Top Ten Overrated and Best

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ObiWanShinobi's Avatar
District B13
Originally Posted by The Watcher
Really-Am I the only one that thought Lost in Translation was totally over-rated? It's not bad but it's just not that great either. That and damn KIll Bill-- watch Natural Born Killers-- the direction in Kill Bill is super similar--
I won't say that Lost in Translation was a bad movie, but I think a few too many people got high on Sofia Coppola.

Film Auteurship really ruined movie making for all people except for directors, actors, and critic snobs.

I hate Kill bill as well, ranked numer tres on my overrated list.

If I had a top 15, lost in translation might be number 15. Strike that, Ghost in the shell would be number 15.

Lost in Translation is 16.
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Originally Posted by Sedai
This thread is hilarious and fun.....

Oh, and it's couldn't care less...couldn't....


If one could care less, they care....

Lets put this to the test. Lets say a person comes to me and says "Hi I like soup" And I respond, "I couldn't care less." This would mean the amount of caring that I have at that moment could not be any less than what it is period. But what I am really saying is that I do not care at all.

Now if I said "I could care less" in response to the soup statement, you are right. It would be broken down to mean I care albeit not a heck of a lot. But in reality I am really saying I don't care. So either statement could be considered as meaning:
"What the Hell? Why are you telling me you like soup? Are you a whacko? Like I care..sheshhhhh go away."
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A system of cells interlinked
Ok, 7th, ok...I get the point, it's just one of my pet peeves... Here is another one, just random and unrelated, and no one has done this around here...

"I am going to try and do this activity...."

Try AND do... Which to me, means they will try the activity AND do something else...


"I am going to try to do this activity"

now that is more like it
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ObiWanShinobi's Avatar
District B13
Originally Posted by Sedai
Ok, 7th, ok...I get the point, it's just one of my pet peeves... Here is another one, just random and unrelated, and no one has done this around here...

"I am going to try and do this activity...."

Try AND do... Which to me, means they will try the activity AND do something else...


"I am going to try to do this activity"

now that is more like it

I will try and do your suggested course of verbacity.

Cliche, but you knew it was coming.



Originally Posted by The Watcher
Really-Am I the only one that thought Lost in Translation was totally over-rated? It's not bad but it's just not that great either. That and damn KIll Bill-- watch Natural Born Killers-- the direction in Kill Bill is super similar--
If you want an over-rated film, go with Natural Born Killers. I've never had amore uncomfortable movie experience. I guess Oliver Stone thought he was "artsy" by moving the camera around non-stop and throwing multicolored images of absolute bull**** that moved at a million miles an hour. I call it a "headache." The film tries to justify the senseless killings of Mickey and mallory by some kind of love plot and some mental thing about being a natural born killer, I dunno. There's no justification. It's just senseless killing meant to make an audience go "whoa! cool!"
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ObiWanShinobi's Avatar
District B13
Originally Posted by X Randeath X
There's no justification. It's just senseless killing meant to make an audience go "whoa! cool!"
*cough* Kill Bill *cough* Sin City.

I didn't say that!



Originally Posted by ObiWanShinobi
*cough* Kill Bill *cough* Sin City.

I didn't say that!
WARNING: "Kill Bill" spoilers below
Uma Thurman was shot in the head. At her wedding. By her former lover. And her child died. That alone si enough to warrant the "senseless" killing. Then, she discovers child is alive, and that BIll still loves her, etc. etc. The whole film was sparked by emotions.


But Sin City, I agree to a point. I think Marv had an excuse.


EDITED:To add Spoiler Tags ... Please remember not everyone has seen every movie.



A system of cells interlinked
Originally Posted by X Randeath X
If you want an over-rated film, go with Natural Born Killers. I've never had amore uncomfortable movie experience. I guess Oliver Stone thought he was "artsy" by moving the camera around non-stop and throwing multicolored images of absolute bull**** that moved at a million miles an hour. I call it a "headache." The film tries to justify the senseless killings of Mickey and mallory by some kind of love plot and some mental thing about being a natural born killer, I dunno. There's no justification. It's just senseless killing meant to make an audience go "whoa! cool!"
I concur! Never been a fan of this film, except for a couple of one liners I chuckled at, but the weirdness with Rodney, the crappy Scagnetti character, and as you mentioned, the terrible directorial choices made by stone put this one in my "not to be watched again" catagory....



