So, how do we combat this algorithm manipulation, misinformation spreading, inaccurate madness?

Around a year ago, I launched an experimental website, aimed at giving a precise barometer of the watchability of a movie or TV show. OctetReviews, introduces the concept of the "Octet" a super-short review that contains no more than 8 words and a "good" or "bad" rating.

After using it for the past year (and revamping the core code around 4 months ago), I've found that this way of reviewing a product has made me be a bit more honest about my feelings towards a movie – even though there's been a few cases where I've been undecisive about middle of the road movies. Forcing a positive or negative means I need to think about my own personal enjoyment of the film. Robocop for example, terrible cheesy 80's action movie subjectively, but because it's a terrible cheesy 80's action movie, I enjoyed watching it again on TV recently (more than I disliked watching it, so overall it garnered a positive review).

Each positive or negative is aggregated, so a movie only gains traction if it's overwhelmingly voted up. My 'nostalgia' goggles won't count for much if I'm the only plus in a sea of minuses.Does this solve every issue? No, there will still be people that fail to understand the concept (as easy to use as I have tried to make it, the tried and true method of 5-stars is lost on some, so introducing a new mind-set might not go down too well).

Go forth and review (responsibly!)
Quaid J. Leckey