Siskel & Ebert Classics - 9/20/91 - The Fisher King, Paradise
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 6 мар 2021
- Plus THE INDIAN RUNNER in this September '91 episode. As a reminder, if you're looking for the latest home video reviews -- from Blu-Rays of classic catalog titles to the latest releases -- be sure to check out my own review site at www.andyfilm.com
I will never forget this film, as long as I live.
One of the best films I have ever seen ~ brilliant acting and such an original screenplay. A film of the times and beyond ~ The Fisher King
First time I sat down to watch The Fisher King I wasn't expecting much. When it was finished I felt moved like no other story told on film had ever done.
It haunted me for days.
Years
Fisher King------- 5 out of 5 ,⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
For real. Critics are good at one thing, and one thing only. Being critical.
Sometimes they cannot see the art in front of their bloody faces.
@@naughtscribe
Imagine that. They are critics. They strip a film down as they see fit. It's literally their job. You're not always going to agree with them, but so what?
So what, so what? We can go in circles all day on this.
@@naughtscribe
Ok, I see you don't want to talk about it. That's cool. I just hate seeing people who seem to judge critics harshly based on one review. Or people not granting merit to a critical review of a movie they happened to like. There are movies I like that I know are not great movies. The term "guilty pleasure" is apt for these.
Mercedes Ruehl won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for "The Fisher King"!
The Fisher King is my favorite Terry Gilliam film and possibly my favorite Robin Williams film. It also features one of the great Jeff Bridges' best performances (which you can pretty much say about any of his performances) and Mercedes Ruehl is fantastic.
Thank you for uploading this episode! This is one of the episodes that I have never seen.
"The Fisher King" is wonderful. They never understood what Gilliam does.
Siskel suggested that Brazil would be better without the dream sequences. The whole film is one extended dream sequence!!
Sigh...
Thank you so much for these S&E reviews!!
My personal reviews
Paradise (two thumbs down)
Living Large (two thumbs down)
Fisher King (two thumbs up, way up)
WOOOOOOOOOOW The title sequence of this show brought back so many memories
Terry Gilliam seems to be, for many, a love him or hate him kind of director. Of the non-Monty Python films of his that I’ve seen, I’ve loved two (Brazil, 12 Monkeys) and felt ambiguous about the third, that being the Fisher King. But all of his movies have stuck themselves in my mind, begging me to return to them and again bear witness to Gilliam’s creativity.
I think I’ll be returning to The Fisher King soon, and whether or not I find myself loving or hating the film any more or less than I did the first time I saw it, I think, at the very least, I will come away with powerful fuel for my imagination.
Check out Time Bandits too. More of a fun, “family” type of film than heavy statements about life like Brazil or 12 Monkeys, but showcases Gilliam’s trademark visual creativity and unique humor.
Wow talk about a blast from the past. River Phoenix supporting “My Own Private Overdose”. Really takes me back!
Wow, these guys really didn't get The Fisher King. That's disappointing
They were dead wrong about the Fisher King. "Needlessly tacked on," really? The mission to the retrieve the grail is set up early in the movie, and the actual fisher king tale is essential to the story's message. It would make no sense to complete the film without some sort of pay off for it. I found the girlfriend subplot is what felt tacked on.
The symbolism is completely lost on both of them.
I liked the girlfriend subplot for the hilarious singing telegram scene alone.
They completely missed the boat on this one . I always thought that Siskel was a terrible reviewer who disliked countless great movies .
@@vch7634 name them
they shit on Brazil too. Gilliams early films are brilliant.
These two didnt get it. Plain and simple. Its a particular style that I think makes The Fisher King incredible, memorable and enlightening.
‘The holy grail is a ted herring’….. yeah thats the point 😆
The Fisher King is a masterpiece these hacks did not understand.
Hacks? Please tell me you're joking.
@@wet-read Not joking
@@retter2critical
Ok. It's fine to disagree with critics or think they are wrong sometimes, it doesn't necessarily mean they are totally off their rockers.
How many reviews from one or both of them have you listened to and/or heard?
They obviously didn’t get what the Red Knight symbolised and meant to Parry; (hint: it is a visual reminder of his horrific trauma - the only memory of it he hasn't been able to fully suppress). Yes he is ill and often hallucinating, but would it really have been a better movie if Gilliam didn’t show us Parry’s perspective? Of course not, it would have been much much worse. The scene they claim is needlessly ”tacked on” accomplishes two things: One, it allows Jack to inadvertently save someone’s life - as opposed to the tragedy he inadvertently caused at the start of the movie. And two, it shows, through Jack’s terrified eyes, how close the border of insanity can be: Jack has his own hallucination, based in his trauma, but is ultimately well enough to snap out of it. Not liking a movie is one thing, that's a subjective experience. Dismissing it because you didn't understand it is not good enough for a professional movie critic.
