Days of Thunder
I think Speed Racer is a masterpiece
oops double post :(
ANYTHING from m. night shyamalan.
Legend. Sorry (slinking away in shame).
Actually love is pretty strong and its more that I love what it was supposed to be and not what it was. The director’s cut was an extraordinary improvement over the theatrical cut and the Goldsmith score transformed the film for me.
And Tim Curry’s Darkness is still the best cinematic devil ever.
Someone liked Legend…
On the less artsy side of my tastes, I really liked ALIEN 3 — even better than ALIENS, which is total heresy to anybody I mention this to.
ALIEN is my favorite of the series because it’s an amazing sci-fi horror film (big horror film buff here). And while ALIENS IS really great (when I FIRST saw it at age 12, it was instantly my favorite film at that time), it is more a sci-fi action piece rather than true sci-fi horror, and I’m just not much of a fan of action movies. So when the franchise returned, with ALIEN 3, to the “there’s one really bad-ass monster on the loose in the dark and, shit, we don’t have any weapons to fight it with” approach that is a classic horror plot convention (and that worked so well in the first film) I found the film much more enjoyable than just watching a lot of aliens getting blown up left and right. Although I’ll admit that’s still kinda fun.
Side ALIEN note: While I didn’t care for ALIEN: RESURRECTION at all (don’t know anyone who did), it DOES have one of my favorite bad movie lines ever — Sigourney Weaver to Winona Ryder after they’ve killed all the aliens: “Well, you did it. You saved the Earth.” Maybe it’s the delivery and the context more than the line itself, but it cracks me up just thinking about that line.
Fire Walk With Me
Alien is AMAZING (the direction, the cast, the script, art direction, etc.)
Aliens is also great (especially for an action film), but I will agree, as I get older my appreciation for it seems to slightly diminish.
Alien 3 though? I remember watching Alien 3 for the first time when I was like 13 or 14 and remember thinking it was decently entertaining, but wasn’t close to Alien or Aliens (which was my favorite of the 3 at the time). I saw it again a few months ago, and just thought to myself how could this film be so bad? The situation of the story, which you mentioned you enjoyed, I thought was great, but there were so many elements that drove the film in the other direction. The acting, the screenplay and the fact that the alien looked completely CG for most of the film (any non close-up) just reduced its credibility entirely. It’s so baffling considering these types of films have potential and they’ve got a mass appeal. It’s even more insane to think that David Fincher was the director and I think it’s quite justified why he abandoned his cut of the film and in my eyes, disowned his own film. I’m not trying to diss you because if you enjoy a movie, you allow what you like about it to overcome the other parts of the film.
Thanks for your comments David Lee. I probably should qualify my enthusiasm for the film by saying that I haven’t watched it in quite a few years, and my comments/attitude about it are based mostly on my initial response to the film, which might be a bit different given a re-viewing. Maybe I’ll have an ALIEN marathon soon to revisit all three and see if my long held opinion on this still holds up.
To add another film to this list that people I’ve talked to seemed to hate but I quite enjoyed was MR. BROOKS.
And to reply to Ed Gordon… I’m a huge Lynch fan and couldn’t stand FIRE WALK WITH ME the first time I saw it… but I’ve watched it a couple more times since and each time I’ve enjoyed it more and more. It helps to try and not hold it up to the series, but to consider it as much of a stand alone film as you can. When I’ve watched it with the attitude of not holding it accountable to the series, then it works much better for me.
The Wanderers (Philip Kaufman’s earlier film that got bashed by critics when released same year as the Warriors)
Stand and Deliver (even with the sweep at the Indie Spirit Awards I know many people that think this film is corny and over the top)
She’s gotta have it (Spike Lee’s passive masterpiece)
Finding Forrester (Gus Van Sant’s “Studio” Film, I love it a lot)
The Rules of Attraction (from the “real” writer of Pulp Fiction, Roger Avary)
Selena (Gregory Nava who had a criterion masterpiece with El Norte, highly underrated film about the great latina artist)
Panic Room (David Fincher’s follow-up to Fight Club)
The Wanderers (Philip Kaufman’s earlier film that got bashed by critics when released same year as the Warriors)
Stand and Deliver (even with the sweep at the Indie Spirit Awards I know many people that think this film is corny and over the top)
She’s gotta have it (Spike Lee’s passive masterpiece)
Finding Forrester (Gus Van Sant’s “Studio” Film, I love it a lot)
The Rules of Attraction (from the “real” writer of Pulp Fiction, Roger Avary)
Selena (Gregory Nava who had a criterion masterpiece with El Norte, highly underrated film about the great latina artist)
Panic Room (David Fincher’s follow-up to Fight Club)
I’m also down with “Ken Park” it sucks that you can’t buy a copy of it in the states — at least that I know of. I’m a bit of a sucker for Clark, anyway, but that film was really digging into some worthwhile material.
