Terms of Use

Last updated: 2026-07-25

What this is

The Kernel is an independent, demo-scale film review project. It's built to explore what a review site could look like with verifiable, tamper-evident data — it is not affiliated with Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic, TMDb, OMDb, or any studio or streaming service. Scores, box-office figures, and "Kernel Score" methodology described on the site are illustrative of a real methodology, applied at small scale; treat figures here as informational, not authoritative.

Submitting a review

Anyone can submit a star rating and a short comment on a film, with no account required. By submitting one, you agree not to post:

Spam, advertising, or content unrelated to the film being reviewed
Illegal content, harassment, or content that impersonates another person
Anything you don't have the right to post, or that infringes someone else's rights

Submissions are permanent. Reviews are written to an append-only log that cannot be edited or deleted — by you, or by the site. This is a deliberate design choice (it's what makes every figure on the site independently verifiable), not an oversight. Don't submit anything you might later want removed.

Automated or abusive submission (spam bots, coordinated rating manipulation, and the like) may be blocked or rate-limited without notice.

No warranty

The Kernel is provided "as is," without warranty of any kind. Film data is sourced from third-party APIs (TMDb, OMDb, YouTube) and may be incomplete, delayed, or inaccurate. Nothing on this site is investment, legal, or professional advice.

Changes

These terms may be updated as the project evolves; the date above reflects the latest revision.