Mind Set

In this week's New Yorker Anthony Lane reviews The Avengers (and Norwegian thriller Headhunters--by chance, the two films I saw over the weekend).

The Avengers, of course, is an enormous hit, and nothing Lane says could affect that.  But he'd still like to have the last word. Now I have no doubt Lane is giving his honest opinion, but writing for the New Yorker comes with certain responsibilities, including the necessity of keeping pop culture phenomena at arm's length. Even if Lane likes The Avengers, he'd have to condescend to it.  And he doesn't like it:

[...] the first scene is set in an undesignated patch of outer space, where some masked moaner yaks on in a rich and threatening baritone. I couldn’t understand a word until he asked, “The humans—what can they do but burn?” If he is referring to our cooking skills, this is grossly unfair, for we can also poach, broil, gently simmer, and steam en papillote.

I don't mind if Lane looks down on comic book movies, but if he wants the effect to work better, he should avoid bad jokes.