Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook 2004

Even though I live in Ohio, I read all of Roger Ebert's reviews and columns weekly on the Chicago Sun-Times website. He is such a great critic because he's not afraid to disagree with everyone else, and he's not afraid to bring his personal preferences and feelings into each review. A critic's purpose is not to tell you what to see; it's to help you make a more informed decision. Ebert's reviews help me do that more than any other critics.I have been getting this book from the library each January since 1998 and reading it cover to cover. Not only does it contain hundreds of reviews, it also has the excellent Movie Answer Man column (which I eagerly anticipate in the Sun-Times every other week), and the hilarious Little Movie Glossary (which, in this edition, I am proud to say, features a submission from yours truly).I agree with Ebert's conclusions on movies something like 60% of the time. That that's the case, and I still read him weekly, proves the merit of his writing.

The 2003 edition of Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook is the sixth I've purchased and it is sure to exceed every one that came before it. Ebert is a fine writer with the uncanny ability to make every review readable, fun and insightful--whether it's his 5th review or his 5,000th. The extras are what makes these books so enjoyable. From the movie glossary to the index of all his reviews (with star ratings), the book is absolutely jam-packed with information.My personal favorite section is the interviews he does with various directors, actors and movie business people. Ebert always asks the right questions without the usual creampuff fluffery you come to expect from interviews in Entertainment Weekly, Vanity Fair, etc. He pushes their buttons and gets under their skin--and the results are usually pretty entertaining.Of course, the real value of Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook is the reviews. The book contains all the reviews of the past several years, along with handy notes on cast and crew, and, of course, the star ratings.If you love movies, this book is a real treasure and a bargain at any price!

I picked this up not necessarily expecting much out of it, but it turns out to be a great read. This book is good just for general reading, or for getting a review of a movie you might want to see. Ebert's a critic with his own opinions and so obviously you might not agree with everything he has to say, nor should you. But whether his comments are positive ("Traffic" [4 Stars]: "powerful precisely because it doesn't preach.") or negative ('Inspector Gadget' [1 and 1/2 stars]: "would it have killed them to add a real 'Inspector Gadget' cartoon as a warm-up and scene-setter'), Ebert often seems to be right on the money.As if all of this weren't enough, the book is elevated with two interesting sections in the back: "Film Festivals," a review of Film Festivals that Ebert has attended and "Questions for the Movie Man," a collection of Ebert's question and answer columns.Finally, at the end, there's a list of the star ratings Ebert has given for every review that's appeared in any of his books.

Mr. Ebert is clearly the best working film critic today, and his beautifully written reviews prove it. His depth and genuine love for movies shines in every one of his reviews, even the bad ones. He is my favorite critic--we almost always agree on movies--and his writing is down-to-earth, yet also wonderfully put. Among my favorite of his reviews is that of "Cries and Whispers"--so poignant and beautiful. I buy his book every year and relish everything he writes because you can tell he loves it so much.

Film critics generate hostility among some filmmakers who apparently consider the expression of an honest opinion the ultimate act of arrogance. "How dare they tell people they have no right to like (insert a title here)," Burt Reynolds once said on Entertainment Tonight. Of course, everyone who states an opinion ("I like it," "I don't like it") is playing the role of critic, including Reynolds, and the best critics do not tell people what they have a right to like. They tell you what THEY like and why. The professional film critic who does his job right is simply a more thoughtful member of the audience who takes the time and possesses the wisdom to explain why a film hits the target or fails to do so. Roger Ebert takes the time and has wisdom to spare. The fact that the Pulitzer Prize winning Chicagoan is America's most popular critic is probably a happy accident owing less to his skill than to TV exposure (there was a time when Gene Shalit and gossip-monger Rona Barrett were probably the two most popular "critics" thanks to their gigs on morning television), but Ebert's status is richly deserved. He genuinely loves movies, and that love is evident throughout his various collections of film reviews, including the excellent Movie Yearbook. He is smart without being pompous, funny without being cruel, and wise without being pedantic. He is also thorough, seeing and writing reviews of even the most obscure movies, including those that may be deemed unworthy of attention by other critics at big city newspapers. You may not always agree with him, but it's doubtful you'll ever read one of his reviews without being enlightened, amused, or, best of all, encouraged to see something you may have otherwise missed. Anyone for whom movies are more than mere entertainment but an art form with the potential to change the way the audience looks at life, should find a place on their bookshelves for Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook.