Pajiba

I agree. Although certain books may not be suitable to certain tastes, the amount of effort should definitely be taken into account.

Similarly, I face this issue all the time as a novice standup comic. Hecklers fail to realize that, no matter how bad someone is doing, they still have the guts to be onstage in the first place. Yes, I do find certain comics unfunny, but I still give them credit for doing it in the first place.

Student: "But Dr. Linny, I worked SOOO HAAARD on this paper/test/whatevs! I studied/wrote/thought for HOURS and HOURS!"

Dr. Linny: "Student, you made several mistakes on the test/paper, and it did not reflect the material/was poorly written/it is clear to me you do not know beans about this topic."

Student: *Puppydog eyes me*

Dr. Linny: "I'm sorry, I do not grade based on effort, I grade based on content. And this? Yeah. Not an A."

Student: *walks away calling me unmentionable things*

...The best part is, as a Social Psychologist, I know that whenever people hear criticism, the first move they make is to blame the critic in question rather than ego-depleting by looking int the fucking mirror to figure out what went wrong. So even though my students earn their grades, by their book, I am a whimsical god passing down arbitrary points from on high, and if they don't get enough, by Zeus, it must be my fault.

You want harsh criticism? Wait until your Mom tells you something you did sucks.

Here in the south, at least, Moms are supposed to be that last bastion of "you tried your best, we love you even though your a failure" kinda thing. I'm a writer, have been for a long time, and think I do pretty damn good most days. Showed my Mom something I'd done (recently) and she said: "Wow, that really sucks. Are you sure you wrote this?"

And you know what, she wasn't wrong. But still, yikes.

Trying is exactly that: trying. It's not doing, no matter how much you want it to be.

You won an oscar?

Prisco, PUH-LEEZE screen your movie on Pajiba.

I will blow you.

I. Will. BLOW. You. (upaninflatablebeachballbutscreenitanyway)

It cannot possibly be worse than half the shit we watch. Have you seen the Night of the Demons remake? Shannon Elizabeth looks like a botched plastic surgery monster ate her youthful body and craped out a spray-on-tanned brunnette mutant. Edward Furlong was practically wiping the cocaine away from his nose while they were shooting the horror sequences. There is no way in hell your movie could be worse than that shit. No way.

Screen it. Make your dreams come alive [jazz hands]!

When you put anything "out there," criticism has to be expected. Does it hurt when you've spend a great deal of time and effort creating something? Of course -- but to think that you shouldn't get or aren't going to get the bad right along with the good is completely unrealistic. Like anything else in life, what matters is that you put it out there.

Any publicity is good publicity.

I agree with you to a certain extent.

I understand the entertainment value of an overly negative review. I've gotten a kick out of many of them on this site, and if you're putting art out there, you have to be prepared for the entire spectrum of reactions.

At the same time, though, I understand the effect that unnecessarily harsh criticism - rather than constructive criticism - can have on an overly sensitive artist. (And aren't most artists overly sensitive?) Thankfully many artists are accustomed to feedback and have thick skins, but for some - particularly the ones who have not had as much positive reinforcement - it can be a real kick in the teeth. It's the sort of thing that might make someone believe he or she is a shitty writer. Maybe they give up, and we're all worse off for the lack of what could have been produced given just a little more encouragement.

Maybe I should go get a job with the Foundation For A Better Life.

dahlia6 >> I almost can beat that. I've been told that my work sucks by: my best friend, a writing teacher, and someone who works in the industry. Thankfully, my mom pulls her punches.

I make no apologies. If someone put countless hours of time and effort into a project no matter what it might be, no matter the intentions, no matter the labor of love, if the end result comes out like crap- they're going to be called out on it. Effort alone does not excuse a lack in overall quality.

Some people can put in very little efforts and get results that others toiling away can still only dream of. That's life and it isn't fair. Nothing that really can be done about it except to wear a cup and soldier on, evolve, and become a stronger artist for it.

Bear in mind critics are paid to find the flaws because a critic who thinks everything's great isn't employed very long. Some critics take the time to deconstruct something rationally and reasonably trying to explain why something worked or did not...and others do not. Some critics would tear anything apart with the fury of a 3-year-old Airedale, never taking the time to appreciate the potential beauty and for that matter not even being skillful in their wanton destruction.That said, there are in fact critics out there that get their jollies by mercilessly teeing off on anybody's work for some of the most trivial of details. I'm sure if somebody really wanted to they could in one fell opening of their bladder, piss all over the Mona Lisa, Don Giovanni, North by Northwest, The Catcher in the Rye, and Abbey Road without stopping for a beer run. Doesn't even make it true. For those critics (and thankfully none to be found in this forum) are doomed to inevitability be seen as the disgruntled feebs they are and destined to have their words find eventuality in oblivion. In the end they are but opinions and while it's nice to have someone offer kind words for your work, don't ever expect them.

To any artists out there regardless of your method, I say again- critics are an obstacle to overcome regardless a positive or negative review. Like awards, if your productivity is for them and not for you and the passion you have for your craft, then I would suggest giving up and taking up a new hobby because pleasing them is next to impossible and often unfulfillable if you sacrifice your vision to do so. You will risk upsetting the harshest critic of them all; your soul, the one critic you'll not likely recover from should you disappoint.

bleujayone >> Well said. I would add, though, that in this world of increasing online connectivity where anyone and everyone can easily broadcast a loud voice in an open forum, the line between "critic" and "audience" is blurring very quickly.

branded >> I don't believe merely thinking twice about the potential effect any given harsh comment might have and the degree of its harshness implies that an artist should or would expect anything to be easy. I'm not claiming any black and white dichotomy here; it's all gray to me.

