People put a ton of stock into what a movie critic has to say about a new film. For some, a good or bad review could sway a person’s decision on whether or not to see a particular film. At this present moment, Warner Brothers’ blockbuster film “Suicide Squad”, set for release Friday, August 5th, is getting an overall beat down by critics.
With the embargo lifted, reviews have begun to flood the internet for the next installment of the DC cinematic universe. The expectations were sky high. But then those reviews came out, and overall they are not the best. Rotten Tomatoes, a site that collects reviews, had the film with a score of 34 from the first 56 reviews.
Now for those who do not know, Marvel and DC are the two big superhero powers in the movie business. Marvel has been highly successful, and overall gets tremendous reviews for their films. DC is still in the early stages with their film universe, but thus far their films have not been well received by the critics. Some believe critics and sites like Rotten Tomatoes have an agenda to elevate Marvel and bash DC. Fans have even gone as far as starting a petition to shut down Rotten Tomatoes.
But that is a discussion for a different article. I am here for one purpose, and one purpose only: to tell you there is only one critic that matters — yourself.
When it comes to movies, there is no right or wrong. Every person is going to see a movie with a different take than the person sitting next to them. So I ask, why do people put so much stock into what critics have to say? I seriously do not get it.
I feel like most of the time I see a review; it is bashing a film. But I would like to point out, among all of the negative “Suicide Squad” reviews, there are still a handful of good ones. One of my favorite movie sites, comingsoon.net for instance, offers up a positive review of the film, which you can read here. This just goes to show, while some will not like the film, others will. Everyone is different.
And everyone looks for something different in a film. Some people want deep characters that they can invest in. Some people want a logical plot that makes sense in the real world. Some people just wan to see stuff blow up. Others want to see a fight between the big name characters. At the end of the day, everyone is going to value things differently. And most importantly, everyone is going to have a different opinion on what will make a film good or bad.
Now I am a Marvel guy. I love all of the Marvel films, and how they weave within the same universe and connect with once another. One thing I love about those film is the humor and light tone they bring, while also being serious when they need to be. But I am not in the minority there, as Marvel has tons of fans thanks to how big their films have grown.
And that brings us to DC. There are plenty of people who have bashed the first two DC films, “Man of Steel” and “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice”. Before I went to see Batman take on Superman earlier this year, I read plenty of negative things about the film. And to this day I still hear plenty of people bashing that film.
But I went, and I saw it anyways. Now I would not rank it above most of my Marvel films, but overall I thought it was a fairly decent film. I thought Ben Affleck was exceptional as Batman, and Gal Gadot stole the show as Wonder Woman. And the one thing from the film that most people love to hate on is Jessie Eisenberg’s take on Lex Luthor. Well, guess what: I thought Eisenberg was great in the role. He was smug; he was cocky, and he was on the brink of going insane. But because it was a different take on the character, people immediately threw shade on the performance.
Now I do not care if you hated or loved Eisenberg as Luthor. Because at the end of the day, all that matters is what I thought of the performance. Because if I am paying for a movie ticket, why should I care if Joe Smo from some big name publication did not like the performance?
So back to the critics. These are people who are getting paid to tell you about a film. But they are also associated with a brand. So you may have no clue if they are affiliated with some brand that sways their viewpoint. Maybe their company is somehow related to Warner Brothers or has a partnership. Do you think they would say anything too bad about a Warner Brothers film? I think not. And they would be just as likely to say something negative against a competitors film.
Now I have no idea if people are getting paid to write bad things about DC films like “Suicide Squad.” But what I do know is they are getting paid, and they are part of business. I also know some bad reviews are not going to stop me from going to see a film I have been pumped to see for over a year now.
So when I want an opinion on a film, I will ask a friend who has already seen it. They will have no hidden agendas. They will not have been paid off to say one thing or another. They have no reason to lie to me about what they thought. Now a bad review from a friend who I trust may make me skeptical about seeing something, but at the end of the day, it will not stop me.
Because at the end of the day, there is only one way to know if you are going to enjoy a movie or hate it. And to do that, you need to see the movie for yourself. It is as simple as that. So ignore the critics. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to if a movie is any good.
You need to be your critic. It is as simple as that.