Rotten Tomatoes Explained

What is it?

Rotten Tomatoes is a popular American review-aggregation website for film and television. It assigns a score known as the "Tomatometer," which represents the percentage of positive professional critic reviews for a given title. A movie is considered "Fresh" if it gets a score of 60% or higher, and "Rotten" if it's below 60%. The site also features an "Audience Score," which is a separate metric representing the percentage of users who have rated a movie or show positively. This creates two distinct ratings: one from professional critics and one from the general public.

Why is it trending?

Rotten Tomatoes is a constant fixture in entertainment news because of its immense influence on a film's success. A high Tomatometer score is often a powerful marketing tool, touted in trailers and posters to attract viewers. Conversely, a low score can deter audiences and negatively impact box office performance. With every major film release, the Tomatometer score becomes an immediate topic of discussion and debate among fans, filmmakers, and critics, making it a perpetually relevant barometer of a movie's initial reception.

How does it affect people?

For the average moviegoer, Rotten Tomatoes simplifies the decision-making process. Instead of reading multiple reviews, a person can glance at the Tomatometer score to get a quick consensus on a film's quality. This convenience has made it a go-to resource for millions. However, it also sparks debate about oversimplifying nuanced film criticism into a simple percentage. Furthermore, the divide between the critic-driven Tomatometer and the user-generated Audience Score often highlights differing opinions, sometimes leading to discussions about critical bias or audience "review bombing."

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