Roger Ebert on Ego

"I have innate confidence that I am right. Partially out of conviction and partially as a pose." - Roger Ebert in 1990
This episode contains excerpts of Lawrence Grobel's extended interviews with Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel in 1990. The famous duo worked side-by-side from 1975 until Siskel’s death in 1999, co-hosting the acclaimed, nationally syndicated show Siskel & Ebert. They remained together despite-or perhaps because of-their famously tumultuous relationship.
We focused on the ideas of ego and cultural taste that bubbled up throughout the interviews with Roger Ebert. They are essential to both creatives and the people who critique them. Was Ebert a genius? A blowhard? You be the judge.
CHOICE QUOTES
"My favorite love scenes in movies don’t involve passion, they involve nobility or sacrifice"
"Who wants to live in the present? It’s such a limiting period compared to the past"
"What makes people interesting is the spirit that shines through"
Get more Roger Ebert including his powerful story of finding his voice after losing the ability to speak, a choice list of his wicked one-line reviews, plus his screenplay that became an X-rated cult classic:
blankonblank.org/interviews/ro...
Subscribe for new episodes every other Tuesday (it's free):
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Executive Producer: David Gerlach
Animator: Patrick Smith
Audio Producer: Amy Drozdowska
Colorist: Diana Tantillo
Music You Heard
“Please Listen Carefully” Jahzzar
“On Things Invisible To The Eye (Act II)” Lloyd Rodgers
Music from APM
“It’s That Rag Again” by Terry Day
“The Entertainer” performed by David Graham Farnon
“Romantic Moment” by Harry Lubin
Photos You Saw
Kevin Horan
C. Art Shay
Kartemquin Films / Life Itself
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Help us caption & translate this video!
amara.org/v/Q8FT/

[@SirKlobuerste]

"Who wants to live in the present? It's such a limiting period compared to the past." I mean...wow. What a simple, yet eye-opening conclusion.

[@reneastle8447]

The Retro Decade Revival Project is gonna bring the un-limiting past back to life like never before.

[@GotBangersforreal]

Present has many possables..the past is dead

[@royrowland5763]

@@GotBangersforreal The past is never dead. History repeats itself. Those who know about the past are better suited than others to deal with the present and future.

[@neonfroot]

Romanticism of the past blinds people to the potential of the present and future.

[@kellygreen5556]

@@royrowland5763 but ugly Ebert IS dead

[@TheJunglekiller]

"Episodic television is based upon giving you, more or less, the same thing every week, so that's why you would tune in again. Life is too short to watch the same thing more than once, unless it's really worth seeing more than once." Sometimes a person will put your thoughts, that are all jumbled up in your tiny little brain, into words. RIP Roger.

[@neonfroot]

Television versus motion pictures at it again.

[@gabe_s_videos]

Roger Ebert is one of the few people I actually enjoy listening to even when I disagree with him.

[@stardustman420]

This channel is beautiful

[@BlankonblankOrg]

Thank you for the kind words.

[@evantsb]

Agreed

[@br5284]

YOOOO THIS MAN GOT THE FANTASTIC PLANET PFP AMAZZIIINNGGGG

[@stardustman420]

@@br5284 Yep. great movie tho

[@br5284]

@@stardustman420 Absolutely

[@JakeJarvi]

Man, I miss Ebert. I miss his words. This was really nice.

[@felixkovac701]

So excited for Episode 10 Jake! (P.S: you're my fashion role model)

[@jailcatjones3250]

Just be glad he is with gene again

[@MarionIsBlue]

I absolutely love this channel. Thank you for bringing all of these thoughts to life.

[@BlankonblankOrg]

MarionIsBlue our pleasure and thank you for watching.

[@IamSamys]

MarionIsBlue Sometimes, it's easy to forget that that is what _animation_ means!

[@evantsb]

Same here - so glad I found it.

[@cervgiovanni]

That was great! He explained ego much better than Ayn Rand, or was he a reader of Rand? Love reading his critiques too

[@allys744]

“I’m looking for films that come out of a director’s passionate and personal imagination, not films that are manufactured to entertain large numbers of people efficiently.”

[@avanishdutta2658]

Too many filmmakers and screenwriters are crushed under the fallacy of conforming to the largest number than to make films that tell specific truths about life and reveal many a facets of humanity. Most studios want to comfort and most directors want to take you on a journey.

[@glazedgamer7661]

This man is one of my Heroes. He taught me never to just accept something for what it is, that to be critical is ok. He changed my perspective on what i thought cinema should be when i was a 14 years old kid, I saw different paths of creativity, smaller details that really made a difference and could make or break scenes or even entire movies he's a champion of thought for the medium and I think that is highly admirable. Kudos to this bloke.

