This might sound odd coming from someone who literally
criticises people’s work for a living, but actually hearing criticism about
your own work… kinda sucks. I may have a little too much fun when writing about
stuff I don’t like (just look at my total lack of etiquette when looking at
EXMas for FilmInk), but I try and approach each film I review with the
understanding that people worked on this. That each production is the
culmination of a lot of time and effort being focused to a single point,
with many people putting in their hours to make it happen. But as part of that
same understanding, I also see the need to be honest about what I think of a
given film. The best advice I’ve ever been given about this field (cheers Travis) is deceptively simple: Don’t say
you liked it if you didn't, and don't say you didn't like it if you did.
I say that that’s ‘deceptively’ simple because, while we all seem to be all too willing to read random strangers to utter filth over the most minor shit, that can become a bit more difficult when the person you want to criticise is someone you know personally. An aspect of the ‘separate the art from the artist’ notion that doesn’t regularly get brought up is how that applies to those in relationships, be it romantic or professional. Like, you want to help them and give constructive feedback, so that they can become better at their craft, but when you care deeply about them as a person, the idea of telling them anything less than what will make them happy can feel... cruel?
