Why do viewers feel compelled to overpraise extreme cinema?

Rating: 4/10 (4 May 2006)

Such is the case here with "Oldboy" as 64% of IMDb-ers rated this 9 or 10! Comparatively, the professional film critics weigh in with a 7.2 overall average, a full 1.1 points below the overpraisers here. I WILL concede that "Oldboy" is several steps up from "Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance", Park's 2002 pointless gorefest that I also had the unfortunate displeasure of sitting through. At least, "Oldboy" had something that resembled a coherent plot, but this certainly isn't groundbreaking in any way. In the end, it felt like a two hour endurance test. There were no compelling performances, no memorable scenes, just a dark, forgettable film.
IMDb voters: you really need to get out of the house more and screen some other films. Think a bit before you give every film you like a "10". You do a disservice to yourself as well as the rest of us who vote here and look to this site for trusted information. Granted, "Oldboy" is better than most of the garbage that Hollywood cranks out, but it isn't even close to being a great film.
4/10