About the last person I ever expected to read a book’s worth of film criticism from would be Kurt Loder, who’s written just that with THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE GODAWFUL. For one thing, he’s an iconic face of MTV and known as a music journalist. For another … well, that’s it, really: MTV!
But you know what? He does a pretty damned good job at it! While offering perhaps too much in the way of plot synopsis (free of spoilers, however), he conveys the story flow in an imminently readable fashion. He also comments often on the work of that unsung hero of the movies: the cinematographer, naming him by name and familiar with his prior successes playing with light.
No matter what the title says, I got the feeling while reading this collection cover to cover that a majority of the reviews are pans, ranging from mild disappointment to utter disdain. The guy has a real gift for tearing apart a film, even if I don’t always agree with him, which is roughly 33 percent of the time.
The depth of this book is most impressive, with more than 200 reviews divided into specific categories (although overlap among many could be argued successfully), including über-expensive blockbusters, torture porn, comedies to avoid, adaptations of comic books, franchise films, documentaries, remakes, foreign films, movies that make no fucking sense, wholly agonizing viewing experiences, and the works of Nicolas Cage.
At more than 500 pages, it’s also difficult to hold while reading; the mere weight of the book threatens to send it all collapsing upon you. ‘Tis a small price to pay for such a fun trip to the movies, stinkers and all. —Rod Lott
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