Reading through the comments on a post about movie critics and I’m baffled at how many people seem to think that critics just don’t like movies. Guys, critics LOVE movies. They are the biggest fans of movies you’ll ever meet. The only reason they sound so jaded is because they’ve likely seen more movies than most of us can ever hope to see in our lives and they are no longer distracted by pure spectacle anymore.
One comment stuck out to me, saying “critics can never just have fun at a movie, they have to find all this deeper meaning or it’s no good”. Im not trying to argue that superhero movies are meaningless, but they are first and foremost about fun and critics are all about the good ones. Most direct example: Avengers vs Batman v Superman. Avengers was praised by critics for pulling off a fun ensemble film that was mostly made as an audience crowdpleaser. BvS was criticized for failing in these regards because it tried to inject so much meaning and deep philosophical questions into it, that the movie forgot it was supposed to have fun. And then there’s Jurassic World, a movie completely devoid of layers and made only as a big dinosaur monster movie to entertain audiences that received a fresh rating on rotten tomatoes. That’s because most critics had fun watching Rexy and Blue team up to fight a giant hybrid monster, even if the rest of the movie made very little sense.
I’m not saying that the critics are always right. They’re people with their own personal tastes. Somehow The Mummy from 1999 has a rotten score, which is ludicrous because that film is perfect. All I’m saying is that they probably know what they’re talking about MOST of the time. Just because you think Suicide Squad was good doesn’t mean the critics are clueless. Maybe it’s you who has a…uh, different taste in movies from what’s generally considered good.
And you know what? I have good news for you! There’s probably a few critics who agree with you and those are the ones you should follow! Find a critic who you agree with on most things and use their opinion to gauge whether or not to go to the movies. It’s no different than asking a friend who’s opinion you trust. My personal favorite critic right now is Dan Murrell from Screen Junkies. We have the same exact favorite movies and usually dislike the same ones too. If no critic seems to share your opinions, start doing your own reviews and maybe people will eventually turn to you to get a good recommendation. Support the movies you love and see as much as you can! And if you’re going to hate anyone for being too stuck up about movies, hate awards shows. Those guys are REALLY out of the loop.
