Lane, the Film Review; Sanneh, the Concert Reviewer

Anthony Lane, The New Yorker film reviewer, employs numerous techniques in his reviews. I noticed that he likes to describe a scene while introducing characters and their real names. For example, in his review of “The Queen,” he begins: “The opening encounter of the heavyweights takes place at Buckingham Palace, where Blair (Michael Sheen) kneels before the Queen (Helen Mirren) and is granted her permission to form a government”[i].

Lane chooses to describe settings when they reflect the tone of the film. For instance, in his review of “Renaissance,” he paints a picture of the setting: “It’s plainly Paris,” the Seine River has been drained, the Eiffel tower is on a glass piazza… “a treacherous landscape in which to follow a lead, but such is the task facing Karas”[ii]. I love how Lane uses the setting as a metaphor for Karas’ task.

Lane’s honesty makes me laugh and is why I enjoy reading his reviews. In his review of “The Science of Sleep,” he critiques director Michel Gondry: “Given that he is unable, or…fiercely unwilling, to tell a story straight, one wonders how the director copes with the rest of life. How on earth does he make a cup of coffee?”2. Lane’s only being honest: Gondry’s narratives are non-linear. And the the adverb “fiercely” creates a sense of character. In addition, everyone can identity with making coffee. That it’s such a simple task, which Gondry – a director of three films – may not be able to perform, is hilarious.

Lane also uses extended metaphors to mock films. For example, in his review of “Superman Returns,” he calls Lex Luthor an “anti-Robin Hood…With his band of merry thugs, he grabs magic crystals from Superman’s arctic hideout, which is wondrously framed as a kind of frozen cathedral.” “Merry thugs,” “hideout,” and “wondrously framed,” humorously criticize the character and also the mise-en-scene (without ever mentioning the word “studio”)[iii].

Concert reviewer Kelefa Sanneh (New York Times), on the other hand, has a softer humorous style which shows in his sarcasm. In his review of Dragon Force he describes band members with the hyperbole “warp-speed guitarists”[iv], and the band’s singer “whose wailing voice, mane of hair and unplaceable accent (he is…a white guy from South Africa) convey an impression of bargain-bin grandeur 4. Here, Sanneh is humorously informative: I can visualize the singer and hear his voice; I know where he’s from. “Bargain-bin grandeur” is fantastic: it’s alliterative and juxtaposes “grandeur” with the contrasting idea of crap music.

Sanneh tends to use a particular introduction, which I find effective because it briefly describes spoken words and the concert setting. For example, “Lovely song, isn’t it?” That was Rod Stewart, onstage at the Nokia Theater on Monday night”[v]. Right away, I hear Rod Stewart’s voice and I know where the concert is. In addition, since Sanneh chose spoken words rather than song lyrics, I already sense the concert’s boring tone.

Another strength of Sanneh’s reviews is simple imagery. For example, Sanneh says the singer “paused to tune his guitar or to consult with his band mates or to fiddle with the DVD player that projected images behind the drummer” 5. Sanneh uses polysyndeton to create snippet-images because they’re not really the main part of the show but help place the reader at the concert. On the other hand, these images give me a sense of how controlling the singer is over the show.

[1] Lane, Anthony. “Battle Royal: Stephen Frears’s ‘The Queen.’” The New Yorker.

2 Oct. 2006. 10 Oct. 2006. . par. 2

[1] ---. “Dream On: ‘The Science of Sleep’ and ‘Renaissance.’” The New Yorker.

9 Sept. 2006. 5 Oct. 2006. . par. 8.; par. 1

[1] ---. “Kryptology: ‘Superman Returns.’” The New Yorker. 26 June 2006. Sept.

2006. .

par. 4.

[1] Sanneh, Kelefa. “Heavy Metal’s Light Side: Enjoying Silliness Along with the

Shredding. New York Times. 4 Oct. 2006. 10 Oct. 2006.

en=39c76ba1ae39e2b2&ei=5070>. par. 1; par. 4

[1] ---. “Between Tunings, Indie Rockers With a Shap Sense of Urgency.” New York

Times. 5 Oct. 2006. Oct. 2006.
music/05spil.html?ex=1161576000&en=14d6a6e300cf9c0e&ei=5070>.

par. 1; par. 5