MovieChat Forums > Rumble Fish (1983) Discussion > What was Ebert smoking when he saw this?...

What was Ebert smoking when he saw this? (Spoilers!)

posted 8 years ago by MoviemanCin
2 replies | jump to latest

Don't get me wrong, I love the late, great Roger Ebert. He's my Numero Uno Film Critic, and always will be. RIP. His reviews are usually dead on. But he made TWO mistakes in his review of this film.

First he mentions that the film is in B&W "except for a couple piranhas in a fish tank in a pet store" Huh?? They were Siamese Fighting Fish. Motorcycle Boy even calls them that out loud.

Second he said that "one death scene is followed by a levitation,..." Yeah, there was a levitation all right, but the kid did NOT die.

Wow Roger, wherever you are!

Schrodinger's cat walks into a bar, and / or doesn't.

[–] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Wuchak (8116) 2 years ago

"except for a couple piranhas in a fish tank in a pet store" Huh?? They were Siamese Fighting Fish.

There were no smart phones or Google back then. Calling them "piranhas" wasn't accurate, but serviceable as a general reference to exotic fighting fish. Unless Roger jotted down Motorcycle Boy's description of them as "Siamese fighting fish" it's unlikely that he'd remember that's what they were specifically.

he said that "one death scene is followed by a levitation,..." Yeah, there was a levitation all right, but the kid did NOT die.

The movie alludes to Rusty James having a near-death experience after his head wound, resulting in an out-of-body experience before his soul/spirit returns to his body. So it wasn't levitation according to its technical definition, but a close enough description of what was happening: Rusty's physical body wasn't levitating, but his soul/spirit was.