Most Overrated Films of All Time

Posted on 19 Dec 23:30

 

Introduction 

It is not necessary to acknowledge each and every movie that is made. The taste and genre are key elements plus the story has to be relatable to make it a hit, or it has to be entertaining enough. The following movies did great box office receipts, but were widely considered to be a letdown for many audiences.
 

1)  Avatar (2009)

This is a revolutionary science-fiction movie that created history and a breakthrough in cinematic technology. This movie was directed by James Cameron, who completed the script for Avatar in 1994 but waited for the right technology to make the movie. It has won Academy Awards for Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, and Best Visual Effects. It was also the highest-grossing movie ever for almost a decade. The main characters are Sam Worthington as Jake Sully, Stephen Sully as Colonel Miles, Zoe Saldana as Neytiri and many others. The movie takes place in the mid 22nd century, and due to lack of resources, humans are in search of new habitat, they found a habitable moon, Pandora but it is protected by the Na’vi. The the moon's atmosphere is harmful to the humans. However, Jake is sent to Pandora along with Grace, his mentor/scientist to gather the information by using Na’vi-human hybrids called Avatars. Jake begins to sympathize with the tribe and Neytiri and disobeys the commands of Colonel Miles in order to protect the tribe from the invasion of humans. Upon learning of Jake's intentions, the Colonel orders Jakes execution, but he was protected by Neytiri and the tribe. The occupation battles are illustrated with incredible special effects and action sequences.
 

2)  The Notebook (2004)

A romantic-drama that was mostly appreciated by teens, but received mixed reviews from general audiences and critics. It was directed by Nick Cassavetes and inspired by the adaptation of the 1996 novel by Nicholas Sparks. It received numerous nominations and eight Teen Choice Awards, a Satellite Award and an MTV Movie Award. In the main lead, there is Ryan Gosling who played Noah Calhoun, Rachel McAdams who played Allie Hamilton, James Garner as Old Noah Calhoun and Gena Rowlands as Old Allie Calhoun. The story begins with an elderly man narrating his love story to a nursing home resident. It is a love story from the ’40s when Noah and Allie were teenagers and fell in love, but to their family's disapproval. Allie leaves town and Noah joins the armed forces with his friend Fin. Allie eventually marries Lon, and later encounters Noah living in an abandoned house. Allie breaks up with Lon and marries Noah. Decades later, Noah is admitted to hospital after a heart attack and Allie is suffering from dementia, and every night Noah reads from their journals and tells Allie stories about their life together in hopes that she will remember them. This continues until one day they are found dead holding hands.  


3)  The English Patient (1996)

This movie contains elements of war, love and drama. But, it also often received mix reviews. Some consider it over-hyped or overrated while fans are in awe of the movie. It falls into the either you love it or hate it category.  The English Patient was directed by Anthony Minghella and it is based on the novel of the same name. It was nominated in 12 categories at the 69th Academy Awards and won nine including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actress. It also received five BAFTA Awards and two Golden Globes as well. It was also ranked the 55th greatest British film of the 20th century. The cast includes Ralph Fiennes as Almásy, Juliette Binoche as Hana, Willem Dafoe as Caravaggio, Kristin Scott Thomas as Katharine Clifton, and Naveen Andrews as Kip. It is a story of four soldiers who find themselves in an abandoned villa, a man burned beyond recognition who speaks with English accent tells his story to a young nurse Hana. His story is about his past, and the love love of his life before the war. His story evokes empathy in Hana and as he wished, she eventually injects him with an overdose of morphine to release him from his insufferable pain from his injuries.

4)  The Big Lebowski (1998)

When people praise an undeserving movie it gets annoying. Such is the case of the movie,The Big Lebowski. It also flopped at the box office.  It is a crime-comedy written, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. The cast includes Jeff Bridges as Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski, John Goodman as Walter Sobchak, Julianne Moore as Maude Lebowski, Steve Buscemi as Theodore Donald, and David Huddleston as Jeffrey "The Big” Lebowski. 'The Dude' Lebowski is mistaken for 'The Big' Lebowski, and is assaulted by mob goons for overdue payment to the mob, the mistake is soon realized, comedy and mayhem follow.

5)  Love Actually (2003)

A romance-comedy that was not initially appreciated by the public but later gained appreciateion.  It is Christmas themed movie written and directed by Richard Curtis. It was nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture as well. It has an all British cast of ten couples. It showcases their individual stories beginning five weeks before Christmas until a month later when all of their lives all become interlinked. 
 

6)  Inception (2010) 

This is a psychological science fiction movie, directed by Christopher Nolan. It is considered to be one of the best movies of the 2010s and became the fourth highest-grossing movie of that year. It also won four Academy Awards for Best Cinematography, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Visual Effects. Besides, nominated for Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Art Direction, and Best Original Score. The cast has Leonardo DiCaprio as Dom Cobb, Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Arthur, Ellen Page as Ariadne, Tom Hardy as Eames, and Ken Watanabe as Mr. Saito for the leads. Leo is a professional thief who steals the information from the subconsciousness of his targets, and is offered an opportunity to erase his criminal history. The plan is to implant someone else's idea into a target subconscious. It is a confusing film, which keeps the audience wondering what is real and what is not, and what it all means. This movie appeals to a certain type of audience, certainly not for everyone.

7)  The Blair Witch Project (1999)

This is a supernatural fiction horror movie that is a pioneer of the found-footage technique. The genre of horror is not acknowledged by everyone and it takes a certain taste to enjoy these types of movies. It is written, directed and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez. It is the story of three student filmmakers Heather Donahue, Michael C. Williams, and Joshua Leonard, who travel to the black hills near Maryland to document the fabled, Blair Witch, and disappeared.  The movie is of the groups recovered film footage. It appears that paranormal and demonic activities  scared the trio, and they disappeared leaving their project unfinished. This film is another of those movies in the love it or hate it category.
 

Conclusion 

Movies are made with the intention of entertainment and keeping the wider audience in mind. Some movies receive very mixed audience reviews which, sometimes, land some movies on the overrated side. The above mentioned movies are some of the most overrated movies of all time, and cause much debate still.


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