For a long time, every cinephile in Australia – myself included – wanted to be David Stratton, the beloved critic who has died at age 85. And not just because that would involve being paid to watch and talk about movies – Stratton, of course, being beamed into lounge rooms across the country with fellow critic Margaret Pomeranz.
We wanted to be him, aspired to be him, because of the values he represented and the manner with which he held himself. Stratton was deeply learned but approachable; polite but at times wonderfully feisty; and above all else deeply passionate about film. That passion was infectious, and his contributions to cinema culture in Australia are immeasurable.
