Discovering the magic of cinema through Letterboxd

“Sometimes you just have to bottom your way to the top,” reads a review of the Jacob Elordi-starrer movie Saltburn (2023) on Letterboxd, a social network for movie buffs. The review has over 52 thousand likes and sort of aptly describes the movie’s plot in the most Gen-Z style possible—a one-liner in all lowercase.

My introduction to Letterboxd came through X (formerly Twitter), where conversations about the app piqued my interest. I am no movie buff, but I do know that American film director/screenwriter Sofia Coppola’s daughter once tried to charter a helicopter from New York to Maryland and was later grounded for that (yes...I know my fair share of blockbuster gossip). But movies? Not so much. I am the kind of person who thinks it’s an achievement if I finish watching a movie without once looking at my phone. I find it difficult to sit through a two-hour movie but can watch endless episodes of Real Housewives. However, with no Real Housewives seasons currently airing, I found myself delving into the world of cinema, inadvertently becoming one of those men I typically disdain—self-proclaimed cinephile, perhaps overly enamoured with certain classics like The Godfather (1972) and Scarface (1983), to the point where it becomes the core of his personality. Of course, not all cinephiles fit this mould.

And so, my cinematic journey commenced with cult classics such as Roman Holiday (1953) and The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), before venturing into more unconventional movies with titles like The Scary of Sixty-First (2020). I balanced my viewing diet between Bollywood and Hollywood and revisited my all-time favourites like Match Point (2005) and Black Swan (2010).

Now, you might wonder how I managed to consume such a plethora of movies despite having the attention span of a doorknob. Well, let me tell you—Letterboxd became my saving grace, motivating me to watch quite a few films this year! The prospect of logging each viewing experience, along with rating and reviewing, infused me with a sense of importance. Despite having a modest following (just two followers, for god’s sake!), the act of critiquing even beloved Oscar-winning movies with a mere 1.5 stars gave me a palpable boost of ego.

Letterboxd was founded in 2011 by two New Zealand-based entrepreneurs, Matthew Buchanan and Karl von Randow. Though it has been there for over a decade, the app only started to gain popularity during the pandemic. Today, Letterboxd has more than 10 million registered accounts, with a notably younger skewing audience. The app describes itself as a social network for “grass-roots film discussion and discovery”... it’s sort of like Goodreads, but for movies.

Unlike other social media apps, the thing about Letterboxd is that here you have control. Besides rating and reviewing movies, you also have control over what you see on the homepage unlike on X or Instagram.

Filmmaker Arjun Varain Singh, who I introduced to the app, lauds Letterboxd for its sense of ownership, particularly resonant in an era of misinformation and digital noise, and also the fact that it helped him connect with his audience. He says, “In a place where there is a complete lack of ownership, one must foster communities, where we can trust one another. What sets the app apart is its specific purpose. And it’s honestly bloody useful, saves a bunch of time when you’re just surfing through your platforms.”

But while Letterboxd might seem like the happening spot for spilling the beans on movies, let’s face it, it’s kind of made critiquing movies look like child’s play. Most users there are simply trying to get that one screenshot (their claim to fame, if you will). So, if you’re banking on Letterboxd for some serious, down-to-earth reviews, well, the joke’s on you.

I caught up with Raja Sen, one of India’s most read film critics, to get his lowdown on the app. Turns out, he isn’t all that jazzed about it. According to him, his Notes app does the job just fine, and it’s got that personal touch. But Sen still keeps an account (under an alias) and frequently fires it up to remember the names of old films he’s met recently.

Nonetheless, Sen’s got some hope for the app. He sees it as a potential spark to ignite more movie madness. He says, “I consider the great and prolific Steven Soderbergh as the proto-Letterboxd, a man who meticulously and publicly lists all the movies and shows he watches every year. While we can’t hit Soderbergh’s numbers, I would love it if this gamification and list-making led to more movie-watching. There is certainly joy, and a specific accomplishment, to be found in adding more and more numbers, increasing one’s own tally every month and year. We all have too many life-changing movies left to watch, I’m all for any behaviour that encourages that. A Fitbit for movies? Sure.”

Letterboxd serves as an enjoyable platform for both movie enthusiasts and filmmakers seeking genuine feedback from audiences. As Singh rightly says, “It’s really cool to get either appreciation or constructive criticism. I feel the crowd that finds themselves using Letterboxd and who actually take the time out to write their own reviews for films are an audience who genuinely care about the films they watch, and I love that! And in the current environment on social media platforms, it can be really hard to navigate between the bots, the people with agendas, and then the real folks.”

This article originally appeared in Cosmopolitan India, May-June 2024 print issue.

Lead image: Gregory Peck in Roman Holiday, Cate Blanchett in Tar, Scarlett Johansson in Match Point. 

Illustrations by Nishad Baburaj

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