[@dabanfarad8756]

Life is too short to watch the same thing more than once, unless it's really worth seeing more than once.

[@andres65080]

Loved Roger, too bad he is no longer with us. His love of cinema was truly inspiring

[@ImaginaryAudience]

I absolutely love Roger and agree with him on a lot of things, but maybe film school has changed (or mine was different) between this interview in 90 and me getting to college. My experience was that classes were all about the art. I got out of school and had NO idea how to handle myself professionally and film being a business I floundered. While I don't wish for film schools to focus solely on the business I do think a balance is required. If we hope to make a living off of this field, being taught how to deal with the industry as a business is essential.

[@athensnike2015]

Self and pride are the defendable terms. One's ego and attitude can even get in the way of the rest of the self like intelect and specific passions.

[@HitmanJenkins1]

Business acumen is aboslutely essential to making a successful career, but at the same time you also need something that is creative enough to stand the test of time I think. The only way to really do that is to make sometbing that speaks about you personally.

[@TheAuraOfItAll]

ImaginaryAudience I've had the opposite experience. i graduated from a film school where the main goals were centered around staying employed, as well as getting your film seen and distributed once it was done, but the main problem was none of the students were never taught how to think artistically, so they just ended up producing and distributing films that meant very little.

[@williambyrne5513]

how many movies have you directed?

[@saxongreen78]

When someone really cares, it just radiates out of them like sunlight. ^^^

[@CaptainNnif]

He resonates with me in believing our duty is to experience the best the past has to offer. Current entertainment be damned, I'd rather go through life experiencing the best of the best--things that give context to my wonders, even if it means raising my standards really high and being skeptical towards any fad blowing through in the moment. To reject convention may seem cruel to current entertainers, but I have a duty to myself to increase my quality of life, even if as a result those entertainers fail from having to compete with those who's works are timeless. Modern business-minded entertainers want you in their clutches, and fear the day you look for something better. Only now in modern times, when we finally have access to most everything, can entertainment be a meritocracy.

[@TheDJPulce8693]

I love this channel. You guys do excellent work!

[@matmcd]

I'm not american, and I just discovered Siskel and Ebert yesterday. Now I just can't get enough of them. No wonder he was absolutely right: who wants to live in the present? They're in the past now, and I want to listen to them!

[@CristianGomez-js4mc]

You guys kick ass! Very important! Very creative! Keep doing what you're doing!

[@jessebushnell7253]

Wow, what he says about Ego is great and very true

[@thecrazyevilleaf]

Found you guys from the Jim morrison interview and have to say this is one of my favourite channels

[@janosk8392]

This is such a stimulating channel. Thank you.

[@scifikoala]

Ebert would like tv these days much more than back in the day, many shows now are far more cinematic and use Tv's long form medium to expand rather than repeat.

[@jedijones]

There have always been people saying that "now" TV is better than movies or it's where all the good writing is. They said it in the '90s. I've read it in reviews from the '80s. I've seen it said in articles from the '60s. It seems some people have always been able to make that case and others have always been able to make the opposite case.

[@neonfroot]

Yea that's true. Tv has developed more serious story arcs now.

[@cristiancharlothemolinabel4723]

Me ha encantado el video, gracias por tomarse el tiempo de incluir los subtítulos es español, siempre los veo, gracias!

[@PogieJoe]

Ah Roger Ebert. One of my personal heroes. :)

[@MarkBurdette72]

I'm a big @EbertChicago fan. Great rare interview. Two thumbs up!

[@BigCityPalooka]

So good! Thank you.

[@natalieauberry7798]

Agree - this is wonderful! Thank you!

[@athensnike2015]

He was wrong pride inself. Selfish good, self centered bad. Egotistical bad.

[@zakkdavis1704]

yes, I agree with the majority here in that these videos and audio are superb ..you should release full clips of these ..or perhaps I could just look them up but they're great. it's much appreciated. keep up the great work! good animation as well by the way.

[@davidatchison9245]

I truly miss that man.

[@assmane999]

I love Ebert! One of my favourite writers.

[@dlr_rosa254]

Both of them increased my love for cinema!!!

[@bronzenrule]

An original. Siskel and Ebert are missed.

[@chudleighpomeroy6803]

Your animation is spot on.

