Best & Worst Film Critics of 2003

While the nation’s film critics have completed their best and worst movie lists for 2003, Herb Kane’s Criticdoctor.com website (a site specializing in reviewing film critics) is releasing his first annual list rating the critics themselves called “Critic Doctor’s Top 10 Best & Worst Film Critics of 2003.”

Film critic Roger Ebert (Chicago Sun-Times) was beat out by Nell Minow (The Movie Mom / Yahoo! Movies) for the #1 best critic position. Kane picked Minow primarily for her favorable review of “Bringing Down the House” (Touchstone). “The movie’s racial comedy made it the most misunderstood film of 2003,” said Kane. “Minow defended the movie perfectly. She understood the movie debunked racism by making fun of racists.”

Earl Dittman (Wireless Magazine) took honors for the #1 spot on the worst list while film critic Leonard Maltin ranked #10. Kane said he bases the list on his “Critic Doctor Is In!” column and analyzing some critic Top 10 lists. “It’s all in good fun,” said Kane, “and I don’t take myself too seriously.” He even included his own website critic, Peter Sobczynski (a member of Chicago Film Critics Association), on the worst list. “It takes just one very good or bad review to land on a list if it has a lasting impression on me. Most of the critics on both lists are talented writers.”

The Best of 2003:

#1 Nell Minow (Yahoo! Movies), #2 Roger Ebert (Chicago Sun-Times), #3 Neil Cavuto (foxnews.com), #4 James Berardinelli (reelviews.net), #5 Holly McClure crosswalk.com), #6 Mark Ramsey (moviejuice.com), #7 Rob Blackwelder (splicedwire.com), #8 Mark Sells (filmthreat.com), #9 Nick Digilio (WGN Radio 720), #10 Scott Weinberg (efilmcritic.com).

The Worst of 2003:

#1 Earl Dittman (Wireless Magazine), #2 David Poland (thehotbutton.com), #3 Matthew Ross (indiwire.com), #4 John Waters (artforum.com), #5 Erik Childress (Hollywood bitchslap.com), #6 Peter Sobczynski (criticdoctor.com), #7 Lou Lumineck (nypost.com), #8 Harry Knowles (Ain’t It Cool News), #9 Steven Rea (Philadelphia Enquirer), #10 Leonard Maltin (Hot Ticket TV).

Click below for full details on why each critic was picked:

http://www.criticdoctor.com/toptenlists/2003.html

About Critic Doctor.com

Criticdoctor.com (http://www.criticdoctor.com) was founded in 1998 by Herb Kane. The site was inspired by an online debate between Kane and Chicago Sun-Times critic Roger Ebert over the movie “Patch Adams.” Kane wrote a review Ebert’s scathing review and the famed critic wrote back with a positive and respectful response. Kane later launched his weekly syndicated “Critic Doctor Is In!” column - specializing in reviewing film critics which also appears on Chris Gore's Film Threat site. Critic Doctor was featured in a Tech-TV column and was chosen as a “Hot Site” by USA Today and “Top 100 Film Sites on the Web” by Fade In Magazine.

The Lowdown

by Emma Dixon

FRIDAY 16 January, 2004...

Friends prepare for final farewell

The cast members of hit TV show Friends are preparing to film their final scenes at the Warner Bros set in Burbank, California next week. After ten years, the producers of Friends have promised Monica, Ross, Rachel, Joey, Chandler and Phoebe a fitting swansong that won't depart too radically from a typical episode and in order to keep the sextet' s final secrets under wraps, key scenes in the last ever episode are being filmed on a closed set.

Describing how they all felt about filming the inevitable final scene- Jennifer Anniston who plays Rachel said "we're all like china, very fragile...speeding toward a brick wall". But there is one ray of hope; this isn't the last we have seen of Joey- he's getting his own spin-off show.

David Schwimmer wasn't giving too much away when he hinted this week that his long-suffering alter ego Ross would live happily ever after with his final storyline being "exactly what I had hoped for". What we do know is that fans are guaranteed at least one wedding this season- At the end of season nine Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) was reunited with hunky boyfriend Mike (Paul Rudd), and as pictures published in Heat magazine this week reveal the pair tie the knot in true Friends style (after a whole heap of confusion and with Joey performing the ceremony). But the cast, crew and producers are keeping annoyingly mum about the one thing we all want to know- will Rachel pick Joey or Ross?

Hit-maker leaves label

Antonio 'LA' Reid, one of the most influential players in modern R&B music stepped down from his post as Chief Executive and President of Arista Records this week. Reid who launched the careers of amongst others, TLC and OutKast and produced hits for Whitney Houston and Boyz II Men in a career spanning twenty-five years, leaves amid reports that Arista's parent company Bertelsmann's BMG felt that a change was needed after the label lost in excess of $100m in the past two years.

