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Suicide Squad Fans Petition To Shut Down Rotten Tomatoes Over Negative Reviews (variety.com)

The much-anticipated movie Suicide Squad has largely failed to impress film critics and normal people alike. People are leaving the theaters disappointed, with a firm belief that DC Universe has let them down again. Vanity Fair goes as far as saying, "Suicide Squad isn't even the good kind of bad," adding that "I'd have to imagine that most fans of Harley Quinn -- male, female, gay, straight -- will be disappointed." The ratings are super low at IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes as well. Amid these reviews, the fans of the film have launched a Change.org petition with the intent of shutting down film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. Variety adds: Abdullah Coldwater, the DC Comics fan who drafted the petition, accused the site of giving "unjust bad reviews" that "affects people's opinion even if it's a really great [movie]." He added, "Critics always give The DC Extended Universe movies unjust bad reviews." The petition has received over 13,000 signatures as of this post. "Suicide Squad," which stars Will Smith, Jared Leto and Margot Robbie and is one of the most highly-anticipated movies of the summer, currently has an approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes of 34 percent. In comparison recent critical disgrace "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" settled at 27 percent on 344 critiques, whereas Marvel's "Captain America: Civil War" garnered a laudatory 90 percent with 320 critics chiming in.

32 of 407 comments (clear)

  1. Wah! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Wah!

    1. Re:Wah! by Tablizer · · Score: 5, Informative

      Basically RT is facing a big coordinated batch of trolls.

    2. Re:Wah! by Tablizer · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Trolls roam in batches ... official term for a group of trolls...

      "Political Party"

    3. Re: Wah! by ArmoredDragon · · Score: 5, Funny

      I am a self confessed troll as I troll somewhat often. That said, I prefer the term "underpass", as in "an underpass of trolls". As for my intended marks, I refer their group as a "trip", for more than one reason.

    4. Re:Wah! by MightyMartian · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Yes exactly. If a critic thinks it's a bad movie, they'll write that it's a bad movie. If a bunch of critics give shitty reviews, then a bunch of critics think it's a shitty movie. Demanding critics be silenced because they might hurt a movie's prospects at the box office makes about as much sense as authors demanding bad reviews of their books be taken down because it might hurt book sales.

      Besides, I'm pretty dubious as to how much critics' views even matter. The critics largely seem to think most of Michael Bay's films are dire hunks of steaming donkey shit (a view I share), and yet they appear to be licenses to print money, so clearly a helluva lot of people who go to the movies either don't read reviews, or don't give a shit.

      And heck, I'm one of them. Lots of critics hated Coneheads and Mars Attacks back in the day, and I confess, every time I watch either, I laugh my ass off, so fuck the critics on those ones.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    5. Re:Wah! by h33t+l4x0r · · Score: 3, Informative

      Demanding critics be silenced because they might hurt a movie's prospects at the box office makes about as much sense as authors demanding bad reviews of their books be taken down because it might hurt book sales

      Don't look now but a US major party candidate wants to change libel laws to let people sue their critics. I'll let you guess which one.

    6. Re:Wah! by Opportunist · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Ghostbusters was, if anything, an example how much you can bully and bribe critics today. The comparison between the "professional" and the "user" verdict speaks volumes on pretty much every review aggregation page.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    7. Re:Wah! by _xeno_ · · Score: 4, Informative

      Yeah, no.

      Red Letter Media posted a fairly extensive review that goes over all the flaws the movie has (and there are a ton of them - bad pacing, poor editing, bad action sequences, just poorly thought out plotting, poorly done cameos - I can't even remember them all).

      Their review - despite being very well sourced as to exactly why they're saying what they're saying - got tarred as being "misogynist."

      Have you tried explaining how the Ghostbusters movie sucks online? Almost instantly you'll get a post explaining how actually the movie is great and you just hate female main characters.

      Apparently if you think the movie sucks, you hate female leads and are going to be Responsible for Hollywood Not Casting Female Leads in the future because you hate women.

