Today is a sad day for film criticism. A sad day for film lovers. A sad day for film. I've never met him or personally interacted with him. What I have with him is a connection with cinema through words. Through his words, I got to know him, a sense of him. The lovely man that is Roger Ebert.
He writes without knowing who will be reading. There are many like me who have felt this connection. I've never done this - writing an obituary. For Mr. Ebert, saying goodbye in words, especially when he won't read it, seems fitting.
I was a pre-teen when I first came across his reviews. I was overjoyed to see him celebrate films like Almost Famous, Minority Report, Spirited Away, Harry Potter, Lost in Translation and some Indian films like Taal and Lagaan. I was underwhelmed when he didn't respond ecstatically to Lord of the Rings, or A Clockwork Orange. When he changed his rating of The Graduate from 4 to 3, I learned the film adage: films don't change, the audience does. I still stick by my dislike of Fight Club since I have his 2 star review backing it. I still believe he was behind the Oscar wins of Crash and Million Dollar Baby. It's been more than a decade that I've continuously logged onto his website to see what he thinks. His word matters. Not just to me but to almost everyone involved in films, directly or indirectly. If a movie makes it on his list of favorites, I have to watch it. I'm sure many of us do. His Great Movies section introduced me to foreign cinema even before I went to film school. I discovered several great filmmakers like Werner Herzog and Martin Scorsese through his love for them. His commentaries on DVD especially that of Citizen Kane is essential for any cinephile. Watching movies and then having a mental dialogue with him was my film school.
What makes him such an influential figure?
Why does his opinion matter?
I believe it is because of one thing and one thing only. Whenever I would finish watching a film, I always had these thoughts floating around. When I read Ebert this thought started surfacing- "Yes, that's what I was thinking!" Slowly, it became that's not what I was thinking. Soon, I had an opinion of my own. In a nutshell, Ebert is superb at articulation. Unrivalled. The best.
To me he is a teacher. He taught me not just what to watch but how to watch. Most importantly, how to love movies. He is the Guru Dronacharya to my Eklavya. (If you aren't familiar with the episode from the Mahabharata, you must acquaint yourself - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ekalavya)
I recently saw Trouble with Paradise (1932) and as usual, instantly went to Ebert's Great Movies section. He begins his review with this observation. Perhaps my favorite opening to one of his reviews:
When I was small I liked to go to the movies because you could find out what adults did when there weren't any children in the room. As I grew up that pleasure gradually faded; the more I knew the less the characters seemed like adults.
Need I say more?
I would be lying if I didn't confess that I had prepared myself for this day. He had taken a break in 2006 during his struggle with cancer and I was elated when he returned. But a few days back he posted his final blog entry about his "leave of presence" and this wasn't like the one before: http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2013/04/a_leave_of_presense.html
He ends his final post with these elegant words: So on this day of reflection I say again, thank you for going on this journey with me. I'll see you at the movies.
I woke up today and got the news over several text messages and calls. Faithful friends who are aware of my reverence for this kind man decided to drop the bomb. Even after the knowledge of Ebert's signal, I was shocked. It was too soon. I've been trying to get on with my day. I told myself that there are about 126 movies left to watch from his Great Movies section out of 363. I am looking forward to it, now more than ever.
Thank you for taking me on this journey with you, Mr. Ebert. I'll always see you at the movies.
He writes without knowing who will be reading. There are many like me who have felt this connection. I've never done this - writing an obituary. For Mr. Ebert, saying goodbye in words, especially when he won't read it, seems fitting.
I was a pre-teen when I first came across his reviews. I was overjoyed to see him celebrate films like Almost Famous, Minority Report, Spirited Away, Harry Potter, Lost in Translation and some Indian films like Taal and Lagaan. I was underwhelmed when he didn't respond ecstatically to Lord of the Rings, or A Clockwork Orange. When he changed his rating of The Graduate from 4 to 3, I learned the film adage: films don't change, the audience does. I still stick by my dislike of Fight Club since I have his 2 star review backing it. I still believe he was behind the Oscar wins of Crash and Million Dollar Baby. It's been more than a decade that I've continuously logged onto his website to see what he thinks. His word matters. Not just to me but to almost everyone involved in films, directly or indirectly. If a movie makes it on his list of favorites, I have to watch it. I'm sure many of us do. His Great Movies section introduced me to foreign cinema even before I went to film school. I discovered several great filmmakers like Werner Herzog and Martin Scorsese through his love for them. His commentaries on DVD especially that of Citizen Kane is essential for any cinephile. Watching movies and then having a mental dialogue with him was my film school.
What makes him such an influential figure?
Why does his opinion matter?
I believe it is because of one thing and one thing only. Whenever I would finish watching a film, I always had these thoughts floating around. When I read Ebert this thought started surfacing- "Yes, that's what I was thinking!" Slowly, it became that's not what I was thinking. Soon, I had an opinion of my own. In a nutshell, Ebert is superb at articulation. Unrivalled. The best.
To me he is a teacher. He taught me not just what to watch but how to watch. Most importantly, how to love movies. He is the Guru Dronacharya to my Eklavya. (If you aren't familiar with the episode from the Mahabharata, you must acquaint yourself - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ekalavya)
I recently saw Trouble with Paradise (1932) and as usual, instantly went to Ebert's Great Movies section. He begins his review with this observation. Perhaps my favorite opening to one of his reviews:
When I was small I liked to go to the movies because you could find out what adults did when there weren't any children in the room. As I grew up that pleasure gradually faded; the more I knew the less the characters seemed like adults.
Need I say more?
I would be lying if I didn't confess that I had prepared myself for this day. He had taken a break in 2006 during his struggle with cancer and I was elated when he returned. But a few days back he posted his final blog entry about his "leave of presence" and this wasn't like the one before: http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2013/04/a_leave_of_presense.html
He ends his final post with these elegant words: So on this day of reflection I say again, thank you for going on this journey with me. I'll see you at the movies.
I woke up today and got the news over several text messages and calls. Faithful friends who are aware of my reverence for this kind man decided to drop the bomb. Even after the knowledge of Ebert's signal, I was shocked. It was too soon. I've been trying to get on with my day. I told myself that there are about 126 movies left to watch from his Great Movies section out of 363. I am looking forward to it, now more than ever.
Thank you for taking me on this journey with you, Mr. Ebert. I'll always see you at the movies.
