# Movies you'd have to be kind of an asshole not to like **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 3, 2008, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680 "2008-08-03T05:40:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2008, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/61 "2008-08-03T23:41:57Z")
I remember one of the movies I had to see for my films class in college was **Meet Me in St. Louis**. I thought it was great, and then was half amused, half dismayed to go to class and hear the TA tell us all the reasons we weren’t supposed to like it. Well, I’ve seen it a bunch of times since then, including this week, and I still like it. So _there_, Mr. film snob TA! Of course, the reason he didn’t like it was for sociopolitcal reasons, not because of the quality of the filmmaking, but I don’t care…it’s a fun movie. Some things just shouldn’t be taken so seriously. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2008, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/62 "2008-08-03T23:46:30Z")
[QUOTE=Sarahfeena] I remember one of the movies I had to see for my films class in college was **Meet Me in St. Louis**. I thought it was great, and then was half amused, half dismayed to go to class and hear the TA tell us all the reasons we weren’t supposed to like it. Well, I’ve seen it a bunch of times since then, including this week, and I still like it. So _there_, Mr. film snob TA! Of course, the reason he didn’t like it was for sociopolitcal reasons, not because of the quality of the filmmaking, but I don’t care…it’s a fun movie. Some things just shouldn’t be taken so seriously. [/QUOTE] Huh, all the film snobs I know \*love \*that movie. Your TA was an idiot, not a snob. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/63 "2008-08-04T00:06:03Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > So this rich white plastic surgery victim came in the other night, holding a copy of Be Kind Rewind with her fingertips, like it was crawling with earwigs, and wanted a refund because it was stupid. I kicked her in the cunt of course, but it set me thinking . . . _What?_ Be Kind Rewind was a plothole- and cliche-driven piece of dreck whose sole redeeming feature was Gondry’s innovative meta-set design. After The Science of Sleep, it was a massive disappointment and really made me lose a hell of a lot of faith in Monseiur Gondry. How could that make me an asshole? The Science of Sleep was a beautiful story told in a courageous and innovative way. Be Kind Rewind was just another piece of Hollywood pap. (ETA: Except for being 20 years behind where Hollywood is now. Which is worse, Hollywood in the 80s or Hollywood now?) Among many other problems, Black’s character’s transformation was cheesy and absurd (in a bad way) and Mos Def’s character had no believable reason to love Fats Waller so much. The most disappointing thing about it is that the premise was so cool and it could’ve been such a better movie. In fact, I feel the exact opposite from you: I think it’s almost universally unlikeable and wonder how anyone could have been satisfied by it. Granted, she _was_ an asshole for demanding a refund. To answer the actual question in the OP, I’d have to say Amelie and Science of Sleep top my list, followed closely by Evil Dead and Army of Darkness. > [@Otto](#): > > Does it make you an asshole if upon hearing about the movie it sounds completely uninteresting or even stupid? Because a lot of the movies mentioned in this thread I have absolutely no interest in. Same here. > [@Eutychus](#): > > Maybe she would have liked it better had it been remade by two video store clerks. Oh man! That would’ve been awesome, **lissener**! Why didn’t you do it? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/64 "2008-08-04T00:16:48Z")
Feel good/fun movies: Groundhog Day When Harry Met Sally Kpax Sisters Act City Slickers Serious movies: Spitfire Grill Steel Magnolias With Honors Movies only guys get: Monty Python and the Holy Grail (hell, all the the MP movies) Animal House Caddy Shack ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/65 "2008-08-04T00:20:08Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] Huh, all the film snobs I know \*love \*that movie. Your TA was an idiot, not a snob. [/QUOTE] I’ll buy that. He was also a geek who identified too much with the geeky guys that Judy Garland dances with and kind of makes fun of at the dance. I get his point…I’m a geek, too…but I think he let that color his perception of the movie. As I said, he was negative about the message of the film…the maintenance of the status quo, the appreciation of midwestern values, etc. But as I said, he didn’t criticize the quality of the filmmaking. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/66 "2008-08-04T00:25:46Z")
[QUOTE=Magiver] Movies only guys get: Monty Python and the Holy Grail (hell, all the the MP movies) Animal House Caddy Shack [/QUOTE] My sister is going to be shocked that she doesn’t “get” her favorite movies (or her complete Monty Python collection). All that wasted money on DVDs! ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/67 "2008-08-04T00:26:28Z")
[QUOTE=Magiver] Movies only guys get: Monty Python and the Holy Grail (hell, all the the MP movies) Animal House Caddy Shack [/QUOTE] You are hanging out with the wrong women, cuz Python rules my world. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/68 "2008-08-04T00:26:48Z")
[QUOTE=Sarahfeena] I’ll buy that. He was also a geek who identified too much with the geeky guys that Judy Garland dances with and kind of makes fun of at the dance. I get his point…I’m a geek, too…but I think he let that color his perception of the movie. As I said, he was negative about the message of the film…the maintenance of the status quo, the appreciation of midwestern values, etc. But as I said, he didn’t criticize the quality of the filmmaking. [/QUOTE] Hmm. To me that movie is about the strength of family, even when obstacles present themselves. I think what sets it apart from other such movies is that it shows the family with warts and all (well, not was warty as _Visitor Q_, perhaps), but one of the strongest themes in the movie is about death. Your TA vastly oversimplified it and missed its strongest points in favor of surface irrelevancies. ---
**Author:** ![gravitycrash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@gravitycrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gravitycrash)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/69 "2008-08-04T00:30:06Z")
- There’s something about Mary \* - It’s a Wonderful life \* - True Grit \* ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/70 "2008-08-04T00:52:45Z")