      And not because the movie is bad.

      Yes, I've literally seen that argument, I am not making it up.

      And I actually liked the new Ghostbusters characters, over all. The movie is still bad, but it's not because the leads were women.

      --
      You are in a maze of twisty little relative jumps, all alike.
    8. Re:Wah! by Pseudonym · · Score: 3, Interesting

      The term troll is actually derived from a fishing troll, because it lures people in. It has nothing to do with the actual fictional monster that is a troll.

      That's technically true, but the term also comes from the day when trolling was considered an artform. Your modern troll has more in common with the fictional monster than anything you used to see on alt.syntax.tactical.

      --
      sub f{($f)=@_;print"$f(q{$f});";}f(q{sub f{($f)=@_;print"$f(q{$f});";}f});
    9. Re:Wah! by Darinbob · · Score: 4, Interesting

      The problem was that people were claiming it sucks the moment the movie was announced. They knew nothing about it whatsoever, except for who the leads were. People were not keeping an open mind on it, they declared it bad merely because it was a remake.

    10. Re: Wah! by Scarletdown · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I think a gruff of trolls would work, and has a nice ring to it.

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      This space unintentionally left blank.
    11. Re:Wah! by goose-incarnated · · Score: 3, Informative

      Which brings us back to the SJW post a few posts back.... the only reason you wouldn't like the new Ghostbusters can only be misogyny, just like the only reason you wouldn't like Barack Obama can only be racism.

      Actually, metacritic is the best place for reviews - imdb has a secret "algorithm" to ensure that the rating you see is not the average rating given to a movie, which pretty much makes the imdb score worthless.

      Metacritic lets you at least see the average score, and it's pretty clear that the critics are pushing Ghostbusters purely on political points - the critic average is 60 while the user average is 2.7. Even Sharknado scored higher than that, IIRC.

      --
      I'm a minority race. Save your vitriol for white people.
    12. Re: Wah! by Mister+Transistor · · Score: 4, Informative

      The little bitty outboard motor that some fishing skiffs have is called a "trolling motor" not a "trawling motor". Trawling is using a net, trolling is using a baited line.

      But I'm probably preaching to the trolls...
       

      --
      -- You are in a maze of little, twisty passages, all different... --
  2. Shoot the Messenger by PvtVoid · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Do these idiots even remotely understand how Rotten Tomatoes works? All they do is aggregate critics' reviews. They don't review the movie themselves.

  3. Petition who to shut it down? by Threni · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The site owners? The police?

  4. A better idea by Tyrannosaur · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I have an idea, how about we instead make a change.org petition to have The DC Extended Universe movies be better written? That would solve TWO problems!

    1. Re:A better idea by HBI · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I say this as a former comic book fan in my youth, but it tickles my fancy nowadays to hear people getting all uptight about the quality of either the comic books themselves or the movies based on them. Look back on it in 30 years and it's pretty much all shit. Even the things I loved like Jim Starlin's Metamorphosis Alpha/Dreadstar haven't aged very well. The Claremont/Byrne X-Men are mediocre at best, and we thought they were so great back in the 80s.

      --
      HBI's Law: Frequency of calling others Nazis is directly correlated with the likelihood of the accuser being Communist.
  5. PG???? by fluffernutter · · Score: 3, Interesting

    When I first saw the movie trailer I was looking forward to a sin city type of darkness that could only be done in an R-rated movie. I found out it was PG? It makes me not want to go see it right there.

    --
    Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
    1. Re:PG???? by amicusNYCL · · Score: 5, Insightful

      How do you do a movie about insane criminals and keep it PG-13?

      Easy. Just stuff in all the violence you can manage, but don't show any nipples.

