rogerebert.com
Roger Ebert, one of the most revered and popular film critics of all time, made a long and successful career spanning 70 years. Not only did he become known as a respected critic, but he also achieved acclaim as a historian, journalist, and author. Roger Ebert was born on December 5th, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois.
Roger Ebert spent most of his life working for the Chicago Sun-Times. During his time there, he became known for his honest, intelligent, informed, and thought-provoking film reviews.
Many people praise Ebert?s writing, as well as awards and recognition for his work. In fact, he was the first person to ever win a Pulitzer Prize for criticism. This is a major accomplishment, and shows how successful he is at what he does. If this isn't impressive, I don't know what is.
Roger Ebert's career was not limited to the page, though. He also found success on television as the co-host (alongside colleague and fellow film critic, Gene Siskel) of the iconic PBS film review shows Sneak Previews and At the Movies. These shows were the first of their kind and have not been successfully emulated since. Roger Ebert is also credited for inventing the now widely used phrase "two thumbs up."
Neil Steinberg, who also worked for the Chicago Sun-Times, is quoted as saying that Ebert was without question the most influential critic in America. And Tom Van Riper, a Forbes contributor, has said that Ebert is one of America's most powerful pundits. It is rare for a writer of such talent to be able to reach out to the American people and become a household name in the world of popular entertainment. But Ebert never let his success get him down; he continued to work hard and be successful.
Sadly, the only boundary that he was not able to overcome was that of mortality. Ebert suffered from thyroid and salivary gland cancer, which resulted in the removal of his jaw in 2006. He had become physically disfigured from the surgery; he no longer spoke or ate without assistance. However, he did not let this stop his pen, and he transcended yet another barrier in the defiant act of courageously continuing to write and publish in print and online until his very last day on earth: April 4th, 2013.
His website, rogerebert.com, remains a powerful force in movie criticism, thirty years after his death.
History
Ebert himself hand-picked the writing staff for his website shortly before he died. This would be one of the final strokes that he would paint his legacy, as the site is a hybrid of many different things - part Memoriam to Ebert, a partial archive of Ebert's writing, part current film criticism, part collection of cinema blogs, a part ongoing collection of op-eds, and part platform for Roger Ebert's wife Chaz to publish her own writing. It is not every day that you come across a website that is as versatile and well-executed as this one. It is truly a fitting conduit through which Roger Ebert can live on.
Two months after Roger Ebert passed away, Chaz hired the formidable film and television critic, Matt Seitz as the editor-in-chief of rogerebert.com. At the time, Indie Wire blog had reached a fever pitch of popularity and both Indie Wire and Roger Ebert's websites happened to share several contributors. It only made sense then, as Chaz Ebert saw it, for Seitz to take over the editorial team of the site, already familiar with the majority of Roger Ebert critics.
Rogerebert.com has been highly acclaimed by many, including Noel Murray of The Dissolve, who referred to it as an invaluable resource for understanding older films. R. Kurt Osenlund (Slant) has also highlighted the site's diversity, noting that it features a great deal of "first-person narrative" pieces (as Ebert was wont to do), but also indicating that there are other contributors, like Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, who don't do so much of that. This diversity makes the site a kind of artists' collective.
Design
I really like the design of this website. It has a stylish feel to it. It is very well organized and as easy on the eyes as it is easy to navigate. It packs a lot of high-quality and substantial content in a way that does not feel cluttered or disorienting - something that not every movie review site (I'm looking at you Meta Critic and Rotten Tomatoes!) can boast.
At risk of being abstract, I think that the website feels almost literary- an aesthetic fitting for a site in honor of a writer who elevated criticism to the level of literature. I think that I am getting this impression from the paper-like color of the theme, as well as the clean and almost book-shaped layout.
The site menu bar at the top of the page makes it easy to navigate a lot of content. Explore the site by clicking on Reviews, Great Movies, Chaz?s Journal, Blogs, Far Flungers, Channels, and Contributors. Or, of course, you can always type in whatever you're looking for on the site's adjacent search bar.
Content
This site offers many features and different types of content, which will keep lovers of the film entertained for hours on end.
Take a trip down nostalgia lane by scrolling through any one of Roger Ebert's classic reviews; stay up to date on Chaz Ebert's thoughts on politics, film, festivals, and life in general with Chaz's Journal; delve into some rarer Roger Ebert prose by checking out his ?journal;? see what editor-in-chief Matt Zoller Seitz has to say in his blog for the site; receive expertly curated movie recommendations; or take a trip abroad and read reviews from the ?Far-Flungers,? far-flung correspondents critiquing cinema from all around the world.
Pricing and Plans
It is 100% free to access rogerebert.com. There are no paywalls, no limitations on how many articles you can read. There are a few ads, but they are not too intrusive; nor do they impede one's enjoyment of the site. It's a classy affair.
The $20-per-year membership to The Ebert Club is a great value, as members receive access to exclusive content, including fresh-on-the-reel trailers, streamable full-length films, and more.
Suggestions that I have for Roger Ebert
: This site is amazing.
I wish I could say something negative about this website, but I have to admit that it's one of the best-executed film review sites I've ever seen. They have thought of everything and this is how a website should be.
Whether you love or hate Roger Ebert's work, this website is sure to entertain, intrigue, humor, challenge and benefit even the highest-brow film fans. If you are looking for a website that is considered the authority on film criticism, congratulations - you've found it!
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