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Ebert’s Answers On Brüno, John Wayne And Beth Cooper
By ROGER EBERT, For The Bulletin
Q. I disagree with your negative characterization of Rep. Ron Paul in your review of “Brüno.” I supported him in his presidential campaign, and I found Sacha Baron Cohen’s treatment of Dr. Paul deplorable and disrespectful. Dr. Paul was right to walk out, and his reactionary attitude reflects a defensive mechanism inherent in heterosexuals.
You allowed your politically correct bias to impose “decidedly liberal” values on the reader, and for that you should be ashamed. Keep political bias on the sideline when reviewing the film, except when the topic of the film is political. - Aaron Heineman, Provo, UT
A. In all fairness, I wrote, “It is no doubt unfair of Cohen to victimize an innocent like Ron Paul. Watching Paul trying to deal with this weirdo made me reflect that as a fringe candidate, he has probably been subjected to a lot of strange questions on strange TV shows and is prepared to sit through almost anything for TV exposure.”
Q. I am a junior in high school. I would have walked out on “Transformers” had I not gone with a group who was willing to drive me home. As we exited the cinema, my friends were describing their favorite scenes, like “the car rammed into the building” or “that big-ass explosion.” As I tried to figure out not only why I was hanging around with these people, the words “that movie sucked” unfortunately slipped out of my mouth.
My friends stopped discussing “Transformers” (the only positive outcome of my comment) and looked at me the same way that Quayle looked at Bentsen. After a heated one-on-six debate, I walked home. In conclusion, my father is driving me down to Chicago so I can see a very anticipated “Hurt Locker.” I just wanted to let you know that while most of the youth out there probably think that “Gone With the Wind” is about farts and that “Transformers” is a masterpiece, there’s at least one teen who still knows a horrible piece of rotten robotic garbage when he sees one. - Alex, Madison, WI
A. You have a great dad.
Q. Re your memories of John Wayne in Durango: Did the Duke, the icon of macho America, really play 1.P-Q4 as White? He preferred the closed, positional game to the more enterprising, aggressive style of 1.P-K4? Say it ain’t so! - Eric Isaacson, Bloomington, IN
A. That’ll be the day. Hey, I play Queen’s Gambit, too. Me, Capablanca and Alekhine. Us guys.
Q. Re “I Love You, Beth Cooper,” I am curious about what you meant when you wrote: “They may not become the most popular girl in school, but they don’t care. That honor carries with it a terrible lifetime price tag.” I have read many of your reviews and know that you carefully construct your writing; therefore, I believe that your choice of words was intentionally strong, or alludes to something. For whatever reason, I am puzzled. What is the terrible lifetime price tag? I have ideas as to what you meant but in general feel like I might be reading too much into a few words or am missing something entirely. - Steven Robinson, Montrose, British Columbia
A. Perhaps those words were not very carefully chosen. You can be popular and live a wonderful life. But I fear that if you tailor your behavior in order to be popular, your prospects are not as bright.
Q. I read your original review of “The Hurt Locker” and was amused to see another dig at Michael Bay and “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.” Having not seen “Transformers,” I have no opinion about your opinion. I was surprised to see that, hours later, the review [online] is missing the section where you called Michael Bay “pathetic.” Why did the review change? - Jeremy Schultz, Carlisle, PA
A. I decided it was bad form to do anything to distract from the greatness of “The Hurt Locker.” It makes the use of explosions in “Transformers” look — well, I was about to say “pathetic ...”
You allowed your politically correct bias to impose “decidedly liberal” values on the reader, and for that you should be ashamed. Keep political bias on the sideline when reviewing the film, except when the topic of the film is political. - Aaron Heineman, Provo, UT
A. In all fairness, I wrote, “It is no doubt unfair of Cohen to victimize an innocent like Ron Paul. Watching Paul trying to deal with this weirdo made me reflect that as a fringe candidate, he has probably been subjected to a lot of strange questions on strange TV shows and is prepared to sit through almost anything for TV exposure.”
Q. I am a junior in high school. I would have walked out on “Transformers” had I not gone with a group who was willing to drive me home. As we exited the cinema, my friends were describing their favorite scenes, like “the car rammed into the building” or “that big-ass explosion.” As I tried to figure out not only why I was hanging around with these people, the words “that movie sucked” unfortunately slipped out of my mouth.
My friends stopped discussing “Transformers” (the only positive outcome of my comment) and looked at me the same way that Quayle looked at Bentsen. After a heated one-on-six debate, I walked home. In conclusion, my father is driving me down to Chicago so I can see a very anticipated “Hurt Locker.” I just wanted to let you know that while most of the youth out there probably think that “Gone With the Wind” is about farts and that “Transformers” is a masterpiece, there’s at least one teen who still knows a horrible piece of rotten robotic garbage when he sees one. - Alex, Madison, WI
A. You have a great dad.
Q. Re your memories of John Wayne in Durango: Did the Duke, the icon of macho America, really play 1.P-Q4 as White? He preferred the closed, positional game to the more enterprising, aggressive style of 1.P-K4? Say it ain’t so! - Eric Isaacson, Bloomington, IN
A. That’ll be the day. Hey, I play Queen’s Gambit, too. Me, Capablanca and Alekhine. Us guys.
Q. Re “I Love You, Beth Cooper,” I am curious about what you meant when you wrote: “They may not become the most popular girl in school, but they don’t care. That honor carries with it a terrible lifetime price tag.” I have read many of your reviews and know that you carefully construct your writing; therefore, I believe that your choice of words was intentionally strong, or alludes to something. For whatever reason, I am puzzled. What is the terrible lifetime price tag? I have ideas as to what you meant but in general feel like I might be reading too much into a few words or am missing something entirely. - Steven Robinson, Montrose, British Columbia
A. Perhaps those words were not very carefully chosen. You can be popular and live a wonderful life. But I fear that if you tailor your behavior in order to be popular, your prospects are not as bright.
Q. I read your original review of “The Hurt Locker” and was amused to see another dig at Michael Bay and “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.” Having not seen “Transformers,” I have no opinion about your opinion. I was surprised to see that, hours later, the review [online] is missing the section where you called Michael Bay “pathetic.” Why did the review change? - Jeremy Schultz, Carlisle, PA
A. I decided it was bad form to do anything to distract from the greatness of “The Hurt Locker.” It makes the use of explosions in “Transformers” look — well, I was about to say “pathetic ...”
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