Every review at The Spirit Blade Underground receives a score in two categories. The first is Quality. Quality refers to the level of excellence evident in the final product.
The second review category is Relevance. Reviews on this site are written from a Christian, biblical point of view, and so the thoughts expressed regarding "Relevance" will have discussion or contemplation of truth, as revealed by the Bible, in mind. Relevance refers to the likelihood of viewers/participants having something of spiritual, ethical or philosophical worth to talk or think about afterward. (Political themes, unless they have a strong moral component, do not play a role in the Relevance score.)
We believe entertainment is, in part, a doorway to conversation and contemplation about some of the most important things in life. Moral issues or spiritual matters. Who we are. Who God is. What life is meant to be about.
Reviews on this site approach the material from a biblical, Christian perspective, but the Relevance score is not necessarily based on how "Christian" a movie is. Sometimes a movie that has some unintended parallels to Christian thinking, or has very strong "counter-Christian" themes, will get a very high Relevance score. A poor Quality score can also affect the Relevance score, since few people like to talk or think about the themes of a bad movie.
Score Number Values
The scores in each category are on a scale of 0.0-10.0, and reflect an educational system of grading. (A through F) If by chance you see these reviews elsewhere using a 1-5 star system, simply multiply that score by two and check the results below.
0.0-5.5: A failing score, with the lower numbers indicating even less quality or value. In Quality, this score reflects how insulting the experience is to the reviewer's personal taste. In Relevance, it simply represents a decreased likelihood of meaningful conversation or thought based on the material.
6.0-6.5: Major shortcomings result in this substandard score in Quality. In Relevance, it's a big red flag that says "expect very little".
7.0-7.5: This is an okay score. Under Quality, it means "not bad, but you're not missing out". Under Relevance it means "there are things to discuss or think about if you really want to."
8.0-8.5: A solid score that, under Quality, means "either now or later, this is worth checking out". Under Relevance it indicates that there is some good conversation or contemplation to be had here that may not take much effort to start.
9.0-9.5: Under Quality, this score means "either now or later, don't miss this one"! Under Relevance, it means that the material may very likely provoke worthwhile thought or conversation.
10.0: A rare score in either category. Under Quality, this means "Go check it out NOW! A major artistic achievement!" Under Relevance, this score means that the nature of the material almost demands conversation or at the very least will provoke contemplation in almost everyone who engages with the material.
Regarding potentially offensive content, you'll notice that the reviews here generally don't comment on the violence, language, gore or sexuality present in the material being reviewed. Many Christian sites focus much of their attention on these details, but we don't feel the need to do so here except in rare cases. For more information about navigating "questionable" content as a Christian, please consider reading Paeter Frandsen's two-part article on the subject.
