Hi, my name is Carlos Cuevas. Welcome to AfterImage, a personal blog I started in 2014. The idea for the site is to talk about things that leave an impression or imprint in our minds. The films we watch, the music we Iisten to, the books we read, they all inform who we are, and their afterimage lingers in us.
Thanks for visiting!
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Grading movies is a largely silly exercise. While there are obvious indicators of craft, the experience of watching a film is highly subjective and elastic. But since we need some sort of guide, here is how I rate them:
**** Excellent
Emotionally resonant and technically impressive films that push the medium forward. Casablanca (1942), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), and Goodfellas (1990) all make the cut.
***½ Great
A cut above the rest. Films that go above and beyond in terms of skill and overall effect. Sunset Boulevard (1950), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), and Back to the Future (1985) fit in this category.
*** Good
Generally well-rounded films, even if there are some minor kinks here and there. High Plains Drifter (1973), Witness (1985), and The Big Lebowski (1998) come to mind.
**½ Pretty Good
Solid efforts with more hits than misses. Nevertheless, you can’t shake the feeling that they could’ve achieved more. Annie Hall (1977), Total Recall (1990), and Wonder Woman (2017) are some examples.
** Average
As Dylan said, no reason to get excited. While these films may have some entertaining moments, they are mostly unexceptional. Most movies belong here, including big-budget and “prestige” stuff like Forrest Gump (1994), Avatar (2009), and Gravity (2013).
*½ Poor
Substandard and incompetent, these films make you wish you could get those two hours of your life back. Think Dirty Dancing (1987), Sucker Punch (2011), and The Visit (2015).
* Awful
These are not “so bad they are good” cult films that could conceivably earn a higher spot on the list. No, these are just… bad. The list includes Piranha II: The Spawning (1982), Jaws: The Revenge (1987), Ballistic: Ecks vs Sever (2002), and pretty any title with a colon.
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Please also check out my sister site Cinesthesia.
