It's hard to explain to my kids what life was like before the internet, and movies are a great example of the generational difference. In the 80's, we had the local movie viewer in the newspaper, maybe one or two on the TV, Twin Cities Reader, City Pages, Rolling Stone, and Siskel and Ebert. That was it, well outside of previews. Heck, I remember not having the slightest idea what Ghostbusters was about when I was taken by Steve Clay and Jeff Foldenaur to see it at the Knollwood Mall theater. That was a good movie to go into blind. It wasn't until late in the 80's you started to see magazines more dedicated to movies, which led to Premier and Entertainment Weekly. Before then, you depended on a handful of reviewers.
This is a good point to lament at how bad critics (arts, music, television, movies) are today. Back then, you'd find a reviewer you liked, read them to get an understanding of who they were, what they liked and how they viewed the overall scope of whatever they were reviewing, and then listened to their take, not as a command, more as a guidepost. Today, reviewers are mainly 'Loved it! Hated it! Loved it! Hated it!' They demand you obey their commands in regards to their suggestion, and rarely offer any insight into the product they're reviewing, choosing instead to gush about celebrity. Reviewers/critics today are (mainly) garbage.
For my kids, reviewers are almost unnecessary. There's somewhat of a review at Rotten Tomatoes, a website which runs a cumulative score of reviews. They're accurate, but you really have no idea of the reviewers take and mindset; only a number or grade assigned to their column. Most kids see a third of the movie before it's come out, as trailers are no longer for before movies only, with 4, 5 and even 6 trailers released before the opening. Some people have resourcefully edited all of a movies trailers together, in what seems like the chronological order, and they give you a pretty good idea of what you're in store for. There are no surprises anymore.
The late Gene Siskel and the late Roger Ebert, reviewed movies for years, starting back in the 70's with the old PBS show 'Sneak Previews,' before jumping to syndication in 1982 and changing the name to 'At the Movies' in 1986. Their review process might seem a little 'Loved it! Hated It!' with a thumbs up or a thumbs down, but rarely were their reviews not well thought out, crafted with a seriousness and sincerity which gave them credibility. They were great to watch, regular viewing in my house.
Here are a bunch of their reviews for your Friday. This is only a handful of the reviews I watched, but search You Tube and find the movies you remember.
Have a great weekend everyone!
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