Reviewing a book about two film critics is a rather daunting task. I didn't grow up watching Siskel and Ebert, not because I wasn't interested in film criticism from an early age. It was just that Gene Siskel died when I was about 2 and 1/2 years old, and I wasn't paying attention to the state of film criticism at that time in my life. And I vaguely knew who Roger Ebert was, I do have occasional fond memories of watching Ebert and Roeper as a kid, but I couldn't appreciate the effect that those two men had on both the film industry and the state of film criticism as a whole during their long and vaunted careers. Thankfully, Matt Singer came along to chronicle it all together and package it in a very informative and truly spell-binding book.

One of those fond memories, an segment I remember with perfect clarity, where Richard Roeper (joined by Mario Van Peebles, best known as “Kane” in Highlander III: The Sorcerer due to Roger Ebert’s illness) discuss the 2005 Aardman/Dreamworks feature “Flushed Away”. Roeper disliked it because he didn’t believe that rats and mice could be “cute”, a critique he would later lob at the Academy Award-winning Pixar hit, “Ratatouille”. *[Image courtesy of That Old T.V. on YouTube]*

How I discovered this book's existence is a fascinating story, at least I believe so. As I might have mentioned once or twice, I work in a bookstore and one day, one of my co-workers came up to me to ask where this book was because a customer was looking for it. At the time, it was a fairly recent release and I tend to work exclusively in the new release section of my store. Yet, it had slipped past me, and I knew that this book had somehow inadvertently been sent directly to the backlist “Film and Television Reference” section because if I had seen it come in, not only would I have given it a very prominent spot on the shelf, but I also would have likely purchased a copy for myself. Many of the internet reviewers who inspired me to flex my critiquing muscles were in turn inspired by Siskel and Ebert and I owed them the experience of being well-informed about the two men who changed our media and criticism landscape forever.

From their early days, Siskel at the Chicago Tribune and Ebert at the Chicago Sun-Times, all the way through the various iterations of their syndicated television show, be it Sneak Previews or At the Movies, to their personal lives and eventually their tragic and far too young deaths, Singer takes the reader through it all. The trials, tribulations, and production difficulties are all endlessly fascinating to read about. As are the discussions about who they were as people and how that informed their reviews and how they could make or break a film simply by featuring it in one of their episodes, the anecdote about their collective enjoyment of Hoop Dreams (James, 1994) bringing a documentary that likely would have been passed over by the general public to massive acclaim simply by introducing it to their audience who otherwise wouldn’t have known about it.

Love him or hate him (I choose the latter) Doug Walker is one of the internet critics who wore Siskel and Ebert’s influence on his sleeve and helped imbue me with the desire to criticize media I love, even if I have since outgrown him. *[Titlecard by MaroBot]*

For someone who unfortunately wasn't around to see all of it in action, I feel like I was there with the anecdotes, either from various interviews with Siskel and Ebert themselves, or interviews with those close to them and the show. I couldn’t stop thinking about this book during the entire week that I was reading it. In fact, although I have been doing fully produced video reviews for over a decade, (inspired by the aforementioned internet critics who Siskel and Ebert inspired) reading this book reminded me of why I love criticism and the power that a critic wields in their pen, or in the case of today's media landscape, the keyboard. That's partially why I'm writing this review that you’re currently reading, since as much as I enjoy making videos, reading about Siskel and Ebert and their newspaper columns also reminded me of the value of a text review. They revolutionized both criticism and the film industry and gave rise to the current media landscape of YouTube and internet reviewers who have risen up in their absence. Love them or hate them, you can’t deny that the effect that they had on the world of criticism was transformative.

Matt Singer, author, critic, audiobook narrator. *[Image courtesy of Singer’s website: https://www.matt-singer.net/]*

Matt Singer, a film critic as well as author, clearly understands his subjects and even states that he was one of the critics that they helped inspire. The book could have very well been a dry history of their partnership, but instead, it goes into great detail, exploring the context of the events, along with describing how the begrudging partnership, between two men who would have otherwise never spoken to each other, grew into something bigger, and even as they would argue over films, grew to respect one another. And it even extends past them, showing the impact that those two men had on the field of film criticism as a whole. As cliché as it might sound, I give Opposable Thumbs by Matt Singer a rating of two thumbs up!

I know that summer is already practically half over but if you’re looking for some fun summer reads to enjoy while relaxing on the beach or sitting by the pool look no further than some of my personal recommendations! Just be forewarned that these aren't going to be your typical recommendations, they're recommendations based on books that I've read, so expect some fun stuff.

