Thanks, Richard, for alerting us to your essay, and the incredible
defamation suit that it triggered. ``Idiot'' may be a strong word, but
completely harmless in the way you kept the offending party anonymous. The
``creative director'' clearly has no case--well, in the U.S., he would have
no case; in the UK, I'm not sure.
Thanks, also, for the content of your piece, which lists a number of
terms that should be retired from film criticism. I must note, though, that
although your despised ``helmer'' term may have become overused--and I love
how you analyze it in a gender perspective--it has a more traditional root
use. That would be in the publication I write for, Variety, whose own
``slanguage'' includes the term. (I use it fairly regularly.) The original
meaning, taken from captain of the ship or pilot of the plane, suggests
filmmaking as an enterprise. (Maybe even Captain Kirk's Enterprise.) As with
``lensing,'' ``helming'' began as a strictly Variety term that has
apparently become picked up by other publications. I know, for myself, that
I'm extremely sensitive to not using these Variety terms when writing
elsewhere; I almost consider them somehow proprietary to Variety alone, or,
in a sense, Variety signature terms, not to be used elsewhere. That's what
always gave Variety's slanguage its verve and bite: That it was unique to
Variety. When its ``lingo'' (another term) is picked up by others ``pubs''
(yet another terms) and ``scribes'' (yet another term), the spread of the
term waters it down. Not only that, but I wasn't actually aware that this
and a few other Variety terms had been embraced so widely in the UK. It now
makes me want to re-think even using them in my Variety reviews anymore.
Once the word loses its unique color, and ends up being derided for its
overuse, it may be time for everyone--including its source, Variety--to
retire it.
your fexed crix,
Robert Koehler
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