Pharyngula

Posted by: Bob O'H | April 14, 2008 9:30 AM

I like the way it ends too:

Now, I have no idea whether "Expelled" is a good movie or a bad one. Like a good critic, I will reserve judgment until I actually see the thing. But I can't help but be struck by the irony of Stein's own words in the movie's introduction (which is also on YouTube):
"In my experience, people who are confident in their ideas are not afraid of criticism. So that tells me the Darwinists are afraid. They're hiding something."
What, pray tell, are Stein and the "Expelled" producers hiding? And what are they afraid of?

Posted by: alex | April 14, 2008 9:35 AM

Stein: they're hiding something

ahahahahhahahhahahahhaha. amazing.

Posted by: Bueller | April 14, 2008 9:56 AM

As I recall, according to ERV, XVIVO does not have the resources to get an injunction, and Harvard Law refuses to help them out until *after* the film has been released.

Posted by: Benjamin C | April 14, 2008 10:14 AM

This has in no way been confirmed, but there is the suggestion that the rap video by Randomslice was produced by one Michael Edmondson of Vancouver, Canada.

His name was listed on a google info page as having done animation for Premise Media, which included a 5 minute "propositional piece".

Edmondson's name and information has since been removed from that site, and his website, which I believe it is Float on Films, has likewise been taken down.

Mr Edmondson has not commented in any way on the matter that I know of.

Posted by: Bueller | April 14, 2008 10:19 AM

Kind of off-topic, but yes.

It's not clear who the rapper was or who actually commissioned the video (if anyone), but it was animated by a guy named Mike Edmondson who runs his own animation firm called "Float On Films" out of Vancouver.

He was known to be working on Expelled for a while, and was perhaps the guy responsible for copying the XVIVO clip (without being aware that what he was doing was illegal). All of his info was recently removed from the Expelled website at his request. (And he removed Expelled from his resume.)

It appears that he wasn't aware that what he was doing was wrong, then found out about it from reading ERV, and withdrew from the project and tried to wipe all mention of it from the record.

It's not clear where in the timeline the Beware the Believers video fits in, but he doesn't seem to be a creationist, just someone who got suckered into working with the Expelled crew. Or maybe he just needed the money.

Check the comments at ERV for more details. The two newest video replies to the original Beware the Believers video at YouTube also have some info.

Posted by: jim | April 14, 2008 10:29 AM

I believe ERV contacted Edmondson and he denied any involvement with the XVIVO rip-off - that's when somebody did a bit of detective work and turned up evidence suggesting that he was actually responsible for the "Beware the Believers" skit. He's not confirmed or denied the latter, to my knowledge. Looks as if ERV tipped him off to what a bunch of sleazebags the Expellites are, and he's trying to distance himself from the whole mess, not unreasonably.

Quoth ERV: "Edmondson is a cool dude-- His videos online are friggen hysterical. How he got tangled up with EXPELLites we may never know, but lay off ol dude :)" Nuff said.

Posted by: Bueller | April 14, 2008 10:36 AM

"Looks as if ERV tipped him off to what a bunch of sleazebags the Expellites are, and he's trying to distance himself from the whole mess, not unreasonably."

Which is why I'm not quite sure I believe him when he says that he didn't produce the copied XVIVO video. I mean, if you're trying to distance yourself from the movie, you wouldn't admit that you had produced part of it.

Strangely, you probably wouldn't favourite every copy of the BtB video that has been uploaded to YouTube (as well as the video that exposes you):
http://www.youtube.com/user/floatonfilms

But that appears to be exactly what he's done.

Posted by: William | April 14, 2008 10:41 AM

(Derisive snort).

Not screened for critics? What, like the Avengers movie a decade ago?

The difference of course being, I enjoyed the Avengers, even the rubbish movie. But even watching Uma Thurman in Diana Rigg's catsuit can only get you so far.

