Wow.

This is why I still admire Roger Ebert, even as he is aging and making the occasional mistake in his reviews. His review of “The Princess Diaries 2” is brilliant, honest, and funny. I can tell he hated the film, but he’s honest enough to admit that he’s not capable of liking a movie like this.

The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement” offers the prudent critic with a choice. He can say what he really thinks about the movie, or he can play safe by writing that it’s sure to be loved by lots of young girls. But I avoid saying that anything is sure to be loved by anybody.
In this case, I am not a young girl, nor have I ever been, and so how would I know if one would like it? Of course, that’s exactly the objection I get in e-mails from young readers, who complain that no one like me can possibly like a movie like this. They are correct. I have spent a long time, starting at birth and continuing until this very moment, evolving into the kind of person who could not possibly like a movie like this, and I like to think the effort was not in vain.
So to girls who think they might like this movie, I say: Enjoy! Movies are for fun, among other things, and if you love “Princess Diaries 2,” then I am happy for you, because I value the movies too much to want anyone to have a bad time at one.

Mr. Ebert, I salute you.