#saraschoice

I think that they are helpful for moviegoers in that they can offer some insights into a film, but as far as using movie reviews as a metric for deciding whether to watch a movie or not, I'd say no. Reading reviews (critical or fan) doesn't make me more or less inclined to see a film. For me it all boils down to whether I have a preliminary interest in the film to begin with, which I usually gauge from my reaction to trailers or film synopses. For example, Battleship got a pretty thorough smacking in critical reviews and even consumer ones were pretty harsh against it, but I personally enjoyed it. I had a preliminary interest in the film because not only did I have a nostalgic relationship with the board game from having grown up with it, but I also liked the cast (Kitsch, Skarsgard, Neeson, etc) so I wasn't particularly dissuaded by negative reviews.

However, I think movie reviews do factor into whether people (myself included) choose to watch a movie in theaters or whether they wait for it on DVD. I actually confess to shelling out money to go see something visually (or aesthetically) engaging in theaters and then saving "serious" movies for DVDs. I do that because for a film with great cinematography or something that's action-packed and exciting, I prefer to see it on the big-screen for better quality picture and sound, and maybe for the communal experience of going with a group of people, whereas for more cerebral films I like the privacy and mellowness of being able to watch it at home, by myself, where I can take it all in.