4 posts tagged “newspapers”
It doesn't surprise me even a tiny bit that the Daily Mail would publish a piece calling for the banning of Lars von Trier's new film Antichrist. Why, they're not happy at Mail Towers unless they're being appalled, disgusted or worrying about the very fabric of society. It is, however, slightly more surprising to hear that the person calling for the ban is a film critic who... um... hasn't seen the film.
You do not need to see Lars von Trier's Antichrist (which is released later this week) to know how revolting it is.
I haven't seen it myself, nor shall I - and I speak as a broad-minded arts critic, strongly libertarian in tendency. But merely reading about Antichrist is stomach-turning, and enough to form a judgment."
Which did rather make me think, dude - film reviewing: you're doing it wrong.
I don't read the Mail very often, as it tends to induce in me a vein-throbbing, head-bursting rage that isn't altogether pleasant. However, I have started checking out the website every now and then, as against all the odds, many of the comments seem to come from sane, rational people rather than Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells. It somehow gladdens my heart that 1089 people have recommended a comment remarking how ridiculous it is to judge a film you haven't seen.
And if you fancy reading a far more eloquent take on it than mine, I'd recommend hopping over to Mailwatch, who tell it like this:
The Daily Mail resides in a terrifying alternate reality. In this dark and hopeless place, decent middle-class folk are surrounded by pernicious subliminal messages of hate designed to brainwash them into murdering, maiming, pillaging and setting fire to each other. The inhabitants of this world have no control over their actions; sinister forces fill their tiny minds with sex and violence and, inevitably, they succumb to the evils of the media induced orgy of societal destruction."
(via Bigmouth strikes again)
The wonderful Regret the Error has a roundup of 2008 errors, mistakes and general screw-ups. I think my favourite is Dave Barry apologising for a spelling error in his Miami Herald column:
In yesterday’s column about badminton, I misspelled the name of Guatemalan player Kevin Cordon. I apologize. In my defense, I want to note that in the same column I correctly spelled Prapawadee Jaroenrattanatarak, Poompat Sapkulchananart and Porntip Buranapraseatsuk. So by the time I got to Kevin Cordon, my fingers were exhausted.
(via Bookslut)
I love reading Caitlin Moran, she always makes me laugh, so of course I enjoyed her piece about being greeted at Heathrow with a nice cup of tea. But what I enjoyed even more was her perfect description of a certain newspaper:
...the Daily Mail (always a reliable collection of the day’s maddest thoughts)"
I enjoyed what I'm assuming is this deliberately provocative piece by Nicholas Lezard on what he calls crapsheets - the free papers that you are accosted with when wandering through central London. On the one hand I agree with him, and usually take something to read with me on the train or tube; on the other hand, sometimes at the end of the day my brain is just full and has had enough, so the literary equivalent of candyfloss is all I can cope with. Anyway, if the comments are anything to go by, he's done a great job of baiting his readers.
