MovieChat Forums > Siskel & Ebert & the Movies (1986) Discussion > Why is Gene Siskel also not as well reg...

Why is Gene Siskel also not as well regarded as Roger Ebert today?


Somebody poised this question over on Reddit:
https://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/17y82g8/why_doesnt_gene_siskel_get_love_in_the_industry/

Like they asked, where are the books publishing Gene’s film reviews? Or a website showcasing his thoughts overall on cinema? Or just in general why has he been forgotten outside of being “Roger Ebert’s TV partner”?

Is it because he passed away so early in before the turn of the 21st Century?

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Siskel was often too nitpicky and thus was more likely to give a good movie a bad review. Ebert could see past a movies minor flaws so I think the viewers appreciated him more.

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Gene's reviews tended to be much shorter and to the point. They told you what you needed to know in a paragraph or two and then let you get on with the rest of your life. He didn't attempt some kind of literary masterpiece in every review. I think there's a talent in that as well as in the longer review. Pith. Succinctness. But Pulitzer Prize committees don't see things that way. Hence, less acclaim for Mr. Siskel's writing.

Dashiell Hammett wrote in a terse style and never won the Nobel Prize for literature either, but was vastly influential on all kinds of writers who followed, and not just in the detective vein either.

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ROGER TALKED HIS WAY INTO A FANDOM...SISKEL WAS ABRUPT AND HARDER TO LIKE.

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siskel was imo the more perceptive embracing critic of the two - also less susceptible to schmaltz.

ebert panned some great films. such as raising arizona, a clockwork orange - he was especially critical of art films, gave passes to blockbuster schlok.

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He didn't publish as many books, and he didn't live as long. Less exposure.

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Gene didn't have Oprah backing him.

Seriously a number of factors , many were listed above.

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I think Siskel represented what the typical film snob was in the public eye, whereas Ebert was much better at self-marketing and being relatable. Ebert just always seemed more approachable. Siskel was kinda like the film version of Simon Cowell.

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