Critics have always tried to separate bad movies from good ones, so that viewers can more easily navigate the endless stream of new films. However, it also happened that they missed something important, confused the facts due to fatigue from films of the same genre, and so on. Such tapes could get dusty on the shelves, but the audience paid attention to them in time and corrected the critics’ assessment.
Briefly about all the films from the article
“American Heroes” (American Outlaws)
- Critics on Rotten Tomatoes: 14% (3.7).
- Kinopoisk: 6.8.
- IMDb: 6.0.
American Heroes is a low-budget Western by Les Mayfield (Flubber) starring Colin Farrell as legendary Wild West outlaw Jesse James. The tape is not in vain at the top of this list, because it is one of the most controversial pictures in the history of cinema. Critics literally threw tomatoes at the film. On the Rotten Tomatoes aggregator, he has only 14% of positive reviews (and if you turn on the “Top Critics” filter, then even 11%). “I want to throw popcorn right at the screen,” such quotes can be found in their reviews. Got “American Heroes”, most likely because of the overly romanticized image of the main criminal.
However, although the audience agreed with the critics that the film does not claim to be highly artistic, they nevertheless liked it. The movie is quite dynamic, as for a western, the actors play generally well, and the plot does not have any gross failures to humiliate the tape like this. According to the plot, the magnate Tadeusz Reins wants to build a railway through the town of Liberty. In this he is helped by local detective Alan Pinkerton, who conducts raids on the farms of the city’s residents. Meanwhile, the brothers James and Younger return from the civil war with defeat. They start robbing banks and giving money to farmers. Robbers begin to be considered heroes.
“Equilibrium” (Equilibrium)
- Critics on Rotten Tomatoes: 41% (4.9).
- Kinopoisk: 7.9.
- IMDb: 7.4.
In 2002, Kurt Wimmer wrote and directed the sci-fi thriller Equilibrium. However, unlike the previously thundered “Matrix”, this tape was crushed by critics. They noted that the film lacks its own ideas, that, in fact, it is a kind of mixture of what George Orwell and Aldous Huxley have long told in their books. The audience did not agree with such statements. Firstly, the plot of the film still makes you think about where humanity is going. Secondly, the choreography of the fight scenes looks great even now, but then it was completely delightful. Yes, and Christian Bale looks and plays, as always, great. As a result, “Equilibrium” entered the lists of the best films.
In the future, the world lies in ruins after World War III. People live in the totalitarian city-state of Libria. The local leader called emotions the cause of all the ills of mankind. All works of art capable of evoking emotions, such as books, paintings, musical compositions, are subject to destruction. People live in the same sterile rooms. And to suppress emotions was easier, they have to take additional medication. This is the price of the world. Government agent John Preston fights those who break the rules. However, by chance, he forgets to take another dose of medication. He is undergoing a spiritual transformation.
Law Abiding Citizen
- Critics on Rotten Tomatoes: 26% (4.4).
- Kinopoisk: 8.0.
- IMDb: 7.4.
In 2009, critics smashed another Kurt Wimmer-scripted film, Law Abiding Citizen. Moreover, they walked through the picture even stronger than “Equilibrium” and scolded for the abundance of violent scenes, strained plot twists, and also for the game of Gerard Butler. Interestingly, the audience ended up praising the film for realistic violent scenes, unexpected plot twists and for the performance of both Butler and his colleagues – Jamie Foxx, Viola Davis and others. And after a while, many critics saw their mistake. Perhaps the case was due to the fact that in those years the splatter genre experienced its revival, in which scenes of violence are inserted for the sake of violence and play a central role. And “Law Abiding Citizen” was simply confused with a similar movie.
Clyde Shelton’s wife and daughter are killed right in front of his eyes. Despite various circumstantial evidence, the district attorney is not sure that the perpetrators will be convicted. And it is more important for him to win the case, and not to achieve justice. Therefore, he makes a deal with one of the criminals so that the other one will be imprisoned in any case. Sheldon takes matters into his own hands and kills the freed scoundrel. Now he himself is being imprisoned, but he puts forward an unexpected condition: either he will be released, or he will kill without leaving behind bars. Soon people really start to die.
The Boondock Saints
- Critics on Rotten Tomatoes: 28% (4.7).
- Kinopoisk: 7.9.
- IMDb: 7.8.
Another picture that critics flunked at the exit, most likely due to a misunderstanding. The fact is that in the 90s the world of cinema stirred up Quentin Tarantino with his exclusive vision. Then came a wave of films from his imitators who tried to do something witty and violent. But no one succeeded. The Boondock Saints is described as a witty and violent movie about criminal elements (the same can be said about some of Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs). Perhaps the critics, tired of the directors’ endless attempts to copy the master’s style, did not even go deep into watching the tape and began to write reviews, turning it off at the tenth minute.
