YMMV / Mark Kermode

• Critical Dissonance: Being a critic, he often receives letters from listeners who disagree with him, but there are two big examples where a majority of correspondents voiced their disapproval.
  • The Greatest Showman. In his review, he described it as a "very poor" film that "rang terribly hollow". His opinion of the film improved somewhat when, having listened to what other people had to say about it, he paid to see it a second time and saw the uplifting effect that it had on his fellow cinema-goers.
  • To an even greater degree, Deadpool 2. While he loved the freshness and self-aware humour of the original Deadpool, he disliked the attempts to flesh out the character and play up the emotional angle in the sequel, seemingly unaware that Deadpool has had plenty of well-written character moments throughout his history.
  • This was also the case with the otherwise roundly panned Artemis Fowl, which Kermode described as "a fun, fleeting, rather flimsy romp". Some YouTube comments even accused him of going easy on it because Kenneth Branagh is a friend of the show.
• Fan Nickname: "The Good Doctor", due to his PhD in English Language and Literature. Mayo is also occasionally referred to as a doctor for his own honorary doctorate.
• He Panned It, Now He Sucks!:
  • He suffers this constantly, most prominently with the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, saying Superbad wasn't very funny, and being disappointed by Watchmen — not even a panning, just saying the movie didn't work for him personally.
  • Inversely, he gets huge amounts of "He Praised It, Now He Sucks" for taking a liking to movie series such as High School Musical and Twilight. He was even a fan of Zac Efron, until he starred in the abomination that was Dirty Grandpa.
• Just Here for Godzilla: Some just watch his reviews in hope of him going ballistic on a bad movie.
• Memetic Mutation:
  • Hello to Jason Isaacs! The phrase appears at the start of search results for Jason on Google UK and has also popped up in graphics on Letterman, amongst other places.
  • The throwaway line in The Thick of It about him having massive hands.
• Nausea Fuel: The "vulgar, saccharine horror" of New Year's Eve had this effect on him.
  • In the review of Marley & Me, Mark makes the film sound so sickly and sweet that his description might actually make one feel unwell.
  • The Moshi Monsters review gives a similar impression. He actually likens it to sticking your head into a waste disposal unit full of vomit.
• So Bad, It's Good: Occasionally his opinion on a film is this; for example Pompeii "laughably stupid, but I don't say that as a bad thing because heaven knows there are enough films that are boringly stupid", and Mamma Mia! (and especially Pierce Brosnan's singing) "you know what this is actually really good, although it's not, please don't put that on the poster. Unless you put 'so terrible it's actually brilliant'".
• Tear Jerker: For Mark, quite a few films, apparently. Mayo is particularly incredulous that Mamma Mia! prompted tears twice.
  • A touching listener's email on Toy Story 3, offering a perspective on the trilogy as someone who grew up with the films and as a new father. Both Mayo and Kermode are obviously moved by its contents.
  • The "tough email" from Kate on The Rise of Skywalker, reflecting on the Star Wars saga. Kate describes bonding over the films with her father since she was five years old, then her struggle to express herself at his deathbed prompted her father to reply "I know", before seeing her own pain and grief mirrored on screen in the Sequel trilogy. Mayo has to take a few breaks while reading it to gather himself. At the end, Kermode considers how the email is a beautifully written reaffirmation of why we watch cinema, and how even flawed films can bypass their limitations: films speak directly to viewers' emotions, and summon up our empathy for their characters.

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