MovieByte has a five star rating system: 0.5 to 5.0. This frees our reviews to be fairly specific about the value of a film using 2.5 stars for a median in terms of entertainment value and quality. However, there are so few good explanations of star rating systems on the Internet. What does a “2.0” or “4.5” mean? Why do we use a 5 star scale instead of a 4 or 10 star scale?

We at MovieByte leave it up to our individual reviewers to determine how to gauge a film. Yet it is people’s natural inclination to give most movies a 1 or 5, which is something all star rating systems suffer from.…

Perhaps the most unappreciated blockbuster success of 2010, Disney’s live action sci-fi/fantasy is a faithful continuation of the TRON franchise with returning cast members and filmmakers. It boasts state-of-the-art computer animation set in live action; a film rich with drama, low on clichés.

Let’s get one thing out of the way: I missed The Matrix craze.

My parents were very restrictive, so they wouldn’t dream of showing an R rated film to me as an adolescent. Since I was severed from a great number of science fictionals as a result, I started to explore the wonderful world of the…

In keeping with the theme of Favorite Fun Futon Films for February (FFFFfF), we are reviewing classics — old and new — that ring true for us. These are carefully selected from the grand archives of film, and we wish to respectfully grace them with our reviews as fans.

We could write about any number of favorite films for home viewing, but a month isn’t long enough to hit more than a handful. We are focusing on the ones we have time to address thoroughly at the risk of appearing like nutty fans for these films. But, hey, if you aren’t nutty about something, then you have never lived!

So…

Father Parker, as we are introduced to him during his first robbery of the movie, is quite a devout criminal… with principles.

“Don’t steal from people that can’t afford it,” Parker tells us. “Don’t hurt people that don’t deserve it. …Most importantly, if you say you will do something and you don’t, I will make sure you regret it.”

What seems like a heavy-handed spin of the good-bad guy theme that’s popular in cult action films these days only get’s more ridiculous when Parker dawns a white ten-gallon cowboy hat and chases down the thugs that left him for dead to steal back what was…

The general moviegoing audience pays a great deal of respect to the The Oscars and what it determines deserves adulation for a year’s films. I agree that the Academy is noteworthy, but it’s far from a perfect judgment. In fact, there are no perfect award ceremonies. Moviemakers that judge for The Oscars and others like them reflect a great deal of skewing biases. They are greatly subjective.

But, if you overview the top three (or so) award ceremonies together (the Oscars, SAGA, and the Golden Globes) then you have a better representation of films’ and their makers’ credibility. More…

There’s nothing especially awesome here to scream about, but for what it’s worth, The Last Stand carries on a mild amount of amusement for undemanding Schwarzenegger fans.

People that watch Arnold Schwarzenegger movies probably don’t bother to read movie reviews. That said, I’ve watched several films of Arnold’s, and here I am reading and writing reviews all the time. With that in mind, I’ll imagine that Arnold’s fans are the good folks reading this review, and I’ll let them know how this film compares to his others.

First, note that Arnold is getting up in years, and The Last Stand…

Broken City’s thinly sketched, formulaic script offers meager rewards for all but the least demanding noir aficionados.—RT

Have you ever wanted to watch a modern detective story set in New York starring some great actors? So have I, but Broken City isn’t that film we dream of. I went into the movie theater hopeful, and came away yawning, and asking myself, “Why? What were they thinking?”

Broken City is based on a spec script and is the directorial debut for Allen Hughes by an untested production company.¹ With that in mind, it’s no wonder that Broken City doesn’t meet the mark.

Why…

The earnest and well-intentioned Promised Land sports a likable cast, but it also suffers from oversimplified characterizations and a frustrating final act. —RT

Boy, you said it, Rotten Tomatoes.

Matt Damon and John Krasinski are the reasons why anyone went to see the movie, let’s be honest. From the get-go, Promised Land looked like a town hall meeting turned into a movie. It’s a hard sell to audiences, but one that Hollywood couldn’t resist attempting.

As we all know, politics is something people in Hollywood feel strongly about. Director Gus Van Sant is no exception. Promised…