I wish more people would write reviews

One of the main reasons I like this website is that I get to look over reviews that people have written in order to decide if I'd like to watch that particular movie myself. I've gotten a lot of good recommendations for films that I'd otherwise might not have noticed.

Movies that are "rated" without any explanation don't give me enough information to decide if I want to see the film. I high rating might compel me to investigate the picture on IMDB, Wikipedia, or elsewhere. But some commentary would be even better.

Some people might feel that they can't write well enough to post a review. But actually all that's needed is a little explanation. "I like the story." What did you like about it? "It's a really good movie." Why did you think it was good?

One doesn't have to be Roger Ebert or Rex Reed to write a simple review. Anyone can write an informative commentary just by indicating why they have any given opinion.

It seems to me we have roughly 20 or so people who write reviews or commentary. It would be nice if we could have double or triple that. Give it a try!

~Doc

Strong second on people worrying about writing quality. That's not a huge concern. It's more about the angle, and frankly, the way you get better is just by doing it! I'm a tad embarrassed by some of my earliest reviews, but being not that good is how you get good.

That said, it's definitely normal for a handful of reviewers to write most of the reviews, but I agree, it'd be great to broaden things a bit! If anyone's on the fence: you should go for it, and we'll gladly tag anything of a reasonable length so it shows up in the Reviews area.

It's always fascinating to read other people's opinions. Some will be agreed with, others less so. People can be completely in sync about 1 movie and polar opposite about another, and it is not that any of these opinions are right or wrong, it is what it is. Even the so called experts can be completely off base and out of step with each other, as well as the majority of a film's potential audience and fanbase. Quality of writing may be a concern for some reluctant, but that should never get in the way of sharing something we as movie fans are all passionate about.



So definitely encourage as many people to do this.

I’m too lazy to even read what other people have to say. It’s hard for me to read books, I have to be really interested in the author. There are users that have a similar taste, if they rate something high I search the film. Most reviews tell too much about the film, or they are not concrete, they like or dislike something without really knowing the real why. That’s why I’m trying to keep everything small in my review thread, they are not even reviews, more thoughts.

I agree that reviews which are just a list of likes and dislikes without elaboration do not add much. But then, writing reviews is one of the ways people get better at unpacking why they like or dislike things, too.

I don't really read reviews. I watch them. And I prefer mines to be watched as well. My opinions are usually incredibly unpopular and it's really tough for me to explain so I always put my thoughts into video format because it's made up of days of trying to make myself understandable. Here I get into long, winded arguments in an attempt to explain myself and end up getting frustrated and start getting rude. It's because I'm really argumentative and I'm working on giving it a rest. Plus, I tried to post some reviews when I first started but I could never manage to get them at the right length.

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Ami-Scythe

Regarding new releases at the cinema, I try to avoid reviews or listen to podcasts etc until after I've either caught it, the few exceptions being if they are not being played at the cinema that I frequent. Also, I try not to be too specific about giving away too much about a film because it annoys me when that happens, or even pay too much attention to trailers because so many of them give away wayyyy tooo much and it's almost as if, why bother?

But that shouldn't dissuade someone from writing a review, even for their own benefit, because not only sharing your thoughts, but often writing something down can help to clarify exactly what those thoughts are. Personally, a film has to be really terrible for me to start extensively breaking it down while it is still playing out, because of the need to pay attention to it, so often it is not until afterwards, and occasionally even requires a repeat viewing, so to speak, that can reflect on it, weigh scenes, dialogue etc and how it fits to contextualize it, determining what stands out and if that then masks faults that lay elsewhere, and ultimately as a sum of it's parts and as a whole.

I don't.

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Iro's Top 100 Movies v3.0

I write reviews here at MoFo. But no one seems to read them. Or at least they don't often bother to comment on them. So I've lost interest in writing long reviews for everything I've watched. I mean what's the point if no one is going to care anyway. Not to mention proof reading is very difficult for me. And of course I watch much older films that the majority of MoFos.

To sum up: If you want people to write more reviews or to post more...Then start with the 'person in the mirror' and reply more to post & reviews.

