# Can I sue Sony for using a fake movie critic? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 4, 2001, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512 "2001-06-04T13:22:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/53a042/32.png) [@Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vinnie_Virginslayer)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/1 "2001-06-04T13:22:04Z")
I’m sure many of you have heard about the fake movie critic created by Sony owned Columbia pictures to hype their lousy films: > **[MSNBC News - Breaking News and News Today | Latest News](https://www.msnbc.com/)** > > MSNBC breaking news and the latest news for today. Get daily news from local news reporters and world news updates with live audio & video from our team. My question is . . if you bought a ticket to see the movie based on David Manning’s review, hated it, and since it was false advertisng, can you sue Sony for fraud, damages and pain and suffering? Or would Sony be able to argue that anyone stupid enough to believe that any movie critic would put over “The Animal” doesn’t deserve dime one? ---
**Author:** ![Arken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dfb087/32.png) [@Arken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arken)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/2 "2001-06-04T13:32:00Z")
Considering that a movie review is always an opinion, how can it ever be false? ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/3 "2001-06-04T13:35:30Z")
Sounds like fraud to me. Time for a class action! ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/4 "2001-06-04T13:52:33Z")
In a perfect world, every news outfit in the world would immediately cease advertsising Columbia movies. Gotta hit 'em in the pocket. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/5 "2001-06-04T13:55:32Z")
You can sue anybody. You’ll just lose. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/6 "2001-06-04T14:20:00Z")
Sounds like the real Ridgefield Press has the best grounds for a lawsuit. ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/7 "2001-06-04T15:34:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Arken \* > \*\*Considering that a movie review is always an opinion, how can it ever be false? \*\* Exactly. All they had to say in response was “Oh yeah, Dave Manning, sure, that’s Bob Jones over there. Yeah, he likes to use that pen name when giving great reviews to really horrible movies. Hey! Bob! you got some visitors”. Why the heck admit that he doesn’t exist??!! ---
**Author:** ![Arken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dfb087/32.png) [@Arken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arken)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/8 "2001-06-04T15:35:50Z")
Probably a lot of consciences were hurting when they realized they actually gave The Animal a glowing review. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/9 "2001-06-04T15:50:45Z")
The same effect can be achieved merely by using the various “quote whore” critics (e.g., Jeff Craig, “Sixty Second Preview”). ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/10 "2001-06-04T17:49:07Z")
> [@](#): > > _Moe says:_ Why the heck admit that he doesn’t exist??!! Actually, David Manning does exist–however, he is not a professional film critic for **The Ridgefield Press** , he’s just some friend of a Sony marketing hack (and obviously one with seriously low standards). These days, it’s hard to find a film ad that doesn’t have _somebody_ liking it, so the blame goes to whomever trusts the opinion of, for all practical purposes, a stranger. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/11 "2001-06-04T18:11:45Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by ArchiveGuy \* > Actually, David Manning does exist–however, he is not a professional film critic for **The Ridgefield Press** , he’s just some friend of a Sony marketing hack (and obviously one with seriously low standards). …_\* Which is why the Ridgefield Press (apparently a small weekly in Conneticut) should have a legal case. There are no professional credentials required for being a critic or reviewer, so Sony can quote anybody they like as one, but it is a patently false claim that he worked for The Ridgefield Press in any capacity whatsoever. I would find it highly amusing if the tiny weekly collected damages (Sony would almost certainly settle out of court). ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/12 "2001-06-04T19:13:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RealityChuck \* > \*\*The same effect can be achieved merely by using the various “quote whore” critics (e.g., Jeff Craig, “Sixty Second Preview”). \*\* Or by doing what the movie companies do best-editing the reviews so they sound good. (They do that, right?) For example, let’s say a Manopold Smith of the Earth Tribune says, “The first part of **this movie was great** , but nothing else. If Filmocorp was to release the first ten minutes of this movie separately from the rest of this film, **I would** gladly pay to **see this 100 times**.” Which Filmocorp would modify to: THIS MOVIE WAS GREAT! I WOULD SEE THIS 100 TIMES! -Manopold Smith, Earth Tribune ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/13 "2001-06-04T20:37:57Z")
I thought NPR a coupla months ago was trying to actually locate an organization known as “Sixty Second Preview” and couldn’t. Something they found curious, since Jeff Craig (or whoever he is) is one of the most prolific reviewers out there for movies who can’t apparently muster any more recognizeable reviewers. Does this thing exist? What is it? A magazine, a service, what? ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/14 "2001-06-04T22:53:37Z")
The best strategy is to simply assume that any movie that uses Jeff Craig, or any unknown critic from the bottom of the food chain, must be rotten. Whenever I see a glowing review by some unknown at the Des Moines Free Press or something, I just assume that none of the reviews by any of the major critics were positive, or they would have used it. If I were a movie company and all the major reviews said my movie stunk, I just wouldn’t post any reviews at all. ---
**Author:** ![Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/53a042/32.png) [@Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vinnie_Virginslayer)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2001, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/15 "2001-06-08T20:06:50Z")
Jaysus H. Chrast, Dopeheads, I was only kidding!!! 🙂 [http://www.inside.com/jcs/Story?article\_id=32597&pod\_id=10](http://www.inside.com/jcs/Story?article_id=32597&pod_id=10) ---
**Author:** ![Stupendous\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Stupendous\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stupendous_man)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2001, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/16 "2001-06-08T22:27:00Z")
Well if nothing else, I’ve learned that as long as you live in the States, you can sue anyone for pretty much anything, no matter how stupid it is, or how much it was you are at fault. ---
**Author:** ![Homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2001, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/17 "2001-06-08T23:23:38Z")
So, Stupendous Man, you think that a company should be allowed to produce false advertisements without penalty? Brought to you by AOL, “The best company ever made!” –Tim ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2001, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/18 "2001-06-08T23:29:24Z")
Believe it or not, somebody DID file a class action lawsuit. I got this from [http://www.sfgate.com](http://www.sfgate.com) - the story about Sony suspending the guys responsible. (Link too large to paste): \>\>Meanwhile, two moviegoers filed a class-action lawsuit Thursday against Sony over the fake critic blurbs. Omar Rezec of Sherman Oaks and Ann Belknap of Sierra Madre claim in the Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit that the ads fooled them into seeing “A Knight’s Tale.” They did not specify damages, but claimed to be filing the lawsuit on behalf of all\<\< ---
**Author:** ![starfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/87869e/32.png) [@starfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starfish)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2001, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/19 "2001-06-09T03:50:42Z")
Notice that they filed a class action suit. That means that, if they win the suit, their lawyers get the money, and they, and anyone who joins the class, get a 50% off coupon to see a movie. Where are the lawyer types: Could this be a ploy be Sony. Can a judge rule that all individual suits have to roll into this class action suit? That would save Sony money by preventing additional suits by movie goers. Sony then gets two tame movie goers to file suit against them and their tame film critic. ---
**Author:** ![Stupendous\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Stupendous\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stupendous_man)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2001, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512/20 "2001-06-09T13:58:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Homer \* > \*\*So, Stupendous Man, you think that a company should be allowed to produce false advertisements without penalty? > > Brought to you by AOL, “The best company ever made!” > > –Tim \*\* THat’s not what I said, but no matter what I said, when you go to a movie, no matter who liked or didn’t like it, you are still taking the risk that YOU won’t. Just becasue you agree with a particular critic most of the time, doesn’t mean that that critic will always share the same opinion with you. I think that the studio should be fined a portion of the movie’s profits. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-sue-sony-for-using-a-fake-movie-critic/67512.md?page=2)