      --
      "Our two-party system is like a bowl of shit looking at itself in a mirror." - Lewis Black
    2. Re:PG???? by Swampash · · Score: 3, Informative

      When the Comic-Con 2015 teaser for Suicide Squad came out it was all dark and depressing and grownup.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

      Then dark and depressing and grownup Batman v Superman: Yawn of Justice hit cinemas and tanked. So some marketing genius at DC looked over at Marvel rolling in cash from critical and commercial homeruns like Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy and sent down word that Suicide Squad would henceforth be a comedy buddy movie. Witness: official trailer.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

      Same actors, same story, but now it's funny. Can't you tell?

      Marvel managed to make a great movie starring a talking raccoon and a tree, and DC has managed to serve up steaming turds featuring Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the Joker. Right now DC is to movies what Donald Trump is to twitter. You just feel like saying "stop".

  6. Deadpool suceeded, SS failure by justcauseisjustthat · · Score: 5, Insightful

    From what I understand Deadpool was created without input from studio executives, Suicide Squad was just the opposite and was actually recut to try and copy Deadpool humor. Maybe getting rid of the committees that make so many bad movies will bring us more entertainment.

    1. Re:Deadpool suceeded, SS failure by PvtVoid · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Time to make the fucking chimichangas!

      Deadpool was utterly fabulous. The only problem with it is that it will undoubtedly spawn innumerable copycats with input from studio executives, that will be so bad they make your brainstem bleed.

  7. The New Stupid: Censor what I don't agree with ! by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I thought groupthink was limited to /. and reddit but I see it is alive and well in new areas now:

    /sarcasm Yeah, let's censor reviews we don't agree with!

    Uh, No, "this movie sucks" is an opinion. You don't have to like it, or even agree with it, but trying to censor opinions you don't disagree just because it hurts your bottom line is just plain stupid. We already have the legal right to "voice" our opinion as long as it isn't slander nor libel.

    As they say, Everyone is a critic.

    Which ironically has this gem:

    Harrison's Postulate: "For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism"

  8. The movie sucked, even for fanboys/girls.. by fallen1 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    so get over it already. DC just has a lousy track records of making a universe of films with continuity that are, you know, well-scripted and fun to watch.

    I also thought the new Star Trek was mediocre at best. I was looking for some of the wonder and excitement that the reboot brought to the screen (minus lens flare) and I got wonder alright -- I wandered into the movie and then I wandered out when it was over. No excitement for the villain, the plot overall, but there were at least a couple of funny moments.

    --

    Dream as if you'll live forever.
    Live as if you'll die tomorrow.
    ~Anonymous~

  9. Re:I'd be sympathetic to Rotten Tomatoes but... by vux984 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Its 'certified fresh' at 73%, with an average rating of 6.4/10, with an audience rating of 58%. Seems pretty fair to me, and suggests it is a fair but nothing special movie.

    For comparison, the Daredevil TV series is 86% fresh, with 95% audience approval; Deadpool is 84% with 91%. Jessica Jones TV series got 93% and 90%. Antman got 81% and 86%. Gaurdians of the Galaxy got 91% and 92%.

    I've seen all of these and they were all pretty good. I think the ratings are pretty fair.

    So NO, I don't think there is a bias against Marvel's extended universe at all. I think Suicide Squad is likely to be a pretty weak movie.

  10. Re:I'd be sympathetic to Rotten Tomatoes but... by MightyMartian · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The brilliance of the original Ghostbusters was that it actually had, visually at least, some pretty fucking scary scenes; a possessed Sigourney Weaver levitating, a pretty scary looking canine monsters sitting in front of a temple every bit as freaky as anything out of a Indiana Jones film. But these scenes are always offset by a damned fucking good script that keeps them lighthearted and sardonic. Bill Murray is a godsend in these kinds of films, but kudos to all the cast, in particular Rick Moranis, who somehow simultaneously makes the fearsome Vinz Clortho the Keymaster seem like accountant to the demigods.

    I really wish Hollywood was still capable of making a film like Ghostbusters, that could so cleverly balance such seemingly incompatible elements in one film, sometimes in one bloody shot.

