A good habit, not only necessary for a filmmaker but for any person who takes film appreciation seriously, is to read about a film after you've seen it. Explore the philosophical themes, read some interpretations, etc. For me, it starts with the film's Wikipedia article, moves on to Rotten Tomatoes and finally arrives at Roger Ebert's review of it. That guy talks sense, more often than not. Then a repeat viewing. Just like you appreciate a painting or any other art form for that matter. I too used to harbor the idea that a film is good only if you understand and like it the first time. I am wiser now.
Well there are some films, of course, that you watch for pure entertainment and I am all for romantic comedies and spoof films but what I am saying is that just one viewing is not enough to judge a film. Most films grow on you. Maybe I am biased because I belong to the profession of making them and I am so in awe of the medium that there isn't really a movie that I hate. Its still like magic for me; sitting in a dark room and watching moving paintings of light. Ebert says that it seems like the light is actually originating in your head rather than the projector behind you. Beautiful magic.
Speaking of Ebert, I feel sad that any person today can start writing and criticizing a film without any knowledge of film theory, genres, etc. Other lay people read his 'reviews' and make up their minds not to watch a film, which hurts the film in turn. That is one reason I don't write reviews and start stalking idiots that do. Its a professional job and it takes years and years of studying film theory and history to actually gain an insight into how movies actually work.
Even the very idea of criticism is offensive to me. Films are made to be appreciated, not criticized. It has been said that only people who like a film may review it, because they are free of all the prejudices that a film's discreditors would have. To emphasize on the positives. Appreciation instead of criticism. Then there is the other school of thought which says that the only way to criticize a film is to make another one, in response. What say, Mr. Critic?
Well, appreciation is definitely what any work of art deserves, but criticism, accepted in a positive manner spawns new quests of improvement! A perfect piece needs no improvement, but nothing is perfect .. so, it needs a direction of further fine-tuning! Ofcourse, not all critics have the same views in mind, infact most have prejudices and assumed specifics, but some are worth thinking about !
ReplyDeleteYou have a point there and I agree, but what I am trying to say is that film has always been considered a lesser art. To critique a painting, for instance, one is required to have a thorough knowledge of Aesthetics, History, Theory, Style etc. Why not the same for film? Notice the number of blogs popping up these days and tons of reviews written by all kinds of pseudo-intellectuals. It does affect the films they write about and thats wrong.
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