The internet can lead you in the wrong direction. Hard to believe, I know, but more often than not the average internet user takes much of what they find online drastically out of context. It has never been easier to spread an opinion around and pass it off as pure fact. This is especially true of online movie reviewers. Everyone goes to the movies and everyone is a critic. So why shouldn’t everyone post their reviews of said movies online when they get home from the theater? Unfortunately this course of action can be detrimental to the casual internet user.

Let us say it is an average Friday night. Three to five major movies probably came out this week, two of which you can probably see at your local theater. But what to go see? Well, you have heard good and bad things about both options (a brainless robot-smashing special effects movie that is wonderfully entertaining and a beautifully written and acted love story that is wonderfully depressing). So before you head out, go online and look for reviews. The problem is: you might just be reading from an unaccredited source! The internet is so crowded with bloggers and forum-trollers that it is impossible not to fall into the trap of their opinionated rants. So how do you avoid basing your Friday night moviegoing decision on just anybody’s personal taste?

Websites To Avoid:

Ain’t It Cool News – This entertainment free-for-all is highly amusing (and great for breaking gossip and film-related news), but not the best place to go for a genuine review. Some of the contributors are quite knowledgeable and generally have good opinions, but Ain’t It Cool News is cluttered with enough naysayers and pessimistic clowns to detract from the quality posts.

Any and all forums or blogs – If you are looking on a forum or a blog for film reviews, you better just stay home and watch your favorite movie on DVD. Because none of the opinions you will find in a blog are worth the price of a movie ticket.

Websites To Visit:

Rotten Tomatoes: Many might scoff at this idea and say that it is very similar to Ain’t It Cool News in tone, but the truth is that Rotten Tomatoes is simply a tally of (mostly) legitimate reviews. The site takes nationwide film reviews and gives them a rating on the “Tomatometer” based on if they are “fresh” or “rotten” (and a 1-100 percent system). If you look carefully at the reviews, you can weed out the valid opinions from the general distorted views.
www.rottentomatoes.com

Roger Ebert: Since At the Movies has been taken over and stripped of its originality, why not follow the man who helped make movie critics famous? Roger Ebert may not be in the spotlight, but he still sees every movie and writes reviews for the Chicago Sun Times. He may not always be the most agreeable critic but Ebert remains vastly more informed than the majority of writers out there.
www.rogerebert.suntimes.com