From Box Office, to Home Video, to Indie – we love movies…
A lifetime of quoting movie lines and recalling obscure movie scenes led to the creation of The Movie Buff by Mark Ziobro and Matt DeCristo in November, 2011. We have a widely eclectic roster of writers and contributors.
Our mission is to give every film a fair chance and a fresh perspective. Our motto is “Tough on movies, not on Films,” a motto we try to embody with every review.
We tackle reviews from every genre, with a generous blend of new releases and a strong focus on classics. We also enjoy and encourage the independent film community, and review independent films of all sorts, from full length, to short, to low or virtually no budget.
Rediscover old favorites at The Movie Buff, and see what our critics have to say about the largest variety of movies on the web.
Our focuses include:
• Film reviews: classic film, Box Office releases, DVD/BluRay, and independent films.
• Trailers of new and upcoming films, from Hollywood and the indie community.
• Filmmaker/actor interviews.
• Foreign film.
• Lists, articles, and spotlights on film and cinema.
• Film festival coverage.
We also sponsor year-round film series, including:
• 31 Days of Halloween – a month devoted to horror. Film reviews, articles, and more.
• Mob Movie March – an ongoing exploration of mob pictures with reviews and lists.
• Man Movie May – reviews, focus on action films for the entire month of May.
• Holiday cinema – film reviews and themed articles for all major holidays.
• Oscar Coverage – a look at the Academy Awards…the films, performances, and more. Yearly contest.
Movie Ratings:
Abandoning the somewhat-limiting style that accompanies the “4-star” review system, at “The Movie Buff” we use the academic rating scale. Below are some rationale, both for those films that move to the head of the class and those films that need to be held back.
*Click here to download a Guide to the Film Ratings System from Filmratings.com
A+, A, A-:
Equivalent: 3 1/2 – 4 stars, two thumbs up
- Great movie
- Would recommend to anyone
- Can be watched over and over
- If it’s on TV, you would watch it again
- If you own the DVD and it’s on TV, you still watch it
B+, B, B-:
Equivalent: 2 1/2 – 3 stars, two thumbs up
- Good movie
- Would recommend
- Glad you watched it, would watch again if offered but would not necessarily seek it out.
C+, C, C-:
Equivalent: 1 1/2 – 2 stars, one thumb up
- Average movie
- Would tell someone it’s “okay”
- Not upset you watched it but probably wouldn’t watch it again.
D:
Equivalent: 1 star, one thumb down
- Below average
- Bad acting, bad directing, and/or bad overall plot or story
- The only thing separating it from a flat “F” is maybe a great scene or acting performance.
F:
Equivalent: 1/2 – zero stars, two thumbs down
- Terrible, dreadful, dull
- Can find very little, if anything positive to say about it
- Would go out of your way to tell people how bad it is
- Wish you could get the 90 minutes of your life back
Contact Us
General Inquiries: editor@themoviebuff.net
Chief Editor: mark@themoviebuff.net
Advertising: advertising@themoviebuff.net