By the way, has anyone else seen posters in cinemas for the Stein & Mathis and co. 'Expelled' fun-fest yet? There was one up in an AMC chain theatre in North Kansas City over the week-end. No release date on it, just the same picture of Stein looking like a damn fool. Surprised me, though, that this seemed to be getting a wide release... and when I check their MovieWatcher site, I find this, looking at showtimes at the Barrywoods 24 branch in Kansas City on Friday, 18 April - is this really going to happen?

Posted by: Glen Davidson | April 14, 2008 11:19 AM

They seem to have been hypocritical for so long, doing all they can to prevent criticism of their claims while claiming persecution from those who actually do discuss their nonsense, that they forgot that they ever are hypocrites (you know that in some manner the DI "fellows" know, at least). And many seem even to think that they are persecuted.

So they can never imagine that others will see them as hypocrites, as falling under their own judgments. So yes, why are they unwilling to face their critics?

I'm glad that this film critic would write an entire piece on that issue alone. As many as are the ways that this bunch fails, intellectually, creatively, and with respect to honesty, the fact that they've been hiding from the beginning raises a powerful stench. The dull repetition of their prevarications may have quenched the senses, but Mathis was prescient enough to revive the senses to their hypocrisy by expelling PZ.

If God wanted the IDists to win, he'd not have made them so colossally dumb.

Glen D
http://tinyurl.com/2kxyc7

Posted by: SteveM | April 14, 2008 11:54 AM

This whole movie and all the "stuff" surrounding it is just too stupid too be real. It just has to be a parody and we are all just victims of Poe's Law

Posted by: Carlie | April 14, 2008 12:03 PM

Holydust - no way! My kids watch that. I didn't notice, but I'm usually running around getting everything ready for the morning. Now I'm going to pay closer attention, and the minute I see it there will be a strongly-worded letter going out to CN.

Posted by: negentropyeater | April 14, 2008 12:14 PM

"This makes sense, from the studio's perspective, since the people who go to see horror flicks and dumb comedies - teenagers and morons, respectively - don't read reviews, and will be lured by those shiny objects called TV commercials."

Well, for Expelled, I guess teenagers aren't going to go and see this movie, as they won't give a damn, so this leaves the producers with only one big category of people to market it to...

Posted by: Bobby | April 14, 2008 1:27 PM

My only complaint is that these reviewers keep referring to this propaganda film as a documentary. It doesn't document anything other than the dishonesty of its makers.

Posted by: Scott | April 14, 2008 2:01 PM

All this kicking people out and not allowing people who would disagree with it, is amazingly delicious considering the title of this movie.

Posted by: mprigge | April 14, 2008 2:27 PM

I was shocked to hear that NPR's "A Moment of Science" podcast for today (on carnivorous plants) advertised Expelled. Perhaps, they realized that this was inappropriate and replaced the ad in the version available directly from the WFIU AMOS website. (The iTunes version still advertises Expelled.)

Posted by: Amanda | April 14, 2008 2:51 PM

Ben Stein is giving a lecture at my University on the 25th of April...it's called "Ben Stein on Life." I wish the title wasn't so ambiguous...I'd really like to know what he's going to talk about.

Posted by: rpenner | April 14, 2008 2:59 PM

The "popular movie" cinema in Berkeley is due to show Expelled as opposed to the Art-film, foriegn-film and documentary cinemas.

So presumably, Philip E. Johnson won't have far to walk to learn what happens when clever lies are given to IDiots to embellish and retell.

Posted by: KiwiInOz | April 14, 2008 6:41 PM

Does anyone want to put some odds on Expelled taking out the Razzies (www.razzies.com)?

Posted by: SteveM | April 15, 2008 9:54 AM

Could anyone explain why the Harward lawyers won't get at it until after it's released? It seems rather bizarre to this non-lawyer.

So they can claim damages based on the movies gross box office receipts.

You can't charge someone with a crime before they commit it (generally). As with shoplifting, they can't grab a shoplifter until he actually walks out of the store. A copyright isn't infringed until the copy is actually published. "Private showings" probably do not count as "publishing".