# "Great" Old Movies That Go Sour With Time **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 20, 2003, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191 "2003-06-20T15:39:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/1 "2003-06-20T15:39:58Z")
One of my favorite movies when I was a kid (this should give away my age) was Robert Mitchum’s “Thunder Road.” It was, for me at least, the pinnacle of car-chase things until “Bullitt” and “French Connection” came along a decade or better later. Nowadays, car-chase things are getting old almost as soon as they are released, so it’s not just the clunkiness of the car chases that makes “Thunder Road” so big a disappointment for me now. There are quite a few movies from that same era that have worn pretty well and that I’m not embarrassed to admit were even “great” movies from those days. And they still are. However, what movies that you thought were 4-star films when you first saw them have become 2-star or less with the passage of time? Era of release isn’t as important as the way they slide on your own scale of measure over the period of, say, five years or longer. Another way of thinking of this would be: what “great” movies that you recorded (or bought) five years ago can be safely taped over now? ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/2 "2003-06-20T16:20:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zeldar \* > \*\* > Another way of thinking of this would be: what “great” movies that you recorded (or bought) five years ago can be safely taped over now? \*\* E.T. the Extraterrestrial is on the top of my list of movies that soured with age. How a movie that was so loved at the time can become such a stinker in less then a decade is amazing. Marc ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/3 "2003-06-20T16:23:24Z")
_West Side Story_. Wonderful music, but the sight of clean cut, polo shirt-wearing, gang boys _gran jeteing_ down the streets of Manhattan and fretting over bringing guns to a rumble…seems rather quaint now. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/4 "2003-06-20T16:26:49Z")
I can no longer watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s, simply because of Mickey Rooney in yellowface. ---
**Author:** ![susan\_foster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@susan\_foster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan_foster)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/5 "2003-06-20T16:47:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MGibson \* > \*\*E.T. the Extraterrestrial is on the top of my list of movies that soured with age. How a movie that was so loved at the time can become such a stinker in less then a decade is amazing. > > Marc \*\* Wow - that’s the movie I was thinking of when I opened this thread. I went to see it in the theater with my cousins when they re-released it - my cousin was in tears, I walked out afterwards saying how much it sucked. Susan ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/6 "2003-06-20T16:54:00Z")
I still like E.T. as much as ever. It’s rather sad to see people thinking it’s deteriorated; it’s movies in general that have gotten worse with age, not E.T. I tend to be able to watch a movie and understand the context of its time, so it’s rare that something I liked in the past disappointments me later. The only example I can think of immediately is the TV show, “My Favorite Martian.” ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/7 "2003-06-20T16:58:32Z")
This may sound like blasphemy to some, but every time I see “The Wizard Of Oz” it drops another notch on my personal scale. Same for “Singin’ In The Rain.” Kinda makes me wonder if those “Top Movies Of All Time” lists aren’t based on reviews or box-office reactions when they were first out. It took me maybe five attempts to make it through “Citizen Kane” without falling asleep. Once I saw it all the way through I saw why some of the reviewers love it so much. Maybe I would have, too, if I had seen it back then, but I hadn’t been born yet, so the reruns were all I could check out. As for the Bela Lugosi “Dracula” – it was just funny the first time I saw it. I never would have given it more than two stars. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/8 "2003-06-20T17:00:21Z")
_Red Dawn_ is a movie I loved as a kid and now recognize for crap. But I don’t know if that is more a change in me or a change in the times. Similarly to E-Sabbath above, I can’t enjoy _Holiday Inn_ for the Lincoln’s birthday song. Though obviously I wasn’t around to view it in social context, _A Gentleman’s Agreement_ is one where I can appreciate it intellectually, but it just seems so out of time to watch it now. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/9 "2003-06-20T17:28:57Z")
I still like Thunder Road ☹ What’s wrong with it? ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/10 "2003-06-20T17:53:18Z")
Well, Manduck, for one thing, have you ever been driving at a fairly high rate of speed and flicked a cigarette into the window of a car you were passing? Wouldn’t the wind just blow it away from both cars? (I have yet to try it, but the movie makes it look like a snap.) Another thing is the way the camera seems to find a new background every time the POV changes. Continuity errors in many scenes. I still love Keely Smith’s singing and the scenes she has with Mitchum, and I still like Mitchum in anything he’s done – including “Thunder Road.” It’s not really his fault, although he produced the thing and even wrote the music. (I even learned the “Ballad Of Thunder Road” and can still sing it word for word). Even liked Jim Mitchum although his acting was never up to his dad’s. And even Bat Masterson did some good stuff in it. But when I persuaded my son to see a “classic” with me, and we got about halfway into it, I couldn’t help but laugh at how lame some of those car sequences were. Tires squealing on a dirt road, just for starters. ---
