Moviegoers and Critics Disagree

[iacas]

http://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2017/11/exclusive-data-reveals-the-films-where-critics-and-audiences-disagree-most/

A lot of the time, I'll see some stupid movie on Rotten Tomatoes that is funny if you just use it as a way to chuckle for 90 minutes.

For example: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/a_bad_moms_christmas . 27% or so on RT… and yet well worth the $3.99 we paid (matinee) or would have been worth the $6.49 we could have paid. It's funny! No, there's no greater meaning. There's no social commentary or hidden message.

It's just fun.

Other movies are just fun because shit blows up.

---

Are there any other movies with which your rating wildly disagrees with Rotten Tomatoes Critics' rating?

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/eyes_wide_shut - That movie sucked IMO. I almost walked out of the theater.

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_royal_tenenbaums - 80%, and the wife turned it off after 25 minutes.

[dennyjones]

2 minutes ago, iacas said:

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/eyes_wide_shut - That movie sucked IMO. I almost walked out of the theater.

I did walk out of that movie.   It is the only movie in which I've exited early but, damn, that was very bad.  I also thought another of his movies  Vanilla Sky was one of the top 5 worst movies of all time.

Another bad movie I disagreed with the critics was Cloud Atlas  A total waste of my time.

[JetFan1983]

Lol, I like both those movies you hated. Loved? No, but I liked them. I also liked Vanilla Sky too in spite of its flaws. To each his own I guess, and perhaps therein lies the rub that's makes % ratings unreliable more often than not. Or maybe I'm just a sucker for Tom Cruise vanity projects. 

But I agree that Rotten Tomatoes doesn't help much at all in determining whether I'll enjoy a movie or not. It's still interesting to browse though, just to see where the pulse of the American critic is, if little else. 

I also agree that the discrepancy between critic and audience score is a fascinating one to see when it happens. That's a fun list on that link.

Let's see... what are some "bad" movies that I still enjoyed...

The 13th Floor (1999) was 29% but with a 67% audience score. A totally flawed movie overshadowed by the Matrix, but still a fun sci-fi journey i think with interesting ideas in it. 

I enjoyed Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012) that is 55% critic and 53% audience. I dunno, I thought it was a nice story... plus the Writer-Director lady is from the same town as me in NJ, so I always found that interesting that we grew up drinking the same water. 

I've always loved the Cable Guy (1996) which is 54%, 51% respectively. Man, people really hated this movie when it came out, but I've always found it hilarious. 

I thought Primer (2004) was an ambitious and cool sci-fi movie made on a shoestring budget. I'm not sure how it has only 72% from the critics given what they accomplished on a per dollar scale. Cool story that no doubt has its flaws. 

One recent movie that I quite enjoyed that was totally panned (and for good reason) was Passengers (2016). It currently stands at 30%, 63%. Perhaps its just its basic log line that I like, as the film itself kind of loses its way at times. I certainly wouldn't fault people for thinking it was boring or lame as its execution and linear script was pretty banal at times, I admit. 

But this random Youtuber made a really cool video about how to make the script for Passengers better, and I 100% agree with his suggestions. This is a pretty cool video if you've seen the movie already. His version is way better. 

I think if they took this guy's suggestions, that 30% critic score would be above 65%. 

 

Edited November 25, 2017 by JetFan1983

[boogielicious]

8 hours ago, JetFan1983 said:

Lol, I like both those movies you hated. Loved? No, but I liked them. I also liked Vanilla Sky too in spite of its flaws. To each his own I guess, and perhaps therein lies the rub that's makes % ratings unreliable more often than not. Or maybe I'm just a sucker for Tom Cruise vanity projects. 

But I agree that Rotten Tomatoes doesn't help much at all in determining whether I'll enjoy a movie or not. It's still interesting to browse though, just to see where the pulse of the American critic is, if little else. 

I also agree that the discrepancy between critic and audience score is a fascinating one to see when it happens. That's a fun list on that link.

Let's see... what are some "bad" movies that I still enjoyed...

The 13th Floor (1999) was 29% but with a 67% audience score. A totally flawed movie overshadowed by the Matrix, but still a fun sci-fi journey i think with interesting ideas in it. 

