Why I Tag People in Negative Reviews

For the past two years, I've been writing reviews on Vocal. I'll admit, when I started out, it took me a while to find my groove and establish my own style for review writing; the difference between my reviews starting out and the ones I write currently is certainly a stark one. I started out mostly focusing on the Lifetime movies, but have since branched out into other films in the Made-For-TV realm and beyond. As a result of putting my reviews out there, I've made contact with people requesting reviews, and that has allowed me to branch out into the indie film market and find myself exploring an avenue of film I love to write about; there's a certain charm to providing something of a voice for films that oftentimes don't receive as much attention as the films you see make it to the silver screen.

Though recently, a criticism that I've received in the past has come under fire yet again: my practice of sharing my reviews on Twitter while tagging the crew and cast that have available Twitter accounts (typically the ones I speak about in the review itself). When it comes to positive reviews, this has never been a hard thing to do; it feels good to know that the people responsible for making movies I like have read my thoughts and appreciate my critique. It's when I share reviews for movies I don't have as high thoughts about when this practice has landed me in hot water.

No names will be given as to who has done this, but on two separate occasions, actors I have tagged in less-than-favorable reviews have contacted me and voiced displeasure at me for inviting them to read a negative review of their work. When I first received this criticism, I was surprised. The review was not a wholly negative one (I had ranked it a 5 out of 10) and the actor contacting me was not even the source of my criticism. The second time was a lot more surprising, as not only was the actor much more vocal about his distaste for what I'd done, they'd seemed to take what I had done as a personal insult against them.

Let's get one thing out of the way right now: my Tweeting practice is not done with the intent of attacking anyone or inviting others to do so. Anyone who has felt that way, I sincerely apologize. I write this open letter to make clear why it is I share my reviews the way I do: I simply want to share my opinions with the people my views most directly impact. Even in reviews of movies I considered to be complete messes, I always try to make a point of shining a light on the redeeming qualities and how the film could've worked for me. If nothing else can be taken away by the crew of films I give unfavorable reviews to, it can hopefully give them a different view of their work that they may not have had before.

To anyone reading this who has been tagged in such a review of mine, I truly am sorry for any insult you felt from me. I mean no malice in my sharing, and don't intend for my reviews to be seen as personal attacks at anyone. If you ever disagree or have questions on why I felt a certain way about a film you were in, please don't hesitate to contact me to get further insight into why I felt how I did. I'm always happy to share my views on the films I review.

Thank you for listening.