What makes or breaks a movie for you?

[Kargo Warrior]

I've been wondering about this question lately...there are movies where the story/screenplay is mediocre but the technical aspects(art direction,cinematography,score,etc...) are so beautiful the movie leaves a very good impression...on the contrary some movies have such a weak story nothing can redeem it.

On the other hand my favorite type/genre of movies are in the vain of The Station Agent,Before Sunset,Lost In Translation,Sideways which are very minimalist but i can watch dozens of times and enjoy/appreciate them more each time.

So what aspect do you consider the most important:entertainment,acting,story,technical details?

I'm asking for a specific answer not just ''everything'' since that's understandable...you can also see the question this way:what aspect can save a movie for you if most of the other parts are mediocre?

 

[Poetic Chaos]

Lost in Translation is my favorite movie, so I'd say characters make a film for me. To sympathize, connect and care about the lead/s makes everything else work no matter the setting or situation.

 

[Kargo Warrior]

Exactly,i feel the same way...though it doesn't have to mean i care/like the character/s to enjoy the movie.

There Will Be Blood and No Country For Old Men are two examples...the complexity and decisions of the characters make them very compelling and intriguing to watch even though the characters are not good in the general sense of the word.

 

[The Guard]

Compelling ideas.

The execution may not be great, or the characters may not be interesting, but if the idea has enough compelling, through provoking ideas, I'll enjoy the movie.

 

[Motown Marvel]

give me a solid story that holds up, and i can probably dig the movie.

 

[SuperFerret]

Honestly, potential entertainment value. That's all I watch movies for, and if I can't find any entertainment value in a movie (which is rare) I won't continue watching it.

 

[Spider-ManHero12]

COnstant swears don't always ruin a film, but they do sometimes.

 

[hammerhedd11]

I can forgive a lot if
a) the story is compelling or interesting
b)The characters are likeable and interesting
or
c)the moral/message/point of the story is interesting

 

[DarkReflections]

what makes a movie for me is when there is a great and really creative story, dialogue and situations realistic enough to fit with the story, a decent amount of time for character development for all the integral characters of the film so that i can connect and feel for the characters and enough so that i dont feel like its being forced down my throat. the same goes for the moral and theme for a film, which i like to see is different from the last movie i watched and not the same bullcrap that hollywood loves to keep using. the evil dead films and original star wars films, 2 of my favorite movie sagas of all time, are great examples of where im coming from.

 

[-Arya-]

A compelling story makes a movie for me. Now if you give me a compelling story with thought provoking themes, messages and intriguing characters behind it then it'll rank in my top 10.

 

[S.A.A.D.]

1) Genre

2) Story

3) Entertainment value

4) Acting

5) Cast

These are the most important movie makers/breakers to me,but sometimes depending on what movie I want to see, one or two of these factors might be over looked by me. 1-3 is an absolute must,and I can forgive the movie even if it isn't interesting if it has the entertainment value. As for characters,the only time I have to like the characters are when there are certain characters in a movie,like say Ironman,Pinhead,etc. Now on to dialog,I don't care much for it,but if a movie has good dialog that is cool,moving on to plausibility and realism,if something is done wrong I will forgive it because I either don't understand how it should be and find it useless to to be disappointed because of that and/or because the movie isn't trying to be based on real life.

 

[Prison Mike]

Acting and story

 

[MadVillainy]

The cast...because you can have all the interesting characters, interesting story/script, and good moral but if your cast sucks all of those will be pointless

 

[Visceral]

EXPECTATIONS

if i go into a film looking for acting and it has a good story I probably end up disappointed because I didn't care in the first place for the story only the acting.

Transformers 2, i didn't like it or hate it, but I got what I paid for.

Then there are those films where your high expectations are not only met but surpassed. Thos are movies I purchase.

 

[xwolverine2]

entertainment value for me...

when a film starts to drag or worse, get extremely artsy then that's a complete turn off.

ill sit through crappy acting, dialoge, action, plot.... but if it starts to drag or if the story doesnt move forward (and god forbid i have to stare at my watch) ill stop watching it.

examples:
Tokyo!
Casshern
Casino
Miami Vice
Hero(jet li)

 

[byte19]

all that S.A.A.D. said and music.... story and acting are important, but without the right music score, I'm not totally drawn in....

 

[SPIDERMAN117]

Depends...........Is FOX making it? :P

 

[Bunker]

So I just watched Into the Wild and this movie had everything I could ever ask for. First of all, the characters felt like real human beings, not movie characters. The filming and editing style really accentuated the interaction and chemistry between Chris/Alex and all the people he meets. If you don't feel a real connection with the characters, then a film is pretty meaningless. Emile Hirsch was also a VERY strong leading actor, which I also think is necassary if you want a film to make it over the hump. I also need to feel that a film has a purpose. If I finish watching a movie and am like "ok...what was the ****ing point?", then I probably didn't enjoy said film.

 

[Valerie_f4]

The hype. When the hype is gone, what's left?

 

[Laderlappen]

It totally depends on the movie. But the story is always important.

 

[dude stannis]

That's a vague question. There's too many different kinds of movies. What I saw in No Country For Old Men is not necessarily what I expect from The Expendables.

 

[Kargo Warrior]

That's a vague question. There's too many different kinds of movies. What I saw in No Country For Old Men is not necessarily what I expect from The Expendables.

Yes,that is true but it's not about expectations.

For example if the story is not cohesive and is full of plot holes i won't enjoy The Expendables at all...just because the 80' action stars will be there doesn't make me nostalgic enough for me to enjoy it.

The question here is not how much you enjoy certain movies or what you expect from them but in a sense is there a line where you just say,this is irredeemable and in a word,sucks.

Imagine No Country For Old Men with Sean William Scott instead of Javier Bardem....it will kill the whole tone of the movie.

 

[CashforStash]

If it doesn't have some sort of villian, I am not in.

 

[Mister H.]

As others have said, a compelling idea is paramount to me. Dialogue, lighting, camera work, and the score are all things that are very important to me as well.

I feel like I just lied though. I've seen movies that don't have a particlularly interesting story, but are exectued so exceptionally well that they become great movies (No Country For Old Men).

 

[Valerie_f4]

The story also to me has to pull me in. Or else I give up.