Insightful comments about "The Fisher King." I agree with you and your points are why I really enjoyed that movie.
@@jeank8061 Thank you.
Yeah, they totally didn't get it. And it wasn't "tacked" on, as Parry literally *studied* those things, which makes total sense as to why those were his visions.
@@redadamearth Yeah, that’s true, didn’t think of that. All in all it’s an incredibly well written movie, not just a flawless execution. It’s just very surprising to see movie critics totally miss major points like that, and two out of two at that.
Exactly!👍
brazil is amazing ..
I'm guessing that when they re-painted the balcony set, the graphics for the opening, coming up next, video pick, the movies they review with the film's title, and re-cap came with it. I'm glad that the later was short and that they went back to the old graphics afterwards.
Yes, these graphics sucked!
I think their assessment of Fisher King, and Gilliam’s work would be different now; I don’t know if either did a re-review/correction of this film because I think Ebert did do that for some others later in his career. In 1991, we may have not been so traumatized as a nation by repeated mass killings, and didn’t have as much understanding of PTSD. The “knight on horseback” which they saw as unnecessary is a striking visualization of Perry’s psychological condition and mental breakdown, as his way of dealing with memories almost too horrific to withstand. And just like fables/myths/fairy tales that require the main character to be reborn after undergoing a challenge to correct his errors, or learn a lesson or sacrifice in order to help someone, Bridges’ character must fulfill that quest (in this case for the Grail) for his redemption, and Perry must confront his demons of memories in order to heal.
Fisher King was IMO Robin Williams' best film.
11:08 seems like Rog forgot that magical realism is a legitimate style
I grew up watching S&E and they had a profound impact on how I see movies. That said, they need to lighten up a bit on their review of The Fisher King, especially since that was the same year they gave Two Thumbs Up to that God-awful Cape Fear.
This is another one missing from the siskelebert fan site. Andy, do you know how much longer your recordings go on after this? This upcoming time period is one the siskelebert site has a lot of gaps from. Over the next 30 shows after this, they're missing about 15.
● I'm surprised... *Neither* of these two GOT The Fisher King, what it was about *AT ALL*.
Amazing.
:(
they simply do not understand what the quest for the grail represents. regeneration. of both lead characters lives. The Fisher King is a masterpiece. What a pair of knackers those two are "two thumbs down for The Fisher King"
Livin' Large is silly 😜, but enjoyable.
These guys are fun to watch but many of their reviews are so wrong! The Fisher King is an excellent film
How can they be wrong about their own opinions?
@@DeanStrickson When "wrong" is used here, they just mean that Siskel and Ebert would often have strong opinions to the contrary of how most film fans would feel about a project. For example, in this review, while talking about why they didn't like "The Fisher King", they take a sideswipe at Brazil which is the kind of film that most film fans deeply appreciate.
The Fisher King is one of my favorites and during their trashing of it they also trashed Gillium's other films, BRAZIL!! That is another of my all time top 10 films.. These guys don't like art. They want TV style dumbed down movies, i guess..
You're not always gonna agree with movie critics. But so what? I I absolutely adore Roger Ebert but strongly disagree with some of his takes. My biggest disappointment with him is over his review of the original Die Hard; he let one admittedly stupidly written and obnoxious character ruin the whole film, basically. But his analytical skills and knowledge of film far outstrip my own, so I can get over it easily.
That interview footage of River Phoenix is so sad. :(
I'm a fan of T. C. Carson from his work on "Living Single", and he's the original voice of Kratos from the God of War games. So I actually wouldn't mind seeing "Livin' Large".
Criticism on The Fisher King: Siskel - "It's overstuffed." Ebert - "There's too much stuff here". Horrible take from two great critics.
You wouldn’t happen to have the episode where they review White Men Can’t Jump by any chance, would you?
Go to Eric Haynes channel and post a request there. He has a lot of reviews saved from the old Disney web site up through 1992 and has been posting requests.
@@jedijones Thanks.
fisher king is a master piece
I'll miss him...the Sniper didn't
I literally laughed till my sides hurt
20:25
Two thumbs down for The Fisher King?
