Condition Critical

Early in her long, positive and rather pompous review of The Dark Knight Rises, Manohla Dargis of The New York Times makes a point of saying that Imax "is the way to see the film." Then she goes on to say nothing whatsoever about what Imax adds to the experience and, in fact, very little about any of the film's visual qualities. She does mention, in a vague sort of way, that director Christopher Nolan "continues to refine his cinematic technique" and that the action in the new film is "more visually coherent" than in the earlier films of the series, but that's about it. Oh, yes: she does use the word "visceral." Twice.

Awesome Avengers

Three Ways the NY Times' Review of The Avengers Is Irrelevant
1. Although the review is overwhelmingly negative, the only thing that critic A.O. Scott seems not to like about the movie is its action scenes, and what he doesn't like about them is that, he says, they're too long, too similar to action scenes in other movies and, as near as I can figure, contain too much action. For the record, those scenes are blessedly coherent (unlike those in many recent movies), consistently exciting and clever -- even, quite often, witty.
2. Although Scott allows that occasional other parts of the movie are humorous, he says they can't overcome the drawback of those dumb old action scenes. Actually, a lot of the non-action scenes are very funny, and the non-action scenes that aren't funny are frequently ingenious.
3. The review accuses the movie of "cynicism," but it's the review itself that is cynical. Scott calls The Avengers "a giant A.T.M." for Marvel and Disney, as if its probable popularity were somehow a strike against it. He attacks its audience as "submissive," which just seems like another way of saying that he feels superior to other moviegoers. The tone of the entire review brings to mind the aloof and dismissive spirit of the Times' review of Tim Burton's 1989 Batman, a film now considered a classic. That review was written by Vincent Canby, not long before Canby retired. Memo to Scott: Could be your turn.