First off, I recommend “The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy”. Why read just the first book when you can read the entire trilogy in five parts? “The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy” is a wholly remarkable series and if you’re a fan of sci-fi and British comedy, particularly the style of Monty Python then look no further than Douglas Adams's epic that is one of my favorite sci-fi series of all time for very good reason. has options in the event that you would The hitchhikers guide to the galaxy is a wholly remarkable series and if you’re a fan of sci-fi British comedy particularly the style of Monty Python then look no further than Douglas Adams is epic that is one of my favorite sci-fi series of all time for very good reason. Plus it also has options in the event that you would rather listen instead of reading, as there are multiple audiobooks and radio dramas, the latter of which feature a stellar cast whose voices are the definitive versions of the characters for many.

Next up is “Norwegian Wood” by Haruki Murakami, which is a fascinating read, and one unlike my typical cup of tea. I read this book because, working at a bookstore, I saw the book an awful lot and a few of my co-workers read it, so I decided to give it a shot and I ended up really enjoying it. Although I found the book to also be conflicting, as while it's written extremely well, the main character isn't exactly a compelling protagonist and I found him to be a slightly more likable version of Holden Caulfield, so in my opinion, it's an interesting counterpoint to “A Catcher in the Rye” but set in 1960's Japan.

“How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America” is a mouthful of a title but a really interesting book. I picked it up for secret reasons, (I may or may not want to write a mystery) but I found it really cool, not only did it detail things that I had no reason to have interest in that I found fascinating anyway, but it also has a lot of recommendations for other mysteries in it that I also used to find some summer reads for myself, that I can't recommend here because I haven't finished them yet. Both as a writer and as a reader I definitely think it's worth a read.

“Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel may not seem like the type of book well-suited for our current climate, believe me, I had the same opinion once I realize what the book was about, but considering that it was a near-constant sight at the cash register during the holiday season this past December, I gave it a shot anyway and was blown away at how brilliant it was. I don't want to give away too much, since that would be cheating, but trust me, it's a fantastic novel with interesting characters, even if the recent television adaptation left me rather unimpressed.

I may not seem it, but I'm something of a scientist myself, or at least someone interested in science from a layman's perspective, so “Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feyman” by Richard Feynman was right my up my alley, even if I read it solely based on a recommendation from an actor who recommended it in his memoir. I’ve been fascinated by science, particularly physics and astronomy from a young age but unfortunately I don’t quite have the mental fortitude to turn it into a career, hence why I am a writer but I do have an appreciation for the sciences and for the scientists that do the science. And so I found Richard Feynman's account of his life to be absolutely transfixing and I particularly enjoy his anecdotes about his learning of science in his early childhood. As both a scientist, and as a person, Feynman is super interesting, and this book is a good showing of that. The stories he relates are both funny when he goes into his non-scientific interests, but also gets heavy when he talks about his work on the Manhattan Project. There's some questionable dated stuff but it doesn't diminish the quality of the book.

This one is more of a personal choice, but while there have been many books about the filmmaking process and many about the making of particular films, “Fade In” by Michael Piller is probably my favorite. Written by one of the men who helped shape an entire era of Star Trek before his tragic passing, it details the process of making the 1997 film, Star Trek: Insurrection from conception to release and it's a fascinating look not only into the writing process (which is fascinating to me as a screenwriter) but also into just how much a movie changes between inception and it's premiere in theaters. If you're an aspiring filmmaker, definitely check this one out, even if you're not a Star Trek fan, I think the insight into Hollywood filmmaking when you're working for a major franchise is worth the read.

Another good read is “Console Wars” by Blake J. Harris, which details Tom Kalinske's time at Sega of America and how he contributed to making Sega the powerhouse that it was during the 16-bit era. The first time I tried reading it, I got bored, but when I went for a second time, I was enraptured. It felt cinematic like watching a biopic (which released back in 2020 and I have still yet to check out). If you're into video games or at least vaguely know about the Nintendo/Sega rivalry, you'll enjoy it. My only critique is that it ends when Kalinske leaves Sega, so it doesn't detail the downfall of Sega in the console market which I think would be an interesting read as well.

I'm a big fan of licensed tie-in material, which I know is like the bottom of the barrel to people who only read “real books” but tie-in material is such a rich and diverse landscape to show stories featuring characters usually only depicted onscreen in scenarios that can only be shown in the cinema of your mind. And to that end, “Heir to the Empire”, the book that kickstarted the Star Wars Expanded Universe is a great read. I read it back in December 2019 after “The Rise of Skywalker” came out and I absolutely loved it. I read both it and its sequel in a matter of weeks. I don't care if they're not canon anymore because they're still fun reads that give insight into what the canon was like back then, and I particularly enjoy the prototypical versions of things that were eventually set in stone by the Prequel Trilogy. If you're a Star Wars fan who hasn't read it, you've really gotta cause it's a classic. And if you're curious about the Expanded Universe, check out this video on it that I adore: https://vimeo.com/260024110

So go forth and enjoy some of my picks, and let me know in the comments if you do and what you think of them!