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For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism

  • 20092009
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 20m
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
506
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • IMDbPro
For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism (2009)
'For the Love of Movies' is the first documentary to dramatize the rich history of American film criticism -- from the raw beginnings before The Birth of a Nation to the current battle for audience between youthful website populists and the veteran print
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DocumentaryHistory

The history of American film criticism.The history of American film criticism.The history of American film criticism.

IMDb RATING
6.2/10
506
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Gerald Peary
  • Writer
    • Gerald Peary
  • Stars
    • Roger Ebert
    • Andrew Sarris
    • Pauline Kael
Top credits
  • Director
    • Gerald Peary
  • Writer
    • Gerald Peary
  • Stars
    • Roger Ebert
    • Andrew Sarris
    • Pauline Kael
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 21User reviews
    • 24Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism
    Trailer 2:04
    For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism

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    Top cast

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    Roger Ebert
    Roger Ebert
    • Selfas Self
    Andrew Sarris
    Andrew Sarris
    • Selfas Self
    Pauline Kael
    Pauline Kael
    • Selfas Self
    Jami Bernard
    • Selfas Self
    Ernest Borgnine
    Ernest Borgnine
    • Selfas Self
    • (archive footage)
    Kevin Carragee
      Jason Carter
      Jason Carter
        Patricia Clarkson
        Patricia Clarkson
        • Narratoras Narrator
        • (voice)
        Richard Corliss
        Richard Corliss
        • Selfas Self
        David D'Arcy
        • Selfas Self
        Otis Ferguson
        • Selfas Self
        Owen Gleiberman
        • Selfas Self
        Molly Haskell
        Molly Haskell
        • Selfas Self
        J. Hoberman
        • Selfas Self
        William Holden
        William Holden
        • Selfas Self
        • (archive footage)
        Ed Hoopman
          Harlan Jacobson
          • Selfas Self
          Stanley Kauffmann
          • Selfas Self
          • Director
            • Gerald Peary
          • Writer
            • Gerald Peary
          • All cast & crew
          • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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          Storyline

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          Relied upon by some moviegoers and reviled by others, film critics for over 100 years have represented a form of journalism that sought to find and judge film as an art in a way others might want to heed. This film presents a comprehensive history of this form of writing as it developed with the film medium itself. With historical profiles on major contributors like Pauline Kael along with interview with contemporary figures like Roger Ebert, the nature of the profession is explored both for its illustrious past and its uncertain future. —Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)
          reenactmentjournalismwritingcriticfilm critic9 more
          • Plot summary
          • Add synopsis
          • Genres
            • Documentary
            • History
          • Certificate
            • Not Rated
          • Parents guide
            • Add content advisory

          Did you know

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          • Quotes

            Stanley Kauffmann: The one common factor that everyone has, whether he's a peasant in Bolivia or the Pope in the Vatican, is that in some way film has touched him. In some way.

          • Connections
            Features A Trip to the Moon (1902)

          User reviews21

          Review
          Top review
          Critics and the Movies
          For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism (2009)

          *** (out of 4)

          Somewhat uneven but entertaining documentary taking a look at film critics from the past to the present. The documentary from director Gerald Perry actually features plenty of interviews with actual critics, which is a major plus as they get to comment on various subjects including the history of film criticism, how they got into doing it, their relationship with studios and directors and there's even some nice talk about the theory that everyone is a critic. As someone who loves movies, loves writing about movies and loves reading other's opinions on movies, this documentary kept me entertained from start to finish. I really liked the knowledge of how film criticism first started back around 1907 and it was fascinating to learn about the few critics who were out there at the time. It was also fascinating being able to see how the profession has changed throughout time and during which eras were critics most important when it came to people listening to them. The likes of Pauline Kael and Andrew Sarris are discussed as well as what Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert brought to the table. Other critics like Rex Reed, Owen Gleiberman, Elvis Mitchell, Janet Maslin and even Harry Knowles are interviews as well. FOR THE LOVE OF MOVIES certainly has some faults including how it jumps around on its subjects too much. I'm not sure if this was originally much longer and then edited down but it just seems like several subjects are brought up and not fully discussed. Either way, if you're a fan of film then this here should keep you entertained and especially if you like discussing and debating movies.
          helpful•1
          0
          • Michael_Elliott
          • Apr 3, 2014

          Details

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          • Release date
            • August 2009 (Canada)
          • Country of origin
            • United States
          • Official site
            • Official site
          • Language
            • English
          • Also known as
            • Por amor a las películas: La historia de la crítica cinematográfica americana
          • Production company
            • AG Flims
          • See more company credits at IMDbPro

          Technical specs

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          • Runtime
            1h 20m
          • Color
            • Color

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