The most feared of film critics at the heart of a captivating documentary to see in theaters: Who’s Afraid of Pauline Kael, directed by Rob Garver.
Pauline Kael, a long-time New Yorker film critic, has fought her entire career to make her mark. A personality all in brilliance, rich in unshakeable self-confidence, a complex past, but above all a deep love for Art and cinema.
Documentaries devoted to film critics are rare, and even rarer when it comes to female film critics. This one, dedicated to Pauline Kael, is therefore a nugget, not to be missed!
Its name may mean nothing to you, and yet it is one of the best known, but above all the most feared feathers in the United States. The documentary Who’s Afraid of Pauline Kael, in theaters this Wednesday, takes a long look at the fascinating trajectory of this signature, mainly from the New Yorker, who began in the 1950s and died in 2001. The film directed by Rob Garver looks back on some of the feats of this woman, who was both feared and admired!
Pauline Kael jostled your feelings
Among his fervent followers, there is a certain Quentin Tarantino. About him, he said this:Pauline Kael’s reviews were my only film school“. Why this statement? Simply because this review had a sense of observation and a rather incredible memory, and could, as a result, make you see a film quite differently.
“In my film, Quentin Tarantino says that she regularly pointed out a flaw that you hadn’t seen. And you had to agree that she was right. She jostled your feelings. This is what made her an outstanding writer.“, details Rob Garver in an interview granted around the release of this film.
And to add:I give you an example: 2001, a space odyssey. I honestly think his review was unfair. Despite its imperfections, it is a revolutionary film. I agree with her that the speech, especially at the end, is muddled, but she never gave Kubrick the credit he deserved. She was not a fan. Dr Strangelove is one of my favorite movies, yet she said it had too liberal leanings. I disagree with her.” His fans also bore the nickname “Paulettes”!
DR The formidable film critic Pauline Kael
Pauline Kael remains famous, too, for having crushed highly appreciated directors. Which has also earned him murderous letters or severe resentment! Among the best known are Clint Eastwood, and as detailed in the film, there are Stanley Kubrick and Lawrence of Arabia director David Lean. It should also be noted that she also “saved” films, testifying to her influence at the time. It was she who made possible the great success of Bonnie and Clyde, which initially could have remained a failure at the box office. His review had the power to bring this film back to light.
She was less in a hurry than all those critics who wrote by the second
Who’s Afraid of Pauline Kael also has the advantage of encouraging reflection on the exercise of criticism and its evolution. In an era where everything is always going faster, this doc speaks of her as someone who takes the time to reflect and step back: “she was less in a hurry than all those critics who wrote the second they left the screening room, such as Roger Ebert or Gene Siskel. (…) It is thanks to this long time, and to her writing of a natural authority that she built her power and her notoriety. But I think neither fame nor publicity interested him. She wanted to write well, to make her own voice heard. That’s what makes her so alive. His sentences are alive, his mind and his heart are alive, all the time, everywhere. And when the movies weren’t so good, his articles were often much better.”
Who’s Afraid of Pauline Kael offers numerous archives and unpublished testimonies, such as Quentin Tarantino, Paul Schrader, John Boorman, David O. Russell (director of Amsterdam, currently playing), or the daughter of Pauline Kael who has worked a lot with her.