What would I add? Well, certainly the last "Star Wars" movie..."Almost Famous"..."Keeping The Faith." And, (sigh) "The Princess Bride." Which has a great script and nearly flawless casting, but Rob Reiner somehow manages to shoot locations so they look like sets.
"The Goonies." For a certain age bracket, this seems to be a treasured gem of childhood. I am not in that age bracket. "Bad Santa." And if there were a special listing for directors, I'd be talking about Mike Nichols, David Lynch, and of course, Tim Burton.
Mary-Jane offers:
(I still cannot believe that 'Titanic' and 'Braveheart' won Oscars for anything, much less Best Picture.) Naturally, in the IMDb poll on this list, I voted for 'Forrest Gump', which is not only overrated, but one of the worst films of all time.
I can't speak to "Bravehart" or "Forrest Gump" because I never saw them. "Titantic" I think could have been a much better movie if they had just started with Kate Winslet's nude scene and gone on from there.
Here's Premiere's list, with comments where applicable.
* 'Chicago'
Absolutely. This movie made me want to keep the director out of the editing bay at gunpoint. What is the point, pray, of hyping the notion that your cast did all their own dancing--and then cutting the dance numbers so quickly it wouldn't matter if the star was Gwen Verdon or Jessica Simpson?
* 'A Beautiful Mind'
* '2001: A Space Odyssey'
* 'Monster's Ball'
Here I have to disagree--I thought "Monster's Ball" was a great movie. It's also my number one go-to flick for an example of a sex scene that actually is integral to the plot and all those other things directors tell young actresses.
There's simply no way to tell that story without that scene.
* 'Forrest Gump'
* 'American Beauty'
Here, again, I agree. "American Beauty" was good...but not that good. It wasn't that funny and it's insight seemed limited to me.
* 'Gone with the Wind'
Maybe, but I respect its place in history. And I remember actually kind of liking it when I saw it in high school.
* 'Clerks'
I don't know if I'd say this is an overrated movie as much as I'd say Kevin Smith has failed to live up to his potential.
* 'Mystic River'
Strongly disagree. Fucking great movie with a really strong script.
* 'Good Will Hunting'
Now we're talking. My take on "Good Will Hunting" remains what it has been since I saw it: Some good performances, especially Williams, but it's not a story, it's a collection of acting showcase scenes.
As a side note, this is what Bob Strauss of the Los Angeles Daily News wrote when predicting that Williams would win over Burt Reynolds, nominated the same year for "Boogie Nights:"
"In Boogie Nights, Burt plays a guy who can't distinguish vulgariry from art. In Good Will Hunting, Robin tells a self-proclaimed genius that nothing's his fault. Which role do you think Hollywood types find more reassuring?"
--as quoted in "Inside Oscar 2"
* 'Field of Dreams'
Overrated? It's a baseball movie and I liked it. It must have done something right.
* 'The Wizard of Oz'
* 'Moonstruck'
* 'Chariots of Fire'
* 'Fantasia'
Depends how you're judging it, really. But to an animation fan, it's certainly better than "Fantasia 2000."
* 'Easy Rider'
* 'An American in Paris'
No, I won't have that. This movie is amazing, with one of the most romantic movie scores ever. And arguably the best on-screen dancer, though obviously if you wanted to mention that Fred Astaire fellow I wouldn't call you a blapsphemer. I'd almost rather see "Singin' in the Rain," on this list, and I rate that pretty highly too.
* 'Jules et Jim'
* 'Nashville'
* 'The Red Shoes'
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