Letters to the Editor
Barton
Published Letters: 13 Editor's Choice: 3
-
Kong
[Read the article: The 10 best movies of 2005]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I too am surprised by the inclusion of Mr. Jackson's movie. I watched Kong recently and was amazed at how how boring it was. Yes, the CGI is amazing and, yes, the films looks great and has some good performances but it is too long by half, very poorly paced and really not that interesting at all. Who cares? Another $200 million spent so a talented but overrated filmmaker can induldge his first love for the cimema? I thought that Kong was the worst film I saw last year (I even found Derailed more involving - perhaps because I found myself caring for the characters...). And where was Capote, easily the best film of 2005, in Ms. Zacharek's list? I guess the combination of great acting and a subtle and intelligent film beautifully constructed could not compete with the stilted Corpse Bride and the boring cash grab that was Land of the Dead. And even though most critics panned it, Tony Scott's Domino was a dymamic and kinetic film by a master of film form and a true innovator of the medium. Sure it was empty headed but at least there was something interesting to look at - unlike Kong which had lots to look at but nothing to really interest the viewer!
-
literary measurment
[Read the article: "The Black Dahlia"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I'm glad to see that Ms. Zacharek has found a sure way of judging the relative merits of a literary work - you don't need to actually read the work, just get out a tape measure and see how thick it is (I'm tempted to make a joke here, but I'll refrain). Sure many classic hard boiled novels where short and to the point; however that is not the point of Ellroy's work as a writer. He is judged a hard boiled, noir writer by unimaginative critics who lack the skills and tools to understand what he is doing. Yes, many of the tropes of detective fiction exist in Ellroy's work (as do the Hitchcockian elements in DePalma's), but he is about something much different. It could be argued that he is involved the task of deconstructing detective fiction and re-formulating it for the fragmented times we live in. If you follow the thread from Dahlia to White Jazz you see a movement from a relatively conservative (for Ellroy) style of prose to a style where everything falls apart, is fragmented and can no longer hold the conceit of stability or social cohesion; as Yeats said, "the center can not hold." Ellroy is a difficult, often frustrating writer, but quite a brillant one and long after Ms. Zacharek has passed from relavance there will still be people discussing Ellroy and DePalma as true innovators and artists in their own right.
-
with great sadness...
[Read the article: Real inconvenient truths]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I confess to being a fan of Ms. Paglia. I proudly carry all he books on my shelves and have read every one. for years, my respect for her was of the highest order.
Now this: "From my perspective, virtually all of the major claims about global warming and its causes still remain to be proved." Ms. Paglia you are wrong and the above statement is stupid and reflects a profound ignorance of the crucial peril facing the world today. In your article, you condemned Ann Coulter for lack of intellectual rigor in her recent writings, but it seems you have fallen on the same sword.
I was also appalled at your response to the letter that made fun of Anna Nichole Smith's death. It may be difficult to reproduce voices in print, but the voice that, uh, "bonehead" was conveying was cruel and unnecessary and the "bimbo in the wind" bit childish and uninspired. Take people to task for disrespectful statements; don't reward them.
Finally, I would like to say that I was overjoyed that you were back but upon the evidence of your contributions to Salon so far, I would have to say that it would be a good idea to re-evaluate your decision to return.
Sincerely, Barton