    --
    The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
  11. Signs and Portents for bad films by OrangeTide · · Score: 4, Funny

    "... which stars Will Smith"
      And yet people are shocked at the bad reviews. At this point if you see Will Smith in a film, you should proceed carefully.

    --
    “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
  12. Actually, Trailer/Movie Dichotomy by mykepredko · · Score: 4, Interesting

    My understanding (from a couple of people I know who were involved with the movie) was that the first pass (ie at the end of filming in July of 201) of the movie was disappointing, but serviceable (ie make its money back in the theatres and turn a profit on streaming and DVDs). Test audiences' biggest problem was that they didn't know many of the various minor villains (ie Killer Croc, Deadshot and Captain Boomerang) and were confused by Harley Quinn because in the cartoons, she has a definite costume and doesn't use a baseball bat.

    Then the trailer was created which made it seem like a *much* different movie than it actually was. The trailer, (see here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?...) generated a lot of buzz due to the energy the characters gave off which wasn't in the original film. The Warner suits realized that there was a disconnect between the trailer and reality, so early last fall, they ordered a script update with reshoots so that the movie would better match the trailer.

    The script changes were complete and new filming was finishing up in Vancouver when Deadpool came out and did not affect the final version of the film. It may have confirmed the Warner suits' that they were on the right track, but Deadpool didn't force the decision one way or another. I was told in December that Warner had managed to turn a fair movie that avid comic book readers will like into a "shitty" one that wouldn't work for anybody with the script and filming changes.

    The DC Universe movie problems go a lot deeper than trying to copy Deadpool or Avengers movies - it basically comes from a lack of central planning that Marvel/Disney/Sony have in spades as well as difficulty in listening to the casual movie goer.

    One of the friends, who's a PA on Suicide Squad, said that fanboys know the characters and that's who DC/Warner tends to listen to rather than somebody off the street who has heard of Batman and Superman but can't name anybody in their rogue's gallery other than The Joker and Lex Luthor and needs an introductory movie for them and the universe, the same way Marvel does.

  13. Re:I'd be sympathetic to Rotten Tomatoes but... by vux984 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Yeah, I misread the original summary, and made a follow up post to look at DC titles.

    " I will say Batman vs Superman was a lot better than critics gave it credit for."

    Rotten tomatoes tends to agree with you. There is a big disconnect between critics and audiences on that one... 27% to 65%. However, I think the critics are "right" in the sense that if you try to look at that movie with a critical eye that it's as dumb as a bag of hammers. But it's a 'fan service' movie. So the audiences that went to see, by and large, got what they wanted and were happy with it.

  14. Has change.org actually ever changed anything? by mark-t · · Score: 3, Interesting

    ... or were the site creators just going for irony?

  15. Re:Rotten tomatoes indeed by Mr.+Shotgun · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Also... change.org was neat for a while..

    Did change.org petitions ever actually accomplish anything? I am serious cause change.org sounds like a site for people to sign onto a petition no one will read. Does the petition ever get sent anywhere? Let alone to anyone who can make decisions?

    Not trying to be rude but at least with paper petitions the recipient knows someone did the legwork to get people to sign. Change.org seems to be the epitome of armchair activism.

    --
    Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the (supposed) good of its victims may be the most oppressive
  16. Re:I'd be sympathetic to Rotten Tomatoes but... by AmiMoJo · · Score: 4, Informative

    It's explained here, and on Wikipedia:

    https://www.rottentomatoes.com...

    Long story short, it gets the seal if it goes over 75% and has a minimum number of reviews from top critics, and keeps it unless it then falls below 70%. So there is a dead band to stop it toggling on and off rapidly if it's just on the limit, which is kinda important if companies are going to use it in the marketing.

    No conspiracy, that's just how it has always worked. That's why the AC was modded down, he's just repeating a Reddit conspiracy theory that is easily disproven with 10 seconds of research.

    --
    const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
    SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC