Since the inception of cinema, a mountain of classic flicks have donned the big screen for the sake of our enjoyment. Movies such as Shawshank Redemption, Godfather Part 1 & 2, Citizen Kane, and so many others have demonstrated just why people love movies so much.
However, for every cinematic masterpiece comes those flicks that are deemed to be great despite, in this writer’s opinion, not warranting such praise.
With that in mind, I bring my top 4 most overrated films of all time. Quick disclaimer, there are many movies. I have not seen all the movies, it would be frankly, a massive time commitment, so there may be some that are not included. As well as that, this is a subjective list so you may not agree with every entry.
4) Love Actually (2003):
Every year at Christmas, it seems that this film ends up on TV. It is the film which kicked off the genre of films which sees a group of characters come together in a film, based on a holiday, with a non-linear plot. While it is the best of that genre, that does not make it a good film.
A clichéd plot, paper-thin characters, occasionally offensive material, and reliant on the star power cast which includes Andrew Lincoln, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kiera Knightley, and the late Alan Rickman, Love Actually is a weak attempt at a Christmas movie which never comes close to the pedigree of It’s A Wonderful Life, or others.
3) Fight Club (1999):
David Fincher is one of my favourite directors. He has made terrific films throughout his career, including Gone Girl, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and, my favourite film of his; The Social Network.
Unfortunately, despite becoming a cult classic in its own right, Fight Club does not belong in this bracket. It is a film which speaks to the existential angst within us all which has made this film all the rage amongst anti-establishment teens. On top of that, the film is an unapologetic exercise in machismo.
Not only that, but the plot twist which has made the film famous, does not make all that much sense when you contemplate how the film develops.
Not to mention how it is rated higher on IMDb than THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK!!!
2) The Dark Knight Rises (2012):
The final film in Christopher Nolan’s acclaimed Dark Knight Trilogy had a lot of work to do in order to live up to its predecessors, especially The Dark Knight. Unfortunately, despite a great performance from Tom Hardy as the villain, The Dark Knight Rises never comes close to what came before.
The violence lacks the grit and realism of The Dark Knight, while the 3rd act, from Bruce Wayne escaping the prison, to the rolling of the credits, is so rushed and unrealistic that it takes away from what the film had brought up to that point.
What all of this means is that, while being a GOOD film, The Dark Knight Rises is the weakest entry in Nolan’s trilogy.
1) Avatar (2009):
The legacy of James Cameron’s Avatar will forever be its groundbreaking, revolutionary special effects which earned it an Oscar for best visual effects and cinematography. This is fair as the movie did set the bar for future blockbusters to live up to. Not only that, but it is clear that the general population loved what they saw as it made over $3bn, a record which it still holds to this day.
However, as a film, Avatar is rather weak and DID NOT warrant its nomination for the best picture Oscar that very same year. The plot is derivative of so many films that are superior to it, and the characters lack any sort of personality or depth to care all that much about them. Not only that, but its anti-war and environmental message lacks any sort of subtlety to hit home with audiences.
Also, “unobtainium” is such a lazily named McGuffin that it feels like it was named at the last second.
Are there any films I’ve missed? Sound off on what films you think are overrated in the comments below.
Andrew Ryan