To the tenth of a point... at what rating do films become unwatchable for you? - General Discussion Discussion

[–] Drmccormack (743) 7 years ago

Anything below a 6.5 would probably make me think but there are movies I really like that were rated very low on IMDb. Sometimes I think there was a campaign against a movie and the ratings were not accurate.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

I'm trying to figure this out right now, and I see movies even at 6.0 that are still decent.

Comedies and Horror films tend to get lower ratings so a 6 for a comedy would probably be about equal to a 7 for a drama film. I noticed there was some cultural and gender bias on IMDB too, so you need to take those factors into account as well.

The good news for those who can watch 6.0 films is that roughly two thirds of films have at least that rating.

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[–] April-151-CT (10210) 7 years ago

No number. I judge for myself. 😊

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[–] [deleted] 7 years ago

I'm with you on this.
Although I do sometimes look at ratings just to know what to expect,if it says below 5 I prepare myself for a possible rough ride!
I've often been pleasantly surprised though,and it does work the other way where a film gets good ratings and I'm not keen.

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[–] earl237 (1106) 7 years ago

I don't really trust the ratings, many shows and movies are over or underrated and the score isn't always accurate. JAG was a good and popular show but it only has a 6.6 There are countless other examples, I'll post more if I can think of them, feel free to help me out by adding more.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

6.6 isn't a bad rating... although for TV shows it's pretty low (TV shows tend to get higher ratings than films because people spend more time with them, thus building a stronger bond)

I never watched JAG, so I couldn't speculate on why that is.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

Some famous films at the 5.9 level... Hostel, 9 1/2 Weeks, G.I. Jane, Bring It On, The Lightning Thief, Days of Thunder, Free Willy

At 5.8... Old Boy reboot, She's All That, Deep Blue Sea, King Kong (1976), Indecent Proposal, The Break-Up, Look Who's Talking

At 5.7... The Blue Lagoon, The Purge, Nacho Libre, Rambo III, Bad Teacher, Hulk (2003)

At 5.6... Coyote Ugly, Snakes on a Plane, Mission to Mars... I think around this level it gets really hard to find anything good.

The good news is more than 75% of films get at least a 5.6

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[–] Drmccormack (743) 7 years ago

Wow, there are some good movies in this list. I like Bring It On, Days of Thunder, Look Who's Talking, Hulk. None are great movies (to me) but definitely watchable.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

Yep... what I learned from this is if you are not a movie snob... you can have fun with up to 60% to 70% of movies. For some with more relaxed tastes the number is even higher. Although people who like truly terrible films probably have difficulty with the art house type film... so while maybe they'd like more low rated films... the number would even out with their inability to enjoy a serious costume drama.

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[–] MinaVladimir (4077) 7 years ago

As shallow as that sounds, I judge movies more by the poster, than the rating. A very crappy poster can be a good indication of the quality of a film (sometimes).

I usually I like to actually see the film and make my own judgments, though. What I find interesting or enternating, or what I get out of a film, can be very different from what others do. And I think that bad filmmaking can be just as educational as good filmmaking. So, if I've already made up my mind for watching something, or just stumble upon it on TV and find something in it that keeps my interest, a rating wouldn't discourage me.

Having said that, if I'm just browsing IMDb or whatever site, anything below 4, without having prior knowledge of it, I'd have second thoughts about. But if it has an interesting enough premise, I'm willing to give anything a shot (within the bounds of my tastes of course).

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

About 5% of films get below a four... so you're saying you'd watch almost anything.

I think that open minded attitude is good... however, when confronted with finite nature of life... you may want to make sure you finish all the good movies that you want to see before you watch movies hovering in the fours. If they double life expectancy... then I'd be a lot more open to watching those as I do believe you can get something out of all experiences. I don't like it when people are snobs and only watch or enjoy the highest rated of everything... and I also think there is a quality of adventure to just randomly watching things... but always keep in mind that life is short, so make sure you get to ones you really want to see badly first.

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[–] arvin g borkar (2854) 7 years ago

Movies should never be something you should waste your life on. If you have downtime sure; however, I think we are really being misguided. Back in World War II was when movies really had taken off and that was to distract us from all things that come with war. We should all spend time outside, enjoying nature and helping people. Being on these online websites is cool too; however, never think that movies are always a good thing. They make money off you like the next underhanded corporations.

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[–] MinaVladimir (4077) 7 years ago

I get what you’re saying. It highly depends on what your outlook on the film watching experience is. For me, discovering a film by chance, or taking a gamble is a very important. It introduces me to things that I never knew existed or that I didn’t know I’d like. I like the surprise of it. Not everything’s going to be good, but I’m cool with that. A film that fails on all cinematic levels can teach you just as much as one that excels at all of them. To me, if I get something out of it, regardless of rating, it's not a waste of time.

Not that I don’t avoid things. I do. But I have a different set of criteria for doing that.

Life's too short for me to go by an average calculation of what others like. I have to go find what I like.

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[–] Catbookss (13664) 7 years ago

I never paid attention to the tenths of points.

I'd only be wary going in watching a film rated a 5 or lower.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

Big difference between a 5.9 rating and a 5.0 though.

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[–] Catbookss (13664) 7 years ago

Of course.

As I said, I don't pay attention to the tenths of ratings. Most I pay attention to is 5/10ths. If a film rated a 5 was recommended to me by someone whose opinion I respect, I'd watch it regardless of the rating. Under 5, I'd expect it to have some serious problems -- acting, plot, and so forth.

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[–] Drmccormack (743) 7 years ago

I feel the same way. If someone who shares my taste likes a movie and recommends it, I'll usually give it a shot. I have gone to see a lot of bad movies upon a recommendation though. When I was in high school we still had the neighborhood video stores and I was by myself and the clerk recommended Caligula. I got home and began to watch it and my main worry was how I was going to return it the next day. I was super embarrassed.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

I read somewhere that a university was conducting research on pornography and when they tried to find a control group of men who hadn't watched it... they couldn't find enough subjects. My point being is that you shouldn't really have been embarrassed... even though I suppose during the video store era... that reaction was the normal one.

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[–] Stratego (29412) 7 years ago

I never let the ratings of others decide if I'm going to watch a movie or not.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

What about restaurants? Would you ever use a Yelp review?

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[–] Stratego (29412) 7 years ago

I don't go to restaurants that often, but I find actual reviews more helpful than ratings.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

I don't let them have the ultimate say... but I do use them as a guideline. If I like the concept, the director, the actors... I might still see it... but as I said on my other posts... it's mostly that I don't want to waste time.

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[–] arvin g borkar (2854) 7 years ago

I would and I am a HUGE yelper.

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[–] arvin g borkar (2854) 7 years ago

I would watch movies with the best ratings to really see why they are so good. Likewise, I would watch movies with really bad ratings to see why they are bad. For me, you would wonder why I would never see movies with average 5-6 point ratings.

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 7 years ago

I never got into the trend of watching movies that are "so bad that they are good" myself.

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