Critics know nothing, actors know nothing
Why bad reviews aren't as bad as you think
By Christopher Zara
Since the dawn of creative expression, artists have shared a love-hate relationship with critics. While actors, filmmakers, and other performers are more than thrilled to read glowing reviews about their work, that thrill will quickly turn to dread when the reviews are less than glowing. But putting yourself on display means that you will invite criticism, and knowing how to handle the fork-tongued ferocity of negative reviews is an important aspect of being a performer.
Even the most successful artists can have hard time dealing with the bruised feelings of being panned. Filmmaker Kevin Smith recently became quite enraged by Good Morning America film critic Joel Siegel, who walked out of Smith's latest effort "Clerks II" after only 40 minutes into the film. Siegel, apparently turned off by a scene in which Smith's perennial slackers graphically discuss hiring a woman to perform sex favors on a donkey, leaped from his seat and yelled "time to go," to his fellow critics at the screening. In response, the Jersey-centric auteur enacted the ultimate artist's revenge by calling up Siegel during a spot on the Opie & Anthony radio show and castigating the critic for his unprofessional behavior. Additionally, Smith remarked that it was a "badge of honor" to be panned by the bushy-mustached reviewer.
Of course, most working artists don't have the option of rebutting a poor review on a popular morning show, and for the average performer the best defense against criticism is a thick skin. Astoria-based actor John Hill says the harshest review he'd ever received was back when he was just starting out in Orlando, Florida. Veteran theater critic Elizabeth Maupin, of the Orlando Sentinel, blasted Hill's performance as the lead in Tennessee Williams's Sweet Bird of Youth. "I got a call from the director on the morning it came out," Hill recalls. "He warned me not to pick up the paper, because they basically slaughtered me. Of course, I ran right out and read the thing from top to bottom."
But rather than let the criticism sink him into a deep depression, Hill did his best to take it in stride. What's more, after reading the piece, the actor actually found himself agreeing with some the reviewer's critique. True, some actors still contend that the best recourse against negative reviews is simply not to read them, but Hill disagrees. "I have to read the bad reviews, because I know other people are reading them." he adds.