Roger Ebert movie reviews are always entertaining to read, thanks in large part to his excellent abilities as a writer. Whether he’s praising a film or taking it to task, you can always rely on Ebert to deliver a thoughtful film review with plenty of moments of humor. In short, he’s the best thing going when it comes to modern-day reviews, although guys like James Berardinelli are poised to take the lead in the future.

His career as a critic got started in 1967, when he received a job working for the Chicago Sun-Times. In 1975, he teamed up with Chicago Tribune critic Gene Siskel to host the program Sneak Previews. The show was distributed nationally by PBS in 1978, and 1982 saw the show renamed At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert. Things really got rolling in 1986, when they worked with Buena Vista Television to create Siskel & Ebert and the Movies. People tuned in every week to see “the fat guy” argue with “the bald guy,” and Roger Ebert movie reviews became increasingly sought after. When Siskel passed away in 1999, Ebert continued the show with a series of co-hosts, until Richard Roeper became the permanent replacement in 2000.

During his days as a critic on television, Ebert and Siskel became well known for grading movies on a “thumbs up” or “thumbs down” scale. In his print reviews, however, Roger Ebert traditionally grades films on a zero to four star scale (with four stars being the best). He’s been quoted as saying that the five-star rating system is the only one that makes sense.

When reading Roger Ebert movie reviews, here are some common elements to watch for:

• Has a tendency to disagree with other critics and go his own way. He gave Die Hard and Blue Velvet poor ratings, but he provided Speed 2: Cruise Control with one of its rare positive reviews.
• Enjoys using sarcasm when ripping into movie perceived as bad.
• Ebert was raised as a Roman Catholic, and he has sometimes drawn on this when commenting on certain films.
• Usually gives poor reviews to horror films that he considers “Dead Teenager Movies.”
• Highly original in his reviews, sometimes delivering them in the form of scripts, songs or poems.
• Critical of the MPAA and their antiquated rating system.

But what about actual Roger Ebert movie reviews? Well, they’re too numerous to go into detail about, as Ebert must’ve reviewed thousands of films over the years. What I can do, however, is list of few of the surprising ratings that Roger Ebert has given to movies over the years. Well, surprising to me, at least.

• The Godfather III (rated 3 ½ stars)
• Syriana (rated 4 stars)
• The Brave One (3 ½ stars)
• The Honeymooners (3 stars)
• Die Hard (2 stars)
• You Don’t Mess with the Zohan (3 stars)
• The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (4 stars)
• Speed 2: Cruise Control (3 stars)
• I Am Legend (3 stars)
• Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (3 ½ stars)

Also Recommended:

• Gene Siskel Movie Reviews