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QA - Roger Ebert on Stephen King
I just found this in our Ottawa Sun - thought it was pretty interesting if you haven't seen it! 
I found the actual question in the Chicago Sun Times link from August 22, 2004.
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Q. In his column in the current Entertainment Weekly, Stephen King basically rants how critics pan average films like "Troy" and overpraise good films like "Spider-Man 2." He makes a pointed reference at you and your thumbs, claiming that one thumb is tucked away where the sun don't shine. Kind of a cheap shot, if you ask me.
Paul West, Seattle
A. There is a much greater distance between "Troy" and "Spider-Man 2" than between "average" and "good," but when it comes to areas where the sun don't shine, I bow to King's superior expertise.
King's On Writing, by the way, is one of the most intelligent, engaging and useful books ever written by a writer about his craft. In his EW article, he states the four-star rating should be reserved for classics like "The Godfather," and criticizes me for putting it on a par with "Spider-Man 2."
I consider stars to be relative to genre, not absolute; since "Spider-Man 2" was one of the best movies ever made about a comic book superhero, I gave it four stars. If stars were absolute and four stars were calibrated at the level of "The Godfather" or "Citizen Kane," there might be years without a single four-star movie.
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If this was already posted somewhere, and I missed it, my apologies!
Lin
I found the actual question in the Chicago Sun Times link from August 22, 2004.------------------------------------------------------------------
Q. In his column in the current Entertainment Weekly, Stephen King basically rants how critics pan average films like "Troy" and overpraise good films like "Spider-Man 2." He makes a pointed reference at you and your thumbs, claiming that one thumb is tucked away where the sun don't shine. Kind of a cheap shot, if you ask me.
Paul West, Seattle
A. There is a much greater distance between "Troy" and "Spider-Man 2" than between "average" and "good," but when it comes to areas where the sun don't shine, I bow to King's superior expertise.
King's On Writing, by the way, is one of the most intelligent, engaging and useful books ever written by a writer about his craft. In his EW article, he states the four-star rating should be reserved for classics like "The Godfather," and criticizes me for putting it on a par with "Spider-Man 2."
I consider stars to be relative to genre, not absolute; since "Spider-Man 2" was one of the best movies ever made about a comic book superhero, I gave it four stars. If stars were absolute and four stars were calibrated at the level of "The Godfather" or "Citizen Kane," there might be years without a single four-star movie.
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If this was already posted somewhere, and I missed it, my apologies!
Lin
Comments
I agree, Spiderman 2 was excellent, and I also agree that Roger Ebert handled that question beautifully.
Bev, I forgot to tell you (but I didn't link it because you had already provided us with info) that in the same paper edition, the "horror film formula" was there, a whole page on movies and their "formula" including The Shining, which you had mentioned also.
Lin
Fatherhood is beautifully exhausting.
Luke is a little blessing. He's wonderful beyond my wishes and my abilities to express. The poopy diapers and the occasional outbursts of tears and the lack of sleep -- all worth it, and then some.
Lin