Publisher’s Note: The publisher has had no role in editing this column, which is published as the writer submitted it with the intention of publication in BEACONS.
By Luca Gross
In 2012, Wesley Morris of The Boston Globe won a Pulitzer Prize for his work which included film critiques and other pieces from 2011. According to the Pulitzer site, Morris was born in Philadelphia in 1975 and later graduated from Yale University. He has several career credits for working at the San Francisco Examiner, then, the San Francisco Chronicle as well as having his work published for several magazines, including Film Comment, Slate, Ebony, and Grantland. He remains in the film critiquing business at the Boston Globe. Morris knows how to use the page as a vehicle to deliver excellent and intriguing prose. No matter the topic, his work is informative and somehow feels like a casual discussion of the subject at hand.
One thing I found particularly entertaining was reading Morris’ film reviews. He rarely blandly summarized any of the films in question, he would get into the film and discuss a specific part or parts of the film that makes it unique. That might be talking about the director, actors, or, perhaps the actual message of the film. In his August piece “Race, class, and Hollywood gloss: 'The Help' manages to mean well without forging new ground” a review of ‘The Help’ a 2011 film about two african american maids who work for a white lady. What was interesting about this article to me is the fact it is clearly more than a simple review. He was discussing the actual weight of being an african american in a society in which they are not treated very well, to say the least. Considering Morris is also a young african american, it can be inferred that he too is aware of the injustices historically faced. Beyond that large-scope analysis, he focuses attention on the actors’ individual performances and dynamics as african americans today essentially pretending to be maids for a white person. Comparing this review, which in my opinion is rather insightful both into the film itself and what the film really means to him, to his December review of Tom Cruise’s “Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol,” aptly titled “Another 'Mission,' another workout: Cruise ramps up the intensity in 'Ghost Protocol'” This review is arguably more about Tom Cruise than the film itself, coming in the form of praise about Tom Cruise’s dedication to the process of making, “these ridiculous movies,” as Morris put it. As previously mentioned, Morris’ knowledge of films is clearly visible in his work. He does go in deep detail touching upon other aspects of the film such as the director and his previous work for Pixar studios or references to other films as examples of what he is trying to say to the reader. Morris even wrote a review in September about a particular film I happen to enjoy a lot, Drive. It might even be my all time favorite, I enjoyed his review as well. The article in question is titled “Very fast forward: Exhilarating 'Drive' delivers brutal violence without breaking a sweat,” and in my opinion this is the most review-y feeling piece of his on the list. That is not to say it is written any more simpler or boring, he covers many aspects of the film and has something interesting to say about each. With much praise for Nicolas Winding Refn, the director, and Ryan Gosling, the actor of the main character, Morris again uses his insight as an active audience member to break the film down into some words I totally agree with, but haven’t explicitly thought of myself until reading his.
In the pieces that are NOT film reviews, his skillful prose is even more visible. He has two articles about prominent figures that have passed away that year. One being Steve Jobs in the piece “For better or for worse, he tamed technology” and the other “Prince of New York City: The late director Sidney Lumet had a feel for the place and its people” which is about Sidney Lumet. The former is a very nice piece to read, while informative of the life and career of Steve Jobs it also offers a kind of story-teling tone. In particular about his experience and perspective of Apple and their products, what they mean to people and how he changed the game of technology. He ends the article with some very intriguing questions about where Jobs and his company has brought us as people. The latter article feels a bit more big picture and analyzes Lumet’s career deeply, including perspective on what he has done for the film industry. Like many of the greats who came before, the spirit of his work lives on in many modern-day stories. According to Morris in this piece, he met with Lumet and claims Lumet said Spike Lee admitted using inspiration gained from Lumet’s classic works. Much like his other pieces, Morris still manages to make this piece about Lumet a personable story about his experiences with Lumet’s films.
After reading his winning work, it is evident that Wesley Morris knows what he is talking about and on top of that has a lot to say. Whether it's about a movie or what a public figure meant to the world, he definitely makes his voice heard through the paper with his vibrant prose. It is no surprise that Morris won that year, he deserved it for his professionalism.
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