10 overrated classics

[nobodyspecial]

Lizzie's point that some films are meant to be seen on a big screen is well taken. Certain films translate better to dvd than others and other films should never be seen outside the theater.

 

[dahliaoleander]

Casablanca to me was too slow... I fell out of it without ever having really fallen in... (Maybe the fact tha I hadn't slept had something to do with it as well... lol)

But Dracula!

I saw Dracula once at 3 am and didn't get to sleep till 9 the next morning! All I saw when I closed my eyes was Bela Lugosi's eyes with that strip of light flashing across them.

 

[Feraud]

I am surprised to read any of these films would make a best of list.
A few of them are watchable films but I think they were picked to support the article.

 

[ScionPI2005]

Also the fact that she truly is a product of her time: a syrupy sweet cherub of a child who is an antidote to the harsh realities of the Depression.

That is true; and one of the ideas that came to my mind after my last post. I can only imagine how enjoyable watching her at that time probably was to many individuals at the time looking for an escape from the harsh realities of everyday life at the time.

 

[Real Swell Gal]

Wizard of Oz is deffinately one of those movies that should be seen on the big screen.
They have it here every year for a childrens film fest and it's awesome to see.

 

[miss_elise]

You are not supposed to like Scarlett, that is the WHOLE POINT of her character! She never learns...

oh i know... but it still didn't make me enjoy watching the movie or reading the book...

 

[The Wingnut]

Not on the list, but I tried to sit down and watch Beat the Devil last week and never got all the way through it. It just couldn't hold my attention no matter how I tried to like it. The characters had no depth, the plot meandered all over, the devices felt contrived. The transfer to DVD was HORRIBLE. The sound was awful, the entire thing felt as if someone stuck a Handicam in a movie theater playing the most worn copy of the film they could find. I'm sure that contributed considerably to the experience, but the film itself was a dud in my book.

Gone with the Wind? I had to return it after a few days. I couldn't make it through the whole thing. I got to the point where I realized there wasn't a single character that I could connect with, and a bunch of characters that I found downright annoying.

Wizard of Oz was fun the first few times through. Now it's something I'll keep flipping the channel through if I see that it's on. Ditto It's a Wonderful Life, with exception that I've never seen it in its entirety, and never felt pulled in enough to sit through it.

Arsenic and Old Lace? Kind of fun, but sophomoric. Very much a stage production...it doesn't help that I'm a drama student and felt as if I'd seen it before.

A lot of people who only know me on the surface and think I'm into 'old stuff' for the sake of it being old can't fathom that I think there are certain facets and phenomenae of the early 20th century that are just as bad as a lot of things we have to suffer through now. My ex-girlfiend loved Bringing Up Baby and Cary Grant, and likened me to him. I don't like him, and couldn't stand Bringing Up Baby(evidently the critics of the time hated it, as well). Then again, she thought I was lost in the past, too.

Just because it's old and iconic doesn't mean it's necessarily retained its universal appeal(assuming it had it to begin with). I'm betting there are people that for every one of these films, saw them in the theaters when they first ran and felt they'd been cheated out of their hard-earned money and the time the spent in the theater.

 

[ShoreRoadLady]

Of the listed "classics", I've only seen a few. Loved The Ten Commandments, hated Gone With The Wind, and disliked Arsenic and Old Lace.

Ten Commandments...really, I don't understand how anyone could not like it. It may be overdramatic, but come on - all the costumes, lots of drama, and besides, Charlton Heston.

GWTW. True story: when I watched this the first time, and Scarlett O'Hara shook her fist in the air shouting, "I'll never go hungry again!", I thought...wow, what a terrible ending.
And then, I realized it was only the intermission, and I had two whole hours to go. *weeps* :eusa_doh: Ah, well. At least it had some pretty dresses, even if the girl never did learn a thing.

(Both Ten Commandments and GWTW, however, were important and loved movies in their time, and should be considered relevant if only for that.)

Arsenic and Old Lace? Blah. I know half the comedy revolved around the kindly maiden aunt murderers, but I didn't find it funny. That movie was twice as long as it needed to be. It was so long and dealt with such morbid subjects it almost wanted to say something important, but never got around to it. Even Cary Grant got boring, and that's when you know it's bad. [huh]

 

[Bugsy]

Of the listed "classics", I've only seen a few. Loved The Ten Commandments, hated Gone With The Wind, and disliked Arsenic and Old Lace.

Ten Commandments...really, I don't understand how anyone could not like it. It may be overdramatic, but come on - all the costumes, lots of drama, and besides, Charlton Heston.

GWTW. True story: when I watched this the first time, and Scarlett O'Hara shook her fist in the air shouting, "I'll never go hungry again!", I thought...wow, what a terrible ending.
And then, I realized it was only the intermission, and I had two whole hours to go. *weeps* :eusa_doh: Ah, well. At least it had some pretty dresses, even if the girl never did learn a thing.

(Both Ten Commandments and GWTW, however, were important and loved movies in their time, and should be considered relevant if only for that.)

Arsenic and Old Lace? Blah. I know half the comedy revolved around the kindly maiden aunt murderers, but I didn't find it funny. That movie was twice as long as it needed to be. It was so long and dealt with such morbid subjects it almost wanted to say something important, but never got around to it. Even Cary Grant got boring, and that's when you know it's bad. [huh]

Something that must be remembered is that these films were of their time. It's not a good idea to judge them by today's standards. Not only technology, but acting styles have changed considerably over the years. "I Love Lucy" is an American TV classic, but it would not go very far today. Shows that have tried to copy the premise such as "Hope and Faith" have failed miserably. We all remember our parents damning the music we listened to in high school. It seems pretty tame these days. I think we have to look at these films in the context of their times.

 

[Miss 1929]

oh i know... but it still didn't make me enjoy watching the movie or reading the book...

For me it was like watching an awful car crash, in slow motion...
and the clothes were great!

 

[Miss 1929]

It's a Wonderful Life, with exception that I've never seen it in its entirety, and never felt pulled in enough to sit through it.

I guess it helps for it to be Christmastime... and to be in love... and to like Jimmy Stewart a lot.... but that is one of my favorites, and I cry every time I see it!
But I am a sentimental fool.