# Great(?) movie you just didn't think was great. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 29, 2011, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664 "2011-05-29T15:22:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/61 "2011-05-30T03:48:32Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > And, now I come away with what I always suspected------don’t tell people what you think is a good movie, or a good restaurant. People have too many different tastes. > [@Anamorphic](#): > > Why should that prevent you from telling people what you think is a good movie or a good restaurant? I actually like hearing people tell me why they hate movies I love, or love movies I hate. Differing tastes is a good thing. Guess I’m just an old softie. I, also, like hearing why people don’t like the movies I do. Thus, my quizzing **DTC**. But, in real life, if someone asks me where to eat, I try to probe them about what they like. Turns out, they don’t like what I do. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/62 "2011-05-30T04:01:22Z")
_Hard Day’s Night_ ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/63 "2011-05-30T06:54:21Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > Why _Ryan_? Was it the comedown from Omaha? Admitedly the beginning set a high bar, but the rest was very good, IMO. I too hated SPR. I don’t like Gone with the Wind. I didn’t love Big Lebowski. SPR, from the scene in the church where we meet the characters I knew who was going to live and die and what order. It was really a by the numbers WWII movie. Watch the mini series Band of Brothers. THAT is good. SPR, not so much. And personally I don’t ‘love’ The Godfather movies. I know they are well made. Well acted, directed, written, etc. but I just don’t connect emotionally with the characters. Oh and if you don’t like Apocalypse Now, watch “Hearts of Darkness” (the making of Apocalypse Now) Amazing look into how that movie was made. It’s a freaking miracle it was ever finished at all. Really, I think you would like that movie. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/64 "2011-05-30T09:21:53Z")
**No Country For Old Men** , just a big meh from me. I thought I should see the classics so in college I watched all AFI’s 1998 100 best movies ever made. #14 **Some Like it Hot** - you have to think men dressed as women is VERY funny then this will suck only moderately. Yeah, yeah, groundbreaking, gender-bending. Look, a classic is a movie that’s still great decades later. This doesn’t qualify according to everything thats right in the Universe. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/65 "2011-05-30T09:34:30Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > Watch the mini series Band of Brothers. THAT is good. SPR, not so much. It’s not bad, but it’s more of a tribute and less of a tale. The writers couldn’t really be critical of the characters in anyway thereby showing the frailty of the human condition and giving them depth because the actual people were alive, there, and about to do their opening monologue. I kept wondering what the side of the story was for the few people that got bad press (Captain Herbert Sobel, that red headed grunt). The tough guy chest pounding just got old after The Battle of the Bulge. ---
**Author:** ![Suil\_Dubh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85f322/32.png) [@Suil\_Dubh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suil_Dubh)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/66 "2011-05-30T09:56:45Z")
**Rebel Without a Cause** I really wanted to like this movie, but just couldn’t. I saw it quite a few years ago, so I forget why exactly I didn’t enjoy it, but I do distinctly recall being very disappointed. (I think I thought the pacing was too slow.) This is one of the few “classics” of cinema that I didn’t like, so the memory of not liking it is still distinct. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/67 "2011-05-30T12:08:43Z")
> [@tingbudong](#): > > Like I’ve said in previous threads like this…_The Big Lebowski_. It’s not shit, but I just don’t see what the big deal is. Yeah, I mean, it was okay. ---
**Author:** ![Ronald\_C.Semone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/cc9497/32.png) [@Ronald\_C.Semone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ronald_C.Semone)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/68 "2011-05-30T12:35:02Z")
This question comes up periodically on this board and I always give the same answer: _Vertigo_. I saw movie when it first came out and hated it. But it got such rave reviews and developed such a following that when it was reissued twenty years later, I watched it again. I hated it. A couple of years ago a new, restored version was issued and I gave it another chance. I hated it! The main character is a creepy weirdo. The femme fatale is a compliant cypher. The whole plot is ridiculous. A total waste of time. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/69 "2011-05-30T14:07:04Z")
> [@Suil\_Dubh](#): > > **Rebel Without a Cause** Jesus Christ, yes! I can’t believe I forgot it. James Dean wailing and carrying on like everything was the end of the goddamn world was just embarassing. I saw better acting from the drama troupe when I was in 9th grade. And the thing he was wailing about? His father dared to cook a meal while his mother relaxed. Christ again! Traditionally, it’s men who have been considered the world’s greatest cooks, so I don’t think it was too strange to see a man cooking even back in the 50s. I’m firmly convinced that if James Dean had lived, people would look back at Rebel Without a Cause as that stupid teenager movie he did when he was just starting out. Just like most of today’s big stars have a lame teen movie or TV show in their pasts. **East of Eden** was pretty good though. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/70 "2011-05-30T15:15:38Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > I’m firmly convinced that if James Dean had lived, people would look back at Rebel Without a Cause as that stupid teenager movie he did when he was just starting out. Just like most of today’s big stars have a lame teen movie or TV show in their pasts. I once read a piece where it was Marlon Brando who died in 1955 and James Dean lived to an old age. Brando became the legend who died young after making just a handful of films like _A Streetcar Named Desire_, _The Wild One_, and _On the Waterfront_. ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/71 "2011-05-30T16:30:30Z")
