So Premier Magazine is going to publish, in its upcoming issue, a list of what its writers think are the 20 most overrated films of all time. The link above will take you to the article which gives the movies and also the reasons (and rebuttals) for which they think these movies are overrated.
Notable inclusions are some classics like Gone With the Wind and The Wizard of Oz as well as what some consider modern classics like American Beauty and Forrest Gump
So what do we think, D&D? Are these guys spot-on, or full of it? Or a mixture of both? Which movies do you think have no place on this list?
And which movies do you think should have definitely made it?
The complete list is:
1.American Beauty
2. Chicago
3. Clerks.
4. Fantasia
5. Field of Dreams
6. Chariots of Fire
7. Good Will Hunting
8. Forrest Gump
9. Jules and Jim
10. A Beautiful Mind
11. Monster's Ball
12. Moonstruck
13. Mystic River
14. Nashville
15. The Wizard of Oz
16. An American in Paris
17. Easy Rider
18. The Red Shoes
19. 2001: A Space Odyssey
20. Gone With the Wind
I've only seen two of those movies. Beautiful mind was good, not great. Didn't know it was rated particulalrly well. 2001 is so, so boring. I mean, wow is it boring.
I basically support the whole list, minus 2001, although I'd bump Forrest Gump up to the top, and just leave Chicago in the top 10 (because seriously, who rates that movie besides the Academy that one year?).
Also, if these authors were below the age of 25, Donnie Darko would be a mortal lock for the top 5, and I say this as a fan of the film.
Clerks. is overrated? Half the people I know don't like that film. It was propped up like crazy in the 90s, sure, but the Kevin Smith love has gone down to a reasonable level since then.
Field of Dreams? One of the most overrated of all time? They must not watch many movies.
And no Citizen Kane. Huh. They don't have the cajones to shit on that.
Otherwise, it's mostly them not liking the 90s/early 21st century and some classics. If G&T has taught me anything, it is to become numb to such declarations of "All Time" in any entertainment genre.
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AegisFear My DanceOvershot Toronto, Landed in OttawaRegistered Userregular
edited December 2006
...This trifle's lame acting and anemic plot were celebrated for their street cred because the slackers among us could relate and the critics all wanted to seem cool...
Well that reviewer has some bias against Clerks for some reason. While unconventional and slightly crude, I don't see how it could rate so high on the list itself.
Clerks. is overrated? Half the people I know don't like that film. It was propped up like crazy in the 90s, sure, but the Kevin Smith love has gone down to a reasonable level since then.
Clerks is often overrated. It succeeds on many levels (dialogue and low-budget film-making), but once you're past that, it's just a funny story. No real deeper meaning or memorable techniques or aesthetics or anything, but at the time it was released it was seen as connecting strongly to the zeitgeist of the age, which, in hindsight, it was just a popular comedy, about as relevant as American Pie, except it succeeded on a shoe-string budget.
Isn't the one where it was 90 minutes of Halle Barry's soft core porn?
That was just boooooring.
It was a horrible film and Halle Berry won Best Actress. Can you explain why she won Best Actress, without either admitting it was political shenanigans because she happened to be nominated during the year they were finally paying Denzel back for the multiple ones they've robbed him of, or because they wanted to fuck her? Because besides those two reasons I don't even know why she won, and besides the wanting to fuck her thing, I don't know why the movie was ever made.
They forgot the Godfather movies, The Shawshank Redemption, and the LOTR movies.
Shawshank is loved by many, but not that highly rated among serious film critics. Minus Godfather III which is an aberration, most of the praise the Godfather films receive is their just due. The LOTR films did a big box office, and they were respected for what they accomplished as fantasy films, but they're hardly held up in the pantheons of film history as anything besides a novel approach to filmmaking and special effects.
Clerks. is overrated? Half the people I know don't like that film. It was propped up like crazy in the 90s, sure, but the Kevin Smith love has gone down to a reasonable level since then.
Clerks is often overrated. It succeeds on many levels (dialogue and low-budget film-making), but once you're past that, it's just a funny story. No real deeper meaning or memorable techniques or aesthetics or anything, but at the time it was released it was seen as connecting strongly to the zeitgeist of the age, which, in hindsight, it was just a popular comedy, about as relevant as American Pie, except it succeeded on a shoe-string budget.
Clerks is overrated by its fans, yes, and the only credit it is given outside of them is for the dialogue. The story behind its production is still interesting. I'd hardly say that it is overrated anymore.
And no Citizen Kane. Huh. They don't have the cajones to shit on that.
Gim, I thought you knew something about film.
I did not appreciate it when I watched it. It's lightyears ahead of Birth of a Nation, but does not offer a compelling story anymore. I should probably watch it again just to see if I still feel the same way, but for now I don't feel bad about dismissing it as a somewhat lesser film. I'd rather watch Night of the Hunter.