[@ihddurmas9871]

Ebert is such a witty and delightful person to listen to RIP

[@peteaxe2067]

Completely right about the film industry being built on money more then artistry

[@donutking7]

Awesome video, couldn't get FF9 Treno flashbacks out of my head though :D

[@Lilzk23]

keep up the good work

[@luceatlux7087]

I've heard a lot of great minds talk about not wanting to experience or watch the same things over and over again. It makes me sad because comfort in this ind of thing is something I love in life. I love letting my imagination interact with things I've already seen over and over to give each watch a different complexion. But I do have to admit that, in essence, it's an emotional narcotic at heart. When I want to go to sleep, I'll put on a movie such as 'Lord of the rings: Fellowship' and just go on the journey again with them. Usually by the time the grass is swaying in the wind in the Shire, Ii'm out and dreaming with a big smile.

[@caspian3755]

There's nothing wrong with that. Everyone has there favorite movies that they can watch all over again, but something new can be cool as well.

[@luceatlux7087]

@@caspian3755 I know I made a case for it before, but I guess I wonder if it's a healthy place to be (mentally) when one starts to develop such habits of staying in comfort bubbles and watching things over and over for a sense of safe oblivion; a kind of psychological hiding place in life. Sometimes I think that, like you said, gravitating towards new stuff might be... healthier? Idk. Thanks so much for talking with me about it and giving me your opinion though.

[@caspian3755]

@@luceatlux7087 I think that one should try more often to leave ones emotions, needs and wants at the door, to truly engage with a work. It's always nice and feels good to treat oneself once in a while, but it shouldn't turn to mindless hedonism. Sometimes we have to have some intellectual curiosity to get out of this (as you already said) comfort zone. Roger Ebert (no offense) was a man who quite oftenly was driven by emotions. For example he hated Kubricks "Clockwork Orange" for this exact reason. It made him uncomfortable! Which made him totally incapable to engage with any of it's deeper themes in an intellectually honest way. Thanks to you to. It's always nice to share some thoughts with others :)

[@reneastle8447]

"What am I looking for? I'm looking for movies that come out of a director's quixotic, personal, passionate imagination and not films that are manufactured to entertain large numbers of people efficiently." Don't worry, Roger, films manufactured to entertain will become a thing of the past as movies made by the director's quixotic, personal, passionate imagination are becoming more and more popular than ever before.

[@mustymax5878]

God I wish

[@reneastle8447]

@@mustymax5878 The Retro Decade Revival Project is gonna grant your wish. Our goal is to bring real entertainment, true talents, pure originality and variety, old school, and more back into the public mainstream, starting with the 1990s.

[@genericguy4315]

You guys should do one on Christopher Lee. You guys will undoubtedly do justice to such a great actor.

[@michaelcampbell6327]

two thumbs up...

[@kevinbirge2130]

I miss him.

[@boxproductions5027]

Rest in piece you funny looking man. Thanks for your legendary reviews 😢

[@eristiamat]

Please do Omar Sharif in a future video. I can't believe he's gone...

[@rawltg]

These films are the best animated films of the 'Internet Generation'

[@draexian530]

I really appreciate the use of Joplin here. Edit: spelling

[@adikravets3632]

1:49 sad truth

[@lilygone66]

Can you please do Glenn Danzig, please your work is amazing

[@J4sse]

👏

[@anthonyfrias5533]

He knew movies should be about magic

[@wormswithteeth]

Surely the armrests would be on the other side in the animation for that to work?

[@rockets4kids]

1:18 remember this was spoken 30 years ago...

[@meavid]

👍

[@jgbal9934]

What's up with Ebert's voice at the beginning and end of the video?

[@BlankonblankOrg]

It's the nature of the source audio.

[@theskeletonappearsinthisco5896]

1:19 this is what i feel like happened to disney, its more they make movies to make money not "We make money to make more movies'' - walt disney. i feel like things just got worse after walt wasnt in the company anymore.

[@AndresGomez-ct7qb]

So... Since the 60s? Disney has had its fair share of great films since Walt Disney died

[@PacificExpressions]

2:23 Ebert’s favorite love scene must have been Bruce Willis sacrificing himself for Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler in Armageddon. Can just imagine him bawling in the back of the theatre because that’s love 😌😂

[@ArtofBrentMinehan]

Didn't he say prose? not pose?

[@owlcircus6811]

1:22 Really makes me wonder how much he would of loved or hated the MCU

[@AbbaZaba00]

Some of those clips were of Gene Siskel speaking but you animated Roger saying it.

[@ovidbowie3929]

I wonder what he would think of all these superhero movies. They're non-stop and it's all business from what I see.