**I’m Not There**. 'Nuff said. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/72 "2011-05-30T17:35:42Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Jesus God, why were those three even made? They barely have plots. Plotless films ( or maybe _near_-plotless films ) can be interesting. At least for some folks. For example I’m a fan of the Mike Leigh film **Life is Sweet** , which really doesn’t have much of a plot. It’s more a “day in the life” film ( something Leigh is good at ) and works as a character study IMHO. From your list, I sort of liked **Lost in Translation** which was indeed pretty plotless, but was largely indifferent to **Broken Flowers**. ---
**Author:** ![surrounded\_by\_literalists](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8baadc/32.png) [@surrounded\_by\_literalists](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/surrounded_by_literalists)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/73 "2011-05-30T17:58:27Z")
> [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > I’ll say it. The Godfather. It insists upon itself. _Gone with the Wind_. This movie was a victim of ‘I read the book first’ syndrome. Scarlett O’Hara annoyed the hell out of me in the movie. She came across as a spoiled, vindictive, shallow, bitch. In the book she much more depth, purpose, and strength. I found _Fargo_ amusing although my husband, a native Minnesotan, didn’t like it at all. He thought the movie was insulting. When I visited Minnesota with him, I was tickled at the way the people of that state have a self depricating sense of humor about themselves, ie accent, fishing, passion for fishing, everybody elses passion for fishing, the importance of small talk, fascination with the weather, etc. I found it charming and saw it in the movie. If I didn’t know anything about Minnesota, I probably wouldn’t have found it funny. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/74 "2011-05-30T18:36:42Z")
_Citizen Cane_. _Its a Wonderful Life_. (But I loved _This You Call a Wonderful Life?_ SNL skit.) _Avatar._ _The Hurt Locker._ I watched _Apocalypse Now_, extended version, last night. I can understand why some people don’t like it, but I just like the experience of watching it and absorbing it to get a sense of the Vietnam War. It was a crazy era and and a crazy war. Someone mentioned The Hangover up-thread. Who considers that a “Great” movie? ---
**Author:** ![Maiira](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Maiira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maiira)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/75 "2011-05-30T20:02:39Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > There’s a difference between a genre and a specific movie. :rolleyes: Where did I say that “gangster film” was a genre? I mentioned it because I’ve tried watching several, and didn’t like any of them. People kept telling me “oh, well, maybe you’ll like Goodfellas.” Nope. There was no need to drag out Mr. Rolly-eyes. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/76 "2011-05-30T20:11:57Z")
> [@Anamorphic](#): > > Why should that prevent you from telling people what you think is a good movie or a good restaurant? I actually like hearing people tell me why they hate movies I love, or love movies I hate. Differing tastes is a good thing. Heh, what I get out of these threads, is a sense I like - well, almost everything. I’m always thinking “well, I liked that one - and that one - and that one, too”. It’s really rare that I actually dislike a movie. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/77 "2011-05-30T20:12:02Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > I should be in the Apocalypse Now target market sweet spot; white male, 39, served in the army, love guy movies. It has all the elements of greatness; great actors, great lines of dialogue, shit blowing up, The Doors, you name it. > > But, yeah, the movie’s a fucking mess. I was probably 14, 15 when I first saw it and even then thought “Jesus, this is some pretentious shit.” > > When they released Apocalypse Now Redux with almost an hour of additional footage, the very thought of watching it made me shiver. Another hour of that crap? Count me in as well. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2011, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/78 "2011-05-30T20:32:29Z")
Did any of you _Apocalypse Now_ haters see _Hearts of Darkness_? That was the documentary Coppola’s wife made of the filming of that movie. I thought it was fantastic, but then I liked the actual movie, too. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/79 "2011-05-31T01:18:15Z")
> [@surrounded\_by\_literalists](#): > > II found _Fargo_ amusing although my husband, a native Minnesotan, didn’t like it at all. He thought the movie was insulting. When I visited Minnesota with him, I was tickled at the way the people of that state have a self depricating sense of humor about themselves, ie accent, fishing, passion for fishing, everybody elses passion for fishing, the importance of small talk, fascination with the weather, etc. I found it charming and saw it in the movie. If I didn’t know anything about Minnesota, I probably wouldn’t have found it funny. Yeah, I’m a Minnesota native and when I first saw it I wasn’t so much offended as I took it for a cartoon. After watching it a few times I’m convinced the director and writer treated us with respect. And while some realism is lost with the heavy accent, the scenes illustrating real life here are just too many to name. I recommend _The Straight Story_ (1999) for a truly great Midwestern movie. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664/80 "2011-05-31T01:30:13Z")
The Coen brothers actually are from Minnesota. They didn’t intend anything as an insult. They grew up in St. Louis Park. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-movie-you-just-didnt-think-was-great/583664.md?page=5)