Some of the most beloved movies did not do well at the box office and were poorly reviewed by critics. It wasn't until years later that movies like Blade Runner, The Thing, The Big Lebowski, Mallrats, and many others found a cult following and begin to receive the appreciation they deserve. What other movies have been released more recently, that received poor reviews and low box office, that might also one day be more highly regarded? Any hidden gems?
I think The Watchmen will eventually be more appreciated than it is. Outstanding casting. I think it is a work of art. Yes it has a different ending. I think of the graphic novel as a storyboard. Don't fault the final product just because it was revised from the storyboard version.
GOOD topic! But man, that's so hard to say. What movies that are considered "eh" now will be beloved in ten or twenty years? Wish I knew: I'd try to get merchandising rights :lol
Captain Ron. Watch Escape From New York and then immediately watch Captain Ron. Its Snake if WW3 never happened.
I know the movie "Taken" was met with mixed reviews and only mild box office success when it came out, before quickly falling into obscurity. And yet whenever I go over a friends house, all of them just happen to own it.
I have mixed feelings on Watchmen. At one point, I'm glad they did it. I think it was a valiant effort and a good deal of the story remains intact and they were able to keep many of the key parts of the story that made the story great. But, I think so much of what made Watchmen a great book get's lost in Snyder's style. Too much of the movie is wrapped up in Snyder doing what Snyder does and so much attention to the 'look' that the story and parts of it are lost... I never got a sense of tension or that something was building throughout the film... just seemed to condensed, maybe they tried too much? ...and yeah, no Bubastis and the new ending took a bit out of the film as well (the latter much more than the former). Ultimately, it's a flawed movie that I will watch and enjoy from time to time. ...and yeah, it was left a tad underappreciated by the general audience. And I'll always wonder how it would've played out as premium cable TV Mini-series. This could've been an amazing 12 part/hour mini-series... Ebert gave it 4 stars, and it gets a 7.7 on the iMDB - so it definitely was appreciated by some... just never really found an audience.
Donnie Darko. Yeah, it gets 8.8 on the iMDB, so it get some attention - it's just a film we don't hear enough about. Some folks get it, some don't. The Star Wars Prequels. So many folks just don't get them - and a lot of them are the fanboys who can't accept they grew up.
Fantastic film. Get it. Don't get. Or 'get" in your own unique way. Music helped make the film what it is...
Clearly it is my opinion... and I feel very strongly that they're unappreciated and underappreciated (especially by fanboys). I marvel at the folks who just don't appreciate the Star Wars prequels for what they are. I also realize this is a potential thread derailment and another potential pointless debate at the prequels... so let's just end it here: I feel they're unappreciated and I that's on topic. My nephew (7) and niece (almost 6) love these films in a way that I loved the OT when I was similar in age.
All good, I was quoting another under appreciated movie - big lebowski - a bit older than most films in this thread though :thumbsup
Na...Blade Runner, The Thing, The Big Lebowski, Mallrats, still suck (IMO). Bad movies are bad forever. I'm reminded of that every time I try to give one a second chance. I keep thinking "sure, it's gotta get better" but they never do. An Ace is an Ace, and crap is most always crap. The problem is that movies that were good (say in the 70's and 80's) are no longer suited for the world of today (ie times change), and now those movies that were once good...now suck.
This is about listing movies you think are unappreciated... not ****ting all over other folks' opinion. Seems you're only in this thread to pick a fight... and you're doing it by making yourself look foolish... you pick movies that are highly regarded here and attack them? Blade Runner alone is the #15 Science Fiction movie on the iMDB - and that's just public opinion (or at least the public as so much as those that are registered to vote on that site), IGN and Total Film both call it the #1 Sci Fi movie of all time. Something that was once good does not just suddenly suck. If you really think that you really should reevaluate you membership to this forum. Because that's just a sad way to think... frankly, home video sales refute this completely even. You wanna disguise your misguided attack on others' taste by disguising it as opinion, fine... start a thread and do it there.
Hey JD, No need to be a get your panties in a knot. I wasn't criticizing/attacking anyone else's opinion - I plainly wrote IMO = In My Opinion in the first line of what I posted. And everything else that I said was purely generalization.
There was this cartoon from 2006 called Monster House that got so-so reviews from critics and viewers, even one of the writers spoke badly about it, but I thought it was one of the best kid-friendly movies I had ever seen.
