Movies others go nuts over that you just don't 'get'

Avatar is the one that's got on my nerves recently. It's got no soul or charm to it, it's just blue things and 3D...
 
drunkenmaster said:
Anderson has only done Rushmore, Tennebaums, the life aquatic, Darjeeling Limted and fantastic Mr Fox, while the style is maybe a little old now as all the films are very similar, all have superb casts, great acting, fairly different to most other films, and all excellent.
EDIT:- I didn't know he did Bottle Rocket, and I'd never seen it, never even spotted it on TV anywhere, just completely missed it but a couple months ago saw 5 mins of some random film and saw the Wilson brothers, together, and looking like babies, meant to look it up/watch it at some point. Had no idea it was an Anderson film.

The Coen brothers really have done some utter turds, Intolerable Cruelty, unless it turns out to be some post modernistic film where the film title was actually supposed to be the experience of the audience(in which case its genius) then its a truly terrible film. Fargo's another film I liked at first but on seeing again I really don't know what I saw in it.

Hudsucky Proxy, Big Lebowski and O' brother are very very good though, Burn before Reading, no country for old men and several others are complete crap though. Burn before Reading, Pitt's face just before he dies is about the only good thing in the film, its not funny but it really really thinks it is, the dialogue is incredibly weak and the characters mostly completely unlikeable or completely forgetable, so you don't get drawn in and care about what happens.
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I've seen all of Andersons work and while the casting is generally very good, I really dislike the whole hipster style of his work. The deadpan humour becomes very grating. There's no doubting that he's a good director - as an auteur he's very good at crafting his own world and bringing his creative vision to life but his characterisation and scripting really irk me. It's the whole, "we're in on the deadpan joke, ha ha it's all very knowing, understated and hip" sort of style that really, really gets to me and with that in mind it just pulls me out of the world he's meticulously created. He puts so much effort into mise-en-scene that I find the dialogue often jarring and off putting. I don't like it being made obvious that I'm watching the complete world that a director has made but am then pulled out of that world with the words coming out of his characters mouths. It worked for me in Rushmore but every other film is made the same way and yes, I know it's "HIS" style, but it's just not a style I want to be beaten to death with. Change it up a bit, not every movie needs to contain the same elements in order for it to retain his touch and this is one thing the Coens do well.

The Coens have made some stinkers - what do you expect when they do a movie a year? - but it's clear that they're very good at what they do. As writers they're great at fabricating their own universe and then making you feel like you're a part of it. There are so many details and plot threads that even their bad movies feel rich and full of life, giving you the feeling there is more going on than just what is happening on screen.

Fargo is probably one of the greatest films ever made. It's not one of my favourite, but it's certainly a masterpiece of the craft. I also understand your criticism about Burn After Reading BUT it's suppose to be a film about nothing, with forgettable characters and such like because it serves to highlight the absolute ridiculousness of some peoples paranoia over nothing.

I'd like to also add that I really dislike Guy Ritchie and I just can't enjoy his films.
 
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The Green Mile, The Departed and Million Dollar Baby are also on my list. Indeed, most of Clint's (newer) offerings as a director haven't got my juices flowing. 'Letters from Iwo Jima' being the main disappointment.
 
Some very very rash statements in here. If only some of you knew how much work went into a film perhaps you would be less critical! Don't get me wrong you have the right to be as critical as you want but there are many films here that I class as exceptional that some of you seem to really dislike.

For example, Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill. Not sure how you could dislike either of these. For me not only is Tarantino one of the greatest directors but he's also a great writer.

The Departed is another one that I think is exceptional, great cast, ace acting, and a gripping story. I could go on and on...The Green Mile is one of my favorite films of all time and I think Million Dollar Baby is Clint Eastwood's best work, better than Gran Torino imo.

If I had to pick a film that I just don't 'get' the wow factor about it would be space odyssey 2001, so unbelievably pretentious. I understand the purpose of holding a shot for a certain length of time but Stanley Kubrick takes the royal p***

Another one would be the Coen's 'A Serious Man'. I love a lot of their stuff including Fargo, No Country and The Big Lebowski.

Really looking forward to this too!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/True_Grit_(2010_film)
 
Gustov said:
Some very very rash statements in here. If only some of you knew how much work went into a film perhaps you would be less critical! Don't get me wrong you have the right to be as critical as you want but there are many films here that I class as exceptional that some of you seem to really dislike.
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Why is it so hard to understand that other's may not like what you like?

Gustov said:
For example, Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill. Not sure how you could dislike either of these. For me not only is Tarantino one of the greatest directors but he's also a great writer.
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I didn't like either of them really. Both vastly over-rated. You liked them. That's great.
 
