The following is a blog (of sorts) where I discuss movie-related and site-related thoughts that I can't express within the confines of a normal review.  Some of them may be responses to e-mail I've received, trailers I've seen, or just an overall theme not specific to a movie.  Most of these writings are meant strictly for me, but I do consider them of potential interest to those of you that love movies or are just interested in the running of the site in general.  I welcome any feedback you might have on any of the subjects listed in this (or any other) section of my site.

3/6/2006 -- Brokeback Backlash

It's been some time since I've had an honest-to-goodness flamer (no pun intended) write to me, but I thought I'd share with you an interesting e-mail I've received regarding my review of Brokeback Mountain, perhaps one of the few legitimate reviews you'd find on the net of a less-then-rave nature.  Here's what Murray (he gave his full name and contact information, but I'll spare him the agony) had to say:

"Your an idiot for your stupid shallow review of a genuine movie (Brokeback Mountain). But I am sure your used to people calling you an idiot. Glad I haven't met you..let me guess..your a high school drop out....hate to meat the person who hired you."

As you can see from Murray's impassioned, if somewhat inarticulate, response, he isn't one that can handle the fact that someone out there might not like a movie he obviously enjoys.  Murray, get a grip, would ya, please?

While I don't blame anyone out there for enjoying Brokeback Mountain, it's conceivable that people might not enjoy it as much as you do.  While I may be in the minority, at least I can content myself that I'm on the other side of the fence than Murray is.

As far as me being an idiot, as always, that is a matter of interpretation.  However, it's painful to see someone like Murray expose himself to the world as the type of person that he tries to paint me out to be.  His goofy green font and poor grammatical skills make his claims to my intelligence (or lack thereof) hardly weighty at all.  Spelling and grammatical errors like "your" instead of "you're", and "meat" instead of "meet", show me that his feeling of intellectual superiority may not have much merit.  In calling me an idiot, he's managed to expose himself as a greater one.  Perhaps this is why I can only laugh when I receive e-mails from people like Murray.

While Murray is clearly wrong in his assessments of my educational background, as well as in his unconvincing critique of my review, he is right about one thing.  After ten years of stating my opinions on the internet for all the world to see, I have grown quite used to being called "idiot".  As long as there are genuine idiots out there with access to a keyboard and the internet, I suspect I'll receive these kinds of e-mails in abundance for many years to come.

Murray, thanks for the chuckle.

©2006 Vince Leo