I agree that the whole concept is kind of pointless

I was asked recently for my favourite film of the last couple of years as a part of a social networking intiative, so I took a look at IMDB just as a mnemonic. Wow that list was stupid. But understandably stupid in overvaluing recent popular middlebrow hits. A lot if other lists of this kind gravitate to “I am supposed to like it because it’s a classic even if I have not seen it” criteria.

However I think it is somewhat misplaced to criticize some of this outside of the context that most people do not have a ready made list. If you asked me this question today and 3 months from now, my answer would be wildly different just based on top of mind. Even people who you might expect to have somewhat prepared lists could be problematic. It strikes me as reductionist for serious critics to, well reduce film to numbers on a list and while obsessive film nerds certainly do this sort of thing, that doesn’t make it right. (or prevent Buckaroo Banzai from making the list)

On to the list itself. Plenty of quibble room, but probably only 10% real howlers. Many of the choices I would question can be explained if you are accounting for influence or precedence over pure art.

The English language bias is inevitable, particularly when you introduce the cumulative effect of averaging these 187 critics. The temporal context? I don’t know if the dissin’ by omission of post 1980 cinema (no Coen brothers?) is better or worse than the overrepresentation of pre-1935 films.

Anyhow I am sure that I could come up with another 50 films that are equally deserving. And there is always the question of representation. Billy Wilder was infinitely more talented and than Spike Lee and had a body of work that dwarfs Lee’s largely over-hyped pedestrian canon but The Apartment and Some Like it Hot don’t belong on this list and Do The Right Thing probably does.

Actually as a huge Wilder fan I find The Apartment nearly unwatchable but that is due to Shirley Maclaine. It does have a seminal performance by Lemmon as the light comedy everyman role (the Tom Hanks of his day for you kids) that is to me meaningful in the history of film. And about 30% of these choices seem to be about influence or film history or the development of the medium. And if that is the criteria than where is Mann’s Thief and The Matrix by the Wachowskksiwisisskki siblings of indeterminate gender which are almost Blade Runnerlike in their influence on my generation.

In September, Ms Noonan on an NBC broadcast, touted Palin and then when they went to commercial revealed her true thoughts into a still open microphone. When this was picked up she begged off that she was not being completely two faced, but had been taken out of context. Now that the skinny lady has sung Peggy feels comfortable to pull an about face again.

Say what you will about Pat Buchanan, but he believes what he says. It may be nutty, and it may actually work against the fulfillment of his agenda, but he is intellectually honest. And I don’t think Pat actually thinks Palin has a chance to be POTUS but I think he believes she has an opportunity to be a galvanizing force that excites the base, could mount an insurgent campaign in 2012, maybe win a couple of early primaries and raise a ton of money and become a kind of eminence rose of the nativist resentful bluecollar false consciousness Republican demographic. Kind of like…

On the other hand that ratbag Bill Kristol? He is just a liar. He knows what he says about Palin is nonsense. What is worse is that he does so because he knows that none of the captive media usual suspects will call him on it.
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He made the careers of many talents. Simply appearing on his show could mean tripling your booking price at club gigs. He gave Joan Rivers, an aging mediocre one joke comic who had flittered around the margins for 15 years, a guest host role that paid her a ton, increased her profile and touring income and provided her a springboard to start her own show – on another network in direct competition to him.

Carson would not have felt slighted if Joan Rivers had started up a daytime show, or a sitcom or a prime time variety show. But she expected Carson to respond to this betrayal and direct attempt to take his market away after what he did for her was not appreciated

Joan botched that gig, blamed the failure of the show on her husband Edgar, and drove him to suicide. Yeah, I’ll take her side of the story…
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Aaaawwwww he’s sooooo cuuuute!

Thwack! Thwack!
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He waged a campaign to get that idiot fired from that show over the use of a single gay slur uttered in the heat of an argument and then he turns around and does this?

It doesn’t make it much better that he picks objectionable people. The Black Eyed Peas are just trying to make crappy music for 12 year olds and secretaries. Carrie Prejean is obviously a worthless idiot but her competitors get to answer questions about world peace and Perez lobs her the Kobayashi Maru scenario of gay marriage.

I don’t think he understands his own intellectual dishonesty. “Perez’s” problem is that he just is not very bright.

Nobody deserves to be hit, but….

Wait a minute, I take that back.
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Nope. They all are good because they don’t wear fur, but only one is singled out for her huge impact and special place in Russell’s heart.

Hint: She is not a First Lady.

The mind reels
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Humans are omnivores. We adapt. If you want to make the argument in favour of vegetarianism or veganism or raw foodism or whatever just say “humans adapted from primarily vegetarian apes into hunter gatherer omnivores into agrarian omnivores so we can choose to adapt to ______ism”

Of course the rest of us will be heading out for sushi…
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1/4 of a second of a single body part possessed by 52% of the world = $500,000 fine

Partisan decision in Bush v Gore = 8 lost years, 2 debiliatating wars, $3,000,000,000,000, 4,000 US lives, 500,000 Iraqis and Afghans and a depression

Completely insane priorities = Priceless
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Madame Justice Ru Paul!
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