Credible critique

[Sojourner]

[quote name='thedude' date='Mar 14 2006, 04:06 PM']I do it all the time!  I don't know how many movies I have declared the "worst of all time" when I've never even seen it.  Sometimes you don't have to see it to know it's bad:
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Oh come on! What's not to love? A cute kangaroo with shades and a Brooklyn jacket? You're heartless.



Although he does remind me of Joe Camel ...

[EcceNovaFacioOmni]

Did you see the commercial when that movie came out!? How could ANYONE find merit in that excuse for a movie? I've never seen Kangaroo Jack but maintain it is one of the worst films of all time.

[Socrates]

I'd disagree that one would have to actually view (or listen to, read, etc.) a work of literature or drama to know whether it would be morally wrong, if one gets his information about it from trusted and honest sources.

However, if one were offering a public critique (as in writing an article, etc.) he must see it himself to have credibility as a critic. When people attack something they obviously know nothing about, they come off as ridiculous by those in the know.
(For instance, I've heard of a priest giving a sermon condemning the horrible works of a certain "Mr. Potter" - who thought that Harry Potter was the [i]author[/i] of the books. Also I read part of an opinion piece in a conservative Catholic paper, which brought up the movie [i]Gladiator[/i] as an example of the depravity of modern Hollywood. The author, who had never seen the movie, was under the impression that the emperor Commodus was the [i]hero[/i] of the flick, and went on about how depraved Commodus was, and how typical of hollywood to make a movie glorifying this kind of man!)

As for [i]The DaVinci Code[/i], I don't think it is necessary to watch the movie or read the book; the important thing is to be able to refute the various historical lies presented in the book about Christ and the Church. One can do that by finding a reliable source of information, and does not therefore need to spend money on the book or movie.