"IMO" isn't an excuse for being a dick. You saw what the topic was. You know what site you're on - you know movies like Blade Runner, etc. are films close to many of our hearts and rather than stick to the topic and post about a film you feel in unappreciated - you go off on another tangent. No need for panties. I've got my big boy undies on. (...and I've never even seen Blade Runner all the way through).
I used to hate when people would use the phrase "you didnt like it because you didnt understand it," but more and more I must say that is the main reason some movies are not initially appreciated, myself included. There are of course times when you certainly DO understand a movie and still dont like it, everyone has their own taste and opinion.
This may be a good film but IMO not a good kids film as my 3 kids all had nightmares after it and they will never watch it again.
I thought it was a shame how low Bunraku flew under the radar, but I'm also a huge fan of Gackt. I always liked the movie Secret Window (a Johnny Depp movie without Tim Burton) and few people have even heard of that one. There is also a movie called Rat Race that I love, and talk to so many people that have seen it and love it, yet it shows up at wallyworld for 5 bucks or less.
I second the vote for Scott Pilgrim. I went out and BOUGHT that movie on like the first day it came out on DVD. When it was in the theaters, I had to DRAG a friend of mine to it. He loved it, of course. I still rub that in his face occasionally. another film that sort of comes to mind is the Iron Giant. I don't recall this film being particularly popular when it came out - and today about 70% of people I know don't know what it is or haven't seen it. These types of movies have a certain underdog charm. I almost feel like since they were so unpopular, it gives me more justification in liking them. Must be my inner hispter talking. /barf
Big fish with Ewan, great movie, so many things in there, that on multiple viewings (except for Danny Devito's naked butt), you notice something new. The scene where he faces the two karate dudes, motions them to hold on a moment, puts on the night vision gear, then clicks off the light, kills me every time. This movie is so unique, it's no wonder the studio couldn't market it for ****.
One movie that I thought was really unappreciated until I lived the experience was Office Space. That movie was so much better after I had a job that I hated juuuust like that.
I think the Jeff Bridges True Grit is under appreciated. Don't get me wrong I love the Original with the Duke, but Bridges was very true to the book, and I could just see him as an old crotchety crusty Deputy U.S. Marshal, he made the character his own with his portrayal.
Well, he did earn an Oscar nomination for that role. :lol It was a great performance - maybe too good even as I had some trouble understanding him in the begining of the film.
I'll add Idiocracy - another Mike Judge film - to that. Didn't care for either Office Space or Idiocracy at first. But, they definitely age well and grow on ya.
:thumbsup I like this film a lot , as well. Tim Burton kinda showed that he still had it with this. Not that his other more typical Burton films are bad, it's just that they're your typical Tim Burton films. That said, I kinda dug his Alice in Wonderland - although I didn't like the look of his Mad Hatter and Queen of Heart (and some of the other visuals) - overall, I thought it was pretty unappreciated.
Donnie Darko is one of my all time favourite movies. I liked Idiocracy and we're nearing some of its predictions about the world and mankind in general. I agree about Scott Pilgrim being unappreciated. I will add Children of Men (2006) and Never Let Me Go (2010) to the list.
Let Me In. I know it had good reviews. But, a lot of us fanboy types wrote it off because it was "remake" of the Swedish film (Let the Right One In). I was just reminded this morning when author Joe Hill tweeted and blogged about Let Me In and how good it is and how he to was predisposed to not like it. (As an aside, Joe's Dad Stephen King is pretty famous for something, too - not sure what though :rolleyes). I've argued/discussed Let Me In v. Let the Right One In in the past (and really don't want to know). To me, I think the additions and subtractions make LMI a slightly better, slightly more powerful movie. Both are very stroing and it's hard to remove yourself from the experience when you've seen one or the other first. In this world of sparkly vampires - doyourself a favor and watch both of them. Even if they are already appreciated. http://joehillfiction.com/2012/01/the2011gimmelist/
I've watched "The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus" again and I like it even more. Tom Waits is outstanding. Did the departure of Heath Ledger during filming hurt expectations that Gilliam would be able to salvage the movie?
I saw Scott Pilgrim on DVD and thought it very good then was surprised to find out it had bombed in cinemas. The Star Wars point makes sense IMO. When the generation that can't help thinking in PT and OT terms is dead and gone a new generation will just see SW as a whole story and the view of one being better than the other could change. Its worth noting that reaction among fans to Phantom Menace may be very negative but with the wider audience it was a massive hit. I believe the first film to come along and top its box office success was Avatar and that was like ten years later. Money isn't everything of course but my memory of 1999 is that kids LOVED Phantom Menace. Comic Book Guys not so much.
