Awarding Stars

Deciding how many stars to give a movie is often the hardest part of reviewing. Sure, there are the easy ones, the movies you either absolutely love or hate, but those movies that fall in the middle can sometimes be tricky. I liked the cast, but found the plot predictable. Or, I didn't like the lead, but the story was good. Do I give it two stars or three? These are the questions that plague me as I sum up my review.

Since we are very strict about always giving at least one star, I suppose it's for effort, that if I hated the movie, if I felt as though the time I spent in the theater was a complete waste of time, that I would have been better served in absolutely any other pursuit, and if the movie's redeeming qualities were so far outweighed by it's faults, than under those circumstances I will give a movie one star. Surprisingly enough, this is pretty rare. Almost always, in every movie, but not all, there is something to redeem it, but not always.

For two stars a movie only has to do one thing. It has to have something for me to care about throughout the movie. Something that makes the time I spent in the theater worthwhile. The perfect example of this is Hollowman. I hated the movie, the storyline was dull, but the special effects were amazing and kept me from both walking out early, and gave it the extra star. Sometimes it's a single character, or even a particular scene. Anything that rises above the hideousness of the rest of the film can sometimes be enough to merit an extra star.

Three star movies are easier than two stars. Without actually looking back at all my reviews, I would probably guess that I've given three stars more often than any other amount. This is probably due to there being so many movies made that approach greatness, but just miss the mark. Some flaw that is too glaring to overlook. The three star movie is like the two star, but instead of having that one thing in it, which makes it good, it has that one thing in it that makes it not quite good enough.

And finally, the four star movie. The four star movie, when I give it altruistically, is a movie with either no flaws, or flaws so small, that they can not detract from the overall perfect enjoyment of it. Mostly I give them to movies that upon leaving the theater after seeing them, I think to myself, I'd really like to see it again. But that is the honest and true four star movie. There are others. There are those movies featuring one of my favorite actors and actresses. Those people whom I am apt to forgive for errors in their movies that I would jump on if committed by others. My loyalty and sentimentality have often influenced my judgement when handing out stars.

By no means, is my method of awarding stars scientific. Almost always, when faced with the question of how many, I go with my gut.