Kevin Smith refuses to play media game

Kevin Smith is one of those odd directors. He's responsible for some amazing movies like Clerks and MallRats and Dogma and my personal favorite, Clerks 2. One of the reasons he's so well known and loved is because he, like so many New Jersey people, has no filter between his mouth and his brain, so you never have to worry if you're getting the whole truth from him or not. That being said, his latest battle has me thinking the guy isn't really thinking about what's best for him, despite making some good points.

With Smith's latest movie, Red State hitting theaters in March, most directors would be gearing up press junkets, sending out goodie bags to movie critics and trying to stir as much buzz as possible. Smith, not able to do things the old fashioned way is stirring buzz, alright, but it's because he isn't doing interviews, sending out press junkets or even screening the movie for critics. It stems from a feud Smith had with "stuffy movie critics" when his last movie Cop Out was panned. Now, Smith refuses to work with those critics.

“I’m not press-junketing at all, anywhere,” said Smith, adding that journalists will have to listen to hours of his Smodcast if they want to get any information about his film. He is, however, considering transcribing a Questions and Answers session for “SUPER lazy writers.” Basically, “nobody needs to talk to me anymore anyway, as anyone who’s curious can always know what I’m thinking 24/7 right here on Twitter.”

Now, I understand a certain disdain for some movie critics. There are those critics out there who feel they are entitled to free movies, and crazy amounts of ass-kissery. They think they have the power to make or break a movie, and as such, should be highly respected. Sadly, that isn't the case. While movie critics still wield power, with the internet, and the fact there is hundreds of thousands of people like me, the power is diminished.

That being said, being mad, and refusing to play ball because people said your movie sucked seems overly childish and silly. I hate those stuffy movie critics, which is why I always try to look at how entertaining a movie is. I don't care if it's silly, or stupid, but how good of a time I had at the movie. But, being pissed because the movie critic did their job, and just didn't like their movie doesn't mean you should hurt your next movie by not providing press junkets.

In the end, Smith will have his devoted fans, and they will all flock to his next movie, and they will love his twitter feed, and life will be merry. Meanwhile, everyone else in Hollywood is wondering if Smith is really smart or really dumb, and their leaning toward the "dumb."