Mike's Musings: The Star Rating System


Many critics use a star rating system to rate movies they’ve seen.  Some use five stars or a letter grade, but most (such as myself), use a four star system because it’s simple enough to get the job done.  But the star ratings system varies wildly from critic to critic.  How could it not?  Everyone has a different opinion of what a film should be rated.  Some give four star ratings out to everything, others only give them out to the best films.  

So I have created a key to show what each rating means to me.

4/4:  See this movie.  Period.  Run, don’t walk to see this movie.  It doesn’t matter how or when (preferably as soon as possible), but this film is a must see.

3.5/4: Definitely a must see, despites a few minor problems here and there.  It works wonderfully, and I still highly recommend seeing it.

3/4: A solid film choice.  Not perfect, but definitely worth your time if you’re interested in seeing it.  It's worth a trip to the theater.

2.5/4: An okay film, but there are too many problems for me to give it a recommendation without reservations.  If you really want to see it, I won’t try to stop you, but I’m not going to tell you that you should go out of your way to see it.  It’s a good choice for DVD.

2/4: The film doesn’t work, but it’s not a complete disaster either.  I would say skip it unless you have your heart set on it.

1.5/4: Definitely skip it.  This film doesn’t work at all, even though there may be a thing or two that aren’t as horrible as the rest of the movie.

1 star: Avoid.  This film is really bad.  You’re going to want your time and money back if you don’t take my word for it.  Depending on the case, it may work better under the influence.

0.5/4: Utter disaster.  This film is so bad that I may (and probably will) rip it to shreds in my review.  Don’t even bother trying to get me to refund your ticket or replace your DVD player because I gave you fair warning.

Zero stars: Possibly one of the worst movies ever made.  Jaw-droppingly bad, bordering on being outlawed by the Geneva Convention.  Words cannot express how bad this film is.  No amount of any substance can make this film worth your time.  In short, don’t see it.  Ever.  You’ll thank me later.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Desert Flower

2/4 Starring: Liya Kebede, Sally Hawkins, Timothy Spall, Juliet Stevenson Rated R for Some Violent Content, A Scene of Sexuality and Language The problem with "Desert Flower" is not that Waris Dirie's story isn't suited for the cinematic treatment or that the actress playing her isn't acceptable.  The problem is that director Sherry Hormann doesn't do a good job of telling it.  This is a poorly focused film that can't decide what it wants to be about or what it wants to say. As is the case with many a true story, the life of Waris Dirie is too amazing to be made up by a Hollywood screenwriter.  This woman fled an arranged marriage as a child, spent years as a servant to a Somali diplomat in England, survived on the streets, and was discovered by a fashion photographer while working as a janitor.  Then she became a supermodel and UN Ambassador in the fight against female genital mutilation. Waris experienced a lot in her life.  Telling it all in a...
Read more

The Road

3.5/4 Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron Rated R for Some Violence, Disturbing Images and Language "The Road" has to be the most downbeat, depressing and cynical movie I've ever seen.  That's not meant as a criticism, but a fact.  This is a tough movie to get through, but not a chore.  Those who venture in will find their time well spent, albeit not in a necessarily pleasant way.  Then again, if a movie is based off a novel by Cormac McCarthy, "pleasant" isn't a word one would hope to be used to describe it. The film takes place after the world has ended.  How it happened is not explained because it doesn't matter.  But any hope of the Earth recovering from what happened has long since gone.  A man (Mortensen) and his son (Smit-McPhee) are travelling together, trying to "get to the coast."  There are few people left, although considering what many are doing with the goal of survival, that's a good thing...
Read more

My Left Foot

 2/4 Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Brenda Fricker, Ray McAnally, Fiona Shaw, Alison Whelan Rated R (probably for Language and Brief Violence) "My Left Foot" feels like one of those movies designed to win Oscars and nothing else.  In fact, it did win two Oscars for the immortal Daniel Day-Lewis and Brenda Fricker, but apart from their strong work, there's not much else to remember about this movie.  It's well-acted, but all in all it's pretty dull. Christy Brown (Day-Lewis) is getting recognized for his work in order to raise money for the disabled.  Despite being a talented artist and writer, Christy is not the ideal candidate for the job.  He's an alcoholic jerk who makes no secret of his lust for women nor is he above using his disability to manipulate people into doing what he wants.  Interspersed with his attempts to seduce a woman tasked with looking after him while he awaits his entrance are vignettes from his childhood.  Most notably how his mothe...
Read more