We like what we like

It seems to me there are two sorts of critics — one lot would prefer to like the things they review, the others prefer to dislike the things they review.

Michael Palin, Diaries 1969-1979

Michael Palin

This particular diary entry on March 31, 1977. refers specifically to reviews of Jabberwocky, a new film directed by Terry Gilliam and starring Michael Palin, yet Palin's comment applies to all critics of all movies, books, plays, television shows, etc. In fact, it applies to all of us at all times: We tend to like what we want to like and dislike what we want to dislike. Old opinions color new opinions.

Reviewers, of course, are supposed to be more professional and thus more objective than the rest of us, as if an objective opinion were possible. Yet their biases sway their opinions, just as the rest of us are swayed by our own biases. Critics who like a certain director are more likely to like that director's next film. Or perhaps they liked a director's last film so much, they decide going into the theater that the new film cannot possibly be as good.

I wrote book reviews for a newspaper for many years. At one point my editor, concerned about ethics and the appearance of ethics, decided that my being sent books for review by publishers might slant (or appear to slant) my reviews in their favor. His remedy was to give me a monthly budget to purchase books to review. What actually happened was that I tended to buy books I most wanted to read by authors I most admired. Negative comments in my reviews became more scarce than when I reviewed random books sent by publishers. Soon we reverted to the old system of reviewing books sent by the publishers, although I think that had less to do with ethics than with budget concerns and the high price of new books. Why buy books that publishers are willing to give to you? And I think my reviews became more fair as a result. At the very least a wider range of books was reviewed.

(And publishers continued to send review copies while I ignored them all. This failure to review any of them did not seem very ethical to me.)

We may have preconceived opinions, yet minds can be changed, and that's what really good books, really good movies or really good actions by people we despise can sometimes do.