tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1975416078255909953.post944589239595049346..comments2024-03-16T18:38:04.996-04:00Comments on Critics At Large : Last of the Great Gadflies: Remembering Lorenzo Semple Jr.Critics at Largehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18073851963852030361noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1975416078255909953.post-82117612779337472632014-05-28T22:09:39.682-04:002014-05-28T22:09:39.682-04:00Of course Flash Gordon plays it for laughs: how co...Of course Flash Gordon plays it for laughs: how could any sane adult take Flash Gordon seriously?Warren Sikesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1975416078255909953.post-76510434316301222342014-04-03T15:30:03.307-04:002014-04-03T15:30:03.307-04:00"Maybe Flash Gordon’s reputation has slid dur..."Maybe Flash Gordon’s reputation has slid during the same period that King Kong’s reputation has been shored up a bit, because it’s too true to the luxuriant, trashy fun of Raymond’s comic strip."<br /><br />Semple's Flash Gordon was a witless, maladroit piece of shit that doesn't come close to approximating the elegant art deco look and romanticism of Raymond's comic strip. The old Universal serials came closer, especially nailing the casting of Flash, Dr. Zarkov, and Ming the Merciless, and didn't cynically play it for laughs. With the exceptions of The Parallax View and Three Days of the Condor, which are good if not great (due possibly to the input of uncredited writers and their directors), Semple was a cynical hack. It's no surprise that his genre work was so poor--he thought that science fiction and fantasy were trash, and his work in those genres reflects his low opinion of the source material. He deserves no tributes.Peter L. Winklerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16005846686173676213noreply@blogger.com