Mark Kermode!

Published on 30 March 2024 at 12:30

I am only a lowly film buff and amateur movie historian so now and then I am going to highlight actual film experts/critics/pod-casters that I respect and trust.

This time I'd like to highlight… 

Mark Kermode!

Mark Kermode 

was born on the 2nd of July 1963, 

He is an English film critic, author, journalist, radio & television presenter, podcaster, documentarian, musician and possibly the biggest fan of the film “The Exorcist” ever. 

Mark graduated from the University of Manchester in 1991, earning a PhD in English.

Kermode began his career in film criticism in the 1980’s writing for print media such as Manchester's “City Life” and then “Time Out” Magazine and the NME in London. He went on to write for a range of publications including The Guardian & The Independent newspapers and magazines such as Empire, Vox, Flicks, Neon & Fangoria. 

He has also contributed to the BFI’s prestigious film magazine “Sight & Sound”.

Between September 2013 and September 2023, he served as chief film critic for The Observer newspaper. 

Mark began working in broadcasting on LBC radio in 1988, after which he moved to BBC Radio 5 being the resident film reviewer on Radio 5's “Morning Edition” with Danny Baker. He then became the film critic for BBC Radio 1 in 1993. He got a regular Thursday night slot called “Cult Film Corner” as part of Mark Radcliffe's “Graveyard Shift” show on Radio 1.

Kermode later moved to Simon Mayo's BBC Radio 1 morning show and he also hosted a movie review show with Mary Anne Hobbs on Radio 1 on Tuesday nights called “Cling Film”.

From 2001 until 2022, Kermode reviewed and debated new film releases with Simon Mayo on the BBC Radio 5 Live show “Kermode and Mayo's Film Review”. 

This programme won Gold in the “Speech Award” category at the 2009 Sony Radio Academy Awards and Kermode himself won Gold in the “Best Specialist Contributor of the Year” at the 2010 Sony Radio Academy Awards. 

 

There is a famous clip from this show that went viral of Kermode becoming very animated and passionate during his review of the “Sex and the City 2” movie. 

In January 2016 Mark launched a monthly Live show called MK3D 

(Mark Kermode Live in 3D) at the BFI Southbank in London, where he would interact with the audience and talk about film-related subjects and he would have surprise guests that have included, Sir Michael Kane, Hugh Grant, Rami Malek, Gemma Arterton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Johnny Greenwood, Lynne Ramsay and Jason Isaacs to name but a few.

Apart from a hiatus due to a global pandemic, the MK3D live show is still going strong.

 

Mark launched his own Podcast in September 2018 “Kermode on Film” 

which included recordings of his BFI live shows. It ran for 194 episodes wrapping up in April 2022.

 

On the 11th of March 2022, it was announced by Simon Mayo, at the start of an episode of Kermode and Mayo's Film Review, that the last episode would be broadcast on 1 April 2022.

Ending the show's 20-year run. 

At one point the podcast edit of their BBC show was one of the most listened to movie review podcasts on earth. 

What had happened was Simon Mayo had actually given his notice to the BBC and left their employ. Mayo had worked for the BBC for 40 years.

A few months later the pair announced their independent venture, a new film-review podcast “Kermode & Mayo's Take” which has been going since May 2022 and seems to be going from strength to strength.  

 

 

Since 2019, Kermode has presented a movie soundtrack themed show on classical radio station Scala Radio.

 

From 1995 to 2001, Kermode was very visible as a TV film critic and presenter for Film4 and numerous projects on Channel 4.

Mark regularly hosted “The Film Review” for BBC News at Five until 2023.

Kermode regularly appeared on and presented BBC Two's “The Culture Show” between 2004 and 2015 where he hosted an annual "Kermode Awards" episode, which presented statuettes to actors and directors not nominated for Academy Awards that year.

The other Kermode highlight from his time at “The Culture Show” was in 2006 During an interview with legendary film director Werner Herzog taking place in LA Herzog is shot with an air rifle during the interview! Herzog appeared un-flustered, later stating:

"It was not a significant bullet. I am not afraid".

Between 2018 and 2021 Mark co-wrote and presented 14 episodes of the BBC 4 series

“Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema” 

A very good series where Kermode guides you through the history of cinema by looking at specific genres, The episodes were, 

"The Romcom", "The Heist", "Coming of Age", "Science fiction", "Horror"

"Mark Kermode's Christmas Cinema Secrets”, "Mark Kermode's Oscar Winners: A Secrets of Cinema Special", "Disaster Movies", "Superheroes", "British History Movies”, "Spies",

"British Comedy”, "Pop Music Movies", "Cult Movies".

Over the years Mark has made or been involved in film-related documentaries,

The Fear of God; 25 Years of The Exorcist (1998)

On the Edge of Blade Runner (2000)

The Poughkeepsie Shuffle: Tracing the French Connection (2000)

Shawshank: The Redeeming Feature (2001)

Burnt Offering: The Cult of the Wicker Man (2001)

Alien: Evolution (2001)

Hell on Earth: The Desecration and Resurrection of Ken Russell's The Devils (2002)

Mantrap: Straw Dogs - The Final Cut (2003)

In 2017, he collaborated with his idol film director William Friedkin on the feature documentary “The Devil and Father Amorth”, as a writer. 

