The Hot Blog

Will this list be updated daily? - Zing!
Can you rank them in order of power please? - Kappow!
Will you add a 'Chopping Block' column with updated odds? - Kerplunk!

In all seriousness. It'd be interesting to see this broken up into more detail. Like a regional piechart. Regional vs national vs Online.

We are considering various ways of breaking out stats and keeping it up.

We tried to offer helpful information, like affiliated companies and the current status of some of the outlets.

We have found that others are very, very good at parsing information we provide, whether it is factual, like this, or opinion-based, like Gurus or my Oscar charts.

I would add Dave White at Movies.com. I think he's technically freelance, but he reviews every major release, every week.

Also, I don't know if you count radio -- but my friend Bill Handelsman sees damn near everything for review on KPFK.

Is this list for head-count purposes?

And David will respond, angrily, in 5... 4... 3...

Gary Thompson, Philadelphia Daily News? I put the ? because I don't know if he meets the criteria, but his byline does describe him as "Daily News Film Critic."

I'll bet James Berardinelli has sat in more darkened theaters with pen and paper in the last 15 years than any one on that list, except maybe Ebert. He's certainly a freelancer, and not the strongest writer around, but he does his job with a monk-like dedication I really have to admire. Dude's not above ANY movie.

As for this new chart... I guess if one can make spectator sports of Oscar and Friday box office and film festivals, one can do the same from the death of professional criticism too, right?

I mean what else is there to talk about?

Soren Andersen is with the Tacoma, WA, News Tribune, not the Knoxville News Sentinel. As far as I know, the Knoxville paper has not had a regular film critic since Betsy Pickle was let go last November after 23 years there.

Also, you left off Jim Ridley.

Joe... you're 60 (or whatever you are), not 6. Come on, man.

Crow... a little cynical, no. Is information bad? Do you have to see it as a game? We don't. We take it very, very seriously. And I believe strongly that information changes the conversation. The sad buzz that comes each time that another member of the group goes down is like a little mourning... and we should probably be paying more attention to the overall situation. I hope that this list will encourage that conversation.

Sultry... as far as we know, Jim Ridley is freelance for VVM.

I think Anderson's affiliation somehow got tangled with Ms. Pickle's... thanks for that.

I'm pretty sure Jim Ridley is a staff writer at VVM's Nashville paper. No idea what % of his writing is reviews, though.

And speaking of VVM...Robert Wilonsky?

Yes, he writes other stuff too...but is part of the regular critic rotation and has (or at least had, haven't checked lately) a movie show on HD Net.

Dave, I do happen to think information can be bad if it's not filtered through some kind of wisdom and caution. That's my general beef with blogging. Why another chart? Charts generally simplify complex ideas, and sometimes legitimize ideas we should not be legitimizing. (The chart mentality is the reason Stephen Sommers is making hundred million dollar films this year while John Dahl is directing an episode of Battlestar Galactica)

Putting these people -- people who love movies so much they got jobs reviewing them -- on some kind of a Schindler's List is depressing and only depressing.

I know the pickens are slim right now with cinema talk. I know "live-snarking" is the disease du jour these days. But if you want to be the force of enlightenment in this industry, of your beloved perspective, you're going to have to think about not just what you put out there, but the general nature of what you put out.

I mean, come on, you've just legitimized Ben Lyons as an actual film critic a day or so after arguing he's not one.

"Schindler's List" would imply that those on it get saved.

Critics should be so lucky.

Jim Ridley has been a staffer for Nashville Scene for years. And has written about films for years. About 2-3 years ago, he was even profiled in the Toronto Star as a frequent festivalgoer during the Toronto Film Festival.

So sheer curiosity: What is it that makes Voynar and Longworth film critics but excludes me and Drew? Because I don't fully understand the line you're drawing here, and I think your line is probably going to keep a lot of good people (and I'm not saying I'm one of the good ones) out of the Film Critic Club.

I'm not angling to get on the list - I consider myself a film critic and that's probably good enough for me to get to sleep at night, and lack of inclusion in a graph won't change that - but I think your project could be more comprehensive if you delineate more clearly.

Thanks for calling me a star, though.

McWEENY FUCKING RULES.

You missed Kent Williams, the critic at Madison's alt weekly Isthmus (where Michael Wilmington started his pro career, and which started running his DVD reviews online after his Trib layoff). He's a bona fide old-school critic, the kind who could write a Pauline Kael obit about their having been acquainted, and was still employed on Jan. 1, so he should have made your list. His position has since been eliminated, but he met your criteria.

Nathan Rabin writes for The Onion as well.

Also, don't forget Joe Williams and Calvin Wilson at the St. Louis Post Dispatch.

The criteria looks to be if you've been hired full-time as a critic by a source outside of the internet.

Perhaps what confuses some of us, David, is your definition of "full-time." Do you mean that, if you list Critic X on your list, that Critic X's primary source of income is film criticism? That film criticism isn't simply one of many things -- along with teaching, feature writing, blogging, writing press releases, churning out copy for an ad agency, mowing lawns, babysitting, whatever -- Critic X does to pay the rent and buy the groceries? That, in short, Critic X lists "Film critic" as his/her "Occupation" on his/her income tax retruns and credit card applications? Seriously. It would seem to me that if that's the case, at least a few folks on your list might be disqualified. If that's not the case, quite a few more could be added.

I may have this wrong, but I think the distinction is being made to those who "primarily" write film reviews only, as those are the jobs that seem to be in danger - the guys whose byline I only see every Friday. For me, "film writers" are more the guys - like Devin and Drew - whose byline is every last damn day of the week, 365 a year. While, say, you - Devin - write mountains of reviews, that's surpassed with running every other piece of copy that would be in the Arts & Leisure section as well. It seems those being seen as "most redundant" or most easy to be replaced by a syndicated column are those who primarily do the weekly reviews. Though I could be wrong.