I enjoyed Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012) that is 55% critic and 53% audience. I dunno, I thought it was a nice story... plus the Writer-Director lady is from the same town as me in NJ, so I always found that interesting that we grew up drinking the same water. 

I've always loved the Cable Guy (1996) which is 54%, 51% respectively. Man, people really hated this movie when it came out, but I've always found it hilarious. 

I thought Primer (2004) was an ambitious and cool sci-fi movie made on a shoestring budget. I'm not sure how it has only 72% from the critics given what they accomplished on a per dollar scale. Cool story that no doubt has its flaws. 

One recent movie that I quite enjoyed that was totally panned (and for good reason) was Passengers (2016). It currently stands at 30%, 63%. Perhaps its just its basic log line that I like, as the film itself kind of loses its way at times. I certainly wouldn't fault people for thinking it was boring or lame as its execution and linear script was pretty banal at times, I admit. 

But this random Youtuber made a really cool video about how to make the script for Passengers better, and I 100% agree with his suggestions. This is a pretty cool video if you've seen the movie already. His version is way better. 

I think if they took this guy's suggestions, that 30% critic score would be above 65%. 

 

I liked Passengers for two reasons; Jennifer Lawrence and Jennifer Lawrence. 

I agree that the Rotten Tomatoes and Critics score are becoming very fuzzy that last few years. We used to rely on it a lot. Now, we're not so sure. I good benchmark is a movie you really like, a classic for example. What if Casablanca had a 70% score? It doesn't BTW (97 and 95), but younger audiences might not like it just because it's in black and white. So that would lower the score. 

Another reason could be the audience expecting something like comedy, when it's a drama. Skeleton Twins was like that. Critics liked it (86), but the audience didn't as much (69). I think they may have been expecting comedy with Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig. We liked it a lot.

 

[Shindig]

Birdman;  Rotten tomatoes scores:  Top critics: 94%.  All critics:  92%.  Audience:  77%.  This movie somehow won best picture.

My review:  it's too bad that Furious 7 was released less than two months into the following year, because it was a better film than Birdman.  I'm not saying Furious 7 should have won best picture, I'm just saying it would have been more reasonable for it to win than Birdman.  A 90 minute episode of Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law would have been a better choice.

Sorry, that movie makes me irrationally angry.

If you want a tragedy in the other direction, top critics have Caddyshack at 25%.  This is also a finer film than Birdman, and I think all of us have enjoyed it at some point or another. At least general critics (75%) and the audience (87%) are better on this.

[nevets88]

Quote

Have you ever sat down to watch that film that critics are raving about only to be massive unimpressed? Sure, Mark Kermode might have *loved* The Florida Project, but let’s be honest - what it really needed was a few more car chases and explosions to liven things up.

To the author of this piece - hey, The Florida Project is not going for explosions and action. Why you comparing apples to oranges?

Quote

We can reveal that the film most beloved by audience relative to the critics is 2016’s Warcraft, followed by the likes of Love Actually, Die Another Day and Batman v Superman.

I thought the mainstream audience and critics generally agreed on BvS? That user score doesn't josh with what I read on the internets on BvS. Same with 50 Shades.

In the end, IMHO critics and audiences have always disagreed, just watch what you want to watch. They generally have very little influence on the BO receipts of mainstream films. To the author, if you're looking for something to write about, how about how trailers have been steadily increasing in suckage?

[jamo]

I generally have more patience for comedies and slow indie movies than a lot of critics and moviegoers do. I hate superhero movies, which some critics like and a lot of moviegoers like. I like some action movies, but I've never enjoyed a Bond movie (the Bourne series is probably my favorite movie series ever). A lot of old movies I just can't sit through, but I loved Eyes Wide Shut (it's the only Kubrick movie I've liked, but I haven't seen them all - and Eyes Wide Shut isn't that old, but the setting and way its filmed make it seem like it is). I passionately hated Passengers. 

There's also something to be said for the context in which you watch movies. I might have liked Passengers more if I saw it on the big screen (though probably not much). I probably would have liked Seeking a Friend for the End of the World less if I saw it in a theater, but I watched that on my TV and loved it. I watched The Edge of Seventeen on an airplane screen and probably would have loved that movie no matter how I watched it. 

[Zekez]

I never base my movie choices on what ANYONE else says.  Who the heck knows what I like more than me?

