Making More of Michael

Inmdianapolis Star | 12-15-04 | Dan Carpenter

[daviddennis]

Ironically enough, Roger Smith actually deserves a lot of criticism, but the film completely missed the mark.

Smith had to lay off those people to save the company. The company was bleeding money.

It was bleeding money largely because it was making crummy cars few in their right minds wanted to buy.

Smith was right in the middle of a movement that celebrated trying to control costs through automation at the expense of the quality and design of cars. What he wound up with was automation that didn't work, and cars that were too bland and poorly designed to sell. Thus, the layoffs.

Smith deserved criticism for his bad strategy, in other words, but not for the layoffs. Given the company's situation, they were necessary to keep it in business.

D

[fight_truth_decay]

Actually I have a problem with all awards as a whole...and let's face it this year's crop of films has been let's say "below average". And you are also indeed correct in questioning the importance of receiving such an Oscar.

The satisfaction in knowing your film was widely accepted and also subject for world wide debate which should be enough to fulfill that need to produce/direct a box office sensation. But it's all about taking chances and Gibson did just that. But it's also about Gibson snubbing the Big Guys and their Deep Pockets and taking this project on entirely himself. It was a box office money maker as was Moore's film and I believe you can't really have one up their without the other. Whether you win or lose in regard to the Oscar is not the point...but the process of nomination of all films has shown to hold much intentional bias.

The Battle between: In this corner.......Moore's film Fahrenheit 9-11 and in this corner...... Gibson's The Passion of The Christ would alone be a PR Oscar draw just like the Bush/Kerry race captured the attention of all Americans. Let's get ready to rumbleeeeeeee!!!! ;)
No one can take award ceremonies seriously these days.

[CaptRon]

So, fat boy rides on a bus for the sake of shooting a scene in one of his movies and that proves he's a man of the people, champion of the poor and downtrodden? Puh-leeeze.