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hmmm... anything directed by Kevin Smith

I sat down recently, and watched Clerks, Clerks 2, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, etc, and really, they're just not as funny as people make them out to be.
 
fozzybear said:
Why is it so hard to understand that other's may not like what you like?
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Gustov said:
Don't get me wrong you have the right to be as critical as you want
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Because I like them? I've already stated that you have the right to have whatever opinion you want on whatever film you're talking about. Regardless I find it hard to comprehend some people's opinion. I understand subjectivity, I understand perspective but they both go out the window in some circumstances. For example, if someone was to tell me Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus is a better film than Pulp Fiction. Subjective yes? Retarded, yes :)
 
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Gustov said:
Some very very rash statements in here. If only some of you knew how much work went into a film perhaps you would be less critical! Don't get me wrong you have the right to be as critical as you want but there are many films here that I class as exceptional that some of you seem to really dislike.
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For someone who's studied film you don't seem to understand that when it comes to films especially it's all subjective as to what is and is not taken as good.

A lot of work does go into films, yes, you're right but at the end of the day the directors, cast and crew are all putting that film out there for judgement and by doing this they open up their vision to various different interpretations by lots of people. So what you might class is good won't be in other peoples eyes.

By saying "you can't be so critical due to the work that goes into a film" is an absolute cop out. You're basically saying people have no right to an opinion cause they don't appreciate the hard work put into a film. This is wrong. I would argue that it HAS to be wrong because what would be the point other wise? As I said, by merely creating the work and distributing it, it's fair game for opinion. Critical and otherwise.
 
Woody__ said:
For someone who's studied film you don't seem to understand that when it comes to films especially it's all subjective as to what is and is not taken as good.

A lot of work does go into films, yes, you're right but at the end of the day the directors, cast and crew are all putting that film out there for judgement and by doing this they open up their vision to various different interpretations by lots of people. So what you might class is good won't be in other peoples eyes.

By saying "you can't be so critical due to the work that goes into a film" is an absolute cop out. You're basically saying people have no right to an opinion cause they don't appreciate the hard work put into a film. This is wrong. I would argue that it HAS to be wrong because what would be the point other wise? As I said, by merely creating the work and distributing it, it's fair game for opinion. Critical and otherwise.
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You've got the wrong end of the stick as I pretty much agree with everything you've said. People enjoy different films. But I don't buy in to the ' there's no such thing as a crap film, it's all down to opinion'. It's quite easy to make a distinction between a film that has a great screenplay, storyline and acting. For example my student films, they're not great productions because the actors are unpaid, there's a very low budget and I have a lot less experience of directing than some of the masterminds mentioned in this thread. Do you need money to make a good film? No, of course not, but it most certainly helps!
 
Sunshine - I watched the whole film and, even though I'm a huge Sci-Fi fan, I just didn't like it. The suggestion that someone else made, in one thread or another, that you have to watch it a second time to "get" it just seems like a waste of time to me. There are so many good films in the world that I operate the system that "if you don't impress me the first time, I won't waste my time on you again". Otherwise I might end up watching the likes of Borat again. *shudder*
 
Gustov said:
You've got the wrong end of the stick as I pretty much agree with everything you've said. People enjoy different films. But I don't buy in to the ' there's no such thing as a crap film, it's all down to opinion'. It's quite easy to make a distinction between a film that has a great screenplay, storyline and acting. For example my student films, they're not great productions because the actors are unpaid, there's a very low budget and I have a lot less experience of directing than some of the masterminds mentioned in this thread. Do you need money to make a good film? No, of course not, but it most certainly helps!
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Well yes, that's true. There are bad films. But what you're saying is that people can't be critical or AS critical cause they dunno how much work went into it. A lot of money went into the bad films too and they have been judged to be inferior. Does that mean we can't be critical because a lot of effort went into them? No. It doesn't. My point is, how much effort and time went into a film does not automatically deem it to have some kind of shield from criticism. The only shield one can have is to simply not put the film out there. Just as those who may not even be aware of the effort that goes into making a movie have an opinion that is less valid than those that do.

The crux of the issue is this: the time and effort that goes into production is irrelevant when it comes to the opinions people have on film. I feel that "you can't be so critical cause you dunno how much effort went into it" is a rubbish argument.

I honestly believe that there are objectively bad films out there in the world, just as I feel there are objectively good ones.
 
Gustov, the problem with you film students is that you've been spoon-fed what's good and bad. You've probably sat through numerous screenings of Citizen Kane being told what a great great film it is and all that. Well guess what? I hated that as well. I saw it when I was studying a film module at Uni. Dull, dull, dull.

Films I like either make me laugh, make me cry or make me excited (not in that way). They're meant to stir emotions in the viewer. You just seem another film student robot type who seems to think it's your opinion over everyone else's.
 
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