Mostly I try to write a single paragraph reviews. Back when I updated my own thread I was writing longer but I've come to the conclusion that I don't want to read long reviews myself so I'm not going to write them either (except for the HoFs where it makes more sense as everyone involved has watched the same film and will write something about it). Oh, and I always try to be spoiler-free.

So yeah, I'd also like if more people would write a sentence or two about the films they watch.

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You see my posts in the last movie seen thread. Can't put two sentences together without making mistakes! Don't expect me to type 250 words that makes any sense. Writing reviews would require proper sentences and clear expression of thought. I can do it in a conversation, but not on my cell phone. My cell phone typing is not quite the same as my keyboard typing.

But I wish I did!

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My Favorite Films

If I could put the same thoughtfulness into reviews as I do ransom notes, I'd be setting records.

Come and read the reviews in the HOF.
For me it’s just a time issue.
I started out writing reviews on movies that I watched when I first joined, back in September. But I watch so many movies I stopped. I literally, like most here, watch anywhere from 5-10 movies a week, although that slowed down a bit this past week with all the OT at work. Being snowed in over the weekend, I took advantage and watched 4.

To be honest, I don’t see the point of reviews. I would never read a review of a movie here before I watch it & I wouldn’t read the review after I’ve seen the movie because ... well, I’ve seen the movie.

Amazed that people take so much time & trouble in their reviews. Not just movies, tv too. Paragraph after paragraph. Phew, admirable, but not for me even if I had time, which I don’t.

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I’m here only on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. That’s why I’m here now.

1. Movies are mainly felt, not understood. It's sometimes cool to read somebody else's opinion on a movie to get a new insight, or simply compare to your own thoughts, but it's absolutely skippable after you've formed your own opinion. Good writing doesn't make somebody's opinion superior.
2. Find a couple of people who share your taste.
3. Dig into their highest ratings - no opinions/reviews needed!
4. Don't write your own reviews - use the time to watch more films!
5. You're welcome to write down a mumbo-jumbo stream of consciousness of thoughts, though!
6. Writing reviews is an art of itself. Many movie critics have perfectible tastes, vastly inferior to some of my favourite movie buddies. I couldn't care less to read their opinions, but still appreciate their skill of writing.

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San Franciscan lesbian dwarves and their tomato orgies.

Well, if the reviewer is good, they'll illuminate things about the film that hadn't been noticed. Trivia, references, or techniques that had the desired emotional effect without the viewer realizing it (I think this happens a lot, even with people who've seen a lot of movies). This is particularly true with a lot of TV recaps, which often note callbacks to earlier episodes or lines that most viewers miss the first time.

Beyond that, the other function is pragmatic: if you know a reviewer has good taste and often recommends films you end up liking, you can use their opinion to determine what to watch.

On top of all that, if they're just good writers, the review should be pleasurable and enriching to read just as a piece of writing.

Yes, but one can determine this by their popcorn review of a movie or them just saying in a few words that they like the movie. That’s sufficient for me.

I'm terrible at writing reviews, but I still write them. It's good for me to write my thoughts on films because sometimes it helps me process it. I've always had an interest in discussing films, but admit that I've fallen behind on commenting on other reviews (despite me reading them all).

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"A laugh can be a very powerful thing. Why, sometimes in life, it's the only weapon we have."

Suspect's Reviews

Well, I read most all of your reviews, and enjoy them. I've commented on a bunch of them, but oftentimes I'll simply use the "thumbs up" icon.

I don't write commentary on every movie I see, although I've written quite a few; but I make a point of saying something about the big movies; or, if I've been impressed with any film.

I almost always read reviews before watching a film, for the reason that most stuff put out today to my taste is poor, so I try to save myself the time or the disappointment of watching a dud. Ironically when I was a kid we'd usually go to the pictures every time the movie changed at the local theater, which was probably every week or so. And we generally enjoyed all of them. I think there were a higher percentage of good films then. Of course movies were not yet shown on TV...

~Doc

I like to read movie reviews, but only after I've seen a film and usually only from fellow MoFos. That way I know (sort of) the person who wrote the review, and so I know what their taste are. That helps me to judge a film better myself. I don't watch much new films but this years there seems to be a lot I'm interested in, but availability is my problem.