Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classics?
04-02-17, 03:20 PM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classics?
What movies received negative reviews when they were first released, but are now generally considered classics?
04-02-17, 03:40 PM
#4
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
Dazed and Confused
04-02-17, 03:42 PM
#5
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
It's a Wonderful Life
Also from what I recall, it wasn't even a Christmas movie. It was released after the Christmas season.
Also from what I recall, it wasn't even a Christmas movie. It was released after the Christmas season.
04-02-17, 03:47 PM
#6
DVD Talk Legend
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
Fight Club, also I think The Beach was pretty negatively recieved when it first opened. Now it's probably one of my favorite Leonardo DiCaprio movies.
04-02-17, 04:56 PM
#7
DVD Talk Reviewer & TOAT Winner
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
National Lampoon's Vacation- the critics HATED that movie.
The Goonies
The Goonies
04-02-17, 05:42 PM
#9
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
Yep, the movie became famous and revered from constant television syndication around Christmas for decades. It was a mere footnote when first released.
04-02-17, 06:14 PM
#10
DVD Talk Legend
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
Blade Runner, Shawshank, Wizard Of Oz all bombed when they first came out but rebounded quite nicely.
04-02-17, 06:35 PM
#11
DVD Talk Godfather
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
Bombing is not the same as negatively reviewed. Shawshank was well regarded from the get-go and a Best Picture contender.
04-02-17, 11:39 PM
#15
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
Alien
From Wikipedia:
Critical reaction to the film was initially mixed. Some critics who were not usually favorable towards science fiction, such as Barry Norman of the BBC's Film series, were positive about the film's merits. Others, however, were not; reviews by Variety, Sight and Sound, Vincent Canby and Leonard Maltin were mixed or negative. (Maltin, however, reassessed the film upon the release of the Director's Cut and gave Alien a positive review.) A review by Time Out said the film was an "empty bag of tricks whose production values and expensive trickery cannot disguise imaginative poverty". In a 1980 episode of Sneak Previews discussing science fiction films of the 1950s and 1970s, critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert were critical of Alien. Ebert called it "basically just an intergalactic haunted house thriller set inside a spaceship" and one of several science fiction pictures that were "real disappointments" compared to Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and 2001: A Space Odyssey, though he did compliment the early scene of the Nostromo's crew exploring the alien planet as showing "real imagination".
From Wikipedia:
Critical reaction to the film was initially mixed. Some critics who were not usually favorable towards science fiction, such as Barry Norman of the BBC's Film series, were positive about the film's merits. Others, however, were not; reviews by Variety, Sight and Sound, Vincent Canby and Leonard Maltin were mixed or negative. (Maltin, however, reassessed the film upon the release of the Director's Cut and gave Alien a positive review.) A review by Time Out said the film was an "empty bag of tricks whose production values and expensive trickery cannot disguise imaginative poverty". In a 1980 episode of Sneak Previews discussing science fiction films of the 1950s and 1970s, critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert were critical of Alien. Ebert called it "basically just an intergalactic haunted house thriller set inside a spaceship" and one of several science fiction pictures that were "real disappointments" compared to Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and 2001: A Space Odyssey, though he did compliment the early scene of the Nostromo's crew exploring the alien planet as showing "real imagination".
04-02-17, 11:56 PM
#16
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Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
"Love Actually", RT score is right now at 63% but that's probably the highest over time. When it was released it was probably lower. It didn't got great numbers at movie theaters either.
Time passed and someone posted about how they watched the movie with their partner every year during Christmas, and everyone was like "oh yeah, we do that too!". And it became a classic.
Time passed and someone posted about how they watched the movie with their partner every year during Christmas, and everyone was like "oh yeah, we do that too!". And it became a classic.
04-03-17, 01:06 AM
#18
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
The New York Times gave a horribly dismissive review of THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN when it opened in 1957, but now it's considered one of the best '50s sci-fi films.
BILL AND TED'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE got horrible reviews in 1988, but was a huge hit and is arguably an '80s classic. I remember reading the reviews of it and thinking, "This movie sounds great, why are they dissing it?" So I went to see it with my then-five-year-old daughter and we loved it. I took issue with a film critic friend of mine for panning it.
BILL AND TED'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE got horrible reviews in 1988, but was a huge hit and is arguably an '80s classic. I remember reading the reviews of it and thinking, "This movie sounds great, why are they dissing it?" So I went to see it with my then-five-year-old daughter and we loved it. I took issue with a film critic friend of mine for panning it.
04-03-17, 02:26 AM
#19
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
The Wizard Of Oz was one of the top 10 grossing movies the year it came out and reviews were mostly positive but it lost money because it went way over budget. That said the studio turned a profit on it a few years later with rereleases and before it became a hit on tv airrings.
04-03-17, 02:38 PM
#21
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
Genre movies never receive great reviews from professional critics, so it usually takes years and years of fan interest to build their reputation. This has changed in recent times thanks to the Internet and more average moviegoers rating things.
I would actually say that professional critics really only matter these days for Oscar bait material.
I would actually say that professional critics really only matter these days for Oscar bait material.
04-03-17, 03:28 PM
#23
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Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi
Was The Thing's reception that negative? I know it wasn't as appreciated and highly regarded as it is now, but I don't recall the response being that critical.
On the other hand, Big Trouble In Little China was pretty savaged when it came out, particularly after following his widely praised Starman and the success of Christine. Granted, it's still not regarded as a classic, but I think more people (and critics) have come to appreciate the film for what it is.
On the other hand, Big Trouble In Little China was pretty savaged when it came out, particularly after following his widely praised Starman and the success of Christine. Granted, it's still not regarded as a classic, but I think more people (and critics) have come to appreciate the film for what it is.
04-03-17, 03:33 PM
#24
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Re: Movies that received negative reviews when they were released, but are now classi