I happened to read Roger Ebert's review of this film and was so irked by how wrong he got it that I wrote the following response:
I am increasingly frustrated by the trend toward egocentric film reviews that, first and foremost, are about the critic's feelings.
I was particularly put off by the opening sentence to your 11/4/05 review: "I don't know what I'm supposed to feel during "The Squid and the Whale." Huh? Shouldn't you be asking what you are supposed to think during the film? Despite the fact that you seem to be a decent guy whose politics I respect, the truth is, I don't read your film reviews to better understand what makes Roger Ebert tick. To dismiss the point of view of this film because you, personally, wish you had had "cool" parents just like these kids; is a dumbing down of your role as a critic.
What I wish you had reviewed, was a film that thoughtfully explores the unintended consequences of divorce in a culture that collectively and individually tries to assuage its guilt about its effects, particularly on children. Divorce, like death, may be a part of life which we have no choice but to accept, but prevalence alone does not mitigate the affects of divorce on the children who are the civilian casualties. While Roger Ebert, the adult child, might wistfully view these two childish adults as fantasy parents; what the filmmaker explores (as J.M. Barrie did 100 years ago in "Peter Pan") is how, despite being known for their elaborate fantasy life, children are inherently conservative when it comes to their real lives.
I am increasingly frustrated by the trend toward egocentric film reviews that, first and foremost, are about the critic's feelings.
I was particularly put off by the opening sentence to your 11/4/05 review: "I don't know what I'm supposed to feel during "The Squid and the Whale." Huh? Shouldn't you be asking what you are supposed to think during the film? Despite the fact that you seem to be a decent guy whose politics I respect, the truth is, I don't read your film reviews to better understand what makes Roger Ebert tick. To dismiss the point of view of this film because you, personally, wish you had had "cool" parents just like these kids; is a dumbing down of your role as a critic.
What I wish you had reviewed, was a film that thoughtfully explores the unintended consequences of divorce in a culture that collectively and individually tries to assuage its guilt about its effects, particularly on children. Divorce, like death, may be a part of life which we have no choice but to accept, but prevalence alone does not mitigate the affects of divorce on the children who are the civilian casualties. While Roger Ebert, the adult child, might wistfully view these two childish adults as fantasy parents; what the filmmaker explores (as J.M. Barrie did 100 years ago in "Peter Pan") is how, despite being known for their elaborate fantasy life, children are inherently conservative when it comes to their real lives.