Whether it is his glowing review of Norbit, his thrashing of Toy Story 3, or just his general pompousness, you are aware of Armond White.
His dismissal of Toy Story 3 came at a convenient time when the film was sitting pretty with a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes. "But Toy Story 3 is so besotted with brand names and product-placement that it stops being about the innocent pleasures of imagination—the usefulness of toys—and strictly celebrates consumerism." A claim that could have been taken at face value had he not followed it with this sentiment "Transformers 2 already explored the same plot to greater thrill and opulence." I am sure if one were inclined to interview Michael Bay at his most enlightened he would have never crafted an answer that insightful regarding hidden parables in his Transformers vehicle.
His dismissal of Toy Story 3 came at a convenient time when the film was sitting pretty with a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes. "But Toy Story 3 is so besotted with brand names and product-placement that it stops being about the innocent pleasures of imagination—the usefulness of toys—and strictly celebrates consumerism." A claim that could have been taken at face value had he not followed it with this sentiment "Transformers 2 already explored the same plot to greater thrill and opulence." I am sure if one were inclined to interview Michael Bay at his most enlightened he would have never crafted an answer that insightful regarding hidden parables in his Transformers vehicle.
White was at his most incensed when forced to sit down and type out his thoughts regarding Precious, but praised Norbit for its reflection of society, "Murphy’s gender/ethnic split embraces a sense of freakishness because Norbit, Rasputia and Mr. Wong are all, also, on a realistic continuum. We laugh at their types since we, in fact, recognize their types." The same loud, shrewish stereotype that Murray plays with glee is described with measured admiration. Said stereotypes used in Precious are a "carnival of black degradation". His point could be made legitimate, but defending one tired set of characterizations in one film does not allow you to lead a crusade against a film guilty of the same flaw.
Hit-jobs against Maria Full of Grace, City of God, and 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days condemn these films for their "preachy, wrong-headed messages", but invites viewers to find meaning in the "misunderstood" I Now Pronounce You, Chuck and Larry.
The man is not a consumer of the cinematic equivalent of trite slush. His top ten of all-time list includes Lawrence of Arabia, Nashville and The Magnificent Ambersons. He is a vehement detester of online criticism, having been quoted as saying bloggers reek of "amateurism, gossip [and] cliques". Certainly an interesting sentiment from a man who writes reviews knowing in the back of his mind that his contrarian reactions will certainly elicit a response from the online community that he apparently despises, but needs their traffic to prop himself among the elites of film criticism.
He is certainly knowledgeable about his trade, he litters his posts with references to classics from yesteryear while honoring movies such as: Bedtime Stories, Little Man, and Running Scared. Maybe the man operates on an intellectual plane all his own - seemingly pulling depths from films ignored - or more likely he has crafted his niche in being the wild-card of the community wrecking havoc and name dropping whenever possible.
The truth is any man who does not care about art enough to simply write about film in an honest and upfront manner does not do any justice to the medium. In pretending to write in the tradition of Pauline Kael he offers nothing more substantive than the huckster in The Outlaw Josey Wales selling his elixir to anyone willing to listen. Screaming into the abyss Mr. White needs less our scorn and more our sympathy. He's an intellectual prancing around as a troll seeking approval from those he spends his time railing against. He's also an enemy to the profession he claims to hold the best interests of.
Comments
Oh well.
Armond White is one of the most preposterous human beings I've ever come across and I'm legitimately disheartened that he has reached any level of success because he is so obviously bat shit crazy it borders on nonsensical.
I'm not sure which is worse, when a movie that's popular (Avatar, Inception, Toy Story 3, The King's Speech, etc) is predictably skewered with forced pseudo-intellectual diction and ridiculously obscure cinematic references, or when he vehemently defends a movie that is obviously terrible (Resident Evil, Transformers, Norbit, etc) justifying it with the exact criticism he had for another film.
Ahem.
Simon
www.screeninsight.com
White's take on Toy Story 3 is by far his most facetious.
Excellent piece of writing Fitz.