# Is there any movie we ALL would agree is good (if not great)? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [January 2, 2026, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271 "2026-01-02T14:18:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/161 "2026-01-02T20:43:35Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > My best guess is something relatively simple but well made and generally loved, one of the pixar or disney movies like Lion King or Toy Story or Shrek. I was thinking Lion King. I checked IMDB and it looks like it has better ratings than Toy Story and Shrek. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/162 "2026-01-02T20:50:15Z")
Cruella was such fun I bought it. Cracking sound track too! ---
**Author:** ![Zoobi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/13edae/32.png) [@Zoobi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoobi)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/163 "2026-01-02T20:50:30Z")
I didn’t think your going to find one, but the best chance you will have is to find a move that older white men consistently like because that seems to be the dominant demographic here. You can almost immediately rule out any foreign films, or movies with a large non white male cast. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/164 "2026-01-02T20:55:50Z")
I’ll nominate **My Cousin Vinny**. I haven’t heard of anyone who doesn’t like it. Maybe **Trading Places** too? As for **Saturday Night Fever** , I’m not saying it’s a good movie or not a good movie, but I hated it. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/165 "2026-01-02T20:58:26Z")
_Trading Places_ is one of my favorite films but it includes one use of the n-word (by one of the villains) and Dan Aykroyd in blackface. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/166 "2026-01-02T21:05:32Z")
I liked Rocky, not so much the sequels. The Lost Boys Jaws To Wong Fu thanks for everything! Julie Newmar Thelma and Louise- who didn’t like T&L? Is there a poll yet? ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/167 "2026-01-02T21:10:52Z")
> [@chela](#): > > Is there a poll yet? I lack the facility to create a poll in which any subsequent poster is able to offer a new nominee - which has not been nominated before, and any single no vote removes/strikes through a nominee. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/168 "2026-01-02T21:11:54Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > But if we count “haven’t seen it” against a movie Haven’t seen means I abstain. Abstaining is not voting against. Now if everybody bar one abstains on a certain movie, the proposal was evidently erroneous. I’d say we handle that problem then, I don’t think it is a likely outcome. This said, I abstain for all Disney movies. That is not voting against. That is not wanting to see them and not wanting to talk about them. > [@SenorBeef](#): > > There is no way you’re going to get people under 30 to enjoy very many movies made before the 1980s. They’re just too slow, they lack a lot of refinement that movies have made over the years. I guess you and I have a very different take on the concept “refinement”. Since M-TV films are cut fast (well, since _Natural Born Killers_, I’d say, which really looked like M-TV on steroids), scenes are short, CGI is so much better than Jurassic Park now (no vote against Jurassic Park that, just a point of reference for CGI), the technique for manipulating audiences so they can’t stop watching is almost scientific today, and very interesting to observe, but that is not refinement. ETA: And yes, this is a vote against Natural Born Killers, should anyone propose that abomination. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/169 "2026-01-02T21:13:26Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I’ll nominate **My Cousin Vinny**. I haven’t heard of anyone who doesn’t like it. Ooh, good one. I saw it for the first time last year (I think), and made my whole family watch it as soon as I could. So fun! But I don’t know if everyone will love it, because people are people. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.winston_oboogie/32/2945_2.png) [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Winston_OBoogie)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/170 "2026-01-02T21:24:56Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I doubt there is. But I’ll offer **Casablanca**. Who hates that one? My wife. The running joke in our house is that she has never been able to stay awake through the entire movie. It is, of course, my favorite movie of all times (and not because of my wife’s sleeping). For my nomination in the thread, how about _Harvey_? Jimmy Stewart and a 6-foot tall invisible rabbit. How can you not love it? (and, now, I’m going to go back and read the entire thread) ---
**Author:** ![icon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c6cbf5/32.png) [@icon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/icon)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/171 "2026-01-02T21:28:14Z")
Also a favorite of lawyers who note that most of the courtroom parts of it are actually accurate. `//i\\` ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/172 "2026-01-02T21:40:16Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I’ll nominate **My Cousin Vinny**. Yes, very good choice! ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/173 "2026-01-02T22:28:48Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I’ll nominate **My Cousin Vinny**. I love that movie! But, again, people’s sense of humour is the Great Divider. I think the OP question is fundamentally flawed as there’s probably no movie ever made that absolutely everyone likes, especially the comedies. ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/174 "2026-01-02T22:33:13Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > That and _Treasure of The Sierra Madre._ Yes, I second this. This movie is perfect from beginning to end. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/175 "2026-01-02T22:43:48Z")
> [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](#): > > For my nomination in the thread, how about _Harvey_? Jimmy Stewart and a 6-foot tall invisible rabbit. How can you not love it? A big favorite of ours. We probably watch once a year and still laugh every time. Jimmy Stewart thought he was too young for the role (and maybe he is), but he was still very good in the part. A similar movie _Arsenic and Old Lace_ is pretty good, too, EXCEPT for Cary Grant’s over-the-top chewing of the scenery. And he’s usually good in this type of comedy. As he is in _My Girl Friday_. I’ll add my vote to that one. We were poor when I was growing up, so I didn’t see movies in the theaters except maybe once a year. Instead, I watched all the old 1930s and 1940s movies on TV. I developed a taste for them that more modern movies with all their technical slickness don’t satisfy. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/176 "2026-01-02T22:49:56Z")
Wait, we are looking for a movie that everyone _on the straight dope message board_ thinks it’s at least good? Not one that, i dunno, 95% of Americans would agree is good? ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/177 "2026-01-02T22:52:50Z")
No, just one that those of us participating in this thread agree is decent. I don’t think we can do it! ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/178 "2026-01-02T22:53:06Z")
> [@F.U.Shakespeare](#): > > …I once loaned the DVD to a friend of mine, an educated fellow about fifteen years younger than me, who liked war movies. I had to explain to him the background reasons why Rick could not return to America. While the script states explicitly that Rick ran guns to the rebel side in the Spanish civil war and Haile Selassie’s forces in Ethiopia, you had to understand that since the U.S. was officially neutral in those conflicts, Rick had essentially committed treason. I haven’t seen the movie (although maybe I should based on the comments in this thread), but that makes no sense. Treason is very specifically defined in the U.S. Constitution as levying war against the U.S. or giving “aid and comfort” to its enemies. Supporting a cause in which the U.S. is neutral doesn’t cut it. From what I can find in a Google search, the movie is vague about why Rick can’t return to the U.S., with lots of speculation by various parties, but nothing definitive—and certainly not treason. ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/179 "2026-01-02T22:53:29Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I’ll nominate **My Cousin Vinny**. I’ll second that one. Or third it, or whatever. Good stuff, and I don’t recall ever seeing or hearing anything negative about it. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271/180 "2026-01-02T23:09:42Z")
Two that are generally well-regarded, and in my view endlessly entertaining: - _ **Rear Window** _ - _ **The Maltese Falcon** _ Another great Hitchcock (in my view), _North by Northwest_, has been mentioned and disqualified. But neither RW nor TMF has been mentioned yet. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-movie-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026271.md?page=10)