Inspired by the linked XKCD. Using 60% instead of 50% because that’s an easy filter to apply on rottentomatoes.
I’ll go first: I think “Sherlock Holmes: A game of Shadows” was awesome, from the plot to the characters ,and especially how they used screen-play to highlight how Sherlocks head works in these absurd ways.
The Book of Eli with Denzel Washington (who said his son got him to sign on to the movie) and Mila Kunis. It’s 47% on Rotten Tomatoes.
This has always been easy for me because my favorite movie is “Speed Racer” which has like a 40% on Rotten Tomatoes.
A movie that was genuinely before its time. Would fit right in these days with “Barbie” and “Everything Everywhere All At Once”.
Sucker Punch (2011) (technically not made in my ‘adult’ life, since I was still a teenager, but semantics)
I genuinely love this movie and don’t understand how it’s rated so poorly. Sure it’s got that Zack Snyder-flair (but I think it actually works for this??) and it can seem a little gratuitous. but even then to me it seems like it’s done to make a point instead of just ‘hehehe hot girls in short skirts’. The action is awesome, the sets are cool af, the soundtrack is phenomenal, the cast is great, the plot is interesting, (and sure, maybe me being a mega gay means I’m giving this a higher rating then I otherwise might have) - it’s just overall a great movie to me. I do wonder how much of the ratings is a symptom that all women lead films suffer from review bombs by some upsetti-spaghetti men, but even I think this movie is not generally liked by most.
I enjoyed Waterworld (I know it’s 90s, but I feel it gets too much hate). The premise and aspects of the screenplay were ridiculous, but the set design and effects were fascinating, and I was surprisingly invested in the characters. Kevin Costner and the kid had good chemistry. Dennis Hopper was a campy joy to watch as the villain as expected.
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Indeed, that movie is actually scary! Like proper scary, not how most movies are.
Just goes to show you some people (critics) have no taste. That movie was awesome!
I love the dismissal of critics as a while because a movie you like scored low. It’s a good creepy movie but it’s no that good of a movie overall. It’s very cheesy, the dialogue is poor, the story is minimal. It’s got great creeps though.
I enjoy critics that can clearly convey the reasons why a movie might hit or miss for their audiences. I detest critics that have to dissect a film and score it low because it doesn’t meet their art house ideals.
And there are people who feel the exact opposite of me. Which is fine.
That is absurd! Event Horizon is the only legit Doom movie. That was the idea all along and they even used the sound clip from the spawn cube in the movie.
Also, although I am not a 40k fan, I know some people see this as a prequel to Warhammer 40k as the moment in which humans first get to use the Warp.
It was ruined by execs, but it is a masterpiece, especially in the production design.
I unironically like Sucker Punch. And no, it’s not only because of scantily clad women.
90 minutes of music video montage. I liked it back then too. It looked very video-gamey and edgy.
I really enjoyed the concept and story of In Time, which apparently has a 37% tomato meter and 51% audience score. That was probably the first less than 60% one I saw I particularly liked.
Edit: I take it back, I choose Elysium. It has a 59% audience meter and I frickin LOVE that movie, all the way down to the villain being super crazy and virtually unintelligible.
The Cable Guy
I really like Hardcore Henry, it was just a fun movie to watch but apparently the audience disagrees
Hook (29% TomatoMeter).
But it was released in 1991, so it wouldn’t count for the XKCD version. Also the audience score is 76%, so not really an unpopular opinion I guess.
RUFIO! RUFIO! RUFIO!
I’d no idea it was rated so poorly, that’s a gem of a movie! I legit just bought it earlier this month
Okay, so I hit rotten tomatoes, checked movies that were both critics rotten AND audience rotten, and started perusing titles for stuff I thought rocked.
abraham lincoln: vampire hunter
waterworld
hellboy (how is this in here? I thought this was universally loved)
mars attacks! (56 and 53, I also feel like this shouldn’t be on the list. It’s too good, and not in a bad way)
x-men origins: wolverine (again, is this not considered awesome? I thought it was great)
daredevil/elektra (I enjoyed both movies)
and now for stuff I’ve watched at least five times:
the ninth gate
planet of the apes (2001)
avp
prince of persia
green lantern
van helsing
I’m dead serious, I was looking forward to MORE green lantern movies along the lines of that first one. I bought it on amazon having heard nothing about it (I was in a societal black hole for a few years there), watched it, loved it, and was like “sweet, when’s the sequel coming out? I wanna see sinestro do his thing…wow, this did not do well. Fuck.”
I wasn’t super happy with ALL of the writing, but that’s comic stuff in general and I thought the whole thing was still quite enjoyable. Like, multiple rewatches enjoyable. Seeing Hal Jordan on screen and having Ryan Reynolds do it was great.
Rotten Tomatoes has both a critic score and an audience score.
If your pick has a low critic score but high audience score, that means it was formulaic or unoriginal but probably lots of fun.
Movies with a high critic score and low audience score are usually more artsy, film-festival stuff.
Don’t know if it quite qualifies, since it’s sitting at a 61% audience score, but my favorite horror film Event Horizon has only a 33% critic score. I find a lot of good horror movies sit at or below the 60% mark on Rotten Tomatoes though. If a horror movie is too well rated, it’s probably not very scary and not interesting to me.
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Sure it’s campy and way over the top. But I kinda like it for that. Plus the characters are awesome, the designs were pretty cool, and Sean Connery was great. Currently at 17% on rt.
I genuinely loved that movie. Watched it as a kid, got the DVD as I got older, downloaded the torrent when I was in college, watched it with friends for movie nights.
I had no idea it was supposed to be bad! I loved the weird fusion of camp, bizarre situations, and genuine action. Although I did have to chuckle at one of the reviews criticizing its CGI, written twelve years after the movie came out.
I actually like:
- Hackers (31%)
- National Treasure (46%)
- Bandits (64%)
