I realize it’s an odd thing to be peeved about a particular detail in a bad review, but: this Scott Foundas review of Away We Go (co-written by Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida) is one of the most frustrating pieces of criticism by a normally solid critic that I’ve encountered in a long while. Steven Elliott’s rebuttal makes a few rational points in terms of how the film’s balance of (creative) power likely worked. And David Edelstein’s review, while not exactly glowing, is at the very least not in the vein of MALE CO-SCREENWRITER IS AUTEUR / FEMALE CO-SCREENWRITER IS AFTERTHOUGHT that Foundas effectively invokes in his review.

Update: I should clarify that I’m agnostic towards the film, as I haven’t yet seen it. For me, the frustrating thing about Foundas’s review is the way in which it looks at the film more or less entirely as A Film by Dave Eggers — and what I’ve read about it suggests it’s as much in line with some of Vendela Vida’s preferred themes as with those of Eggers. I’m not frustrated that Foundas disliked the film — I’m frustrated that he does so in a way that ignores a good portion of the collaborators involved.