Ok, Wow that was an awesome read!! I havent been able to finish long winded critiques, though this thread was rather easy to go through from begining to end. Maybe it was my certain admiration for Sedai, that kept me reading, Maybe it was how Obiwanshinobi had wanted for someone to convince him of their opinion(though didn't seem as open to it as he tried to be). Or maybe it was just the fact that it was all somewhat thought out and each time a new comment was made, it was made with diliberation, intent and was followed with good debate.
Im curious, in the last three months have you changed any of your overrated or bests?? Have you watched any of the movies suggested by Sedai, I know I intend to cause well I do enjoy watching new (to me) movies with an open mind, as I also intend to watch "Grave of the Fireflies".
I suppose that I can go over more of your posts. Athough, I just wanted this thread to have new life so that other new members might see your much debated list!
Oh and lastly, I understand what you mean on Jessica being a little too pretentious (my word, not putting words in your mouth!), the whole arguement was a bit, hmm how might one put it... teenage boy fantasyish sorta thing. Dont get me wrong nothing wrong with that its completely natural as you are a teenager! (with great skill I might add, maybe a future known critique..) Days after your last post she is "seen going into a hollywood porn store" Publicity Stunt!?!? (or did you have something to do with it?) It wasnt her!?! LoL
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Rebel Without a Cause. Made me laugh. Acting was a joke
Casablanca. Bored me silly
English Patient. Bored me to tears. Be patient, be very patient
Breakfast at Tiffany's. She's a WHORE! Can't they figure it out?
Brokeback Mtn. They weren't cowboys--they're sheepherders.



Originally Posted by limboslam
...Brokeback Mtn. They weren't cowboys--they're sheepherders.
Its a movie about herding sheep?? They might win an oscar for herding sheep???
heh! nice LoL



Thursday Next's Avatar
I never could get the hang of Thursdays.
Originally Posted by limboslam
Rebel Without a Cause. Made me laugh. Acting was a joke
Casablanca. Bored me silly
English Patient. Bored me to tears. Be patient, be very patient
Breakfast at Tiffany's. She's a WHORE! Can't they figure it out?
Brokeback Mtn. They weren't cowboys--they're sheepherders.
I agree with those picks except Brokeback Mountain...cowboys, sheepboys, so what?

Anyway, since this thread has had a bit of life kicked into it I thought I'd post my most overrated films...

The Shawshank Redemption. Seriously, don't tell me I'm the only one who thinks this is monstrously overrated? I'm not saying it's bad, but consistently in top 10 or 5 of all time lists? It's a prison movie. It's slow. I just can't believe it is so highly rated. It makes me think that some people rate it because other people rate it, not because they actually like it.

Chicago. Nasty, sleazy, style over substance. And that's just Richard Gere. Not one of the best musicals ever.

Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. All those oscars! One for each ending of the film, perhaps? Too many 'big moments', too much hairy Mortensen, too much bluster.

Closer. Yuk. Left a bad taste in the mouth. More of a play than a film. All the characters were so repulsive I didn't enjoy two hours in their company.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Pretty. Pretty dull. Pretty pointless.

The Exorcist. Not scary, not interesting.

Goodfellas. The greatness of the Godfather was that there was something to sympathise with in the mafia family, some likeable qualities. In goodfellas they are all psychos or wannabe psychos.

The Usual Suspects. This is a goood film, but I just don't think it is as brilliant as people say.

Midnight Cowboy. Didn't like this at all.

The Breakfast Club etc. I don't see the appeal of these stereotype movies. The bit in the Breakfast Club when the 'weird' girl takes her black make up off and suddenly becomes normal and fancied by the jock makes me want to throw up.



chicagofrog's Avatar
history *is* moralizing
Originally Posted by limboslam
Casablanca. Bored me silly
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A system of cells interlinked
This thread makes me want to throw up...To the people ragging on Casablanca:

Stop watching movies, right now, and take up gardening.

Why do people have to constantly compare Goodfellas and The Godfather? Aside from having the mafia in them they are nothing alike. I think they are both amazing films, but again, they aren't anything alike, at all. Ok, maybe a little bit, but the point of view is so different, that is comes across as a totally different, and interesting for different reasons, picture. This has been discussed to death on this site, dig around for some interesting thoughts on the two films.

The Exorcist - Very interesting, very well done, maybe not so scary...today anyway.

The Shawshank Redemption - I agree with you Thursday, although slow never means bad, to me. I think it's a good film, but overrated.

The Usual Suspects - It's the screenplay that is brilliant, the film is just great.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - It had a point, or I found one anyway.

Re: Breakfast Club and other "Stereotype" films. What school did you go to? High School social engineering was all about dealing with stereotypes, and this film nails what it was like. I guess you missed the whole "different people forced to coexist and scrutinize what they hated about each other and themselves" thing... Seminal coming of age flick, sorry you didn't dig it.

Thursday, maybe it's a generational thing, I don't know. No disrespect intended. I was Anthony Michael Hall's age when BC came out, and I completely related to him, for some reason.



chicagofrog's Avatar
history *is* moralizing
Originally Posted by Sedai
To the people ragging on Casablanca:
Stop watching movies, right now, and take up gardening.
well, i just said
and now i say
but sometimes i choose to be just elusive...



Originally Posted by Thursday Next
I agree with those picks except Brokeback Mountain...cowboys, sheepboys, so what?
Oh, I guess you hadn't caught wind of this "criticism". It's from the Bill O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh types. They don't want to denounce the movie outright for the homosexual content, so they get sidetracked in this weird, overzealous semantic point that they aren't herding cattle that first summer on Brokeback when they fall in love and first have sex. Nope, it's true: they are tending to sheep.

