Oh, Larry, Larry, Larry. Millions of people watch you every night and, apparently, take you pretty seriously. But after I witnessed your bad behavior at a recent movie screening in Beverly Hills, I think I’m gonna have a hard time doing the same in the future.
Let me explain. Universal Pictures held a critics’ screening of the new Ryan Phillippe-Chris Cooper FBI-espionage thriller Breach last Friday morning, and I attended. I sat right there in the front row of the tiny private screening room, and old Lar happened to be perched in the row behind me. Shortly after the movie started, however, Lar started getting calls on his cell phone. Polite guy that he is, he had the thing set on vibrate. Less-than-polite guy that he is, he kept getting in and out of his seat to take the calls. (Gotta love how you could see his perfectly-coiffed profile move along the screen in silhouette each time he went back and forth.) Even-lesser-than-polite guy that he is, he gave up on exiting the auditorium after a while and just had his conversations while sitting in his seat. Right there. While the big Hollywood film was playing and others were trying to watch. Yep.
Now, there’s no doubt that Lar is more important than I am, and, to be sure, his calls sounded mighty important: One, for example, seemed to come from an old friend whom he told, in his distinctive baritone, after a few minutes of catching up, "I’ll talk to you on Monday." But his conduct was, shall we say, irritating, and it made paying attention to the film a real challenge. And I wasn’t the only irked and distracted member of the audience: As this Los Angeles Times column about old Lar mentions, his behavior nearly led to a fight breaking out (between two other viewers) right in the middle of the movie. True story, PopWatchers.
Oh, but that’s not the end of it. I opened up my copies of the L.A. Times and the New York Times today and, lo and behold, there’s a splashy quote from Lar himself, praising Breach.It reads: "A spine-tingling true drama. Chris Cooper is magnificent.There isn’t a dull moment." Uh, well, it’s no surprise that the guythought there wasn’t a dull moment in the movie — hell, he kept movingaround and nearly started a scuffle! Indeed, this was one action-packedscreening. It’s just that there was more action happening in thetheater than in the film.
To be fair, I have to agree with Lar on everything in his quote: I liked Breach (as did EW’s Owen Gleiberman, by the way). But this whole episode leaves me really concerned and confused. I wonder, as did the author of that L.A. Timescolumn, if people do take Lar’s critical opinion about movies to heart— is he a movie critic? I wonder if there’s a chance that Lar’sendorsement might actually hurt this film that I liked. I wonder if hisquotes somehow dilute the impact of "real" critics. I wonder how he’deven know what to say about this film since it’s crystal clear that hewasn’t paying attention to it for long stretches. I wonder,PopWatchers, I wonder.
Comments (1-21) of 21
I have long wondered when DID Larry King become a movie critic??? huh..what?
What exactly IS Larry King in the first place? Sycophant, Succubus, Reptile, Star-**cker? Can he just go away? And stop marrying people too? That’s really creepy.
Larry King is such a media whore – time to retire your suspenders.
Who actually made this ass-clown a movie critic? I keep seeing his praises in print ads for some of the most god awful movies! Maybe if he actually sat and watched the whole movie, he’d realize that some of ‘em actually suck…
I think people should call into the Larry King show repeatedly and hung up. How rude!!
I never trust a movie who can only quote Larry Kind and/or Earl Dittman
I always thought that was another Larry King but now I know it’s same arrogant, egocentric person.
LK is by far the worst interviewer ever — asking people about traumatic events just as the show is ending, snapping at callers who have probably spent hours phoning in. This just confirms what a jerk he is. If I was at the movie theatre, I would have told him this is the cinema, not CNN studios.
You know how celebrities are always complaining that law enforcement people are trying to “make an example” of them whenever they don’t manage to talk themselves out of getting arrested? Well, that’s what I think we need to do to Larry King. (Not arrest him– the example thing.) Maybe if something awful enough happens to him, all of those other jerks who have trouble making the distinction between a movie theater and their living rooms will get the message. Not sure what that should be though; maybe something involving hot skewers and the song “Mandy”?
Better yet, someone should call in to his show, wai till they get on, then say “Oh, sorry, my cell phone is buzzing. It’s really urgent, I have to take this. It’ll only be a minute or two.” I would love to see his shriveled little head explode.
I don’t know any serious movie fan who takes Larry King’s opinion seriously. He rates movies highly simply because the star agreed to be on his show. Remember how Larry King was literally the ONLY critic who praised All the Kings Men? It was only because Sean Penn was sitting across from him when he praised it! (Then again, if Sean Penn was sitting directly across from me, I would probably say I like his movie too. I kind of like my teeth.)
What I wanna know is why Josh didn’t have the cojones to call Larry King out for being such a rude jerk. Kevin Smith had no trouble dissing “uncle mustache” after the guy stormed out of Clerks 2 and caused a scene, it seems that it would have been appropriate to say something like “Yo, Leatherface, go talk your heavily accented smack somewhere else”!
Why be so Passive Aggressive as to pretend nothing’s wrong while Larry was being a jerk and then ‘dis him in print the next day? That’s just spineless, like Typepad.
I think the only critic thats more of a whore for quotes in movie ads is NBC’s Jeffrey Lyons. The man has no shame.
I don’t think it hurts the cred of movie critics as I doubt most people would ever take King seriously in the first place. The fact he didn’t pay attention does not surprise me in the slightest.
Oh my! Another inconsiderate incessant cell phone chatter box. He has joined the ranks of idiots who don’t have a clue.
Am I the only one who noticed Larry usually praises movies that have stars who appeared on his show?
Who the hell is calling Larry King anyway? His gerontologist? Isn’t there a Natural History Museum somewhere that needs another specimen for its fossil exhibit?
Who the hell is calling Larry King anyway? His gerontologist? Isn’t there a Natural History Museum somewhere that needs another specimen for its fossil exhibit?
far more offensive is the way he routinely and without remorse tells his loyal viewers to go spend their hard earned money on films he knows are not anywhere near as good as he claims they are. shameless.
I lost all respect for him when he interviewed Will Farell and John C. Reiley in charcter (Ricky Bobby and Cal Naughton Jr.) for Taladega Nights. The 3 of them looked so stupid, what a waste of an hour.
I actually take Larry’s “it’s a GREAT movie”, with a grain of salt. I doubt he watches ANY movie at all. As said, it’s only cuz the star is on his show (betcha his people feed into his ear what to say about the actual movie).
Is it just me or is Larry looking more and more like Mr Burns from The Simpsons?
I get to watch this man on CNN international. How anyone can ask as stupid a set of questions as he comes up with is beyond me. He clearly is two steps passed senility. If he asks a family member one more time, of their mudered sibling, “well how do you feel”, I think I will throw up. This man is a disgrace to American Journalism abroad.
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