I thought the discussion at the beginning of class today was really interesting, because it’s something that I’ve often mulled over in my own head. I’ve had more than a few borderline feuds based on objective analysis vs. subjective opinion. I strongly believe that a film or piece of music or piece of art can be objectively judged.
Not that anyone cares, but I remember last year a friend of my girlfriend insisted that music was all a matter of taste and Linkin Park was every bit as good as The Velvet Underground, simply because she chose to “like” Linkin Park and I chose to “like” The Velvet Underground. I mean, COME ON. “Everything is subjective” is just something people with terrible taste say to make themselves feel better.
I personally believe that a starting point for analyzing a piece of work objectively is motivation. If something is created for pure artistic expression (which arguably, nothing is), then it is objectively better than something created for profit. Obviously the two overlap, as art is created in hopes of profit more often than not, and there is some degree of expression in mass produced commodified music and film.
But it really isn’t that hard to judge. Citizen Kane vs. Epic Movie. I refuse to believe that it is a matter of taste. If you believe that Epic Movie is BETTER than Citizen Kane then I would have to seriously question your intelligence. If you LIKE Epic Movie more than Citizen Kane, then I’d assume you have bad taste, but I wouldn’t assume that you were an absolute moron.
Point being, Citizen Kane was created with purer artistic intentions. Epic Movie was created almost solely for profit via mindless zombie teenagers.
Like I said earlier, I always encounter this conundrum in discussing music. I mean, I admit that I’m a total music snob. It is my biggest pet peeve when someone claims that Chingy is every bit as good as Sonic Youth because it is simply a matter of taste. I always throw in, “so you’re saying Chingy is as good as Mozart” and they inevitably change the subject. No, Chingy isn’t as good as Mozart, nor is Chingy as good as ANYONE. It is an objective fact, as much as the sky is blue.