I've been reviewing movies for years...if only for my own personal amusement. As a teenager I would rush to my computer when I got home from a movie and give the movie a rating, 1 to 4 stars. Then at year's end I would compile a list of the best and worst movies of the year based both on those initial ratings and on which movies have stayed with me the most over the year. I enjoyed this and occasionally showed family and friends my ratings and lists, but that was it.
Then Netflix came along. Suddenly there was a forum where I could rate movies for a purpose, however arbitrary that purpose may be. Then I discovered the member reviews. And not only could anyone write a review there, but there was also a ranking system for reviews. How many were you writing? How many previous member reviews existed? And just how helpful do other members find your reviews? This spoke directly to my usually well controlled competitive side. I wanted to see my rank rise! So I started writing reviews. And people started reading them. I was getting positive responses and my rank was rising. Then a few people started following me, keeping up with my reviews. I'll be honest, I never really got terribly high in that ranking, maybe around 9,000. But one of my reviews, this one actually of a TV show, not a movie (Mamma's Family, Season 1) was voted one of the 3 most helpful, and stayed there. I believe if you go through the difficult process of looking up reviews on Netflix now you can still find it there, though it would be in no discernible way labeled to me.
And therein grew the problem. I need not go into details here about what happened to Netflix, but among the many things they "Netflixed" up last year was the member reviews. You can't write them anymore. It is, as I said, very hard to even locate them. And if you do, each has some random number beside it, not the name or screen name of the reviewer. There's Flixster, and I've posted some reviews there, but it's often problematic and that annoys me. So I've started this blog, and this is where I will write my reviews from now on. I will also occasionally do essays and of course the standard top ten lists, which certain famous movie critics often complain about but which is a process I adore. I may occasionally even comment on TV or video games.
To get started I will post most if not all of my old reviews from Netflix and Flixster, just to give you an idea of my reviewing style. I will write reviews as I see movies, sometimes new ones just out this weekend, sometimes older ones just coming to DVD or Blu-ray, sometimes even older ones I've seen on Netflix. I'll even review the classics. Maybe I'll review something you've never heard of. All ratings will be in a 1 to 5 star system, since I find this more versatile and expressible than the 4 star format. You will find I have eclectic tastes, and will love some movies others seem to detest (Lady in the Water) and loathe some movies others seem to adore (Talladega Nights). If you disagree with my opinion, say so! I look forward to hearing from you!
And now ladies and gentlemen, if you would please take your seats; the lights are going down and the matinee is about to begin....
No comments:
Post a Comment