I've never seen that both be so dead wrong about a movie as they were about the Fisher King!
Holy crap them missing the point of the Fisher King. Wow. The 90s were wild. Main stream knowledge of trauma just wasn’t there. It was a movie before it’s time. In 2023 people would get it.
Siskel & Ebert were internet trolls who managed to get a prestigious tv show. I like them tho.
They had been on for 20 years before the internet even existed. And they weren't "trolls", they were journalists and real film critics. But critics can be wrong. That simple.
I really miss the days when white people still had enough spine to tell a black artist "hey, what you produce really sucks."
Well, Coming 2 America is certified rotten.
@@jedijones By critics, or audiences?
@@jbrisby Both! In fact, the audience rating is worse than the critics one. Critics is 51, audience rating is 45.
@@DeanStrickson wow, both those ratings are way too high. Worst movie I’ve seen in a long time
These dudes… instead of over analyzing the beauty of The Fisher King, which they clearly didn’t get and used as a device to prop up their pedantic opinions - which are as disjointed and useless as what they said was wrong with the film…
They should have just breathed in the beauty of the mountain or sky that this movie is, and not question what makes it beautiful, as we do not question what made a mountain and what makes the sky in moments of reverence, though you can explain these things.
Though you can explain art…
Isn’t the point to not focus on the brushes and canvas and frame and which wall it was hung upon or which people approve or do otherwise?
If not, than I have missed the point and am glad for this because I can enjoy great art without interjecting myself into it.
You must have a sharp axe in order to split hairs.
Lastly, they seem to dislike Gilliam in general anyway….
I wonder what Mike, Jay, and Rich would say about these films.
I remember I was looking forward to watching this film, but I ended up thinking it was so annoying. Too noisy, too histrionic. I did like the combination of the urban world with the world of Arthurian legend. I would consider watching it again, as I suspect I would enjoy it more now, but I don't know that I would grow to really like it.
Seriously ????
They 💩 all over the previous films for being trite, predictable & full of cliche. They review the "Fisher King" which is exactly opposite and rip it to shreds. What do you guys want? 🤔
The Fisher King was such a huge disappointment. Didn't help that Robin Williams was in it doing his usual obnoxious schtick.
I'm glad I'm not the only one that thought so. I love Robin and how crazy he gets, but his usual schtick felt very out of place and nearly ruined the film.
I LOVED the Fisher King and I have NEVER EVER been a fan of Robin Williams
He's always annoyed me in every movie , I still hate that he won an Undeserved Oscar for Good Will Hunting, but aside from World According to Garp, this is my favorite performance of his, but Jeff Bridges and ESPECIALLY Oscar Winner Mercedes Ruehl made this movie and with Amanda Plummer and Michael Jeter in a blazing cameo, those performances made this movie , especially between Ruehl and Bridges
Seeing it as teen i can just remember certain scenes. Entertaining.
I think Gilliam gave Williams too much freedom with his character. I thought Williams was all over the map in this picture.
@@johnfitzpatrick3094 he had to be, he was crazed ..you actually agreed on his performance
Robin Williams has to be one of the most annoying actors in the history of modern cinema.
Yes, I'm aware of his untimely death and the struggles that made him did what he did, but that doesn't change my opinion on the subject.
Williams was brilliant.He had this tenderness beneath all of his antics that would always profoundly effect the audience when it shone through. You can find his shtick annoying (Comedy is subjective), but you can't deny that his acting style had a large impact on audiences.
His two best films are Insomnia and One Hour Photo. He really should have considered doing non-comedic roles more often.
@@gspendlove Williams' dramatic films were usually better because they had better scripts.
He was under control more..
Jeff Bridges long hair movies always stunk.
The Big Lebowski stunk?
The Big Lebowski?? Fearless?? Hell or High Water??
Crazy Heart is pretty amazing.
His short hair films are worse. Arlington Road. Blown Away.
Horrible review, on BOTH their parts. I loved them both, but they really did overlook complicated films. Always looking for Speilberg moviemaking in the USA - which is highly formula-driven scripts, sappy love stories, and predictable endings - along with an out for a possible franchise, lol.
The entire Fisher King element, the Red Death, is completely misunderstood and overlooked. The film is about being lost in your own world and forgiveness - the huge element of the actual story of the Fisher King.
Shallow and huge oversights of this film and the symbolism by the two critics - but, oh well. Those types of films are just not, never were their shtick.