I'm not a fan of Tom Hiddleston as Gatsby. You REALLY want an American for that part. Ryan Gosling, despite being a bit overrated these days, would be the ideal, I think.

"I'd much rather see someone apply their personal vision to a book, insane though it may be, than watch a lifeless straight adaptation."

The only reason anyone cares about @avclub-c822f9ad96f74f50b80a3863c3b9f968:disqus is … hm, I guess nobody cares about him/her.

Ebert truly was a giant. I'm an aspiring film critic myself, and if I can infuse my writing with even a fraction of Ebert's infectious passion for film, I'll consider my work a success.

I was shocked when someone broke the news on my Facebook feed. At first I thought it was a tasteless joke, but nope.

Probably because his performance seems … not-great. Even in the brief flashes of him we get in the trailer, I was wincing at how bad his old-timey accent was.

[edit: Whoops, sorry, I was remembering when some AVC assholes went after Koski, not Guendelsberger. I am a dumb.]

I can't help but giggle to myself whenever I remember the ridiculous overhead clapping that he and Dennis do in that episode.

@avclub-b610f145747d807333a5de9f7102a516:disqus The AV Club really does seem to be hemorrhaging its best film writers. At this rate, Tasha Robinson will be gone by the end of 2014, and by 2016 their film coverage will consist primarily of Nabin giving a B+ to anything that he can enjoy ironically.

I think he suffers from Serious-Critic Disease. He's got this hammer, see (e.g., nuanced acting + emotional resonance = automatically good), so anything that's not a nail must be bad because he can't use his hammer on it. "It's Always Sunny is broad, slightly nasty comedy; therefore it must be flawed!"

But if we lose him, who's going to write a 1,000-word article about the sequel to the Bratz movie? How will I know whether it's "bad" or "really, really bad"?

Yeah, pretty much this. It's the same reason zombies are such a videogame staple—an easy way to defuse the handwringing and protests that haunt series like Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty.

Legends of the Fall of Civilization

Nine … ten … a big fat hen. *lights a cigar* The name's Bender.

I don't read his reviews anymore so I wasn't affected by any spoilage, but screw David Denby with a rusty Philips-head. The guy's a terrible critic who seems to purposely misunderstand the films he reviews. I was no great fan of The Avengers, but Denby's ridiculous critique of it was so limp-wristed it was practically…

Even Peggy's not all that admirable either—she just looks good in comparison to the other characters.

I agree with pretty much everything you said here. Ellen's character, in particular, really doesn't work for me. In order to really root for her and Geoffrey to make their relationship work, we should at least see why she inspires such desire in him. But every time she's on screen, she's shallow, narcissistic, petty,…

Smash Lampjaw.

[Disclaimer: I HAVE NOT SEEN ANY OF SEASON FIVE YET. No spoilers, please!]

I think they're both great shows, but I just can't watch Mad Men anymore. Both shows have their share of darkness, but Mad Men is oppressive to me in a way that I have trouble articulating. I think it's the fact that MM (at least up through season 2, when I had to quit) doesn't seem to have any sort of moral center.…