Ebert's new show a welcome return to the balcony

Roger Ebert and the late Gene Siskel always came across as two regular guys whose spirited talks about movies just happened to be captured by television cameras.

The hosts of Ebert's newest film-criticism TV show, “Ebert Presents at the Movies,” don't yet have that same relaxed chemistry, but their performance in the show's first edition, which aired at 8:30 p.m. Friday on WTTW-Ch. 11, does show promise.

The program brings Associated Press film critic Christy Lemire and Chicago-based critic and blogger Ignatiy Vishnevetsky together to critique and discuss films in the WTTW balcony set first made famous by Ebert and Siskel in the mid-1970s.

Lemire, an experienced print and television critic, appears comfortable and natural in the balcony seat. Her critiques are concise, and she proves a nimble debater during the discussion segments.

The 24-year-old Vishnevetsky, a regular contributor to mubi.com, doesn't fare as well. His prepared remarks slog by, hobbled by dry criticspeak: “This workmanlike drama is earnest and somewhat corny in the way it handles its subject matter,” he says of the new drama “The Company Men.” And too often he interrupts Lemire during their discussions, just so he can repeat a point.

On the positive side, Vishnevetsky is passionate about film and clearly knows his stuff, and he flashes an endearing sense of humor during the program. It should be interesting to watch the two hosts as they grow more comfortable with the show and each other.

While Lemire and Vishnevetsky form the centerpiece of the program, Ebert has wisely decided to update the format to reflect today's digital media and entertainment landscape.

Special contributors from the online and print worlds — people of different ages, genders and cultural backgrounds — will have regular segments on the show. In the debut, blogger Kim Morgan delivers a lively essay about Carol Reed's classic film “The Third Man.” (A clever touch: Morgan's piece was filmed in black and white.)

Ebert has his own segment on the show — “Roger's Office.” He appears briefly on camera in the debut, while German filmmaker Werner Herzog provides his voice in a short but eloquent discussion of the animated film “My Dog Tulip,” now in release. (A battle with cancer robbed Ebert of part of his jaw and the ability to speak.)

Seeing Ebert on television again should give many viewers a warm, nostalgic thrill, but fortunately for us, “Ebert Presents at the Movies” isn't an empty trip down memory lane. It's a contemporary take on the format that Ebert and Siskel perfected, and its solid start deserves a thumbs-up.