Opposable Thumbs

How Siskel & Ebert Changed Movies Forever

By: Matt Singer

Narrated by: Matt Singer

Once upon a time, if you wanted to know if a movie was worth seeing, you didn’t check out Rotten Tomatoes or IMDB.

You asked whether Siskel & Ebert had given it “two thumbs up.”

On a cold Saturday afternoon in 1975, two men (who had known each other for eight years before they’d ever exchanged a word) met for lunch in a Chicago pub. Gene Siskel was the film critic for the Chicago Tribune. Roger Ebert had recently won the Pulitzer Prize—the first ever awarded to a film critic—for his work at the Chicago Sun-Times. To say they despised each other was an understatement.

When they reluctantly agreed to collaborate on a new movie review show with PBS, there was at least as much sparring off-camera as on. No decision—from which films to cover to who would read the lead review to how to pronounce foreign titles—was made without conflict, but their often-antagonistic partnership (which later transformed into genuine friendship) made for great television. In the years that followed, their signature “Two thumbs up!” would become the most trusted critical brand in Hollywood.

In Opposable Thumbs, award-winning editor and film critic Matt Singer eavesdrops on their iconic balcony set, detailing their rise from making a few hundred dollars a week on local Chicago PBS to securing multimillion-dollar contracts for a syndicated series (a move that convinced a young local host named Oprah Winfrey to do the same). Their partnership was cut short when Gene Siskel passed away in February of 1999 after a battle with brain cancer that he’d kept secret from everyone outside his immediate family—including Roger Ebert, who never got to say goodbye to his longtime partner. But their influence on in the way we talk about (and think about) movies continues to this day.

Photographer/© ABC/Getty Images.

©2023 Matt Singer (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

One of People’s Must-Read Books for Fall 2023

“Opposable Thumbs is a welcome reminder of an era when film criticism actually mattered...But it was Siskel and Ebert who, in Singer’s words, ‘democratized criticism, turned it into mass entertainment.’” —The New York Times

“The Siskel & Ebert rivalry, and its legacy, comes alive in the new book Opposable Thumbs.” —Chicago Tribune

"Siskel and Ebert bustled into the world at a time when movie critics mattered more, before the culture fragmented into a million voices and “influencers,” and they ruled that world with iron thumbs. In this sense Singer’s book is a time capsule of a bygone era every bit as irreplicable as the partnership at its core." —The Los Angeles Times

Thumbs Way Up for Opposable Thumbs!

Siskel and Ebert were an integral part of my journey as a film lover and at times film critic, and it's great to now have this entertaining and at times touching history of their partnership.

As a writer, Matt Singer does a great job keeping it interesting, even when covering familiar ground. I laughed out loud a few times, which is as much a credit to Siskel and Ebert's own words as well as Singer's ability to find the structure to share them. But the author deserves even more credit for his sensitive and carefully crafted prose which brought me to tears on three separate occasions.

As a reader, he also does very well, to the point it feels unfair comparing him to other writers reading their own nonfiction work. My only criticism is that there's a very broadcast ready, slightly detached quality to the reading which serves most of the book well, but there are times where it would have been served better with a more emotionally nuanced performance.

Overall, I can easily and enthusiastically recommend this audiobook.

Fantastic storytelling by Singer!

I loved hearing the history of Siskel & Ebert! I’ve watched Sneak Previews as a young kid. Then I followed their career and was a frequent viewer of At The Movies. Author & narrator Matt Singer does a wonderful job acting out the voices of the main subjects. Singer does overact in a few spots, but he makes up for that in his delivery.

I feel fans of film and media will truly enjoy this story of Siskel & Ebert and their partnership.

Good book. But unless you are a standup comedian, or an actor, you shouldn’t read a book you wrote

I miss siskel and Ebert. I always loved the show. I really enjoyed the book. But every time I listen to a book read by the author, the author usually sounds like an elementary school teacher, or somebody trying too hard. Actual professional performers know how to tow the line between making something sound, natural and conversational, and still not overdoing it. The author here is really trying to sell the lines and puts in awkward, pregnant pauses for effect. He tries way too hard. It happens a lot, with most authors. It’s better to just hire an actor who knows how to make it flow. Writing and reading out loud are two entirely different skills.

Fans will like it

The author clearly did his research, and crammed as much information as possible into the book. It might get annoying for some listeners, but possibly not for the true fans that watched the show their whole lives. The voice-over is ok: kind of on the nasal side.

Like Ebert even more.

Learned a lot. Ebert comes across even better in this one. Voice of reader good.

great history of 2 icons

the history. the movies. the arguments. the reviews. the memories of who and when I watched mentioned movies.

Think You Know Everything About Siskel and Ebert….

Think again! Lots of cool stuff I never knew about the team. Must read for fans.

Must-read for movie lovers

Matt is an experienced podcast host and has such a charming sound to his style, hearing him passionately read his own labor of love about these two critics was an absolute joy. I think this book will have as wide of an appeal as Siskel and Ebert did themselves in their prime—get one for yourself and one for a movie lover in your family!

We need print media on TV again

It seems that one of the video apps on my TV could find two critics that would discuss movies again. These guys were so much fun. The rotten tomatoes summary is just not the same. The arc of their lives from print media to TV is something we do not see today. Print media people on TV are so much more interesting. They do not just read a Teleprompter and smile. There is a business show on Fox News in the morning that has a editorial each hour by the host. I dread when there is a host substitution with a person just reading the Teleprompter. Print media people know how to ask questions and follow-up questions.

Nine hours and 35 minutes well spent

I found out about this book from a story on the CBS Morning Show in November and immediately put it on my Audible wish list. My husband and I never missed watching Siskel & Ebert on Saturday Mornings. Not only did we love hearing about new movies and taking note of what we wanted to see, but my husband managed an independent single-screen movie theater in Dayton Ohio at the time and a thumbs-up review for a film was good for the box office. Singer's book not only informs about the history of Siskel & Ebert's shows but puts it in historical perspective in a time before the IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic, and the home video phenomenon existed. He gives biographical information on both gentlemen, examples of their reviews, both good and bad, and comments they had about each other. Known for their rivalry and general dislike of each other in the early years, I was glad to read that mutual respect and a friendship came later. I laughed several times, cried at least once, and watched clips of S&E on YouTube to supplement the book. Singer is an excellent narrator, full of enthusiasm, and he tells a story well. This was a most enjoyable read.