Over at his blog — which is more like an ever-expanding collection of thoughtful essays than the daily splattering of passing observations than we mere mortals play at on our piddly little sites — Roger Ebert has finally weighed in on the turmoil that ensued behind the scenes (and in front of the cameras) at his “At the Movies” syndicated television show a couple of years back, when health issues forced his exit from the program.
In addition to being a very entertaining read — particularly in the sections discussing one of the replacement critics, idiot king Ben Lyons, who’s since been turfed in favor of people who actually know what they’re talking about — it’s a thoughtful meditation on the way TV film criticism has changed in the quarter-century since Siskel and Ebert first went to the movies, and on Ebert’s recent confrontation with his own mortality.
You should check it out. I would give it two thumbs up, but of course the thumbs are trademarked … and besides, the show doesn’t do the thumbs thing any more.
Oh, and “New Moon” is still topping the box office, which either tells us that critics no longer matter … or that we need good ones now more than ever.
Stick around, Roger. We read you.