Reel Facts & Opinions: Men Behaving Badly

When we immerse ourselves in the movies, either by sitting in a theatre, on our couch, or just reading about upcoming films, we do so in the hopes that the experience will insulate us from the ugliness and turmoil happening in the world. But, just as politics and pro-football have suddenly become entangled, the bad things in the world could not be held back from our beloved universe of film. Specifically, the fledging film community of Austin, Texas, and by extension, the online film world and the far corners of Hollywood.

The most recent of a trio of events was just this week, when Harry Knowles, founder of the popular movie news website Ain’t It Cool News (AICN), was accused of sexual harassment by a woman named Jasmine Baker, who came forward with allegations of groping at an event at the Alamo Drafthouse theatre in Austin nearly two decades ago. Since then, multiple other women have come forward with allegations of sexual misconduct against Knowles.

The allegations come just as the Alamo Drafthouse was in a shitstorm of its own after it was revealed that the company’s co-founder, Tim League, had covertly re-hired movie journalist Davin Faraci, months after Faraci stepped down from his post from Drafthouse’s own website, Birth.Movies.Death, because of his own sexual assault allegations. League, by the way, was informed of Knowles’ groping actions earlier, but only came up with the suggestion of “just avoid him”.

Although Knowles has denied the allegations (via Twitter), and nothing has been proven in a court of law (yet), the fallout was immediate; Knowles was swiftly dismissed from the Austin Film Critics Association, had his ties broken with the Alamo Drafthouse and the annual Fantastic Fest Festival (which he co-founded with League), and in the most stunning happening, had his long-time staff of AICN writers quit their posts. The immediate breaking of Knowles’ connections points towards there being more than smoke, and League’s decision to remain silent makes him the new Joe Paterno.

The town of Austin may be a long way from Hollywood, but the ripple effects were still felt. The Alamo Drafthouse was a growing, unique chain of movie theatres, and although AICN wasn’t quite having the popularity it enjoyed in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, it had its place in history as one of the first independent movie news websites to post early reviews, spy reports, and give fans a place to speak their minds (the infamous AICN Talkbacks, in which fans post opinions, have been shut down since the allegations broke). AICN caused many Hollywood studios to take the internet seriously, and this new story of misconduct has been picked up by mainstream outlets such as The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, and Entertainment Weekly.

So what now? Knowles has stepped back from operating AICN, and League has promised to take action to prevent things like this from ever happening again. Men like Knowles and League started off just like the rest of us who have ever gone to a movie or written about a film; they were kids in a movie theatre, nothing more or less. They were fortunate enough to make a living playing a kid’s game, but during that time they forgot to act like adults. They used their positions as an excuse to act like baboons, and the effects are an insult to not only women but to the many fans who have supported AICN and Drafthouse over the years. The situation is still unfolding and more stories are likely to emerge, and it is a sobering reminder that ugly things still happen in our movie universe, and that universe would be a better place if men treated women like they would want their own mothers to be treated. It’s really not that hard, and if these two baboons really did love what they have created, they would step down and leave things in capable hands, where things can heal, recover, do things better, and step away from any negative leftover stigma. Because at the very least, they need to prove that they can do the right thing.