Literature is like any other trade; you will never sell anything unless you go to the right shop.
George Bernard ShawRead
A film that aims low should not be praised for hitting that target.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes that achieving a low goal is not worth commendation.
Gene Siskel's quote critiques the tendency to applaud films that settle for mediocrity. He implies that praise should be reserved for works that strive for excellence, suggesting that merely meeting a minimal standard does not warrant recognition.
In practice
During a film critique session, one might reference this quote to emphasize the importance of artistic ambition.
Literature is like any other trade; you will never sell anything unless you go to the right shop.
I get the impression sometimes that a play arrives in a sequence of events that I have no control over.
I was glamorous because of magicians like George Folsey, James Wong Howe, Oliver Marsh, Ray June, and all those other great cinematographers. I trusted those men and the other experts who made us beautiful. The rest of it I didn't give a damn about. I didn't fuss about my clothes, my lighting, or anything else, but, believe me, some of them did.
The thought of continually eating something like macaroni, spat out by machinery, fills me with fear and revulsion, so I make macaroni sculptures. I make them and make them and then keep on making them, until I bury myself in the process. I call this 'obliteration.'
A writer, or any artist, can’t expect to be embraced by the people [but] you just keep doing your work - because you have to, because it’s your calling.
Music, at its essence, is what gives us memories. And the longer a song has existed in our lives, the more memories we have of it.
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