Anthony's Rating System
- Either excelled remarkably or innovated in one or any Technical field. Whether that’s in Direction, Cinematography, Performance, Editing, Score, Stunts, Costume/Set Design, or even Sound Design.
- Caused an intense emotional reaction from me. This means the film shook me personally and somehow I saw fragments of myself in the film or it caused me to rethink or learn something.
- The film I believe will become a timeless classic. It will not age like most films because it is so purely made in its own fabric and essence.
- The film understands what it is and cohesively ties all it’s themes and ideas together in a remarkable way. This doesn’t necessarily mean it executes all of the themes with perfection but that the film has a baseline quality to all its merits.
- The film feels unique and purposeful. There is a clear intention. Behind every single frame, sound and moment of the film. Many will call this feeling the “Auteur theory” but I extend the idea to the film just feeling like a creation that only this group of women and men could create at this specific point in time.
8★ – Great – This is a film that challenges the status quo. It might slip at times but it never falls completely. These films tend to show the beginning of something great whether it’s a Director, Writer, Actor or Music. There is at least one great element in these films that begs to be seen. These films tend to just lack that big ending or moments that truly sends them into the stratosphere of greatness, but still a worthy watch for all film lovers.
7★ – Good – This is a film that is usually good across the board, or it has a handful of good ideas or themes. These films tend to lack drive or scope. I don’t mean big explosions or plot devices; I mean depth and understanding. These films beg to be under a more creative or imaginative team to make them shine. They are still usually a good & breezy time. A lot of rom coms, comedy & horror films fall under this banner as a lot of genre filmmakers don’t challenge themselves or their conventions.
6★ – Decent – This is a film that has one or two good elements that push it above the average experience. Usually, this kind of film lacks cohesion or better execution. These films tend to feel at odds with what it is wanting to be and what it ended up being. It is also quite forgettable, and if it is memorable it’s memorable because it had the potential to be greater than what it was.
5★ – Mediocre – A film with equally good and bad elements. Sometimes it’s watchable, sometimes it’s not. These films only work for the fans of the genre, talent or subject matter. This is your run of the mill film not pushing for anything spectacular, or if it tries, it fails because it lacks a creative focus.
4★ – Bad – This is just your typical bad film. It’s mostly boring, uneventful, or the film itself just suffers from glaring issues of quality. It’s never offensive, but it is forgettable & or annoying.
3★ – Awful – This is the kind of film that was ruined in execution, talent or creativity. It had possibly two or three things that could’ve made it not awful but even those things were subpar. This isn’t a film worth recommending even to a fan of the genre or creators.
2★ – Terrible – This is a film where it was just all around bad. It’s annoying and festers in its problems. There could’ve been *maybe* one *single* element that stood out that *might be* worth mentioning, like “the visuals were nice..” or “the score is dope..” but even thinking about that pisses you off cause the problems ruin everything around it.
1★ – Putrid – This is the kind of film that is just wasteful. The entirety of it is just putrid. You will never rewatch this film or recommend it to anyone. If anyone praises this kind of film around you, you begin to question their sanity. At the end of the film you just feel like you wasted your time
David's Rating System
10★ – Pure cinema. It is art and everyone interested in the artform of cinema should watch this movie. It makes me feel strongly or think deeply. Every aspect of filmmaking is unified in purpose and practically flawless in execution. It feels greater than the sum of its parts. This movie sticks with me. Every human should watch this.
9★ – Whoa. This movie really captured me but something about it holds it back from being important. I would watch this again immediately to figure out what’s so good about it. Worth repeated viewing.
8★ – Interesting enough that I can see myself watching this again in the near future to get a fresh perspective on it. Very worth watching.
7★ – A solid movie. Memorable. No problems that significantly detract from my enjoyment of it while I’m watching, but also not one I would watch again very readily. Worth watching at some point.
6★ – Slightly above average because of some admirable or rare quality, but not what I’d call “special.” Probably not worth watching.
(Anything above a 5 might have a lower rating than expected because of some quality mentioned in 4-1 that weighs it down.)
5★ – A perfectly average, bland movie like so many others. I relax my brain, let it wash over me, and forget it quickly. Nothing about it is very special or offensively bad. Only watch if you have nothing better to watch and need to relax your brain.
(Anything below a 5 might have a higher rating than expected because of some quality mentioned in 6-10 that lifts it up.)
4★ – Slightly below average because of some glaring flaw. (boring, didn’t age well, annoying plot holes, bad acting, etc.)
3★ – A confusing mess of a movie. Things just don’t make sense while I’m watching it, and the artistic aspects of the film aren’t enough to counteract that.
2★ – This movie is trash, but might have some aspect to it that makes it “so bad it’s good” or at least worth mentioning.
1★ – This movie is trash that basically shouldn’t exist. It has no redeeming quality. I can’t imagine who would enjoy it.