[RussUK]

I stopped going to see movies based on the critcis reviews a long time ago. I remember when Lost in Translation came out and the critics raved about how it was a movie masterpiece. Went to see it with the missus and when it finished i was like "what the hell was that about, made no sense"

The one film i agree 100% with the critics review is Dunkirk. That was superb. My wife summed it up perfect she said "It was a war film that didnt feel like a war film". Its only the 2nd WW2 film she has watched and enjoyed after Imitation Game.

[Kalnoky]

On 11/25/2017 at 9:29 AM, jamo said:

I generally have more patience for comedies and slow indie movies than a lot of critics and moviegoers do. I hate superhero movies, which some critics like and a lot of moviegoers like. I like some action movies, but I've never enjoyed a Bond movie (the Bourne series is probably my favorite movie series ever). A lot of old movies I just can't sit through, but I loved Eyes Wide Shut (it's the only Kubrick movie I've liked, but I haven't seen them all - and Eyes Wide Shut isn't that old, but the setting and way its filmed make it seem like it is). I passionately hated Passengers. 

There's also something to be said for the context in which you watch movies. I might have liked Passengers more if I saw it on the big screen (though probably not much). I probably would have liked Seeking a Friend for the End of the World less if I saw it in a theater, but I watched that on my TV and loved it. I watched The Edge of Seventeen on an airplane screen and probably would have loved that movie no matter how I watched it. 

^^Two thumbs way up

 

[colin007]

I loved Passengers.

Primer is amazing.

[nevets88]

With so much media content now, aren't there more and more critics, each within their own niche, and aggregators blending all into one pot? You have your artsy fartsy Cannes TIFF Sundance going critics, your mainstream critics, your freelance/crowd sourced/social media supported critic, your contrarian Armond Whites. And these aggregators indicating how good a movie is in one number is reductive. Pick a couple of critics you tend to agree with, and read them. You're going to eventually disagree with them as they usually will be forced to push certain movies because they have to get interviews and push their paper's advertising agenda. 

[JetFan1983]

On 11/27/2017 at 11:30 AM, colin007 said:

I loved Passengers.

Primer is amazing.

If you liked those movies, I'd give the Thirteenth Floor (1999) a shot then. One of my all-time favorite "bad" movies (29% critic, 67% audience). Pretty much every scientist I know thinks this movie is cool too. Its bad use of computer jargon is cringe-worthy at times, but it otherwise is a cool idea that could easily be an excellent TV series today if re-worked and updated. 

[colin007]

1 hour ago, JetFan1983 said:

If you liked those movies, I'd give the Thirteenth Floor (1999) a shot then. One of my all-time favorite "bad" movies (29% critic, 67% audience). Pretty much every scientist I know thinks this movie is cool too. Its bad use of computer jargon is cringe-worthy at times, but it otherwise is a cool idea that could easily be an excellent TV series today if re-worked and updated. 

Huh, I never looked into that one, I stayed away because I thought it might be one of those demonic horrors movies, maybe I had it mixed up with another one

[JetFan1983]

2 minutes ago, colin007 said:

Huh, I never looked into that one, I stayed away because I thought it might be one of those demonic horrors movies, maybe I had it mixed up with another one

Nah, it's sci-fi. About a company that creates a simulated world (like the Matrix) except it's a business and the simulation is 1937 Los Angeles. It came out the same time as the Matrix, and was totally overshadowed and ultimately a flop. 

Edited December 1, 2017 by JetFan1983

[colin007]

Just now, JetFan1983 said:

Nah, it's sci-fi. About a company that creates a simulated world (like the Matrix) except it's a business and the simulation is 1937 Los Angeles. 

I loved The Matrix. I'll check it out

[JetFan1983]

1 minute ago, colin007 said:

I loved The Matrix. I'll check it out

It's another "critics and audiences don't agree" type movie. It's not without its flaws of course (or else why would it be 29%) but I think it just went over everyone's heads in 1999, critics included. 

[nevets88]

12 minutes ago, JetFan1983 said:

It's another "critics and audiences don't agree" type movie. It's not without its flaws of course (or else why would it be 29%) but I think it just went over everyone's heads in 1999, critics included. 

I need to watch this again I remember liking it. Another one is Dark City, with Jack Bauer as a creepy spectacled nerdy scientist.