The days of action and adventure are upon us once again and the time is now, our time, our genre of movies. I speak of the superhero, cartoon, and video game based movies that are becoming the blockbusters of the new era. Movies like Transformers Revenge of the Fallen are reaching a whole new generation of viewers. Not only do these movies capture the attention of the wide-eyed child but of the adult who grew up on the origins of such comic or cartoon themes. They are the ones who gasp in awe at their childhood brought to life on the big screen and who are now sharing the very characters they loved with their own children.

 

Unfortunately this is where worlds collide and the bell is beginning to toll. Not for the viewers of today, but of the movie critics of yesterday. Critics like Ebert Roper of the Chicago Sun Times, David Edwards of Mirror.co.uk, Peter Bradshaw of Guardian, and Robert Dougherty of Associated Content. They were once heralds of the arts, grading movies with verbose reviews and strong opinions that captured the attention of their readers. But now they squabble and complain at the offerings of Hollywood like bickering old men. And that doesn’t mean they have to be aged into their fifties, but rather the mentality of their craft has transformed them and placed them outside the usefulness of today’s moviegoing class. They have shown us they are relics of the past by comparing our new generation of action films to their beloved classics.

 

With each thumbs down and one-star rating they vengefully toss forth, these popular movie critcs threaten the market and future of the genre we know and love. They have no business reviewing movies they do not understand and lack the intelligence and open mindedness to accept such films into the fray. This frame of mind is dangerous and impedes any sort of progress for the future of such films. True enough the critics of yesterday live to enjoy the classics, movies they claim have beautiful insight in to humanity and where a Patsy Cline score can be heard playing in the background. And that’s all well and good for that is their schoolyard playground where they can rule as king of the sandbox. But they fail terribly when they try to grasp the spectacular, or try and understand the love someone holds in their heart just to see their favorite giant robots walk across the screen for the first time. The movie critics will scream and yell, casting down upon the directors and producers of this abomination to Hollywood’s credit.

 

Yet the very movie they sneer at breaks records and outsells their ‘Casablanca classics’ drawing in millions upon millions of fans. This only serves to enrage the critic and fuel their hateful approach to the review, in many cases going so far as to mock the fans of such a genre. Well enough is enough. Movies like Transformers and Superhero types MUST succeed if they are ever to reach the levels of directing and plot brilliance these critics hold in such high regard. We have only begun to tinker with the tools that allow us to reshape a Camaro into a bipedal humanoid in a split second of screentime. But the movie critics of yesterday do not care about that, they do not care about new genres of movies and the child and his father that so desperately want to see their favorite robots battle it out regardless of how well the lighting was chosen.

 

The bell has tolled. New blood is needed and a new generation of movie critic must take the place of the aging, bitter ones that cling so desperately to their past films. And if these movie critics of yesterday cannot accept that, they must be replaced by ones who can. You cannot compare movies like Transformers to anything else for they are a new generation of films where the amazing action and intricate plots do not necessarily need to take place on the big screen….they take place in the heart of the fans who enjoy them.

:lurk

One thing with ANY review (whether it's a movie review or a figure review) is that the final score is based off of ONE PERSON'S OPINION. Each person has a different taste, different expectation and different pleasure level. If we were all the same, it'd be boring. That being said, I think you have to tear the review apart and pick out the meaningful points. I find alot of these reviews are subject to personal rants. Remove all the pontification and you get the facts. That is what people should base their decision on. The facts, not what some movie critic thinks.

The problem is that people can't accept if someone found a movie crap, that person found a movie crap. I get it all the time when I say I didn't like Finding Nemo or Fight Club.

 

:shrug

I use reviews in a different way: the better the rating, the more I hate it, the lower the rating, the more I like it.

 

ROTF is still fairly mediocre though

I completely disagree. I'd rather a critic pick over & tear apart a movie, regardless of whether I enjoy it or not, than to just roll over & accept it. If they like it...great! If they don't...that's fine too. I don't want a mediocre critic! I think some of these career guys that you've mentioned sometimes interject so much personal opinion these days because they are simply sick of the crap that Hollywood pumps out at record speed. I'd rather them stick to analysis, but I can also appreciate their opinions. Now does that mean I'm gonna agree with them every time...of course not. But if we've got nothing but hacks that refuse to explore a film using cinematic critical thinking, then what's the point of having reviews at all? Or film schools for that matter?

 

Are you sure this is not simply a disagreement with the way you perceived ROTF (whether that be as a general viewer or a hardcore fan), as apposed to the way the majority of reviewers saw it?

That was very astute of you and I applaud the direction you have gone with this. I too have noticed the "crotchety old fart delegation" of critics have more attempted to torpedo something I have wanted to see only to prove that they are out of touch with my taste and in so far as me not being in touch with theirs. I like some of the old flicks from days gone by. Yes, I do agree they are brilliant if not dated, but I do not hate on them, even if I do not get the relevance of them at times due to the film being possibly twice as old I am and being from a different time and aimed at a greatly different generation.

 

Herein lies my bigger problem: Critics in general. I understand they are needed, if somewhat relevant to the industry, but anymore with the advent of the internet and numerous media outlets, everyone has become one and we are drowning in opinions of "It was superb!" to "Are you kidding me, that sucked goat balls!" and everything in between. My stance has been if you like it, that's great, if you hated it with a passion, Hey, that's great! Just don't try and talk down to me because I felt different about it and definitely do not try to attack my intelligence, character or otherwise because I had/have a difference in opinion about a piece of entertainment, after all, one mans steak is another' dog food.

 

Slightly off Topic but still in the ball park..

 

I have seen nothing but enthusiastically bad reviews* of the ROTF and I have not got to see it yet, but I'm going to see if with a full head of steam, damn the naysayers and their torpedo's high yield warheads of negativity! I mean after all, I'm going to see this film with several things in mind. 1)It's a Michael Bay film, so it will be heavy on explosions, action and teenage dick & fart-esqe jokes. 2)Referring to number one, I also am not expecting high brow, academy award caliber entertainment. 3)The Transformers franchise is based off of some really bad cartoons(yet I still enjoy them even if I cringe from time to time), so that in and of itself makes it even easier to lower my expectation bar and just relax and enjoy myself.

 

If you are going to see this film with some kind of ideology that it is destined to win awards/be akin to the likes of Titanic(for example), you might want to re-examine a few things. It's big bots doing big damage on the big screen!

 

*I have seen some good reviews on this site, but have not read them yet due to spoilers.

I enjoyed seeing it tonight in that there was cool action and I feel better than when I left the house, but fairly mediocre at best is about right.

I know that my opinion is one of many and many liked the movie a lot, but the people that were saying it's the best thing they ever saw... they aren't wrong. Just easily impressed.

 

 

And yes, a critics job is to tear a movie apart and expose all of its weaknesses. Only a truly great film should get good reviews.

The problem is that people can't accept if someone found a movie crap, that person found a movie crap. I get it all the time when I say I didn't like Finding Nemo or Fight Club.

 

:shrug

 

Watch fightclub again but shut it off right after they have the birds poop on the BMW dealership. If your not done figure Ed Norton got arrested either after he beats the blonde guy or Bob gets shot.

 

You'll feel alot better about it.

I enjoyed seeing it tonight in that there was cool action and I feel better than when I left the house, but fairly mediocre at best is about right.

I know that my opinion is one of many and many liked the movie a lot, but the people that were saying it's the best thing they ever saw... they aren't wrong. Just easily impressed.

 

And yes, a critics job is to tear a movie apart and expose all of its weaknesses. Only a truly great film should get good reviews.

 

 

nominated for Quote of the Week! :D lol :tfevil