in their jabs? It's hard to tell the total world percentage jabbed.
There was a Guy called "Andy Warhol". He sorta did this thing like; "art is dead" etc and I was defiantly a follower of fashion back then, what, Millions of $ for a pencil drawing of a One Dollar bill. I mean, the ignorant are still told they "don't know anything" so what are we going to do now?
I give Warhol high marks for being one of the best Bullshit Artists in modern times. I mean, cornering the art market with a giant painting of a Campbell's Soup can? Brilliant. His art sucked, but his bullshit was Grade A Premium.
Good article. Disney is now pretty much hopeless. They paid Lucas billions for "Star Wars", but the writers and producers at Disney never understood what the trilogy was about.
Roddy Doyle, the famous Irish writer, was ridiculing a priest and the Catholic religion in his usual profane and witty way.
The priest replied, "If it wasn't for us priests and nuns teaching you in Catholic Schools, you wouldn't have anything to write about."
Disney shot themselves in the foot. I'm even seeing it over here with Disney Theatrical. Their titles used to be money printers for promoters, but the waters have chilled quite a bit. There's a rub-off effect on all their properties, even when Disney doesn't promote the Woak Agenda in these markets for obvious reasons.
As for Roddy, to leave him speechless is a mighty achievement. Those Catholics have a long history of shutting folks up.
The real victim may be the website rotten tomatoes; the chasm between the critics' evaluation of 93% and that of the audience at around 39% makes one wonder what relevance the website has any more. Do critics actually critique anymore or do they simply applaud in a socialist realist sort of mammer when the great leader passes by? Although they clearly feel they are doing it 'for the cause,' they risk losing all credibility in the eyes of the viewers: "go woke business croak".
You make the loss of credibility sound like an ongoing process. I would argue that their moment has aoready passed. I imagine the emperor parading around in his scivvies, while hordes of adoring sycophants opera-clap for his new wardrobe. I doubt seriously that the "reviewers" actually watch the "content". Instead, they are presented with a list of key words and phrases to sprinkle into an 800-word litany of adoration. Audiences are left picking through the dumpsters looking for a morsel of genius in a world full of rancid McD.
Go woke --- sales choke
I prefer the spelling "Woak," since it invokes the image of extremely dense wood, which describes their minds perfectly.
Chris: Some of the reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes are good, some are bad. Just like in life.
Could be, T. But come on, 93% positive? More than just a few rotten apples in rotten tomatoes haha
Chris: Those are the arty woke films the 93% positive critics comments are about. I don't pay attention to those as I don't watch the woke artsy movies. The critics give them positive reviews to keep their jobs. On the action movies and sci-fi films I like, the critics are pretty good. Now, comedy films... that's something else again.
One bad apple spoils the whole barrel, as they say.
This is the best synopsis of where art has devolved into that I have read in a very long time. It hits all of the low notes. Well done and thank you. As an artist myself, I look at the crap that sells with amazement. To your point, I do find a level of humor in such dreck. The "art" isn't serious and should be treated as such. To cleanse my soul I find it best to look/study the classics and get lost in one of my latest paintings. Pax
High praise from a fellow artist, humbly received with thanks.
I recently read an article about a 2-year-old boy whose "paintings" are selling for up to $7,000. I confess that were competitive with some of the best modern art, which is to say his smears show a primitive innocence that others will never find. A sad comment on the state of art in our age. I could almost be forgiving of the modern film if there were some redeeming quality, like well executed choreography or a creatively dressed set, but alas!
When desperate, I climb into a Monet or a Gentileschi to refresh my sense of rhythm and harmony, and when I need great film, "Amadeus" fills the bill.
Rufus: OH, NO! Not "Amadeus". That was produced by Saul Zaentz the Jewish businessman who ripped of Credence Clearwater Revival, made "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" which Ken Kesey hated, "The English Patient", and the film I worked on, "At Play in the Fields of the Lord."
I knew Saul Zaentz pretty well. Am not a fan. If you were around him, you watched your wallet.
Zaentz is a jerk, but even a broken clock is right once or twice a day. Even he couldn't crush the beauty of Milos' vision, with all the actually opera houses that Mozart used, and the MUSIC...well, what can one say, but Salieri. Speaking of whom, fellow Texan F. Murray's performance was sublime, and even Tom Hulce was brilliant. I even liked Jeff Jones as the Emperor. Plus, the stage show is one of my favorites, so that helps.
