‘BRAZIL’ NUTS

Mighty words of praise should be heaped upon Sid Sheinberg, Terry Gilliam and producer Arnon Milchan for jointly engineering the ingenious release of “Brazil.”

Knowing how expensive movie advertising is, and being familiar with the unprofessional and gullible nature of many Los Angeles area film critics, they decided to cook up a scheme whereby it would appear they were feuding about whether “Brazil” would ever get released and that the question of creative control was at the core.

Sure enough, the bamboozled L.A. Film Critics Assn. voted “Brazil” best picture while few of them deigned to include it on their Ten Best Lists. Consequently, with little paid advertising, the film has opened to record-breaking business.

Let’s salute Gilliam, Sheinberg and Milchan for their brilliant manipulation of the press and, at the same time, call for the en masse resignation of every Los Angeles film critic for their cumulative hypocrisy.

MILES MONROE

Los Angeles