In this talk from 1995, Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel discuss the state of movies and how they relate to values in American society. At the time, presidential candidate Bob Dole was criticizing American cinema for its excessive violence. Siskel and Ebert point out that Dole should at least see some of the movies he's deriding before criticizing them. Ebert points out his first rule that a movie isn't what it is about, but how it is about what it is about. In essence, the art and context of the violence matter. At the time, Siskel and Ebert had been on the air for two decades, and they point out that they've consistently criticized movies that were mindlessly violent.
They show some clips from a few of their favorite movies of 1994, including Pulp Fiction and the documentary Hoop Dreams. Ebert defends the coarse language of Pulp Fiction, and Siskel praises the depiction of inner city life in Hoop Dreams. They warn against making movies based on the weekend box office numbers, which has become a mainstay in 21st-century cinema. They both denounce the movie The Flintstones (1994) as basically a mindless way to market products. Ebert also states his beef with the ratings system and feels there should be an adults-only rating for content that is truly only for adults. During the Q&A, Siskel and Ebert both defend their positions that violence in movies doesn't lead to violence in real life. It's a lively talk with two of the great American film critics.