[@assmane999]

Well, he only died 4 years ago, so he was alive to see what they basically still are today: Shameless money-grabs.

[@maksimnikiforovski2034]

He didn't anticipate the canvas of creative opportunities that TV would eventually become in the 2000s. I doubt he'd be so critical of television if TV was back then what TV is today.

[@chrisbrownfan-dq8in]

am i high or does ebert sound like philip seymour hoffman in the firet bit

[@danwroy]

Roger Ebert Has A Cold

[@jedidiahkelley655]

But he mentioned her nose

[@Lone432345]

He loves movies that are about a director's personal passion for film. Couldn't this discribe Ed Wood. Also were the Gene Siskel video. Because he was actually a better Critic.

[@befero5475]

Ingmar Bergman deserved to have that ego man.

[@adikravets3632]

1:43

[@ronoc9]

Interesting how dated Ebert's TV remark at the end has become; if he were to start his career today he would have flipped his views on TV and Films.

[@tracyflick]

Conor Matthews How is it dated? I could watch 18 hours of an episodic TV show, or I could watch 9 different movies in the same time frame? I'd rather watch 9 movies than commit to a show that might get good by season 4

[@GreenEyedDazzler]

He got really defensive there haha

[@plasticweapon]

next, can we hear pots talk about kettles?

[@adikravets3632]

3:37 haha and then damm

[@laurasc6880]

Art Food Kitty - Kelly Eddington Looky here my dear

[@stuvs830]

The interviewer was talked over the whole time, and Gene Siskel has described feeling cowed by him throughout their relationship. Was Ebert ever evaluated for Aspergers?

[@johnfitzpatrick3094]

One thing I do know is that Siskel was never cowed by him.

[@phototristan]

Wait, he didn't think Ione Sky is pretty? Seriously?

[@bliglum]

Huh.. Didn't know he hated television so much.

[@johnfitzpatrick3094]

Siskel hated television even more.

[@leetorry]

Its a shame he didn't live that long, I've always wanted him to review videogames like Killer 7, MGS Series and Half-Life series.

[@vangard0]

+Lee Torry He's not a god you know..

[@giascle]

+Lee Torry He didn't like video games you know. Even though he later sort of admitted games are art, he sure didn't want to talk about them.

[@ricardocorreia2542]

70 is not a Very long Life Not Short but not long

[@merryme5960]

genonerdation e_birth....we all talentless critics now.....karma got him good.....i would hate to make or break someones career...dream, after all the shit they went...put forth and be the last person to judge their work like it had meaning....📺

[@ezakustam]

This is absolutely brilliant, except for the part where he talks about ego.

[@jwnj9716]

That was interesting. But for me, he is one of the most overrated critics. The guy bashed on so many great films but loved Speed 2.....are you kidding me? This is the same guy who thought video games can never be art....yeah....It was nice to see him recommend good films to people but at the same time, he attacked great films for stupid reasons. Its funny when he couldn't admit that Mortal Kombat was fun, he tried to make excuses that the theater was dark....yeah right.

[@Billy_Mandalay]

man, the music is so annoying

[@captainatlanta]

He has ego in his name

[@anthonyfrias5533]

So who was the biggest f hole to ebert

[@pourush9517]

I am hot.

[@albertelazar4069]

I completely HATED, and DISAGREED with him in the year 2000, when he voted thumbs down, on my favorite movie GLADIATOR 🤦‍♂️ 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️ He was so dead wrong on that film, calling the movie..."dark, with a laughable screenplay, and that had the feeling of a movie made at Hollywoods backlot studio"...🤦‍♂️ Never watched him after that review!

[@OneLove-ij2ss]

I completely lost interest in watching films after Roger died.

[@boombapdoom493]

One Love why tho?

[@FluffyBuzzard2TheMax]

that makes no sense

[@vilsujami]

I am not big on huge ego I think it’s incredibly unatractive

[@Lastkingof33]

Ebert had no merit when it came to comedies. because humor is subjective.

[@Dottiecurran]

Ebert fans like cartoons. They look like Roger Ebert

[@daveybaby131]

Dottiecurran Ebert was dog shit

[@denisecoffin314]

daveybaby131 oh come on, shit has some use

[@RobertDAvanzo-rk3ew]

@Jörmungandr stop talking about yourself!

[@denisecoffin314]

IT is dead

[@RobertDAvanzo-rk3ew]

How could anyone tell?

[@pantera29palms]

boring film critic...

[@anthonymartensen3164]

What's a nonboring film critic?

[@anthonymartensen3164]

What's a nonboring film critic?