# Who is your go-to movie critic? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 7, 2011, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558 "2011-02-07T19:05:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/21 "2011-02-08T01:42:00Z")
I too have been reading James Berardinelli forever. And Rex Reed at the NY Observer is just grumpy and hilarious. But then I’ve read his books (celebrity interviews) before he even played his part in ‘Myra Breckinridge’. Even Mr. Sali loves Rex Reed - there’s just something about a bitter snotty old queen… ---
**Author:** ![drm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e57/32.png) [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/22 "2011-02-08T01:45:56Z")
I like A.O. Scott from the NY Times. He doesn’t provide a star rating and seems to have tastes that are very much in line with mine. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/23 "2011-02-08T13:47:25Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Count me as another who failed to read the question, but wants to respond anyway… 😛 > > The most used “critic” for my wife and I is [www.kids-in-mind.com](http://www.kids-in-mind.com), which reviews movies and tells what would be considered objectional based upon 4 criteria: sex, violence, language, and something else (drugs/alcohol?). They list EVERY instance where the above things happen, so you can check out these lists to see whether or not you wish your kid to see the film. > > As for movie reviewers go, we like Joe Morgenstern of the _Wall Street Journal_. This is funny that you mention the kids-in-mind site. I’d not heard of it, but back when the Mustard offspring were young’uns, there was a similar site that I constantly referred to when choosing which VHS (yeah, VHS) movie to watch with them. (I forget the name of the site, but last I checked, it was a pay site). But, now they’re young adult Mustards, so it’s no longer a concern, right? Well…yeah, it is. We do still watch movies as a family, and while I’m no longer anxious about encountering ‘shit’ or even ‘fuck’ in the dialogue, I’m also not too keen on watching an R-rated portrayal of, say, anal sex with them, either. So I appreciate the mention of kids-in-mind. 🙂 mmm ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/24 "2011-02-08T14:00:00Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > \ > > The only responses so far that seem to even understand my question have concurred with me on Ebert, Berardinelli & Lane. > > So I shall re-phrase. I am looking for: > > A serious critic > A serious critic who provides thoughtful reviews > A serious critic who provides thoughtful reviews and can be accessed through RT > A serious critic who provides thoughtful reviews and can be accessed through RT on whom I can rely to be consistent and insightful > mmm Mr. Filthy matches how I’d rate most of the movies. I do mean use that site to see how a movie really is. We’ll have to leave this at you have a completely different idea than I do what is a good movie. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/25 "2011-02-08T16:45:25Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > In general I prefer Rotten Tomatoes and the imdb rankings. I like Ebert but he will always give 4 stars to _Synechdoche, New York_ and other obnoxious absurdist crap and he doesn’t seem to take into account what a movie is going for (i.e. if it’s mindless action-adventure or low budget light comedy don’t judge it by the same set of standards you’d judge a big budget drama). Not necessarily- he gave “Salt” a great review, because it was supposed to be a woo-hoo mindless popcorn action flick, and he got exactly what he paid for! I think he said that it did everything he hates in an action film, and did it so well he enjoyed it immensely. 😉 I remember his review of “purple Rain” as being the first time I realized that he didn’t judge everything by the same standard (he loved it, BTW- so did Gene Siskel IIRC). ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/26 "2011-02-08T16:48:16Z")
> [@Harmonious\_Discord](#): > > Mr. Filthy matches how I’d rate most of the movies. I do mean use that site to see how a movie really is. We’ll have to leave this at you have a completely different idea than I do what is a good movie. I read around five random reviews from the Mr. Filthy site and have concluded that he’s not really what I am looking for. I desire thoughtful, well-written reviews that contain wit and insight, and this is what Mr. Filthy offers\*: > [@](#): > > Dane Cook sucks ass. Your ass, my ass, everyone’s ass. Fucking shitty whore. I appreciate the suggestion, though. \*from his review of ‘Dan in Real Life’ mmm ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/27 "2011-02-08T17:19:22Z")
> [@Moirai](#): > > Not necessarily- he gave “Salt” a great review, because it was supposed to be a woo-hoo mindless popcorn action flick, and he got exactly what he paid for! I think he said that it did everything he hates in an action film, and did it so well he enjoyed it immensely. 😉 I wish I could remember this one critic I used to like’s name (it was another one back in the r.a.m.r. days), but he did just that–he gave movies stars based on the kind of movie they were. So, for example, a stupid mindless action movie that was executed well was a “four-star one-star movie,” while a pretentious Oscar contender that missed the mark might be a “two-star four-star movie.” BTW, my all time favorite movie critic is The Phantom. He only did horror and some sci-fi, and his style was great. I’m really bummed that he hasn’t reviewed anything for years. ([Here’s](http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.sf.reviews/browse_thread/thread/7d6dfd089ef7be2a/c6e4e96de7a75d19#c6e4e96de7a75d19) one of the few sample reviews I could find–good lord, it’s 20 years old already. I feel very old all of a sudden. Check it out only if you like reviews of old horror movies in a very amusing style.) ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/28 "2011-02-08T17:40:11Z")
I usually just go by the tomatometer (top critics section). I arbitrarily add 10 points if it’s a horror movie, because I like horror movies. And I subtract 50 points if the title includes the name of a superhero, or if it’s animated and the reviews say it has “pop culture references.” I would say, overall, that Berardinelli is the best critic, and that Ebert is the most fun to read. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/29 "2011-02-08T17:50:03Z")
I like [David Chen, Devindra Hardawar, and Adam Quigley](http://slashfilm.com/filmcast/) at the slashfilmcast. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/30 "2011-02-10T15:13:56Z")
I make a point of listening to [Going To The Show With A Regular Guy](http://wxrt.radio.com/shows/going-to-the-show-with-a-regular-guy/). Sadly, he’s not on Rotten Tomatoes and it’s a podcast (which isn’t updated until it’s a couple weeks old) unless you catch him live on WXRT, Chicago. I do enjoy his reviews though and they’re usually pretty accurate for me so even if you find this post worthless against your OP, someone else may enjoy. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558/31 "2011-02-10T15:30:32Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > I make a point of listening to [Going To The Show With A Regular Guy](http://wxrt.radio.com/shows/going-to-the-show-with-a-regular-guy/). Sadly, he’s not on Rotten Tomatoes and it’s a podcast (which isn’t updated until it’s a couple weeks old) unless you catch him live on WXRT, Chicago. I do enjoy his reviews though and they’re usually pretty accurate for me so even if you find this post worthless against your OP, someone else may enjoy. I like the Regular Guy too. I keep missing his bits on the radio though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-your-go-to-movie-critic/570558.md?page=1)