Reid began his career in the early 1980's, teaming up with Kenneth 'BabyFace' Edmonds to form a hit songwriting and producing partnership. The duo went on to launch their own label, LaFace in 1989. Reid succeeded Clive Davis to the post at Arista in 2000.

Current artists in the Arista stable include Avril Lavigne, Pink, Dido and Usher.

Kilroy caught up in controversy

He's more used to being the mediator in other peoples fights and arguments, but talk show host and former Labor MP Robert Kilroy-Silk is this week caught up at the center of an escalating row with his bosses at the BBC over an article he wrote for the Sunday Express Newspaper last April that was mistakenly reprinted before Christmas.

In the article Mr Kilroy-Silk called Arabs "suicide bombers, limb amputators, woman repressors" , the BBC took his show off air this week whilst it investigated claims that his comments may ' impact on his on-air role' . Mr Kilroy-Silk says he wasn't referring to Arab people in general, but alluding to the fact that there are Arab regimes that are evil and tyrannical and dictatorial. The Commission for Racial Equality says he is guilty of inciting racial hatred and whilst critics have accused the BBC of gagging Mr Kilroy-Silk, they maintain the corporation must be 'seen to be impartial when dealing with topical and controversial issues' and that the job of a BBC presenter carries with it responsibilities about what is written and said publicly.

In a television interview this week, Mr Kilroy-Silk said he understood the BBC's problem regarding his impartiality, but commented that he was disappointed over their lack of support, especially as no one had complained when the article was originally published.

Amid the revelation earlier this week that eleven MP's including Glenda Jackson and Keith Vaz have signed a Commons motion deploring his comments as 'racist and abhorrent', Mr Kilroy-Silk received the support of one of his presenting peers. Richard Madeley (co-host of Richard & Judy) called for Kilroy to be put back on air immediately and blamed a hidden agenda for the suspension, telling BBC News 24 that "anyone whose worked in television as long as Judy (Finnigan, Madeley's wife and co-host) and I have can tell you that when there is a hidden agenda going on it stinks like a fish and I can smell lots of fish at the moment"

However, this isn't the first time Mr Kilroy-Silk's tongue landed him in hot water, a few years ago the former Labour MP had to apologise after accusing Irish people of being, 'peasants, priests and pixies'.

Bad Week/Good Week

Good Week for Bernardo Bertolucci. The Italian director's latest film has been spared from suffering the wrath of the film censor's scissors. Bertolucci has been told that he won't have to cut scenes from The Dreamers in order to secure a US release, instead the film- an erotic drama set during the 1968 riots in Paris- will be given a rare NC-17 certification which bans anyone under the age of seventeen from attending.

Bad week for Internet music pirates. The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) has warned that it will consider suing those who illegally swap songs over the net in an effort to encourage new, legitimate services. A spokesman for the BPI said "the music industry will defend its rights under the law whether it is against traders selling illegally copied CDs on market stalls, or people uploading illegally copied CDs over the Internet".

Passages

Arne Naess, the Norwegian billionaire and former husband of singer Diana Ross fell to his death this week while mountaineering in South Africa. Mr Naess, 66 who was divorced from Ross in 2000 after thirteen years of marriage died as he tried to abseil down a cliff in the Franschoek Mountains near Cape Town. He leaves seven children, including two with Ross and two with partner Camilla Astrup.

Meanwhile...

Talks are underway this week to solve a dispute over filming scenes at a historical Spanish Cathedral for Sir Ridley Scott's £54m epic Kingdom of Heaven. Scott wanted to film the scenes for his new movie about a young blacksmith who leads the people of Jerusalem in defence against the 12th Century Crusaders. The Spanish Catholic Church has thrown a spanner in the works, saying filming inside the Mezquita in Cordoba would be too disruptive and is reportedly unhappy that the Cathedral- which for centuries has been a site of sensitivity amongst Muslims and Christians- would become a 'fictional' place of worship in the move, rather than 'playing itself'. The film is set for release next year and stars Orlando Bloom and Liam Neeson.

The search continues for the writer and author Spalding Gray who disappeared last weekend. Kathy Russo reported her husband missing after he disappeared after returning home from the movies with their two young children. Gray who had suffered depression since a car accident left him with head injuries two years ago has attempted suicide on two previous occasions (the most recent being last September).

Finally, all good things must come to an end, and along with Friends it 's the turn of Frasier Crane to bid a final farewell. The hit comedy series, Frasier, which was first broadcast in 1993 as a spin-off from Cheers will end this year after an eleven year run- Is anybody else wondering what on earth they are going to do on a Friday night now?

Screentime- this weeks new releases

This is Spinal Tap meets folk music in A Mighty Wind.

Newcomer Scarlett Johannson plays the unlikely artists muse in the adaptation of Tracy Chevalier's novel, Girl With a Peal Earring.

Ben Affleck is a man after his Paycheck, in the latest offering from director John Woo.

Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman bring another John Grisham novel to the big screen, in Runaway Jury.