**Author:** ![constantine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3bc359/32.png) [@constantine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constantine)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/11 "2003-06-20T18:00:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by E-Sabbath \* > \*\*I can no longer watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s, simply because of Mickey Rooney in yellowface. \*\* I feel the same way. I find Rooney’s whole performance jarring and weird. Not only is he in yellow face, but IIRC he also has buck teeth! As to other movies, I must say I loved the **Breakfast Club** when I–as a shy, nerdy high school student–saw it in the theater, but I find it tough to watch now. The funny scenes are still funny, but the serious scenes, where the kids whine about how their parents suck, are extremely tedious. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2003, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/12 "2003-06-20T20:19:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by obfusciatrist \* > Though obviously I wasn’t around to view it in social context, _A Gentleman’s Agreement_ is one where I can appreciate it intellectually, but it just seems so out of time to watch it now. As soon as I saw the thread title, I knew that someone was going to bring up _Gentleman’s Agreement_, which is my favorite movie. A number of people have told me that they find it dated, and I’m always surprised. I’ve seen the movie many times, including very recently, and I’m always struck by just how applicable it is to the world we live in today. Its message that people who do nothing are just as culpable as the overt bigots, and that bigotry can only exist when ordinary people fail to stand up against it is at least as relevant today as it was in 1947. For many years after it first came out, _Foul Play_ was my favorite movie. At this point, it’s hard to figure out why. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2003, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/13 "2003-06-21T00:51:34Z")
**Zeldar** I have to admit I don’t remember those flaws, but it has been a few years since I’ve seen it. I guess I should give it another look to see if I still like it. But I don’t necessary demand realism from that kind of movie, as long as it’s fun to watch. ---
**Author:** ![kylen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@kylen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kylen)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2003, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/14 "2003-06-21T00:55:04Z")
Register my vote for The Exorcist. After watching the re-done version a few years ago, I couldn’t control my laughter. The bit about putting Raegan on prozac was priceless. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2003, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/15 "2003-06-21T00:58:25Z")
Manduck, if you forget how great you used to think it was and just _pretend_ it just came out last week (yeah, you do have to strain to get around those details that date it, like cars and clothes and such) it will be a barrel of laughs after a few scenes. My son and I used to watch a thing called “Matinee at the Bijou” that showed old 40’s and 50’s stuff: features, serials, comedies and even newsreels. It was grade A nostalgia for me, and a real hoot for him. I don’t know if that show was network or local, but it was too much like MST3K for us. After you watch it again, I’d like to hear your take on it. ---
**Author:** ![Briny\_Deep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/briny_deep/32/17188_2.png) [@Briny\_Deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Briny_Deep)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2003, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/16 "2003-06-21T02:07:38Z")
_Gone With The Wind_ is not quite the same since we’ve all become enlightened. I love that movie, but I’m sorry that it essentially celebrates something that was bad. And I say this as a somewhat unreconstructed Southerner. _Foul Play_ is the movie that I most want to be on TV when I’m sleepless all night! I’ve seen the first half of that movie at 2:00 a.m. about a jillion times. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2003, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/17 "2003-06-21T02:35:28Z")
Well, can I list **part** of a movie? I like **Pulp Fiction** a great deal, although it is vasly overrated, but I cannot sit through that fucking Fabiene whining all fucking night about her fucking paunch and fucking pancakes fucking section!☹ I find this secion badly written and horribly acted by the actress playing Fabienne. For my tastes it brings the film to a dead stop, and I skip this bit, and go straight to Willis returning to his apartment for the watch. But to be fair, I didn’t like this section much the first time I saw it. Sir Rhosis ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2003, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/18 "2003-06-21T03:01:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zeldar \* > \*\*Manduck, if you forget how great you used to think it was and just _pretend_ it just came out last week (yeah, you do have to strain to get around those details that date it, like cars and clothes and such) it will be a barrel of laughs after a few scenes. > \*\* I guess I should mention that I saw it for the first time only about 10 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Gail](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Gail](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gail)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2003, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/19 "2003-06-21T03:02:55Z")
When “Arthur” came out, I thought it was hilarious…Now I don’t think there is anything very funny about constant drunkeness. I still like Sir John Gielgud in the movie, though. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2003, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191/20 "2003-06-21T03:04:24Z")
Manduck, that ought to be plenty of time to let it simmer in your memory before seeing how much things have changed in that time. Your tastes included, perhaps. For that matter, I find it hard to believe that Blade Runner and Terminator are as old as they are. They hold up! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-old-movies-that-go-sour-with-time/183191.md?page=2)