Posted on 12/13/2006 5:40:45 PM PST by EveningStar
It happens to everyone who loves movies: You're in a conversation at a bar, or at a wedding, or online, and someone begins rhapsodizing about one of their favorite movies and you can't help but say, "Uh, that movie sucks. It's totally overrated." How two perfectly well-balanced individuals can have such drastically different views of the same film is one of the great wonders of being a film fanatic. It happens to us at Premiere all the time, enough so that sometimes we find ourselves questioning who we work with (boy, did it get ugly here when Love, Actually came out, and some of us are still snickering over our boss's love for Bowfinger, not to mention his affection for The Last Samurai). Well, we decided to let our staff go at each other regarding some of the more beloved movies of all time, and, sure enough, sobbing can still be heard coming from the bathroom stalls. Relationships have been strained. Egos bruised. Consider this a film lovers' quarrel, an admittedly rabid one.
(Excerpt) Read more at premiere.com ...
Agree with all of those, except I did like Forrest Gump.
My worst two, and I was bamboozled into seeing them (yes a woman was involved) was:
A Perfect Mind
You've Got Mail
Complete waste of time imo.
Ever see 'Crimes and Misdemanors'? It's one of the most morally astute films of the last 40 years.
PS: If you ever decide to see Badass, be sure to leave the little kiddies out of the room. There is plenty nudity, among other adult themes.
Like a lot of the films being named here, that was one I couln't sit through. I was SO ticked off when I sat through that borefest "A Perfect Mind" that the critics slobbered over because that Australian dude was in it. I felt the same way after reading "The STepford Wives". Pissed off I wasted that much of my life!
For the 1s I really know about from this list:
Fantasia – I would agree it’s a little dull. Mostly because one should not be expected to sit through several hours of endless instrumental “music videos”. 1 at a time is much better. But it is in its own way, brilliant.
Field of Dreams – Definitely overrated. Everyone remembers the nice fantasy of baseball ghosts all in 1 spot, and the re-connection to a dad, but what about the not-very-subtle Ode to the Commie Hippie Movement (as if there haven’t been hundreds of those)? That is a major annoyance for me and hence, I am in no hurry to see it again. If it happens to be on, OK, but with that “commie ideal” tripe, even clashing with (of course) monotonic robotic traditional conservative types (that ridiculous “meeting” where the wife proudly lashes out about how she’s from the ‘60s or something), I will not be deliberately watching it.
Chariots of Fire – I saw this once long ago. All I remember specifically is it was too long and dull. Good premise, but dragged out; “exciting” it most definitely is not. Typical non-American approach, I might say.
Forrest Gump – Definitely overrated. I can’t put my finger on it, but maybe it’s because it’s not as if this guy is so great. I think it would’ve been better if it had been shorter (again, the dragged-out dullness issue).
Moonstruck – I think it’s pretty well placed (now, more than 10 years later). Yes the men are ridiculous and it’s silly this “tortured” dope suddenly “passionately loves” this woman with no experience/”development”, but the latter is a fault with far too many movies anyway. It’s at least a rather entertaining movie, if not exactly in my mind truly romantic.
Wizard of Oz – Give the movie a break. It’s supposed to appeal to youngsters. Now, the truth is it wasn’t a big hit when it was in theaters in ’39, but it’s still a pretty good movie. My biggest problem with Oz is that Judy Garland never gets credit outside this movie for all the great stuff she’s done, except for those more in the know. Sometimes you’d think she never did another movie.
American in Paris – DEFINITELY overrated. Well, at least by critics then & now. Its popularity went down fast, exactly because again, it is too long and dull. While Gerschwin is great, that horrid 20-min “ballet”, purely instrumental, is not very pretty and is way too long in itself. Gets boring quickly. And again, why does this guy love this girl so much (besides, I always called Leslie Caron the “bulldog girl”, because her face looks like those MGM cartoon bulldogs) out of the blue? Never mind the fact that the adulation of Frenchie Paris is sickening (but was a trend in the ‘50s), because Paris is also overrated. This film is dirt compared to the fantastic “Singin’ in the Rain” of the next year. Apparently Kelly learned a lesson in that short time, too – the “ballet” should be shorter and include WORDS. Vastly superior to “Paris”.
2001 – Again, just plain boring and way too long.
GWTW – kick off the PC. While it is unfortunate about slavery, truth is it existed. In this movie it is just a matter of course, NOT at all a main point of the story. The slaves are incidental and also treated in their own way lovingly. The “dumb” 1s are pictured more for their cuteness than the fact that they’re not real smart (how is this different from FORREST GUMP, dedicated completely to a dumb guy?). Mammy in particular is pictured and even scored as a smart moral upright commanding mother of a woman. The less-important slaves are pictured as good people. Beyond the incidental slavery – which I suspect is ALWAYS the main reason detractors detract – this is a great story shown marvelously and moved along extremely well.
I kinda liked Youve Got Mail. :-)
I particularly liked the fact that the city itself (though mostly the upper west side of Manhattan, and admittedly sanitzied) served as sort of a co-star. If only NYC was run by actual conservative Republicans instead of liberal dems and Rino Reps.
How do you feel about the Kevin Kline movie "In and Out"? It takes place in the fictional town of Greenleaf, Indiana (though it was actually filmed in Long Island, New York, and New Jersey). (I dont hate Indiana. The movie "In and Out" actually makes "Greenleaf", Indiana look and sound like a wonderful place to live)
I hate Indiana because of Johnny Cougar Mellencamp. Please kill me now, so I don't have to listen to that Chevy commercial anymore.
Thanks for the recommendation---will watch for it on rerun cable. Heard it got rave reviews.
"It's a Wonderful Life" isn't too overrated generally (although it's not an extremely high-quality movie, anyway).
But, it is definitely overrated as a "Christmas movie". Because it is NOT.
Yeah, but there were NO fights and nothing got blown up! LOL!
I agree wholeheartedly on both counts. At least Titanic had decent special effects and nice art direction. The plot, though...blecccch.
I would add:
Brewster McCloud
Supposed testament to Altman's genius in the 70s; now utterly unwatchable. It must have been the drugs.
Last Tango in Paris
I still can't enjoy butter.
The best version of that story is "In the Good Old Summertime". Very funny, too. "You've Got Mail" is too long.
"Ever see 'Crimes and Misdemanors'? "
No
Two of my favorite movies...
Two more of my favorite movies. What's wrong with you people?
Script idea: They could have turned Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) plant a bomb in the Fox bookstore in ordewr to get rid of her competition. Hidden it between the pages of one of the millions of books they have displayed. The big, bad bosses of Fox Bookstore, knowing that there is a bomb on their shelves waiting to go off, decide not to notify the authorities or even their customers. Prefering to keep the store open, thereby putting all their customers in mortal danger.
Will Joe Fox find the right book in time and defuse the bomb before it goes off?
Will Kathleen Kelly shoot it out with the cops using her extensive collection of assault weapons at her store, while using her flighty accountant, Birdie, as a human shield?
Will Joe Fox's significant other, Patricia (the woman who makes coffee nervous, according to Joe), finally go postal, and try to set fires in Joe's bookstore with a variety of incendiary devices?
Will the mob pay a visit to Joe, demanding that he stop using references to the movie The Godfather, or else they'll fit him for a set of cement shoes?
All this and more in the long awaited sequel: "You've Got Mail 2: This Time It's Personal Mail"
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.