I may have this wrong, but I think the distinction is being made to those who "primarily" write film reviews only, as those are the jobs that seem to be in danger - the guys whose byline I only see every Friday. For me, "film writers" are more the guys - like Devin and Drew - whose byline is every last damn day of the week, 365 a year. While, say, you - Devin - write mountains of reviews, that's surpassed with running every other piece of copy that would be in the Arts & Leisure section as well. It seems those being seen as "most redundant" or most easy to be replaced by a syndicated column are those who primarily do the weekly reviews. Though I could be wrong.

More names for your list, from my neck of the woods:

Jeff Vice, Deseret News (Salt Lake City's other daily newspaper)
Scott Renshaw, Salt Lake City Weekly (SLC's alt-weekly)

Why does Utah seem to still have so many critics while other larger markets have fewer? Maybe the economy, like so many other trends, hasn't caught up to us yet.

(BTW, Dave, it's The Salt Lake Tribune, without the "City." You wouldn't say The New York City Times, would you?)

As the one who's been maintaining the list of the fallen for nearly a year (49 jobs, from Jan. '06 to now), I'm happy to see you approach it from the other end - the list of the still surviving.

'What is it that makes Voynar and Longworth film critics but excludes me and Drew?'

maybe because kim would know how to write that sentence in proper english?

nah, just needling (i stole your word, hallick)

Three questions:

1) Is film criticism the bulk of what you write?
2) Are you getting paid for it?
3) Do you get benefits (health insurance, vacation pay, sick leave)?
4) Are you spared from having to hustle for advertising or other revenue generators that pay your wages?

If you can answer "yes" to all four questions, then I submit you are eligible for this list.

I see Rene and Noel, but 90% of SEFCA (Southeastern Film Critics) was ignored, and I know a number of them are still full timers.

http://www.sefca.org/members.html

11:30a... thanks and keep it coming... will answer some specific questions soon... we will continue to adjust until we feel it is right... and then we will get some corrections after it is published on MCN.

But again, thanks. All of this is being taken seriously by us.

Amy Nicholson, Inland Empire Weekly.

"nah, just needling (i stole your word, hallick)"

That's alright, leah. Just send me a royalties cheque post-dated "March 6th" in honor of the Orlando Sentinel and all's forgiven.

No, I wasn't doing my Michael Palin at the Spanish Inquisition impression. I meant "Four questions."

If Scott Foundas is listed for VVM, Ridley and the others should be.
BTW, thanks for making the Soren Anderson correction.

The first rule of Film Critic Club is to not talk about Film Critic Club.

Here's A POINT that YOU -- YES, YOU -- WILL listen to, belated or not.

It is an obvious fact that LEX MOTHERFUCKING G has MORE PASSION FOR MOVIES and LOVE OF FILM than 60% of that list.

Ask anyone who knows me. Hell, ask Poland, or anyone who reads whatever I write here.

Why does a MOVIE-HATING SMARTASS LOSER like ARMOND WHITE *make a living* writing about something he barely cares about? See also, ED GONZALES? See also, NICK SCHAEGER?

See also, KEN TURAN?

These people DO NOT LOVE FILM. They love the SOUND OF THEIR OWN BULLSHIT. They are complacent, self-plagiarizing MEDIOCRE FUCKING HACKS whose WEAK perspective wore out its welcome years ago.

TELL ME AGAIN Why I should ostensibly feel any pity if, say, Ed Gonzalez lost his job, or Ken Turan?

THEY GET PAID TO WRITE ABOUT SOMETHING THEY APPEAR TO HAVE NO PASSION FOR, Some niche they carved out for themselves and their own smug "CLEVERNESS." And they do a JOB that SOME PEOPLE WOULD FUCKING PAY TO DO.

I'm working at a fucking day job, and KEN TURAN gets flown around the world to half-assedly write his weak, tired, predictable, formatted bullshit about something he CLEARLY NO LONGER HAS ANY PASSION FOR.

Any of you fuckers can see half the bitches on that list DUBBING TAPES FOR A LIVING?

EXCUSE ME WHILE I CRY A RIVER FOR ALL THESE OLD, TIRED, BLOATED, LAZY HACKS getting paid for recycle their own annoying opinions for years on end.

FUCK 'EM ALL.

Seriously.

And since PAT GOLDSTEIN more than likely just read that BRILLIANT POST, go ahead and forward that shit on to the fat, sweatered, bearded, gravy-voiced lazy irrelevant hack you work with, who should count his lucky fucking stars someone pays him to recycle his "THIS MOVIE TAKES YOU PLACES YOU DO NOT WANT TO SEE" dozens of times over each year, into his clueless, idiotic OLD AGE.

Check out THE voice of L.A. FILM CRITICISM displaying his INCREDIBLE INTEGRITY, nervously softballing a movie he EVISCERATED in print:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqfr6WRL7wY

And again, ALL RESPECT TO LYT, but ANY of you film critics, ON UP TO POLAND, ever really lose your meal ticket, I HIGHLY DOUBT any of you would ever actually end up flipping burgers or shit.

Most of you would end up as some part-time college professor at USC, Wonder Boysing some lame film book along.

Just saying, I sorta feel for these guys when they get canned... but it's not like I've seen Glenn Whipp or Ella Taylor come in and fill out an application for a delivery driver position.

All you guys bitching about NOT EARNING YOUR KEEP AS FILM CRITICS, go on up to some Valley post house and make 40k running a Telecine or some shit.

BUT OF COURSE you're all TOO GOOD for that kinda gig.

So, you know, NO SYMPATHY.

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