Articles
Guides and case studies on how film scores are built, why critics and audiences disagree, and how to read the gap. Figures are dated, because scores change over time.
How to Read a Press vs Audience GapFour reasons critic and audience scores diverge, and how to tell them apart. Hereditary: Critics Raved, Opening Night Said D+93% critics, 62% audience, and a D+ CinemaScore. Morbius: The Reverse Gap17% critics, 69% audience: what a 52-point gap does and doesn't tell you. mother!: Anatomy of an FWhat a CinemaScore F actually measures. Metacritic vs Rotten Tomatoes: Two Different QuestionsBoth summarize critics, but one measures how much critics liked a film and the other how many did. What CinemaScore Actually MeasuresA grade from opening-night audiences, and why it says more about expectations than about quality. Review Bombing: How to Spot It in the NumbersWhat a coordinated rating campaign looks like, and why comparing sources exposes it. Letterboxd, IMDb and the Popcornmeter: Who Is the Audience?Three audience scores, three different crowds. Here is why the same film gets different numbers. Why Horror and Comedy Split Critics and AudiencesSome genres produce gaps again and again. Here is why, and what to expect from each. How to Choose a Film Using Both ScoresA short guide to turning two scores into a decision about what to watch tonight.Last updated 28 October 2026.
Before Sunrise and Jurassic Park: what ratings leave out
How to use older films, source dates and location stories to go beyond a headline score.