This fact, by the way, hit the box office of The Boondock Saints very hard. The film failed miserably, just no one wanted to watch it. However, the rental of VHS cassettes put everything in its place. The audience began to watch the film until the end, marveling at its unique style (not similar to what Tarantino did), as well as an overall excellent storyline. The rest was done by word of mouth. The film received cult status, and ten years later even a sequel. In the story, two brothers Connor and Murphy McManus one day receive a message from God. They must eradicate evil, however cruel their methods may be. They kill one criminal after another. Even the FBI agent sent to stop the brothers secretly hopes for the success of their mission.
“Warcraft” (Warcraft)
- Critics on Rotten Tomatoes: 28% (4.4).
- Kinopoisk: 7.6.
- IMDb: 6.8.
Unfortunately, video game adaptations tend to be mediocre, if not terrible, most of the time. They are trying to stuff them with references for fans and the likeness of logical explanations for what is happening on the screen insanity. Therefore, when Duncan Jones (“Moon 2112”, “Source Code”) took on the production of a film based on the huge Warcraft gaming universe from Blizzard, he immediately said that the film would be as clear as possible to those who played the games in the series. The film was released and critics, of course, flooded the picture, as it “will not be understood by a simple viewer.” And this despite the fact that in Warcraft, unlike many other game adaptations, the logic and motivation of the characters can be traced quite well.
Therefore, the film eventually received good reviews even from ordinary viewers. Fans of the game series even praised the picture for its entertainment, attention to detail, an abundance of references, and, in general, a worthy adaptation of their beloved universe. Draenor, homeworld of the orcs, is dying due to demonic fel magic. To save themselves from death, the leaders of all clans lead the people to the Dark Portal, where the orc warlock Gul’dan promises to open a portal to a pure world. The Horde enters Azeroth, home of humans, elves and other creatures, to start over. However, Gul’dan brings the Fel with him. A brutal confrontation between the Horde and the Alliance begins.
“Transformers” (Transformers)
- Critics on Rotten Tomatoes: 58% (5.8).
- Kinopoisk: 7.6.
- IMDb: 7.0.
In 2007, Michael Bay finally cemented his status as the most ardent fan of explosions among directors, releasing the big-budget blockbuster Transformers. Considering the huge amount of money from Husbro toy sales, and the popularity of the original 1984 alien robot animated series, it’s strange that a movie adaptation hasn’t been tried before. Many had high hopes for the film, perhaps it was high expectations that led some critics to allow themselves such statements: “Transformers is a rambling set of scenes and simply one of the worst films ever made, and the robots in it are nothing more than secondary actors.
In fact, the first part showed a completely coherent plot for a spectacular action movie. Robots participated not only in battles, but also in history. Funny, bright and impressive – these were the words the audience described the first part. The film became a major box office success, spawning numerous sequels. And that’s where the “Transformers” really started to have problems. By the last part of the assessment of critics and viewers fell to 2.7 and 5.2, respectively. But it is interesting that when Bumblebee came out, which largely repeated the first part, it received 90% positive reviews from critics. The plot revolves around the confrontation between two factions of mechanical creatures: the Autobots and the Decepticons. They destroyed everything on Cybertron, their home planet, and now their war is moving to Earth.
Star Wars: Skywalker. Sunrise (Star Wars: Episode IX—The Rise of Skywalker)
- Critics on Rotten Tomatoes: 52% (6.1).
- Kinopoisk: 6.0.
- IMDb: 6.5.
In 2015, following the purchase of Lucasfilm, Disney decided to continue George Lucas’ original Jedi saga of a galaxy far, far away with Star Wars. Episode VII: The Force Awakens takes place 30 years after Return of the Jedi (1983). The decade-long absence of the series from the big screens, the return of Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher as Han Solo and Leia Organa, and many other factors that played on nostalgia, did their job. Despite the endless self-repetitions, the seventh episode was positively evaluated by both critics and viewers, and its box office broke many records. But all the fun began with the release of The Last Jedi. Rian Johnson decided to take the saga in a slightly different direction, which was appreciated by critics. Their reviews were again enthusiastic, but the audience booed the picture.
The studio hastily began to correct the situation (to save the fees of the next film). J. J. Abrams, who filmed the seventh episode, was returned to the director’s place, they gave him the task of filling the film with fan service to the eyeballs (there are opinions that the studio even picked up ideas from thematic forums) and so on. Finally, Skywalker. Sunrise turned out to be absolutely illogical and even more secondary than The Force Awakens. The critics’ rating dropped to 52% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes (43% according to selected critics), while the audience rating was 86% (although, over time, the rating began to fall, as can be seen from the current ratings of the tape on Kinopoisk and IMDb). This proves that such films are made solely for the sake of viewing cinemas. One way or another, but the new Star Wars trilogy is an interesting example of the confrontation between critics and viewers.
Source: Trash Box
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
