So I was chatting with a publicist prior to a P.A. tour event the other day, and she mentioned that recent news about the looming demise of print criticism has got studios in quite a flurry over courting Internet press. So it appears that the studios are simply waking up to the inevitable.

So who on the Web is going to become the next generation of Siegels, Corlisses, Eberts, and so on? And will critics working in the Christian community be a part of that? What strategies need to be developed to break down the divide between mainstream and Christian press? Or should that barrier be broken down?

Though I technically meet the membership requirements of the Online Film Critics' Society, my application was turned down last year because my reviews are apparently "long on plot summary" and short on criticism. Fair enough; I write opening-day reviews, not 3000-word essays for Film Comment. But I suspect there was more to it than that; I think the content of my reviews stacks up pretty well with the vast bulk of the reviews listed at Rotten Tomatoes... which is the whole point of membership in the OFCS.

Do we need a Christian equivalent to the OFCS, something bigger and more influential than the FFCC?

Or do we need something entirely new, like an "Internet Film Reviewer's Society" that focuses more on the kind of criticism that most of us practice, and people actually read?

That's interesting, Greg. Surely many of the member critics write reviews that are "long on plot summary and short on criticism." My guess is the name of your site is a big red flag to some folks.

I actually applied on the strength of my work at Past the Popcorn; but perhaps the URL, past-the-popcorn.gospelcom.net, was suspect. It's also a non-commercial site, which may have offended their purist professional sensibilities, though that isn't listed as a criterion. They certainly didn't cite either of those issues.

But hey -- it's their club, and I'm cool with that.

Perhaps FFCC can grow and become what you have in mind -- maybe not. I think the purpose statement is along the lines of what you might want, but the execution of the purpose may have fallen off a bit over the years. New moderator group is just getting started at looking at all of that. It is certainly my hope that the FFCC can grow in size and influence, but I think we'll need to make it more than it is now before that can happen.