[BBC Four] Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema

[Shit Good Nose]

Does Mark Kermode know any secrets of cinema? My beef is always that he's a horror/exploitation sci-fantasy guy (and not even a great one) who is just out of his depth with anything outside of that. No surprise that he's even shoehorning horror stuff into a rom-coms episode. He's a genre guy who's managed to rebrand himself as a general critic, by selling his larger than life persona and Mark Lamarr hairstyle.

Because it's him he's made a series about cinema that just focuses on genres, so anything that falls outside genre falls outside of its remit.
Looking at the trailer for the inevitable horror episode the animation seems to be suggesting that a particular film might be featuring. I wonder what it will be? I guess it's a secret for now.

I can't really argue with any of that, despite being a fan (and also to possibly say "well, so what?" - I think it's good to have a mainstream/high profile critic that doesn't look down on genre films), but as a point of pedantry I will say that Kermode has been sporting the 50s quiff a lot longer than Lamarr has, so Lamarr has a Kermode hairstyle.

[Wet Blanket]

I found it a bit nowt nor summut. He didn't have anything particularly original to say and the movies he referred to were by and large hoary old stalwarts. Plus, he irritated me by calling the Shape of Water sublime.

I was hoping for something a little bit more in-depth, that took for granted its viewership would already be reasonably knowledgeable about films so he could get into some more interesting analysis of the genre and maybe reflect on some lesser-known examples.

I know you might argue that he has to cater for a general audience, and you shouldn't base criticism on what something isn't, but I had higher hopes for something on BBC4. I kind of hoped it would hark back to the days when you'd have someone like Alex Cox or Mark Cousins (or even Jonathan Ross) delving deep into the meat of the movies.

For me the last really great general documentary for film buffs was Zizek's The Pervert's Guide to Cinema

[a duncandisorderly]

I used to often spot Kim Newman wandering down Denmark Street, no doubt popping by the old Forbidden Planet on th way down to the Curzon. Saw him about a year ago and he looks exactly the same. Somebody who has carved his own icon image with precision and has stuck to it like a film critic version of Robert Smith.

he used to do the movie review bit sometimes for the show-within-a-show that was 'box office' part of channel 4's 'business daily' which ran before 'big breakfast' took over in 1991. therefore I would from time to time run into him around the studio or in the little canteen area above it, as I too worked on the programme.
he gave me the creeps, in the same way as people did that are now known to have done unspeakable things but were once household names & constantly on telly.

[Shit Good Nose]

he used to do the movie review bit sometimes for the show-within-a-show that was 'box office' part of channel 4's 'business daily' which ran before 'big breakfast' took over in 1991. therefore I would from time to time run into him around the studio or in the little canteen area above it, as I too worked on the programme.
he gave me the creeps, in the same way as people did that are now known to have done unspeakable things but were once household names & constantly on telly.

I know what you mean, but a few CaBbers have met him on more than one occasion and one (might be Catalogue Trousers?) is acquainted with him, and as far as I can remember they've all said he's a decent sort, if a bit overly eccentric.

He was, like Kermode funnily enough, always good fun with Mark and Lard.