And no Citizen Kane. Huh. They don't have the cajones to shit on that.
Gim, I thought you knew something about film.
I did not appreciate it when I watched it. It's lightyears ahead of Birth of a Nation, but does not offer a compelling story anymore. I should probably watch it again just to see if I still feel the same way, but for now I don't feel bad about dismissing it as a somewhat lesser film. I'd rather watch Night of the Hunter.
Appreciating Citizen Kane isn't necessarily about how much you're entertained. It's about the pioneering film aesthetic used by Orson Welles to make a mainstream success. It features rather radical editing for its time, which has since gone into everyday usage by the film world, so it might not strike you as the giant departure that it really was for the time that it was created. The camera angles and meanings spoken through use of artistic aesthetics, without being painfully heavy-handed in its use like many art films before it had been, was also incredibly relevant. To top it off, the subject matter was a veiled critique of society, not just a story about a sad rich man. It's an incredible film which trailblazed many techniques which have since become commonplace, which might be why some uninformed viewers might simply view it as a boring, unremarkable film, but put in its context, it's just as amazing and revelatory as everyone says it is. Easily one of the greatest films ever made.
I just don't think I should have ot put effort into appreciating a movie.
It's about context. These types of discussion are often about context, and if you want to understand why something has such a sterling reputation ~70 years after the fact, yes, you'll have to put some effort into understanding the context.
And no Citizen Kane. Huh. They don't have the cajones to shit on that.
Gim, I thought you knew something about film.
I did not appreciate it when I watched it. It's lightyears ahead of Birth of a Nation, but does not offer a compelling story anymore. I should probably watch it again just to see if I still feel the same way, but for now I don't feel bad about dismissing it as a somewhat lesser film. I'd rather watch Night of the Hunter.
Appreciating Citizen Kane isn't necessarily about how much you're entertained. It's about the pioneering film aesthetic used by Orson Welles to make a mainstream success. It features rather radical editing for its time, which has since gone into everyday usage by the film world, so it might not strike you as the giant departure that it really was for the time that it was created. The camera angles and meanings spoken through use of artistic aesthetics, without being painfully heavy-handed in its use like many art films before it had been, was also incredibly relevant. To top it off, the subject matter was a veiled critique of society, not just a story about a sad rich man. It's an incredible film which trailblazed many techniques which have since become commonplace, which might be why some uninformed viewers might simply view it as a boring, unremarkable film, but put in its context, it's just as amazing and revelatory as everyone says it is. Easily one of the greatest films ever made.
I enjoy reading about it. I enjoy looking at examples of its cinematography. And some of the cuts/transitions used are divine and inspired. Technically, it is sublime. I appreciate it, but I do not enjoy it, and I daresay that is the case with most people who have seen it.
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Also, if these authors were below the age of 25, Donnie Darko would be a mortal lock for the top 5, and I say this as a fan of the film.
Field of Dreams? One of the most overrated of all time? They must not watch many movies.
And no Citizen Kane. Huh. They don't have the cajones to shit on that.
Otherwise, it's mostly them not liking the 90s/early 21st century and some classics. If G&T has taught me anything, it is to become numb to such declarations of "All Time" in any entertainment genre.
Well that reviewer has some bias against Clerks for some reason. While unconventional and slightly crude, I don't see how it could rate so high on the list itself.
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Isn't the one where it was 90 minutes of Halle Barry's soft core porn?
That was just boooooring.
Gim, I thought you knew something about film.
Edit: Donnie Darko.
Yes it had great camera-work and SFX, but damn every scene, concept and fight was ripped from some anime.
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So many shitty movies that people love. So many.
Titanic
Scarface
I agree with your other choices, especially Napolean, but goddamn did I expect a lot out of Scarface and boy was it a HUGE letdown.
I fell asleep halfway through, woke up and didn't feel like finishing it.
Shawshank is justly rated
oh Citizen Kane
The game or movie? I felt the same about both -_-
I would throw up the Godfather as well, I saw it after I read the book, and the book was WAY Better
Lord of the Rings I'll give you, but the Godfather and Shawshank Redemption are awesome movies and deserve every bit of praise they receive.
The movie, there's no way I'd go near the game.
You broke my heart Fredo.
I did not appreciate it when I watched it. It's lightyears ahead of Birth of a Nation, but does not offer a compelling story anymore. I should probably watch it again just to see if I still feel the same way, but for now I don't feel bad about dismissing it as a somewhat lesser film. I'd rather watch Night of the Hunter.
And Fantasia, how is that overrated? Its great for what it is.
The Wizard of Oz for its time is also pretty awesome from what I can tell.
Yeah, pretty much.
HOW THE HELL DID IT WIN BEST PICTURE
And he was IN LOVE!
Also, Mystic River was good. As was Million Dollar Baby. You shut the hell up.
Donnie Darko and Napoleon Dynamite, on the other hand, were mediocre at best.