MY RATING SCALE: WHAT DOES GOOD MEAN?

My freshman year of college, I took a specialized comp & speech course called Heroes, Villains, and Outlaws.  During the semester, we watched 11 movies that featured some combination of- you guessed it- heroes, villains, and outlaws.  As a class, we created a five-star rating scale for the movies we watched.  At the professor’s advice, we withheld 0-star and 5-star ratings from the realm of possibility, establishing that they would be for the single worst (0 stars) and single best (5 stars) film ever made, if they ever stopped making movies.

After a few movies, our rating scale shifted from half-star increments to quarter-star increments.  Being the lovable nerd that I am, I have continued to use this rating scale for every single movie I have watched since that semester.  Over the years, the definition of each quarter-star increment has changed.  In the interest of applying this same rating scale to books and albums, I set out to craft definitions that were specific enough to set each rating apart, but also general enough to apply to more than one medium.

Rather than some wordy definition for each rating level, I worked through a pile of superlatives and I distilled each rating down to three words or phrases that might apply to any movie, book, or album.  All three words or phrases may not apply in tandem, but as long as I feel comfortable labeling a movie, book, or album as at least one of those superlatives, then that’s where it finds its home on my list.

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In walking you through my rating scale, I think it’s best to walk you through the Good-tier ratings first.
  When I last stopped writing reviews several years ago, I had watched and rated 725 films, 392 of which received a rating in my Good tier (3 to 3.75 stars).  That’s over half, which feels about right.  I believe that most of the films made are either good or okay.  I tend to seek out films that interest me or my wife, so our viewing habits don’t reflect the reality of what filmmakers produce.  I don’t seek out lesser films often just for the sake of viewing lesser films.  You’ll see why when I get to the Poor and Bad ratings.

We’ll start with my 3.5 rating.  It’s the most common Good-tier rating that I have handed out.  For me, a 3.5 means that the product delivers for general audiences.  Maybe there are limitations or minor points that I might quibble about, but I wouldn’t call these holdups to a higher rating outright flaws.  The words I selected are good, solid, and engaging.  To use films as examples, The Goonies fits the ‘good’ description- it’s fun and enjoyable, but there are limitations and quibbles (though some let nostalgia crowd them out).  Mad Max (the original, 1979 film) fits the bill for ‘solid’- there’s tension, drama, and action that holds your attention, despite some poor decisions by characters and an outlandish sequence or two.  Finally, a film like Enchanted passes the test for ‘engaging’- you get sucked in by the satire of Disney movies and ideas, and the characters have a meta-awareness of how things should turn out.  In this case it’s the topical focus that is engaging.  For other films it could be a performance, visual effects, or some other feature.

Sliding higher up the scale is my 3.75 rating.  The terms I selected are very good (original, I know), admirable, and worth repeating.  The subtext here is that items getting this rating are almost great; I will likely elaborate on why in a review.  A ‘very good’ film is something like When Harry Met Sally- the chemistry hits and the dialogue is crisp and fun, but maybe there’s something else (likely small) going on that holds it back from a 4-star rating.  Big Fish is a film that works for ‘admirable’- there is a clear artistic vision driving the entire film that may make it a bit weird at times, but ultimately endearing.  Lastly, Catch Me If You Can is ‘worth repeating’- this movie is slick, stylish, and fun, but other films may reach this mark for genre tone, performances, or just straight-up entertainment value.

Heading back down the Good tier, we have two lesser good categories.  The first of which is my 3.25 rating, for items that are satisfactory, pretty good, or decent.  These are harmless to take in, but either not as memorable or enjoyable as a 3.5 or a 3.75.  Cavalcade, one of the earliest Oscar bait films, is ‘satisfactory’- you can see the elevated value in it even if it’s not something you will ever want to watch again.  The goofy monster movie Tremors hits the ‘pretty good’ mark- the monsters are well done and scary, but it was never meant to be anything more than a goofy monster movie and it doesn’t try to rise above the flaws of the genre.  Lastly, The Great Outdoors gets the ‘decent’ moniker- it’s amusing in a turn-your-brain-off-at-the-door kind of way but it falls victim to 80s comedy final-act schmaltz.

The lowest level of Good rating is the straight 3.  Sometimes this rating is given begrudgingly, because even I can’t deny some level of artistic merit or skill on display, or the fact that it’s clear that this item being rated carries just enough of weight.  The words I chose for this level are adequate, serviceable, and good enough.  One of the most un-Disney Disney films, The Black Cauldron is ‘adequate’- it was too dark and creepy for a Disney movie at the time and the story is a forgettable reach into lesser fantasy, but there’s still some good background animation and art design going on.  ‘Serviceable’ is about the best way I can describe Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas- the tale of a drug-fueled journey to Las Vega by gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson whose cult status never appealed to me, but I watched this movie because it had hype in its moment.  Finally, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is ‘good enough’- it’s a film that had one job to accomplish (showing Anakin Skywalker turn to the dark side of the Force), and it did that job just well enough.

That’s the Good tier.  I tried to pick films for which those ratings still stick for me.  If you followed any of those links, please be aware that the older the review, the shakier the assessment.  I have grown and matured in my understanding and appreciation of film since my younger days.  Some films need reassessed at some point, but I can't promise that I will ever get back around to all of them.

Tomorrow I will walk you through the Great tier of my rating scale.