Use This Site to Find a Movie to Watch With Your Friend or Partner Based on Shared Likes

If you, like many people, have found yourself in front of the TV more in the past year than ever before, you’re not alone. And thanks to new extensions and features on streaming services, we’re able to have long-distance movie nights with people who don’t live with us watching things on Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video and YouTube.

Getting that part set up is pretty easy. The hard part is picking something to watch. Even people who seemingly have everything in common may differ in opinion when it comes to entertainment. And this isn’t limited to people outside our household.

Although a lot of people have multiple screens at their disposal, the battle over what to watch can be a potential strain on all types of relationships throughout the pandemic. And that’s where Movie Matcher comes in. Here’s how it works and how to use it.

How to use Movie Matcher

The idea here is to help you and a friend/partner/family member/pen pal choose a movie to watch together that you both might actually enjoy — instead of having one person who doesn’t enjoy superhero movies settling and watching something the other person likes. (Again.)

Here’s how it works. Go to the website and enter your name. Then decide whether you want to match with a mate or a movie star. Go with “mate.” (We’ll address the movie star option in a minute.) You’ll get a link to copy and send to your friend.

Both parties are then asked to make some choices. First, selecting three movie genres they’re not in the mood to watch (i.e. sci-fi, war, drama, etc). Then for three types of movies they are in the mood to watch (i.e. feel-good, detective, superhero). And finally, how far back in time they want to go (i.e. movies since 1970).

Using data from IMDb and your preferences, you’ll receive a recommendation for a movie the two of you should probably either agree on, or at least be fine with. If you want something else, just click on “seen it” and other options will come up. Once you’ve settled on something, you can click on “more details,” which will take you to the recommended film’s IMDb page for more information.

How to match with a movie star

People who don’t have anyone to watch movies with from a distance (or in the same house) but still want to play can do so by selecting the option to match with a movie star. This will bring up small illustrations of various movie characters, including Sister Mary Clarence/Deloris Wilson, Princess Leia, Shrek, Harry Potter, Mary Poppins and some others.

But what’s not clear is whether you’re going to be matched with a movie star (as advertised), or the character shown in the image. For instance, I’d be very interested in matching with Carrie Fisher, but would pass on Princess Leia. Anyway, this is a fun thing and I’m ruining it, but you get the picture. You end up with a movie recommended for you and either a movie character or the actor who played them. Then you’re left to enjoy it alone.