At The Movies, the show made famous by Chicago film critics Roger Ebert and the late Gene Siskel, who was later replaced by Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times, will now be moving in a "new direction" without either of the names that have been a staple of the show in its many forms. Ebert has been suffering from thyroid cancer and has been robbed of his voice, and while Roeper has been continuing the show with a series of guest hosts over the last two years, it's become apparent that creative differences will be taking the Disney-owned show somewhere that neither of the two critics wish to be involved in. This is a big sign that it could easily just become one of the many glitzy Ryan Seacrest-style fashion shows as opposed to an actual in-depth discussion of the merits of movies.
Roeper's at least planning another show that "honors the standards established by Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert more than 30 years ago." Who knows if honest, intelligent and candid film critique can find a home anywhere outside the Sundance Channel anymore.
