If there’s one thing The Four Hipsters of the Apocalypse
““ the four immaculately dressed editors who run the arts and
entertainment section ““ hate, it’s publicists. If
you’re reading this and you work for a movie studio, record
label or theater company, the Hipsters probably don’t want
your phone calls. You can e-mail, but don’t expect a
reply.
The problem with publicists is not one of mere existence.
Publicists frequently provide us arts journalists with the
information and access we need to write stories.
The problem is one of degree. Publicists will do anything, and I
mean anything, to get you to pay attention to something you know
you don’t care about. When the Cuba Gooding Jr. clunker
“Snow Dogs” came out in 2002, the film’s studio
sent the Daily Bruin office a tub of Neapolitan ice cream. Other
than the similar temperatures of the snow in the title and the ice
cream in the office, I have no idea what the two have to do with
each other.
However, the ice cream did get me to mention “Snow
Dogs” in this column, and if the right person at Disney ever
sees this, the publicist whose idea the ice cream was may get a
raise. I wish I was lying, but this is how Hollywood works.
Still, sometimes a movie’s publicity campaign is worth
noting in the same way you can admire the genius of Darth Vader
without actually wanting to join the dark side. Last week, Sony
Pictures launched a new Web site, thedavincichallenge.com, for its
May release of “The Da Vinci Code,” based on Dan
Brown’s widely read novel about a Catholic conspiracy. The
catch is that the site, though funded by Sony, is exclusively about
how Christians should respond to the film.
The site’s mission statement begins by declaring,
“The primary focus of The Da Vinci Challenge is to help
Christians prepare for the inevitable question that will arise with
the release of the film: “˜What do you think of “˜The Da
Vinci Code?'” Grammatical issues aside in that
sentence, the site features essays from various Christian
authorities on how Christians can convince other people that the
issues raised in “The Da Vinci Code” are invalid.
The site makes a point of explaining that none of the
authorities was paid to write essays, which to me just seems like
Sony bragging that it got them to do publicity work for free.
The problem with the site is also its genius. All of the essays
share one trait: They encourage Christians to see “The Da
Vinci Code” precisely so they will be able to discuss it with
questioning non-Christians afterward. While Newmarket Films had to
accept the fact that some religious groups would boycott “The
Passion of the Christ” in the United States, Sony has instead
found a way to make “The Da Vinci Code” appealing to
people who won’t like it.
That’s good publicity and a good idea, as it will limit
the number of people lambasting the film before they see it.
Unfortunately, and this is apparently a required skill among studio
publicists, the site takes a good idea and makes it seem
disingenuous.
Later on in the mission statement, while describing how popular
Brown’s book has become, the site offers the following
information, out of context and seemingly out of nowhere: “On
May 19, 2006, the highly anticipated film version of the book,
starring Academy Award-winner Tom Hanks, will open in
theaters.”
That sentence reveals that the site isn’t really
interested in promoting discussion about “The Da Vinci
Code.” It’s interested in selling tickets. What do the
Academy Awards have to do with a discussion of Christian
theology?
That sentence ruins the sincerity of any potential discussion
the site could promote, but the reference to Hanks may sell a few
more tickets. Then again, so would giving people free food. At
least the ice cream wasn’t disguised as a public service.
Tracer understands, but hates that he’s playing right
into Sony publicity’s hands by writing this column. E-mail
him at jtracer@media.ucla.edu.