WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR “Sentimental Value”
There’s a level of plausible deniability in art.
Insincerity has become a good business model. Corporations prioritize marketability over humanity, studios are increasingly involved in the creative process, and it’s growing more difficult to discern what the unaltered vision of a creator is.
Amidst all of this, one of my least favorite comments has grown in popularity.
“It’s not that deep.”
At best, this comment can represent a growing frustration with the state of art creation in contemporary society.
At worst, it excuses and normalizes the practice.
I see this comment made most often regarding movie criticism. Someone will make a point about a movie’s flaw, most often referencing a big-budget, large-studio project, before someone responds, saying they shouldn’t think so hard about something that’s just supposed to be fun.
But I want to think that hard about it.
I want to analyze the unnecessarily good cinematography of the new “Naked Gun” movie. I want to talk about the formulaic writing of “Red One.”
The phrase “it’s not that deep” not only delegitimizes the process of art criticism, it devalues art itself.
Behind every piece of art, whether modern masterpiece or soulless cash grab, are people who worked tirelessly to make it as good as possible. We can critique the result, but to say these people never tried in the first place is insulting to one of the greatest endeavors humanity can take on.
There’s a reason art endures in human culture. Most people can name more actors, musicians or painters than they can scientists.
People like Isaac Newton or Albert Einstein were undeniably geniuses, but eventually, someone else would’ve figured out what they did. In many instances, someone else did.
Someone other than Isaac Newton would’ve discovered gravity. No one other than Vincent Van Gogh could’ve painted “Starry Night.” If Albert Einstein hadn’t developed the theory of relativity, someone else would have eventually. No one other than Stevie Wonder could’ve made “Songs in the Key of Life.”
In many ways, art reaches deeper than anything else in the human experience. It can be an escape from reality or a reminder of it, but always in a way unique to the artists involved.
In the final moments of Joachim Trier’s 2025 movie “Sentimental Value,” our main character, Nora, has just nailed the climactic scene in her father’s movie; a movie that she has realized is about her and for her. After the scene is filmed, she stands a few yards away from her father, and they simply look at each other.
In one moment, contextualized by the piece of art her father has made and the performance she has given in it, every decision makes sense. Two characters who held animosity for almost their entire lives now perfectly understand each other.
That’s what art is to us.
It’s the commentary we can’t provide. It’s giving voice to an idea when we don’t know if there’s a language to say it in. It’s a conversation that doesn’t happen.
It creates a depth of understanding beyond what words ever could.