Well, there it is.
PS: Saul Zaentz won three Oscars for Best Picture:
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Amadeus
The English Patient.
"At Play in the Fields of the Lord" was after Amadeus. All the actors thought they were starring in another Oscar winning film. That's why Zaentz had such a good cast for "At Play" and they put up with 9 months or more in the Amazon.
David Jones, my boss, aerial coordinator, famous stunt pilot, and friend; told me that Saul Zaentz lost $18 million on "At Play". That was a lot of money in 1990.
It took Zaentz years to make enough money ( most of it from CCR royalties) to pay off his creditors and get enough money and investors together again to make "The English Patient."
Watch "At Play in the Fields of the Lord." Tell me what you think of the movie. My name is in the credits on the VCR tape (Zaentz never put the film on DVD), but Zaentz took my name out of the credits for the wikipedia entry on the film.
I sent Zaentz my Brasil book and I don't think he liked how I depicted him and the filming of the movie in the jungle outside of Belem.
I haven't seen "At Play" in decades, but I'll hunt it down. "Cuckoo's Nest" is also a great flick that very nearly captures the novel's flavors. I personally would not have cast Nicholson as RPM, but no one asked me. I think Milos is a genius and I can't hold it against Zaentz for hiring him.
I have found that a great many pure unadulterated assholes pretty much run the world. I'm sure Michelangelo had some choice words for Machiavelli and the Vatican. That said, they did finance some of his greatest works. As a producer and promoter myself, I'm sure there are many unflattering assessments of my character, but everyone got paid a fair wage and the investors were happy, so que sera.
I've never met Zaentz, but I have met and worked with plenty of big names, and a great number of them were complete jerks, but it's hard to argue with their creative output. Art rises above the character or the artist. In fact, "Amadeus" makes the point that a foul-mouthed, impudent, egotistical shit created some of the greatest music ever composed. I try (not always successfully) to separate the art from the artist.
I know, as a producer/promoter, that I need vast sums of money to achieve anything worth doing. For that reason, I am forced to kowtow to deeply unsavory and disturbing personalities to get anything done. I have been reduced to tears, and donning sackcloth and ashes, over the compromises I have made to pursue the creative arts.
In the end, when the tickets sell and the audience applauds, I feel cleansed and absolved, catharsis if you will. I think of the great performances by Tom Courtenay and Albert Finney in "The Dresser," and particularly the chaos backstage during "King Lear" -- it is only what the audience sees that matters.
Rufus: "Art rises above the character or the artist." I disagree with this statement. And I think the way Mozart was portrayed in Amadeus was harsh. Was not envy the downfall of Mozart? Envy of Mozart by a lesser composer. Mozart was a great composer. If he made fun of lesser composers, well, golly gee. Humans do this. They say politicians should never "Hit down." but they do. Everyone does.
And no, it is not only what the audience sees that matters. As in "The Dresser" what happens behind the scenes is just as important as the performance.
I worked on the one film. I did not go to the premiere even though I was offered a flight and tickets. It took me years to watch movies again. I kept seeing what was going on behind the camera.
Rufus: I understand your position, but I can't watch a Saul Zaentz film without thinking of the Jewish "Santa Claus" fecker.
"I’ve passed many a mouthful of wine and cheese through my sinus cavities" I just can't come up with the words to tell you how much I enjoyed that! Thank you!
I appreciate you stopping by. I wish I could say the experience was as enjoyable as the image, but all comedy is pain plus time.
Rufus: Especially after going to the clinic.
You don't know fun until you've had partially masticated bits of Emmenthal mixed with Chianti plucked from your septum.
Rufus: Yikes! I just had a glass tube stuck up my penis.
Methinks we are kindred spirits.... I also look to Van Gough for how he pushes values and the use of color. I adore Dali as an artist because he could so it all without selling out. If you ever want to spend a day being blown away....go to the Dali museum in Figueres Spain. Despite the garbage that is produced there are people creating beauty...one just has to look for it. This modern art crap will fade away as it has no "staying power". Pax
Van Gough also had a unique way of introducing noise into his images in a way that is hard to describe. It's almost as if a thousand ants are crawling over the canvas. As for Dali, I have been to the museum...spent an entire day, in fact. I love his imaginative landscapes, and I've used his trademark melted clocks as inspiration for set designs. It is the mavericks who define great art. They refuse to be bound by convention, but they do it in such a way as to flaunt the rules, not toss them completely. That is one of the key points where Bumbledicks fail.
