Ken Rosenberg

Funny, isn't it, how a good movie can shatter your world and put it back together in a different way? Reviewing movies calls upon all of one's experiences and knowledge about life.  I'm not a professional film critic. In my day job, I untangle legal Gordian knots for Uncle Sam. I started writing movie reviews in 1999, mainly because I had opinions about movies that I didn't see reflected in the movie reviews I read. My early efforts were short--only a paragraph--but they gradually got longer, until now they are approaching what would be considered full length. (Every review I've written is included on my site, even the earliest ones, for what they're worth--the first was EDtv.) I use a 0-to-100 grading system (aka the Ken-o-meter), which I first saw used on MrShowbiz.com. As a rule of thumb, 50 is the cutoff for a movie I consider worth seeing. The 0-to-100 system is admirably precise--perhaps overly so. How much difference is there between a 63 and a 64? Not much, to be sure, but I would argue there is a difference. For the same reason, I think the zero-to-four-star system used by many critics is too vague.   Tag lines--many critics don't use them, but they're worth the effort. They should be catchy, appropriate in tone, and ideally should give the reader a flavor for the overall impact of the movie and how good it is. A good tag line is a service to the reader; it sums up my take on the film and (hopefully) draws the reader into the review.

My favorite actors: Tom Hanks, Anthony Hopkins, Nic Cage, Denzel Washington. Actresses: Reese Witherspoon, Natalie Portman, Neve Campbell. Movies: Bonnie and Clyde, The Godfather (Parts 1 and 2), A Clockwork Orange, Saving Private Ryan.