How to Keep a Movie Diary With Ratings and Notes

Movie diary keepers can log every film with a rating and a note, using one place to record titles and a regular time to review them.

By VLClean · 2026-10-30

VLClean is published by the makers of Askarr and Watcharr, which are compared here alongside other tools.

Movie diary keepers can log each film with a rating and a note by picking one place to record titles, writing a rating and a short note for every film, and reviewing the entries on a regular day.

Option	How it keeps the diary	Cost details
Watcharr	Paste one public IMDb list to see its covers, each opening TMDB's plot, genres, rating, backdrop and trailer. ^[1] Watcharr accepts any public IMDb watchlist or list from the desktop site, the phone site or IMDb's other-language pages. ^[1]	not published
Diary app	The keeper types the title, a rating and a note for each film in the app.	not published
Notebook	The keeper writes the title, rating and a note on a page for each film.	not published
Spreadsheet	The keeper adds a row with the title, rating, note and date for each film.	not published

What you need before you start

A movie diary keeper needs a consistent rating scale so every film is scored the same way. Decide whether the scale uses stars, numbers or simple words like good, fair and poor, and write that scale down once so it is not re-decided each time.

Choose one place where the rating and note for every film will be recorded, such as a diary app, a notebook or a file on a laptop. Keep to that single place so a title is not logged in two spots and then counted twice.

Have a note habit in place before starting. A note can be one line about what stood out, the mood it left, or why the rating was given. The note does not need length, only a clear time to write it. Decide whether each entry should also include the date watched, where the film was watched, or a reminder to revisit the film.

Pick a regular day and time for the diary, so logging a film becomes a routine rather than a catch-up chore. Decide who keeps the diary and whether more than one person logs to it.

Step by step

Set the rating scale and write down what each point means, so the same rating always stands for the same level of enjoyment.

Choose the one place where every film is logged, and open it from the same screen each time.

When a film ends, write the title first, then the rating according to the chosen scale, then a short note about what stood out or how it felt. Keep the note specific enough to explain the rating, such as a memorable scene, the story, the performances, or the overall mood.

Add the date next to each entry, so the diary shows the order films were watched, not just what was logged.

Note the source of each film, such as cinema, a streaming channel or disc, if the diary should show where a title was seen.

Review the entries once a week. Read the notes you have left, correct a rating that now feels wrong, and spot any film you logged but forgot to finish.

Keep a running list of films still to watch next to the diary, and log those films the same way when they are watched.

If a diary entry is missed, add it on the next regular day rather than abandoning the habit.

Tools that can do it

Watcharr is made by the team that publishes this site. You paste one public IMDb list and get one link for Radarr with the movies and one for Sonarr with the shows. ^[1] Each link acts like a small Radarr or Sonarr server, so Radarr checks it every 15 minutes and Sonarr every 5. ^[1]

The page shows the list's covers in a row, each opening TMDB's plot, genres, rating, backdrop and trailer. ^[1] It accepts any public IMDb watchlist or list from the desktop site, the phone site or IMDb's other-language pages. ^[1] The links are built from the IMDb list's id, so the same list always gives the same two links. ^[1]

Watcharr runs as one Cloudflare app with a Cloudflare database, plus a GitHub job that reads IMDb. ^[1] The hosted version needs nothing to install and no account. ^[1] It looks up TheTVDB ids through TVMaze and TMDB, leaves out shows it can't match, and tells you which ones it skipped. ^[1] If you sign in, it re-reads your list about every 15 minutes and warns you when a list fails three reads in a row. ^[1] Signed-in users can combine several IMDb lists into one Radarr link and one Sonarr link for the whole household, and a title that is on two lists is added only once. ^[1]

Watcharr shows the list's covers in a row, each opening TMDB's plot, genres, rating, backdrop and trailer. ^[1] For a diary that keeps your own rating and a personal note with each film, check whether the record of the film's details is enough, and where your own rating and note will be stored. A diary app, a notebook or a spreadsheet can each provide a place to record a rating and a note. Compare how each option handles dates, search, editing and keeping entries together before choosing a method.

Common mistakes to avoid

Avoid changing the rating scale partway through, because then an early four and a later four no longer stand for the same thing. Keep one scale across all entries.

Avoid logging films in more than one place. A title noted in a diary app and again in a notebook is counted twice and blurs the diary.

Avoid leaving the diary for long stretches. A missed film is easier to add on the next regular day than to recall weeks later.

Avoid writing a note that says nothing, such as only the title again. Let the note hold the reason behind the rating.

Avoid recording notes with no date. Without a date the diary cannot show the order in which films were watched.

Things to check before you choose

Check how a tool stores the rating and note beside each film, and whether the record is kept for the movies you watch or only for titles you add to a list. Check how a tool handles the details it shows, since a list that loads partly may leave a film without its description. Check what a tool asks for before it opens the diary, and what it does with the titles you send. Compare those details with the way the diary is kept before choosing a method.

Frequently asked questions

How can movie diary keepers log each film with a rating and note?

Choose one rating scale and one place to record titles, then write the title, rating and a short note for every film. Add the date watched if the order matters to the diary. A regular review helps catch missing entries and makes it easier to keep the record consistent.

Can Watcharr record a personal rating and note for each film?

Watcharr is made by the team that publishes this site. It shows the list's covers in a row, each opening TMDB's plot, genres, rating, backdrop and trailer. ^[1] It accepts any public IMDb watchlist or list from the desktop site, the phone site or IMDb's other-language pages. ^[1] The links are built from the IMDb list's id, so the same list always gives the same two links. ^[1] Check whether these details meet the diary's needs, and where personal ratings and notes will be stored.

What should be checked before choosing a movie diary tool like Watcharr?

Check how a tool stores the rating and note beside each film, and whether it keeps the movies you watch or only titles you add to a list. Check how the tool handles the details it shows, what it asks for before use, and what it does with the titles you send, before choosing a method that matches the diary.

Does Watcharr need anything installed to start?

Watcharr is made by the team that publishes this site. The hosted version needs nothing to install and no account. ^[1] A keeper pastes a public IMDb list and gets a link with the movies and one with the shows. ^[1] The code is available to read under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 licence, with older versions under MIT. ^[1]

Is Watcharr for commercial use?

Watcharr is made by the team that publishes this site. Commercial use is not licensed, and no commercial licence is for sale. ^[1] The hosted version needs nothing to install and no account. ^[1] For a private diary of films, check that a personal list of titles falls within the use a tool allows before choosing it.

Its code is available to read under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 licence; older versions remain under MIT. ^[1]

Try Watcharr

Sources

Watcharr's own description of itself (the product of this site's publisher)