Roger S. : I agree. What gets me is that Van Gough never sold a painting. Shows how stupid art critics and patrons are. I can look at Van Gough's art for hours. But I also like Vermeer who was a perfectionist.
"You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension: a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You’re moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You’ve just crossed over into… the Twilight Zone."
Rod Serling
I wish.....
Nothing says it better. I'm reminded of another Serling creation, "Night Gallery". One episode had a former Stalag guard, who escaped his mental torture by transporting himself into a painting, with a shocking twist(ed) ending.
Yes, I remember that episode. I have always had a penchant for the macabre (I am currently reading the ghost stories of M. R. James).
Excellent choice! I kept one of his compilations, along with a collection of ghost stories compiled by Hitchcock, on my bedside table as a kid. "A View from the Hill" is one that stands out in my mind. What a wonderful imagination he had.
Gwyneth: I thought Wales was the Twilight Zone.
Growing up in Lincoln, Nebraska, me and my friends all watched Twilight Zone. We'd re-enact episodes and discuss them at school. "To Serve Man." was a favorite. We had fun with that theme in the cafeteria at Catholic school the next day.
"Look, cornbread and chili dogs again for hot lunch."
"Yeah, looks like the nuns are fattening us up for their summer barbecue."
I always thought my ancestors came from another world. I certainly feel as if I did.
The Twilight Zone led me into The Outer Limits which lead to Night Gallery and then on to Boris Karloff presents, ad infinitum. Then there was The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Haunting (original version), Soylent Green, They Live!, etc. All analogous depictions of the world theatre which is being presented to us.
Gwyneth: I live in Santa Mira.
Interestingly, the latest remake of The Invasion of the Body Snatchers in 2007 (retitled simply The Invasion) postulates an alien viral infection. What is the percentage of the world population that has been "Spiked" and, thus invaded?
https://moviedatabase.fandom.com/wiki/Invasion,_The
"Body Snatchers" is an interesting series to zero in on. Both the 50s and the 70s versions were allegories for the invasion of Stalinist/Maoist doctrines, first in the working class, and second in the academic and social classes. I haven't seen the third version, but it would seem to have similarities, with the invasion via the medical/professional classes. It's interesting (to me) that all three renderings would place the blame on extraterrestrial entities, though I suppose trying to establish a hidden cabal's manipulations behind the scenes would require a lot of set-up that aliens can just wave away. I'll have to look for "The Invasion" and compare them all.
Having read the book by Jack Finney, I was struck by the information that was coming out from body workers, Reiki practitioners, etc. after the vaxxines were released. Many noticed a soullessness, some intrinsic lack and alteration in the being of their clients who had received it.
https://archive.org/details/invasionofbodysn00finn
Gwyneth: I suppose the total percentage of world population that has been "Spiked" is around 30%. Most Africans and Indians didn't take the jabs. The Chinese did but what was in their jabs? It's hard to tell the total world percentage jabbed.
There was a Guy called "Andy Warhol". He sorta did this thing like; "art is dead" etc and I was defiantly a follower of fashion back then, what, Millions of $ for a pencil drawing of a One Dollar bill. I mean, the ignorant are still told they "don't know anything" so what are we going to do now?
I give Warhol high marks for being one of the best Bullshit Artists in modern times. I mean, cornering the art market with a giant painting of a Campbell's Soup can? Brilliant. His art sucked, but his bullshit was Grade A Premium.
Good article. Disney is now pretty much hopeless. They paid Lucas billions for "Star Wars", but the writers and producers at Disney never understood what the trilogy was about.
Roddy Doyle, the famous Irish writer, was ridiculing a priest and the Catholic religion in his usual profane and witty way.
The priest replied, "If it wasn't for us priests and nuns teaching you in Catholic Schools, you wouldn't have anything to write about."
Roddy Doyle had no response to that. LOL!
Disney shot themselves in the foot. I'm even seeing it over here with Disney Theatrical. Their titles used to be money printers for promoters, but the waters have chilled quite a bit. There's a rub-off effect on all their properties, even when Disney doesn't promote the Woak Agenda in these markets for obvious reasons.
As for Roddy, to leave him speechless is a mighty achievement. Those Catholics have a long history of shutting folks up.