General: My Film Ratings

I recently received a comment on my post about "Blazing Saddles", which I shall quote here in full:

I take issue with your 1/2 star deduction for what you say is a slow start to the movie. I only take issue because after looking through some of the other reviews I was astonished to see the following:

Legally Blonde (5 Stars)
Little Nicky (5 Stars)
Thelma & Louise (5 Stars)
and one that I actually recommended Sweet Home Alabama (4 1/2 stars).

While Sweet Home Alabama is an amazing movie it should be no where near the cinematic genius that is Blazing Saddles. I know it has to be difficult to rate the movies using this system but I just thought you should see some of us do pay attention to the ratings you bestow upon these movies. I would love to see a way to sort things by their ratings, would be nice to get a better understanding of how you hand out the stars. 

I'm very happy when I get comments like this, so I've decided to answer it in public, not as a reply to the comment which might otherwise have remained unnoticed.

I don't really have a system for giving ratings. It's based on my purely subjective feelings when I watch a film. If I love it it gets a 5, if I hate it it gets a 1, and everything else gets a rating in between. I know it's difficult to compare films of different types. If I put a horror film and a romantic comedy next to one another and ask which is better it's difficult to give an answer. I try to rate a film within the parameters of what it is and what it's meant to achieve: If it's a comedy, does it make me laugh? If it's a horror, does it scare me? If it's a pornographic film, does it arouse me?

More than anything else it matters whether a film has a message I can take with me. The question I ask, whatever the genre, is "Does the film speak to me?" Can I relate to the main characters? Can I relate to where they live? Can I relate to their problems? While I'm usually open and attempt to enjoy anything, there are certain things I can't relate to. I don't enjoy films with excessive violence against women or children. I don't like films set in Victorian England, because the whole restricted system disturbs me. I don't like pornographic films without a plot, because random copulating bodies seems pointless.

Sometimes my opinion of a film changes over time. The best example I can think of is the Lord of the Rings trilogy. When I first watched the films in the cinema I was amazed, I would have given them 5 stars if my blog had already existed at the time. Then I watched them again and found them less enjoyable. In total I've watched them four times, and each time I liked them less. I would probably give them a 3-star rating now, because they no longer speak to me. Other films grow on me. An example is "The Majestic", which annoyed me on first viewing but improved with repeated viewing.

Sometimes I watch a film and I just know I'm giving it an unfair rating, and I usually say so. I give Alfred Hitchcock's films relatively low ratings, for which I apologise. I used to like them when I was younger, but they no longer speak to me.

Having said all of the above, I'm always glad of criticism. When I reviewed "The Warrior" in another blog I wrote for briefly I gave it 3 stars and said that I didn't understand it. A friend of mine sat with me for an hour explaining it -- it's loosely based on a true story -- after which I watched it again and gave it 5 stars. If anyone thinks I've rated a film too high or too low, please tell me and I'll think it over. Some films are easy for me to rate, whereas others are difficult, and even while writing my post I'm unsure. To take an example, the Harry Potter films are difficult for me to rate. Maybe next time I watch them I may have a better idea.

But let's finish by discussing the five films used as examples in the comment that I quoted.

1. "Blazing Saddles" -- Maybe this deserves 5 stars. A factor in giving the rating was that I think "Young Frankenstein" is better.

2. "Sweet Home Alabama" -- Even though a direct comparison is impossible, I agree that "Blazing Saddles" is a better film. Maybe I should drop the rating to 4¼ Stars.

3. "Legally Blonde" -- You're not the first person to criticise me for giving this 5 stars. Yes, I know this is a ditzy superficial film, but I like it. I like it a lot. Something about it is heartwarming. I agree that it deserves a lower rating, objectively speaking, but I'm not objective. Sorry. It might not be a film for everyone, but it's a film I've watched repeatedly and enjoyed every time.

4. "Little Nicky" -- I refuse to budge on this. The film is a work of genius on so many levels. I know it's received mixed reviews, but to anyone who doesn't like it I just say watch it again and you'll like it more.

5. "Thelma and Louise" -- Does anyone doubt this film is a classic? Are you really criticising my rating? It's brilliant.