Corporations are Killing Criticism, Too.

“The average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so.” — Anton Ego, a fictional character

“The film critic no longer considers that his function is the formation and reformation of public taste.” — Pauline Kael, “Movies, the Desperate Art”

For a long time I have consumed criticism heavily, as a part of my daily media rotation. Video essays, YouTube talk shows, video and print and podcast reviews. But in the past couple of years especially I have seen the critical sphere form into an economy of popular opinions and wannabe corporate insiders.

The critic has begun to see themselves as a journalist who must get the inside scoop on the latest big story. That requires talking to the right people, and make themselves known to the people that can get them front row seats to the latest premieres, along with the dozen or so TikTok cosplayers gasping and cheering as if it’s an opening night back home. It requires “dedicating years of [your] life being a Star Wars fan” and then being upset when you don’t get invited to a theme park, even though you’re a film critic. If you know, you know.

I know of and consume the work of many talented people, who are heavily exploratory of film and television as a medium, but these voices are often silence in favor of film websites who have ultimately become journalist sites, letting people know about trailers and interviews and Easter eggs and on-set secrets and what not. Film journalism has become an ARG to decode what will happen in the next movie, and what the next movie means for the future of television, and what that other miniseries means for the next movie, on and on and on until there is nothing left.

So, what is left? Not much. The corporations are smothering all other films out of the box office, and the pandemic and current economy is still keeping audiences outside of theaters in favor of subscription services. Many people interested in film as recreation have these, and anyone interested in covering film require them to put out as much work as possible. But these subscription services are just as guilty of burying prestige work in favor of the biggest vehicles they have thrown together.

In the monologue from Ratatouille that I quoted from at the start of this piece, the character also says that critics have little to lose. And I don’t know if that is true. Critics have things to lose by saying negative things. People are paid to write reviews, and the wrong negative review and the wrong kind of attention means you’re out of a job or constantly being hounded by Marvel stans on Twitter. So, because critics have things at stake, there is a level of conformity expected. You draw your line in the sand as to whether or not you’re going to shill for Marvel or Netflix or become a sportscaster for the Academy, every review ending with ‘does this have a chance at Best Picture?’ nonsense, as if that matters.

I don’t have a solution to any of these problems that we’re facing that doesn’t involve a massive cultural shift which will likely never happen. Perhaps we need a new definition of critic, separating those passionate about the art from those chasing the daily quota. When shilling for these corporations pays the bills, I find it hard to blame anyone who takes that route. You get to work in your field at a job that hopefully keeps you afloat, I’m not gonna tell you to act like Mark from Rent and quit because you want to be a “true artist.” The decline of criticism in our culture is the fault of the corporations, after all. It’s all a part of the larger business model to dominate the culture and keep that logo burned into the tv screens and the ‘tudum’ stuck in your head.