Wrongest Leonard Maltin movie ratings

And yes, for many years - and maybe even now, to a much lesser extent - his guide was the only source of info about certain obscurities (for UK readers it was especially good on 70s American cinema)

I always felt he was a not-bad guide to the territory of pre-sixties Hollywood cinema (and his guide was the most comprehensive for a lot of stuff that wasn't on home video for a long time — a lot of it probably still isn't). It made sense to me that he introduced all those Warner Night at the Movies DVD features, since I discovered a lot of those movies through his book.

I used to have an issue of Esquire from 1970 or thereabouts that had this big viewing guide article for late night movies on tv written my Maltin when he was about 20--even came with an author photo, the only time I've ever seen the dude without a beard.

Also:

Marge: "Did you know there are over 600 critics on TV and Leonard Maltin is the best looking of them all?"

I've still got a couple of '80s or '90s editions downstairs, and I might even have one from his long-forgotten competitor, Steven H. Scheuer (more eclectic, if I remember right: he'd give the occasional 4-star review to a Warhol film and such).

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51uYXM-0e2L._UY250_.jpg

I always felt he was a not-bad guide to the territory of pre-sixties Hollywood cinema (and his guide was the most comprehensive for a lot of stuff that wasn't on home video for a long time — a lot of it probably still isn't)

otm. Though they've outlived any usefulness, I loved looking through Maltin's and other movie guides as a kid.

And yes, for many years - and maybe even now, to a much lesser extent - his guide was the only source of info about certain obscurities (for UK readers it was especially good on 70s American cinema)

At least he provided a great service discouraging people from watching Taxi Driver

LOL the UK equivalent of Maltin was a guy called Leslie Halliwell - some of his greatest hits here:

http://www.lesliehalliwell.com/modern_times/index.html

This Is Spinal Tap earns three stars. I wonder what those guys could have done to turn that movie into a comedy classic? Or even into something as good as Airport?

(btw, that thing you do!: ***)

I have the 2004 edition of Halliwell's book somewhere, the one that stuck with me was him dismissing Fassbinder's Fear Eats the Soul as pointless because relationships between 60-something German widows and young Moroccan Gastarbeiter must be fairly uncommon irl

"Caine adds some light moments as an aging hippie who's managed to survive in his own hideaway compound." Pull my finger.

"Highly original story also involves adultery, lust, and lesbianism, somehow manages to avoid meanspiritedness while taking dead aim at its subjects." [name that review]

first complaint, although I wonder how much affection this movie has on this site anyway:

"Good dialogue and a fun cast make up for the overblown special effects and cluttered array of characters. 2 1/2 stars." That's some pretty generic crit there.

[name that review] Bound

Blue Velvet (1986): **

"Highly original story also involves adultery, lust, and lesbianism, somehow manages to avoid meanspiritedness while taking dead aim at its subjects." [

JFK

Halliwell was one cranky fucker

he gave 2 1/2 for Spice World, just for some perspective

Surely he was long gone by then and that review was written by his successor

Would that be his daughter Geri?

he kicked The Thing to death and gave Peter's Friends 3 and a half out of 4.

he was always way too fair on just about every kind of British flick.

also someone on ILX once mentioned this which still makes me laugh; Haliwell's capsule review for The Vikings: "Low-grade hokum for the easily pleased..."

he gave 2 1/2 for Spice World, just for some perspective

― Hammer Smashed Bagels, Thursday, September 3, 2015 12:43 AM (17 hours ago)

appallingly low

http://i.imgur.com/jFvMM5y.gif