The film had its first showing at the Venice Film Festival on 31 August 2017.

Mark Kermode is also a published author, 

He has written four books.

It's Only a Movie: Reel Life Adventures of a Film Obsessive (2010)

In It's Only a Movie, the incomparable Mark Kermode takes us into the weird world of a life lived in widescreen. Join him as he gets lost in Russia on the trail of a low-budget horror flick, gasp as he's shot at in Hollywood while interviewing Bavarian director Werner Herzog, cheer as he gets thrown out of the Cannes film festival for heckling in very bad French, and cringe as he's handbagged by Helen Mirren at London's glitzy BAFTA

The Good, The Bad and The Multiplex (2011)

This book explores what's wrong with modern movies!

If blockbusters make money no matter how bad they are, then why not make a good one for a change?

How can 3-D be the future of cinema when it's been giving audiences a headache for over a hundred years?

Why pay to watch films in cinemas that don't have a projectionist but do have a

fast-food stand? And, in a world where Sex and the City 2 was a hit, what are film critics even for?

Hatchet Job: Love Movies, Hate Critics (2013)

Beginning with his favourite hatchet job ever, Mark tells us about the best bad reviews in history, why you have to be willing to tell a director face-to-face their movie sucks, and about the time he apologized to Steven Spielberg for badmouthing his work.

But why do we love really bad reviews? Is it so much harder to be positive?

How Does It Feel?: A Life of Musical Misadventures (2018)

HOW DOES IT FEEL? follows a lifetime of musical misadventures which have seen Mark striking rockstar poses in the Sixth Form Common Room, striding around a string of TV shows dressed from head to foot in black leather, getting heckled off stage by a bunch of angry septuagenarians on a boat on the Mersey, showing Timmy Mallet how to build a tea-chest bass - and winning the International Street Entertainers of the Year award as part of a new wave of skiffle. Really.

He has also authored paperback film study books for The BFI (British Film Institute) 

These books are about 150 pages long and are a deep dive into a specific cinematic masterpiece.

Silent Running - BFI Film Classics (2014)

The Exorcist - BFI Film Classics (2020)

The Shawshank Redemption - BFI Film Classics (2024)

 

**Some Random Facts**

In the 2012 Sight & Sound poll of cinema's greatest films, Kermode submitted his top 10 as,

 

The Exorcist (1973)

A Matter of Life and Death (1946)

The Devils (1971)

It's a Wonderful Life (1946) 

Don't Look Now (1973)

Pan's Labyrinth (2006)

Mary Poppins (1964)

Brazil (1985)

Eyes Without a Face (1960)

The Seventh Seal (1957)

Kermode is a patron of the charitable trust of the Phoenix Cinema in North London, which was his favourite cinema during his childhood in East Finchley.

In 2013, Kermode was appointed an Island of Culture Patron by the Isle of Man Arts Council.

In 2016, Kermode was made an honorary Doctor of Letters at the University of Winchester.

In 2018, Kermode was appointed Honorary Professor in the Film Studies Department at the University of Exeter.

in 2019, Kermode became patron of the Sir John Hurt Film Trust.

 

As a musician Mark is a Double Bass / Upright Bass player,

He plays in the band “The Dodge Brothers” a four-piece Skiffle/Americana/Rockabilly/Country/Blues type band.

The Dodge Brothers do on occasion augment their lineup by working with pianist Neil Brand and play live in cinemas to accompany silent films. 

As you can see Mr Kermode is no slouch.

I first became aware of Kermode when he was regularly appearing on the Mark Radcliffe Radio One show in the mid-1990's. I was 14 listening to the radio and he was talking with authority about great cult films around the same time I was discovering cult cinema by watching late-night movies on BBC 2 and Channel 4.

While I'm writing this I realise that I may not have so much affection for classic British cinema and cult films today if I hadn't received the guidance from Mark via the Radio and TV at this critical time in my life while I was becoming a film buff.

What appeals to me about Kermode is he is a scholar he has such a deep understanding of cinema and the heritage of film but is in no way pretentious and is not above being a big fan of the Minions movies.

It's a shame there is this parroted talking point about him having a massive Ego but I just feel people can't handle someone who is educated, successful, confident and good at what they do. To me he comes across as a nice guy who takes time to work with charitable trusts and seems to have forged actual lasting friendships with people he as first met in a professional capacity, most famously he became friends with legendary filmmaker William Friedkin and he seems to have a genuine friendship with Guillermo del Toro and I don't think that would happen if he was a Ego maniac twat.

Most significantly I seem to agree with Kermode about 90% of the time and I can't ask for more than that from a critic I look to for guidance.  

Kermode working with Mayo just works so well, they are a perfect amount of similar and different to work perfectly as a team. I do like that they are not afraid to disagree but are grown up about it.

Mayo will always be honest if he hasn't seen something Kermode is referencing and Kermode will openly display his displeasure about being dragged into some kind of comedy segment.  

Even if you don’t fancy listening to the long-form “Kermode & Mayo’s Take” podcast.

I do recommend following their YouTube channel where they post key reviews and box office charts every week.      

 

If you have read this you love movies, I love movies and the theatrical cinema experience.

Tragically my local independent cinema where I would be able to see non mainstream films is currently closed. 

If you enjoy what I do it would be amazing if you could donate something to,

The Belmont Cinema, Aberdeen.