Tag: Zero Dark Thirty

An Open Letter to Glenn Greenwald

Dear Glenn: I liked your recent post criticizing those film critics who are championing Zero Dark Thirty despite its false depiction (and implicit celebration) of the role of torture in capturing Osama bin Laden. But I think you’re going about this business of criticizing film critics all wrong. Here’s a little pro-tip I learned in my recent foray as an amateur critic of Lincoln. Apparently it’s not good form to ask a film to be something other than what it is. You can’t criticize the film you didn’t see—only the film you did see. (I know, James Agee makes a hash of that distinction, but he’s no Roger Ebert.) In your case, that means you have to criticize the criticism […]