Is The Sting underrated?

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Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy?
Some of the best music, acting, and plot I've ever seen in a movie, probably the best caper/heist film ever made.

But it's a little forgotten and even understated at times.

One guy on the forum even went so far as to say it was one of the only films that DIDN'T deserve Best Picture in the 70s. I think it deserved all of it's 7 Oscars.

So, what do you guys think?



I love The Sting (1973), and I share your feeling that the movie is unappreciated. It definitely deserved best picture in 73' (Though I really like Mean Streets (1973)).

I think it gets buried under Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) hype (which said hype is well deserved).



I don't know how it's rated. It's listed as 8.4 on Imdb, which is pretty good.

IMO it's a near perfect movie. When it came out in the '70s it was fresh, exciting, complex, and of course featured the dream team of Redford and Newman. Robert Shaw was excellent, and the supporting cast was first rate. The Scott Joplin music was the perfect era suggestion, and was fresh at the time.

It's difficult to judge a movie from '73 by today's standards, but I'd put it in the top 100 of all time, perhaps in the top 50.

~Cheers



The most loathsome of all goblins
i liked it when I first saw it, but it hasn't worn well with me. Their revenge seemed a bit lame for the death of their friend, not really enough.
That sums up how I feel about it.



I love The Sting...the chemistry between Newman and Redford is off the charts, the screenplay is superb, but did it really deserve Best Picture over The Exorcist?



I love The Sting...the chemistry between Newman and Redford is off the charts, the screenplay is superb, but did it really deserve Best Picture over The Exorcist?
Yes.
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Women will be your undoing, Pépé
I'm one of the fans of the movie as well. Never thought of it as being under appreciated, though. I mean, I do get that it's tossed beneath the shadow of Butch and Sundance (also a big fan of) and with the relationship being a bit more at odds than a long time partnership I do get how some would prefer B&S and think little of The Sting. I remember feeling that way as a little kid when it came out.
I don't at all, now.
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t's one my favorite movies of all time for sure. I didn't really think Butch and Sudance was that good and thought of it as quite the average outlaw movie. I feel that Butch and Sundance was kind of a flat Bonnie and Clyde cash in, that wasn't near as good, in comparison, but maybe that's just the way I see it.



Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy?
Gotta see this one again, been waaaay too long
I've just seen it again after only a couple of months from the first time. It's actually very rewatchable and more rewarding the second time.



I think so. It's an excellent movie that never seems to be talked about. Admittedly though, I do like Butch Cassidy a bit better.



I love The Sting! I even included it in my top 100 a few years ago.

It won 7 oscars, including best picture and best director, has an 8.3 IMDb rating (#91 on their top 250 films of all time) and an 84/100 score on Metacritic.

I wouldn't exactly call that "underrated".
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Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy?
Nah, I'd say it's rated fine. I love the film, but I know there plenty of others who do, so to call it "underrated" is kind of silly.
Not underrated. That's sort of the wrong word, since it did well with critics, so I'll edit the OP.

But it's a little forgotten, or understated. Even though it won best feature over The Exorcist,
the latter still far more popular.

Also, is there a reason why it has a 3.7 rating on this website? And that's even after I gave it a 5/5.



I don't actually wear pants.
Not underrated. That's sort of the wrong word, since it did well with critics, so I'll edit the OP.

But it's a little forgotten, or understated. Even though it won best feature over The Exorcist,
The Sting is still the forgotten one, and not for a reason I can understand.

So that's why I'm asking you guys.
Yeah, I'd say "forgotten" and "understated" are better words. Sting is a pretty popular film. It won seven Oscars, and has a strong critic-backing. It's just a little forgotten. Doesn't help it's sandwiched between the two Godfather Films.