I see your point. And I agree with you...kinda. I mean if you put your work out there, you have to be ready for the people who aren't gonna like it. And there are certain celebrities and stuff I just can't stand and will bash them till the day I die. (Alex Rodriguez I'm lookin at you. Way to screw up my fantasy league, bastard). I was just trying to be a nice person. I mean, I write children's books. I gotta have the kiddies like me.

Thanks for the great review, by the way!

I've often thought about the different intricacies of being a critic. It's especially complicated when the critics are admittedly an aspiring author/director/screenwriter/actor/whatever themselves. Sometimes the reviews can reek a little too much of "hey, this guy/gal has a career and I don't?! Gimme a chance, Hollywood!"

And let's not even get into the whole tortured metaphor trend of the '00s. "This movie is like Christina Hendricks nailing Angelina Jolie while decapitating Katherine Heigl as Arcade Fire blasts out of the murdertank and zombies get killed by kittens dressed as Joss Whedon characters." I mean, come on. Let's put that to rest.

Back on topic... isn't that a little too much conflict of interest? It's like a food critic being an aspiring restauranteur, or a music critic being in a band. There have been very few critics who have actually completed work to be judged by others. Truffaut and Ebert are the two that come to mind. Worked out well for one, the other? Not so much.

Maybe this is my new positivity tip... but I like recommendations more. Turn me on to something cool. Yes, it's fun to bash Michael Bay and Uwe Boll and whoever. Yes, it's way easier to write bad reviews than good ones. Still, I'd like a website where they just went into new genres and bands and video games and movies they discovered and want to share. And less overtly-bitter picking on the work of others. Because that's no fun, and while I am no regular, I do remember occasional criticism being launched at the fine folks behind the scenes here, and some skin being sometimes exposed as thin... coughToyStory3cough

First off, profiling of an artist's critics should be undertaken: there are many out there, some of whom have been established for years, who have made their careers on trashing films, music, what have you, and are just out-and-out assholes; yet their opinion/criticism can almost always be relied upon to go against the grain of the popular opinion, or the opposite of what you think. This type should be dismissed and not worth one's attention at all, even if they happen to praise your work - can't have it both ways.

Secondly, the reviewers here (or is there a distinction between "critic" and "reviewer?") are people who obviously love film, and music, and books, and, like those of us who read this site, really, really want to like these efforts , not approaching a work with the singular intent of 'tearing it apart' before one's even seen/read/heard it, which is so ridiculously prevalent in media today.

But thirdly, and most importantly, any truly dedicated artist has to know their limits as to what they can contribute versus what the 'public' wants or can tolerate.

I've recorded almost 200 songs on 4-track recorders, painstakingly overdubbing all vocals and instruments, operating all the controls and taking hours just finding a sound effect I'm satisfied with, not to mention dozens and dozens of takes, and believe me, that is a monumental effort.

But of all those songs, those endless hours, I can count on one hand the tracks that I would even dare attempt to promote or release to the public. I didn't do all that work for mass consumption or for even my closest friends/relatives - it was all for me, I'm proud of my body of work, and on my worst days I still loved what I was doing.

I am very thin-skinned; however, it has nothing to do with a fear of critics regarding my art - it has everything to do with knowing my own limitations and not blindly expecting everyone else to love my music simply because I do.

Oh, sweet JAYzzus - Prisco?? Really??!?

Of ALL the talent floatin' around in that Pajiba pool, you figure Brian 'Dickweed, Smart-Ass, Bitter, Easily-Offended "Fanboy-with-a-vendetta" since-adolescence-against-the-world'-- PRISCO is the most qualified to ask, "Can Criticism Be Too Cruel?"??!!!

This is an early April Fool's joke, right? That shithead knows as much about being "too cruel" as Bush knew about "responsible handling of America's national debt."

Yeah, right, he got all 'disturbed' from watching 'A Serbian Film' (sniff); maybe his maturity is starting to catch up with his age some, but it ain't there yet.

Go back & read some of his earlier stuff - he could (and can) be as nasty and biting as the "cruelest" critic you'll ever read.

His writing is fantastic, original & funny as hell - I also pity any subject who gets on his wrong side.

Everything Geek Chic wrote, great post.

This was the single worst piece of shit article I have ever read.

The mutual hatred between Werner Herzog and Klaus Kinski is nothing compared to the burning animosity I feel towards this article, and by natural extension, its author.

Fuck you, Prisco! Fuck you to hell you talentless hackcunt! Write something that doesn't make me want to vomit out my heart and strangle it with my recently excreted intestines! Oh, I forgot, you can't, because you're a useless waste of raw material that once could have been used to build a properly functioning human being but you cocked it up by crawling out your cunt monther's cunt first

...

See, I didn't mean any of that - it was a good article, Prisco - but damn it still felt good.

I think all this vitriol stems from the inner disappointment that we all feel with our lives and the fact that they haven't quite panned out as we planned. The Internet then comes along provides a nice and incredibly easy outlet to shit on other people's output, with the added bonus of anonymity and a lack of accountability. So even though I agree with you in that it's the result that counts, the Internet does have a skewing effect on everyone's hyperbolic criticisms.

Then again, sometimes shit really is execrable shit and deserves to have all the scorn in the world dumped on it.

... Jesus, I really do have a unique way of aimlessly wandering through different viewpoints, contradicting myself every two minutes, so here, QUICK; conclusion:

It's all inconsequential; screaming into the void. But it does feel good.