Yeah but how many of them are good? I can probably count the amount of Netflix original movies that I've heard discussed with one hand. And when it comes to stuff like Bird Box, the talk doesn't really even go with the quality.
I think Netflix is going with the Blumhouse method of production[1]. They're giving a bunch of money to people and let them make stuff that (some) people will like.
Some of will be bad, most average and a tiny bit will make huge piles of money (bring new users).
The problem I have with this is that my available energy for finding the good stuff in a sea of mediocrity is pretty minimal. As a result I find myself not trying new stuff at all.
If most of the time when I tried something new it was good I'd probably do it more often.
I don't think it is as subjective as you might think. If it was you'd expect lists like the imdb top movies of all time to be constantly in flux. Instead, they're remarkably stable.
If you would have said one individual's taste is subjective or subject to more variance I might be able to agree, but with more data points it seems humans are able to more or less define good from bad objectively. Anything with 10,000 or more votes on imdb is likely within 5% of its final value with very few exceptions.
Personally I find anything over 7.4 on imdb watchable, over 7.8 quite good, over 8.4 incredible, and if it hits 8.9 or higher it's likely one of the best movies of all time.
So my definition of "good" is somewhere above a 7.4.
Duck Dynasty is widely popular with almost 9mm viewership. It has a rating of 6.3. Breaking Bad has 1.5mm viewership and an IMDB score of 9.5. If you're Netflix, do you make invest money into a show like Duck Dynasty or like Breaking bad.
Ya, I didn't cover them but there's certainly exceptions. Kids shows is a great example of a genre targeting a demographic which is likely under represented by the voting community - adults. Imdb is best viewed through the filter of "what do adults want to watch or think is good".
I remember watching duck dynasty, great kids show and I loved it, but I doubt it holds up for adults. Batman beyond on the other hand won an Emmy and still falls into the "kids show" genre but is very watchable for adults who can appreciate animated content.
So to answer your question, Netflix needs both as they represent very different audiences.
A few other exceptions that I didn't mention are comedies and horror. Ratings for these skew lower than average as they aren't meant to compete with Shawshank for greatest of all time, simply to entertain or scare. As such neither of these genres tend to attract serious directing, writing and acting talent and in turn, audiences tend to view them more as "fun" than serious.
You or I might love to watch pineapple express, hilarious comedy, but still vote it as a 6.9 because it doesn't hold a candle to Shawshank.
Duck dynasty isn’t a kids show. It’s a show that covers a family that makes duck calls. It’s the most popular non-fiction tv show ever created. I assume most people on hackernews haven’t seen an episode. I personally never watched it as it doesn’t appeal to me.
I remember watching duck dynasty, great kids show and I loved it, but I doubt it holds up for adults.
Duck Dynasty is a reality TV show, not a kids show.
I can't tell if you know that and are making a jab at them or not. If you are, then I think you're proving the point well, because you think it's clearly not a show for adults, while it was the most-watched nonfiction show in history. Clearly, tastes vary widely.
Yeah, mustly rings true. There's actually very little I want to watch. Archer has become crap, and I've watched Rick and Morty and Arrested Development too many times already.
> I can probably count the amount of Netflix original movies that I've heard discussed with one hand.
This directly contradicts my experience.
I just checked my shows tracker and I have watched 32 shows (no movies included) that I would consider to be of some entertainment value and/or quality. I've discussed at least half of those with people, if not closer to 75%. I'd be happy to drop some recommendations if you give a genre or some preferences :)
