Ryan's Movie Blog: Review Special: The Ratings Scale (0

Hello All,

Alright folks, this one has been finally requested, but it’s an idea I’ve had for quite some time. Now keep in mind, beyond this point everything you read is simply my opinion, and if you disagree with my opinion, congratulations you’re a human being whose entitled to do so, but these are still my opinions. Why mention this? Well, since I’ve started this blog, some of you all have been wondering what my scores mean and why? Well, today we answer that question for you.

Before we begin, let’s quickly discuss what I look for in a good film. A good film for me at it’s core, is a good story, told well, in a way that keeps the viewer engaged, and invested in what’s going on. You need to have compelling characters, whether they be good, bad, or in between, as long as they are interesting and have a compelling character arc throughout the story. Sometimes they don’t have too, but as long as there is a good enough reason why. What a good film basically boils down to is that it has to look, feel, and play out well on screen. If any or all of these are out of whack, that is what drags down the quality of the film for me, and that’s why we have a ratings scale. Why didn’t I talk about what makes a film bad? Because you’re about to get a big dose of why, and since I’m a big believer of saving the best for last, let’s start this with:

The Bad Scores (Or, the films I don’t recommend):

0/10 - (Below the bottom of the barrel) This is for films that has no redeeming value to me whatsoever. A film where either almost all of the elements are out of whack, or whatever is out of whack is just so pain stakingly bad that it overshadows anything good that could be brought out of the film. A film that I wouldn’t recommend even if you held a gun to my head, I give this out to only the worst of the worst which is why my example film for this is the one that created this on the scale for me: Pixels.

1/10 - (Extremely Bad) These are the films that are also extraordinarily bad, except for one single thing about the film. This could be as trivial as one good line, or anywhere up to one good actor trying his best throughout the whole film. Overall though, this one good bit cannot save the rest of the film no matter how hard it tries. I can’t recommend these films unless you’re a glutton for punishment, but even don’t say I didn’t warn you. For me, while the very first scene of the film was interesting, the rest of the film was such an abject nightmare that I wished for death of the whole genre, which is why my example film for this is: The 5th Wave.

2/10 - (Awful) An awful movie for me can have a couple of good things going for it, but still fails for the grand majority of the film. The most recent example I can think of, and what will be my example for this one is a film that was good looking throughout, and even manage to throw in some decent action scenes. However, since the rest of it was a scatterbrain plot made up of underdeveloped characters, our example film fits in here perfectly: Live By Night

3/10 - (Bad) This might be a case of using a numerical quite literally, but it’s true when I say the best way for me to describe a film like this is that roughly a third of it is okay. Like a bad comedy might have a decent joke every once in awhile, or great actors can be stranded in a bad film, or a film with a good idea is badly underutilized. No film sums up those three points better for me than: Keeping up with the Joneses

The Disappointing Scores (Or the films I might recommend):

4/10 - (Below Average) So why do I count four as disappointing instead of bad? Because there’s nothing I hate more than good potential squandered. These are the films that for me, represent that notion better than any other point on this scale. These are the films that as you’re watching them, you can see truly great ideas in amongst the chaos of bad ideas, and squandered potential. You’re sitting there hoping that whenever you see these brief glimpses of hope that they will lead to something, and more often than not you are left disappointed. I think the most recent example of this, and my top choice of this category serves perfectly for this: Batman V Superman Dawn of Justice.

5/10 - (Average) Man it’s difficult to describe average, because average I argue is probably one of the most different things between different people. So what’s an average film for me? It’s a film that has no real surprises, no real depth beyond surface level genre fulfillments, and yet they don’t do it terribly either. These are serviceable films, for me these are the films that I really can’t recommend either way, and would more often than not tell the average person it’s up to you whether or not you’d want to see it. For me, the best example for this one is: The Light Between Oceans

6/10 - (Above Average) So if average is what’s expected, what is above average? Well, maybe the story plays out differently than expected, or the cast can win you over despite a meh story. It’s a film that still follows the formula, but manages to change things just enough to exceed expectations. The type of film that I’d say you should see once to say you did, and form your own opinion from there. This is basically my softball recommendation, a film you don’t have to rush to, but should see before it’s out of theatres. Example Film: Triple 9

7/10 - (Good) Not great, but good. This one might be harder to describe in depth, but for a quick answer I’d say it’s a film I’d say see sooner rather than later. Like, if we measured when to see a seven over the course of an opening weekend from friday night - sunday night, I’d say see it Sunday Night. The kind of film that admittedly while I wouldn’t see it again in a hurry, some might like it a lot more than me. It’s the kind of film that’s a good way to end your weekend. Example: Sully

The Best Films (Or the films I’d easily recommend.)

8/10 - (Great) This is a bare minimum must see for me. The film that, again, using that weekend format, is a film I’d say is a saturday night watch. A film that’s overall entertaining, but has more than a few flaws that prevent it from being something truly great.Maybe it’s got story points similar to other films that, while done in an entertaining matter, it’s still kind of sucks that they have to be there. Honestly, it’s a thin line sometimes between 7 and 8, but an 8 has to win me over just enough that I can recommend it despite some key grievances. For those of you who (like me) have a collection of films to watch at home, an eight can also be considered the minimum rating at which I’d say buy it on dvd when you can. Example: The Edge of Seventeen

9/10 - (Amazing) Now why did I jump so high in word quality for this particular rating? Well, I think great is an underappreciated word sometimes. Now, an amazing film, is a film that just barely misses the highest rating. Why? Maybe there’s a couple of things in the film that feel like they don’t quite match up to the quality of the rest of the film. Maybe there’s one bad actor, one bad scene, some weird lines, the film has a rather ugly moment in amongst true beauty etc. This can be the most frustrating for me personally because I want films to be the best they can be, so for any film to fall short by so little can be truly heart wrenching. Keeping up with our weekend timetable, I’d say at least Friday night. Example: The VVitch

10/10 - (A True Cinematic Experience) Again, a big jump, but hear me out. These films simply exceed all expectations, they grab you by the collar, and don’t let you go until the very last second. A film that I would say see it ASAP, then watch it over and over again. The type of film that if I had a time machine, I’d go back and tell everybody to see it whenever the first showing is available. The type of film that gets me out of bed and out seeing these, and wanting to tell you all about them in this blog. The best example I can give you for one of these films, simply look at my best lists for each year I’ve been doing this.

So there we have it folks. From the depths of my psyche and onto the page, my ratings system. Man this was hard.

Next Suggestion Review: Neighbours 2

So, there’s a couple of these from quite some time ago. I’m still going to do them, however if they seem slightly late, it’s because they are, and I apologize.

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