Post an artistic case of the emperor having no clothes

[jpgray]

I nominate the Palm d'Or co-winner in 1997, A Taste of Cherry. It's heroically mediocre--same "ambiguity = genius" nonsense that seems to wow so many critics. Inevitably people who post other examples on this thread will be accused of "not getting it," but I submit that I can intellectually understand -why- something is supposed to be genius, but at the same time accuse people who think so of needing to soak their heads in buckets of ice water. It's great that in Iran a film about the domestically controversial topic of suicide got made, but it was made very sloppily and beyond some pretty shots is a directionless abysmally-paced mess. I don't mind slow films (I had no problem with the Hungarian film Damnation, for example) but this one doesn't deserve the praises it's received.

[ghostsofgiants]

1. So you're talking about films and artistic endeavours that don't deserve the praise they receive?

[jpgray]

2. Well, art that the -poster- thinks doesn't deserve its received praise

I don't think anyone should claim to hold the ultimate objective truth of any work of art. :D But in this thread feel free to bloviate about how everyone is crazy but you. :D

[ghostsofgiants]

3. Two words: American Idiot.

And yes, it is the ultimate, objective truth, goddamn it!

[jpgray]

8. No argument here.

[swag]

4. Mark Kostabi.

A xerographer trying to ape a mimeographer and ending up a mere asshole. A terribly public asshole.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

5. DJ Shadow's latest album.

:puke:

[swag]

6. A perfect choice for this honor.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

7. Listening to Endtroducing recently made it even sadder.

[swag]

9. Clint Eastwood's "Mystic River."

Sure, lots of groans and guffaws to be had. Mainly, though, we've just got a boring, moralistic stinker here with some once decent actors spending the length of the movie slipping in and out of accent and character in the service of, er, something - maybe in the service of the auteur's self-image as a serious person. Imagine a film that could give even earnestness a worse name. Imagine no longer: Mystic River.