Chicago Tribune movie columnist Gene Siskel was in love with words and movies. But it was an unlikely and ever-contentious television relationship with rival Roger Ebert that changed the way America looked at movies and propelled him into a realm of success, fame and unprecedented critical influence.
That the two of them did this from the Midwest — and not from, as before, the coasts — made their success that much more amazing. Not so amazing, in this age of celebrity, was that they became more recognizable than many of the movie stars they reviewed. And, in a fashion, he wrote his own epitaph when, a few years before his death, he said, “I love what I do. It’s a fabulous life.”Siskel wrote more than 5,000 movie reviews for the Tribune. Here are excerpts from some memorable ones, in chronological order:“But children of this television age may enjoy ‘Rascal,’ frequently a fast-paced flick that places good old Mother Nature on a treadmill and runs her to death.
There is only one problem with the excitement generated by this film. After it is over, you will walk out of the theater and, as I did, curse the tedium of your own life.Feb. 11, 1972: ‘A Clockwork Orange’ ‘The Godfather,’ now and maybe forever at the Chicago Theater, ends with a door being closed in the face of the audience, and it is because we have been behind that door for nearly three hours that the film has such remarkable appeal. To permit us a glimpse at The Mob, with all of its ethnic insularity, is like giving a chronic gambler a chance to wander above the false mirrors that overlook every casino.
‘Taxi Driver’ is an urban horror story drenched in lurid night colors: the blues and yellows of a porno moviehouse marquee, stoplight colors mixed with steam pouring out of manholes. If the idea of a neon nightmare holds any appeal, ‘Taxi Driver’ will be worth seeing just for a collection of intense colors rivaled only by the early Disney animation pictures.”“A great movie? Hardly. Stallone as the next Brando? You’ve got to be kidding. A nice little fantasy picture? Maybe.
With ‘Halloween,’ the most often desired reaction is screaming. It’s a beautifully made thriller — more shocking than bloody — that will have you screaming with regularity. ‘Halloween’ was directed by John Carpenter, 30, a natural filmmaker and a name worth remembering.”“Is it as good as its advance word and nine Academy Award nominations suggest? Yes.
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