An open letter to cable networks, particularly AMC.

Gentlemen,

If you don’t like the language that’s used in a particular movie, DON’T AIR IT ON YOUR NETWORK! There are plenty of other networks, such as HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, FLIX, and The Movie Channel who will gladly air it as-is.

If you don’t like the length of a particular movie, DON’T AIR IT ON YOUR NETWORK. See above.

If you don’t feel you have time to show the entire movie, or if you feel you can’t spare the time to air the entire end credits without shrinking them into a tiny, illegible blob in one corner of the screen while your promos run, DON’T AIR IT ON YOUR NETWORK. Credits are part of the film. People on film crews don’t make much money, and often the credits are the only benefit of the long hours they worked. If you can’t do right by them, leave it to someone who will. See above.

Thank you.

The above was prompted by my experience this weekend with AMC. I watched only the first twenty minutes of “The Blues Brothers”, a true movie classic, before changing the channel in disgust. The editing was ridiculous, and I refused to watch the movie thus ruined.