Sadly, I also have to throw my wretched hat into the “Titanic” ring. I actually reviewed that flick for one of the city papers — long before any hype had come up about it — and I can’t front and say it didn’t completely blow me away. The romance was pretty standard and silly, but the rest of the film was so beautiful and strangely beguiling, it totally took me in. I think I actually smoked a cigarette when I left the theater and I am normally staunchly anti-smoke.
Magnolia, definitely. Punch Drunk Love, ditto.
How about a weird little horror flick from Larry Fessenden called “Wendigo”? The ending is totally silly — and really doesn’t work — but everything else that leads up to it is really, really good. At least as far as I can remember.
Joe’s Apartment.
I’m the only person I know who finds singing/dancing cockroaches hilarious.
Live Free Or Die Hard. Seriously, one of the best comedies I’ve seen in a long time. Bravo, Bruce Willis.
I think I just realised why the transfer for Death Becomes Her is so poor.
(Sydney Pollack’s best performance btw.)
The Prestige
Insomnia (American remake)
Godard’s “King Lear”!
Also: Second the motion on “Fire Walk With Me”— a great film, why do even Lynch fans seem to dismiss it?
I really love Wanted. I don’t know why, maybe because I always wanted to fly and secretly bend bullets? I also like bullets going through donuts.
From these posts, it seems like we’ve got a few different definitions of “most people” in operation. Hence “Titanic” (which I also love) is a movie that “most people”—meaning most of the people who would join The Auteurs—hate, but that “most people”—meaning most of the movie-going public—love. Then there are the backlash films – films once heralded but have since fallen from hipster favor (like “Pulp Fiction”). And finally, of course, are the films universally reviled by both cohorts: popular and critical disasters.
From the category of movies hated by the cognoscenti, my own list would include almost every Spielberg film except for “The Lost World.” The anti-Spielbergianism of most film academics is, in my opinion, undeserved and unproductive.
From the category of movies hated by the general public that I love – shoot, way too many. It’s almost meaningless to mention them.
I will mention “Pulp Fiction” again as a film that everybody fell in love with in 1994—one of the most exhilarating opening night movie-going experiences of my life—but by 1996 was rejected by a certain crowd.
And from the category of movies hated universally by all? Only ones that come immediately to mind are the Matrix sequels (especially #2, which really surprised me).
fire walk with me is like a guilty pleasure on a cold winter night. and armageddon. its like so completely off its rocker but i love it (especially when im in a destructive bad mood).
I’ll defend SUPERMAN RETURNS until the day I die. It’s 60% a really fascinating character drama that just happens to cost $200 million dollars. Suddenly, though, it remembers that it’s supposed to be a “comic book movie,” and it all goes straight to hell from there.
Also, The Shining. I just do not see the appeal. Duvall drove me crazy, CRAZY!!!! Nicholson was good, but whatever, and Tony I just giggled like a silly school girl whenever he appeared. I’ll get lynched for this, but I just do not like this film.
mr. sweetums: “ANYTHING from m. night shyamalan.”
I don’t think anyone really loves anything by him, except for Sixth Sense.
@zilla: exactly why i posted him in this thread.
zilla: The Shining. I just do not see the appeal. Duvall drove me crazy, CRAZY!!!! Nicholson was good, but whatever, and Tony I just giggled like a silly school girl whenever he appeared. I’ll get lynched for this, but I just do not like this film.
aren’t we supposed to be talking about films we love that other people hate? sounds like this belongs in the hate corner
ugh… i swore i’d never double-post.
Labyrinth. Kind of a guilty pleasure I guess, but it’s just so fun that I can’t seem to feel guilty about it.
Justin T
Ken Park and The Fountain. Although only people on the internet seem to hate The Fountain…most people I have shown it to loved it.