That Jake's character was a rodeo cowboy before and after that summer, and that Heath's character is a ranch hand for hire working jobs tending all sorts of livestock, including cattle, doesn't matter to them. First of all, they haven't seen the movie of course, so how would they even know? But more importantly they want to talk about and then dismiss the movie without revealing what ridiculous homophobes they are. As if Ang Lee or anybody associated with Brokeback Mountain has ever described it as a "Gay Western" in the first place. That was a throwaway tag lazy reviewers and more crucially the late night talkshows put on it, not the filmmakers.

But it's a neat trick, huh?
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A system of cells interlinked
Originally Posted by chicagofrog
well, i just said
and now i say
but sometimes i choose to be just elusive...
Yeah, I sat on a tack today. In a real mood!!! Elusive for me involves a blow torch and a pneumatic drill...



In the Beginning...
Originally Posted by Thursday Next
The Shawshank Redemption. Seriously, don't tell me I'm the only one who thinks this is monstrously overrated? I'm not saying it's bad, but consistently in top 10 or 5 of all time lists? It's a prison movie. It's slow. I just can't believe it is so highly rated. It makes me think that some people rate it because other people rate it, not because they actually like it.
From a writing and execution perspective, the film is near perfect. The story is subtle, but in a "punch-in-the-face" kinda subtle way. For my money, it's one of the best anti-establishment films out there, and there are so many incredible parallel narratives and connections running through the film, it gets better every time I see it. It's got an old-fashioned, timeless quality to it, and it communicates some really inspiring commentary on courage and character.

Originally Posted by Thursday Next
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. All those oscars! One for each ending of the film, perhaps? Too many 'big moments', too much hairy Mortensen, too much bluster.
If any of them deserved that amount of Oscars, it was Fellowship (but it was rightly beaten by A Beatiful Mind, which was the better film). Still, Return of the King is beautifully written, beautifully shot, and extremely well-made considering the pitfalls of adapting such a weighty text to film. I don't understand your "too many big moments" comment.

Originally Posted by Holden Pike
Oh, I guess you hadn't caught wind of this "criticism". It's from the Bill O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh types. They don't want to denounce the movie outright for the homosexual content, so they get sidetracked in this weird, overzealous semantic point that they aren't herding cattle that first summer on Brokeback when they fall in love and first have sex. Nope, it's true: they are tending to sheep.

That Jake's character was a rodeo cowboy before and after that summer, and that Heath's character is a ranch hand for hire working jobs tending all sorts of livestock, including cattle, doesn't matter to them. First of all, they haven't seen the movie of course, so how would they even know? But more importantly they want to talk about and then dismiss the movie without revealing what ridiculous homophobes they are. As if Ang Lee or anybody associated with Brokeback Mountain has ever described it as a "Gay Western" in the first place. That was a throwaway tag lazy reviewers and more crucially the late night talkshows put on it, not the filmmakers.

But it's a neat trick, huh?
Go Holden.



Thursday Next's Avatar
I never could get the hang of Thursdays.
Originally Posted by Sedai
Why do people have to constantly compare Goodfellas and The Godfather? Aside from having the mafia in them they are nothing alike. I think they are both amazing films, but again, they aren't anything alike, at all. Ok, maybe a little bit,

Re: Breakfast Club and other "Stereotype" films. What school did you go to? High School social engineering was all about dealing with stereotypes, and this film nails what it was like. I guess you missed the whole "different people forced to coexist and scrutinize what they hated about each other and themselves" thing... Seminal coming of age flick, sorry you didn't dig it.

Thursday, maybe it's a generational thing, I don't know. No disrespect intended. I was Anthony Michael Hall's age when BC came out, and I completely related to him, for some reason.
I think you answered your own question with regard to Goodfellas and the Godfather being compared....It wasn't that Goodfellas isn't as good as the Godfather, that would be a lame point to make, there is no reason why there shouldn't be two good films about the mafia. My point was that I didn't like any of the characters in Goodfellas, and this wasn't because they were mafia-type murderers, because mafia-type murderers can be sympathetic (see Godfather). Generally I think gangster movies on the whole are overrated by some.

As for the Breakfast Club...I don't think I missed the point, I just don't think I liked the point. The film that I think most reflects my school experience, in a much more natural way is 'Show Me Love' (Moodysson).

I'm not expecting people to agree with my picks, I didn't agree with the picks of whoever started this thread in the first place, but I do think it is ok for people to say they think certain films are overrated without people telling them to "stop watching films and take up gardening". I don't think everyone has to like the same films just because other people or 'general opinion' says these films are good. A lot of 'classic' films are revered simply because they are considered 'classic'.



In the Beginning...
Originally Posted by Thursday Next
but I do think it is ok for people to say they think certain films are overrated without people telling them to "stop watching films and take up gardening".
But not okay for people to say they think certain films are "must see" material without other people telling them they "need to be shot in the head"?