Have you ever read a movie review or had a conversation with a friend and wonder afterwards: “how could they like that movie?” Or, “I love that movie; how can they hate it?” Here are a half dozen examples of films that have polarized film critics and audiences through the years.
Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master (2012) follows Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix), an aimless and volatile World War II veteran, as he falls under the spell of Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman), the charismatic leader of a cult. While most critics applauded the film as a shining example of intellectual storytelling with powerhouse performances by Phoenix, Hoffman and Amy Adams, many viewers found the film a pretentious, pointless bore.
Avatar (2009) is James Cameron’s sci-fi epic about Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), a disabled Marine who goes to the planet Pandora to find the native Na’vi culture under threat from the evil corporation he’s working for. While most people were wowed by the cinematography and stunning world that Cameron created, reaction to the story was all over the place. While some found it inspirational and magical, others found the plot unoriginal, the dialogue laughable, and the theme anti-American.
Crash (2004) is one of the most controversial Best Picture Oscar winners. This multi-layered film follows the interconnected lives of a number of white, Black, Asian and Hispanic residents of Los Angeles, and the direct and indirect bigotry that governs their actions over 36 hours. Many viewers found it to be an important film with strong performances from Matt Dillon, Don Cheadle and Sandra Bullock that addressed complex issues of race, while others found it to be contrived, preachy and heavy-handed.
Moulin Rouge! (2001) is Baz Luhrman’s musical extravaganza about the Bohemian revolution in 1899 Paris. Christian (Ewan McGregor), a young penniless writer and Satine (Nicole Kidman), a beautiful courtesan in the Moulin Rouge nightclub, fall in love; however, the Duke (Richard Roxburgh) has other plans for Satine, so she and Christian keep their love affair secret. Except when breaking out with contemporary pop songs. You either view it as a dazzling, modern interpretation of an old-fashioned musical, or bemoan it as a tacky, overblown take on a genre that didn’t need updating.
The Blair Witch Project (1999) introduced some new concepts to the horror genre. Shot with a handheld camera, it follows three film students who seek to make a documentary about the legendary Blair Witch in the Maryland forest, only to disappear into the night. A year later, footage is found which documents their experiences that night. Fans found it to be a terrifying nightmare that kicked their imaginations into overdrive; detractors found it obvious and its most uncomfortable feature was that it induced motion sickness.
Blue Velvet (1986) is a bizarre movie from filmmaker David Lynch. We’re introduced to Jeffrey Beaumont (Kyle Maclachlan), whose discovery of a human ear near his childhood home leads him to a strange cast of characters, played by Isabella Rossellini, Dennis Hopper, Laura Dern and Dean Stockwell. There’s no denying it’s shocking and depraved; you’ll either admire it as a masterpiece unlike any other, or a sickening sideshow that says nothing.
What else should be on the list?
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