class=”alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-183065″ alt=”Roger Ebert” src=”https://www.heyuguys.com/images/2013/04/Roger-Ebert-220×150.jpg” width=”220″ height=”150″ />When I was a kid, I knew quite early on that I loved movies. From the first time I sat in a darkened theater and watched other worlds materialize before me, I knew that I would do anything I could to be closer to them. I knew I didn’t have the chops to write screenplays because I lacked the depth of imagination to create a cohesive story. I knew I couldn’t act because I wasn’t leading man material. I knew I couldn’t direct because I’m not a savvy manager. Then it hit me – I just like to talk about movies. Though at that age, I didn’t think there was ever a job that would pay anybody to just simply talk about movies.
It wasn’t until one lazy Saturday afternoon, where I was stuck in the house flipping through the channels on TV that I discovered what I still consider to this day, as a seminal turning point in my life. I found a program called “AT THE MOVIES WITH SISKEL & EBERT”. It featured two regular looking fellows talking about newly released films, and then arguing about whether they believed they were good or not. They would yell at and insult each other, but they did it with such fervent conviction. It was obvious that these guys LOVED movies. I was sold. I worshipped them.
Those two men, as I would come to find out later, were Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert – two Chicago-based film critics who were highly regarded as the most influential film critics in the world. I tuned in every week to hear them praise/destroy the films that were playing in my local cinema, and I often found that I agreed with practically everything they said. Then I discovered that both men also reviewed films for the Chicago Tribune. I subsequently found myself soaking in as many of their reviews as I possibly could. They were brilliant. They were sarcastic, witty, eloquent, and generally spot on. Their words could literally make or break a movie; a power I was totally confounded by. I hoped that one day I could be as good as they were, and I knew I wanted to write about movies.
In 1999, Gene Siskel passed away. I was crushed. I had hoped in my wildest dreams to meet him as a fellow writer and confess how much of an inspiration he was to me. He was a true champion of filmmaking as an art form, and the ripples of his passing were felt in the hearts of all cinephiles in every corner of the globe. It also made me think about how Ebert would continue without Siskel. Could he continue at all?
The answer is yes. Roger Ebert did continue, and in the advent of the internet, expanded his influence in the blogosphere with his online journal. He continued to write reviews, commentaries, and studies of movies past and present that were insightful and thought-provoking. He wrote books on industry luminaries like Martin Scorsese, and anthologies like his GREAT MOVIES series. As I got older, and started to plant my feet on the ground in the film journalism trade, I couldn’t wait to get to a point where I could meet him in person.
Throughout the last decade, I grew worried as Ebert fought a very public battle with thyroid cancer. Through multiple surgeries, he lost his lower jaw and his ability to speak. Lucky for us, Roger still wrote. It was very inspirational. His passion for the medium was very much in tact, and he was still a tireless advocate for the industry and young filmmakers alike – which is why today is an especially sad day.
As I write this, the internet is alive with tributes to this departed legend as a rebel and a game-changer. It’s a touching tribute to a man who inspired so many of us to go to the movies. Though, I especially feel a profound sadness.
There is an unfillable void in film now that cannot be replaced by anyone or anything. His wisdom and intelligence are unmatched. Roger Ebert defined the industry, and his legacy is seen everywhere. Every film-based blog or website couldn’t exist without his influence, and we should never forget that.
Today the world lost an icon, and I lost a hero. Rest in peace Roger.