The whole premise of the OP is flawed. Why is it that you would have to be “kind of an asshole” not to like? Frankly, I find the fact that the poster talked about kicking the customer in the “cunt” an indication to me that a certain amount of assholualness exists in that person, making me suspect every movie on the list given. But even if we accept for a moment that there might be movies that only someone who is an “asshole” wouldn’t like, they would have to be few and far between. They certainly don’t include your all-time fave movies, because a lot of such movies are very iffy as to who will like them. I personally love _The English Patient_, but I can easily see why a large number of potential viewers would think it quite over-pretentious and thoroughly gagable as a result. So the list needs to be populated with movies that are so nice, so sweet, so generally funny, etc. that no one could DISLIKE them without being generally a jerk to begin with. That’s not a lot of movies. _Bambi_, maybe, but certainly those who enjoy modern action movies are hardly going to be taken with the cute and cuddly kids movie. Same with _Beauty and the Beast_, etc. Or take _Casablanca_. If you are like me and love to suspend your disbelief, it’s a wonderful movie. But we know from the threads that pop up regularly here that there are plenty of people who just plain dislike that movie. I, despite being a golfer all my life, plain hate _Caddyshack_. It’s not really all that funny, and much of the humor is the kind I avoid whenever possible. And _Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion_ was really stupid, quite unlikeable. Disliking those doesn’t make me an asshole of any type (even if there are other reasons to tag me with that title 😃 ). ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/71 "2008-08-04T01:39:34Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] Hmm. To me that movie is about the strength of family, even when obstacles present themselves. I think what sets it apart from other such movies is that it shows the family with warts and all (well, not was warty as _Visitor Q_, perhaps), but one of the strongest themes in the movie is about death. Your TA vastly oversimplified it and missed its strongest points in favor of surface irrelevancies. [/QUOTE] Oh, I don’t know, I can see his point. There’s definitely a streak of that sentimentalized, return-to-the-good ol’ days feeling you saw a lot of during wartime. I think he also saw the family as being rather stifilingly middle-class and overly paternalistic. Which I think is a fair assessment. I agree with you, though, that there are themes that are more profound. Of course, this class was, like, 20 years ago (gulp), so I don’t remember everytihng he said exactly, but that was the thrust of it. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/72 "2008-08-04T01:50:07Z")
Those issues are due to the fact that it’s a portrait of a different time; you wouldn’t require a movie set a hundred years ago to specifically address and attack everything that’s changed in the interim, else be an invalid work? Insisting that any movie of turn of the century middle America must address the fact that the culture was “stifilingly middle-class and overly paternalistic” is, IMO, pretty ridiculous. In other words, the \*movie \*wasn’t stifilingly middle-class and overly paternalistic; the culture it portrayed was. And nonetheless managed to be a beautiful movie about the strength of family. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/73 "2008-08-04T01:53:36Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] Those issues are due to the fact that it’s a portrait of a different time; you wouldn’t require a movie set a hundred years ago to specifically address and attack everything that’s changed in the interim, else be an invalid work? Insisting that any movie of turn of the century middle America must address the fact that the culture was “stifilingly middle-class and overly paternalistic” is, IMO, pretty ridiculous. In other words, the \*movie \*wasn’t stifilingly middle-class and overly paternalistic; the culture it portrayed was. And nonetheless managed to be a beautiful movie about the strength of family. [/QUOTE] I can’t and don’t disagree with anything you say here. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/74 "2008-08-04T01:54:42Z")
[QUOTE=Sarahfeena] I can’t and don’t disagree with anything you say here. [/QUOTE] Didn’t mean to be argumentative; just trying to get at what he could’ve objected to. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/75 "2008-08-04T02:07:15Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] Didn’t mean to be argumentative; just trying to get at what he could’ve objected to. [/QUOTE] Oh, who knows? I think his general point was that art should push boundries and question the status quo, not celebrate it. But what he didn’t get was that the point of movie was (IMO) about more enduring themes. ---
**Author:** ![Charger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df788c/32.png) [@Charger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charger)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/76 "2008-08-04T05:09:12Z")
[QUOTE=pepperlandgirl] My sister is going to be shocked that she doesn’t “get” her favorite movies (or her complete Monty Python collection). All that wasted money on DVDs! [/QUOTE] I actively hate Monty Python movies, and I am male. Your sister may be the counter-balance to my existence in the universe. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/77 "2008-08-04T05:38:41Z")
[QUOTE=Magiver] Movies only guys get: Monty Python and the Holy Grail (hell, all the the MP movies) [/QUOTE] Say what? What planet are you from where women don’t “get” Monty Python? I love MP and own the complete DVD set of the show, plus most of the movies. (Don’t have _Meaning of Life_, but that one grosses me out during the vomit scene so I don’t like rewatching it. I have issues with vomit.) ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/78 "2008-08-04T06:10:57Z")
I’m not going to say that someone is an asshole for not liking these movies, but when I hear that someone doesn’t like them, I think a little less of them: The Godfather I and II Raiders of the Lost Ark Apocalypse Now The Usual Suspects Monty Python and the Search for the Holy Grail ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/59ef9b/32.png) [@Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_fight_the_hypothetical)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/79 "2008-08-04T13:01:40Z")
[QUOTE=Argent Towers] _Forrest Gump._ [/QUOTE] Guess I’m an asshole, too. To me movie is vapid. No plot - just a succession of CGI and gags. Anyway: Miller’s Crossing. ---
**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2008, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-youd-have-to-be-kind-of-an-asshole-not-to-like/458680/80 "2008-08-04T13:10:50Z")
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