MovieChat Forums > Sister Act (1992) Discussion > I felt Siskel and Ebert really missed th...

I felt Siskel and Ebert really missed the boat on this one

posted 10 years ago by successor13326
5 replies | jump to latest

Typically I will agree with one or both of their opinions. But here I think they were really unfair slamming Sister Act. Siskel even said that the people in the audience he saw it with were laughing and enjoying themselves. Yet he said it was too predictable. But what did he want? The Usual Suspects? Does every movie have to be totally unpredictable? Come on. Even though the film was a little predictable, I don't think it detracted from the humor.

And Ebert said that the director had no style and the trailers spoiled most of the jokes. The director, Emilio Ardolino, was making Sister Act not Lawrence of Arabia or The Godfather. How much style do you want from a simple comedy? And I bet if Ardolino got all stylish with the direction, they would've complained about that. As for the trailers, it's not the film's fault that they spoiled the funny scenes.

I watched it again recently and found it to still be pretty funny. The film was just meant to be an enjoyable crowd-pleaser, and I think they ought to have enjoyed it on that level and not had such unfairly lofty expectations for a comedy. Then again, Siskel & Ebert gave the abominable Speed 2 two thumbs up, so their opinions should definitely be taken with a grain of salt.

[–] tmaj48 10 years ago

I'd rather watch this over and over again instead of something like Fargo, which Siskel and Ebert adored.

I'm not crying, you fool, I'm laughing!

Hewwo.

[–] moiestatz 10 years ago

I agree. I was also surprised with the review. I remember watching this movie when I was a kid and finding it a lot of fun. Now that I've seen it again, it still holds up a lot. Still laughed a whole lot. The direction was effective with what the film intended to be.

[–] NAHNCEE 9 years ago

I just rewatched it too, and thought it held up well. Siskel & Ebert also hated Crocodile Dundee, which went on to become a major hit. I used to weigh their opinions in my own mind, giving them a plus or minus depending on how I thought their liberal progressive mindset would skew them. Of the two, Ebert was definitely the worst when it came to liberal skew-osity. But I must say that I miss them and their show. I feel now like I have no idea what new movies are coming out, and when I do see a new title, I just don't get a feel for what the experience will be, like I used to when they showed numerous clips and not just the teaser trailers put out by the flick's producers.

[–] shadaif 9 years ago

They rarely liked anything that wasn't Oscar Worthy. They hated Home Alone and Vacation too. Not everyone finds the same things funny. I love this movie and thought it was a great follow up for Whoopi Goldberg after Ghost.

"The end of the shoelace is called the...IT DOESN'T MATTER!"

[–] stefanheikel 9 years ago

Ebert also didn't like Mrs. Doubtfire, which is widely regarded as one of the best comedies of the 90's.