• Top 5 "Family-Friendly" Movies that Aren't Lame
• Top 5 Movies I Found in the $5 Bin
• Close Encounters: Top 5 Cinematic Touches That Are Just Plain Wrong
• Top 10 Movie Clichés
• Most Overrated Movies of All Time
• Top 10 Baddest Bad Guys (& Gals)

Wow you had never heard of Pretty in Pink until like two years ago?? (Sorry I read Nat's list not yours.) What exactly were you doing in the mid eighties??

My highest FFF (Foo Factor Film), "As Good As It Gets", an ironic title if ever I heard one. Three words for you: Helen Hunt Oscar. 'Nuff said.

I am considering moving Shawshank to #1, since it has been pointed out to me that the Lambs situation was a mere fluke, and has more to do with the dearth of competition in 1991 than anything else. There is no such excuse for Shawshank's rating on IMDB, since it is being measured there against every other movie ever made. It really drives me nuts that it is ranked #2.

I'm with you on Saving Private Ryan! It was the last minutes and the "Earn this" line that killed me off.

Thanks for your support on that one. The people who were outraged that it lost to Shakespeare in Love must have missed that part. Yes, sometimes a small thing can mess up a film. Help me think of other examples... like the voiceover at the end of Shawshank or blade runner, or the kid in Sound of Music singing "Adeiu, adeiu, to you and you and you."

I've just gotta add _Titanic_ to this list. I can only just barely understand the teeny-bopper sensation that was Leonarda DiCaprio in the wake of Luhrman's _Romeo and Juliet_ (though I think him most wonderful in _What's Eating Gilbert Grape_), and I admit that Kate Winslet's a great actress (though one has to wish her directors didn't manage to get her naked in just about every film she stars in). But this flick just never sat right with me. I saw it theatres to find out what all the fuss was about, and just didn't get it. Maybe it was ultimately something about the film's weird conclusion, and what it suggested about the eternal nature of human lust? Can't remember the film well enough to be definitive about this, but then, I don't really want to.

Forrest Gump? A lit of overrated films and no Forrest Gump?

I have to add my vote for Forrest Gump. It was so stupidly manipulative that it makes The Shawshank Redemption look positively complex. The novel is actually more interesting. And real Southerners everywhere cringe at Tom Hanks' weird Tidewater imitation.

I am not sure if its over-rated but Tim Burton's Batman has to be the most over-hyped film ever. It was a decent film with Burton's particular gothic vision of metropolis but it definately did not live up to the hype.

That's an example of a film being over-marketed, not overrated. I don't know of anybody outside of Wayne & Garth who thought Batman was one of the best movies ever. Overmarketing is much more common, in life as well as the movies (the Super Bowl, Orlando, Viagara and the Yankees are all examples of things that seldom live up to their marketing).

I'm not sure I even believe you've seen Shawshank Redemption since you get a pretty big plot point wrong.

In fact I did see it, but you may have to forgive me if I mis-remember a point or two. Unlike many other people (those who rate it #2 on IMDB, for example), I didn't bother to see it again and again. And I may have been asleep during the plot mistake you've identified. Or in the bathroom (I have a notriously small bladder and often go to the bathroom two or three times during a film, especially when I've gotten a 44oz. Coke at the concession stand).

That might explain it, actually. I'm not so presumptuous that I think all those people are wrong and I am right (though the very fact that I compiled a list of overrated movies makes that claim a bit unbelievable, doesn't it?). Perhaps I just missed something REALLY important. Please tell! (Though it's hard to believe if I hadn't, I would agree that this is the #2 movie of all time!)

I'm trying to think of what it might be... Perhaps there was a point in the film where it was explained that a plea bargain was not available?

Well, I have a hard time believing Nothing But Trouble Made the list....in fact ANY list.... I don't think it did too well anywhere. I DID in fact like the movie, but more for the irony of its existance than anything else. Sometime's actors must just want to do something mindless and fun too....

Mindless and fun would have been a welcome treat. I'll forgive almost anything if it's funny. Not the case here, unfortunately.

Did you really put the Shawshank Redemption on this list? If anything it is the most UNDERRATED movie of all time. And why is Saving Private Ryan on there?

Some Like It Hot is NOT overrated!

Most overrated:

Shawshank Redemption: Where is the Redemption. A bloody murdered escapes out of prison to live the good life in Mexico. How is this movie #2 on the IMDB list.

LOTR: Return of the King: This was the weakest movie of the trilogy. In the fantasy epic realm probably not in mine top 10. Although the two speeches given by King Theodon (sp?) and Aragon (sp?) saved the movie.(#4 on imdb list)

Chariots of Fire: Nice movie but did not deserve the Oscar. People know the Vangelis theme song more than the movie itself.

Kramer vs. Kramer: How did this movie nobody now cares about beat Apocalypse Now.

Oliver: Oliver who?

In the Heat of the Night: The TV series is probably better known. How did it beat three movie that defined the era: Bonnie and Clyde, The Graduate, and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.

Around the World in 80 Days: Nice movie but definately not the same impact as Ten Commandments, or Giant.

Marty: People know more about this movie from the movie Quiz Show than the movie itself.

Somebody actually agrees with me? Shawshank/American Beauty/Silence ot Lambs. God am I sick about these middle weights getting lauded as masterpieces.

Although I agree that it was at first shocking to see Christian Bale reduced to the emaciated character that he portrays, I feel that it only adds to the power of the film. Could the movie have been done in a way to carry the same message yet not require Bale to loose the weight? Probably, but I have a hard time imagining the portrayal of the character would have been as effective.

If an actor wishes to go above and beyond the call of duty, and literally transform him or herself into a character, then I say go for it. Makeup, costume, and other forms of cosmetic change seek to help the audience visualize and understand the character, and I feel that transforming your body as well is just another way that this can be accomplished. Perhaps it is even more effective, because it is sometimes easy to look past a costume and see the actor underneath, but when the actor has undergone a physical change such as loosing 65 pounds, what you see is completely real.

This being said, I do not feel that Bale's preparation should become a standard in the acting community. Acting and performance should come first, and does usually in the audience's mind. The only reason that Bale's portrayal of Reznik is done so well is because his physical change is accompanied by brilliant acting. Some may argue that if the acting is good enough, no costume is even needed. However, if one can find the determination to pull both off, the result can be superb.

As for stretching the imagination, I feel that what Bale did to himself embodies exactly what movies are trying to perfect. While one must go into a movie ready to think and analyze, the beauty of film is you are able to see a stunning visual representation. Though some drama purists may argue the opposite, I feel that every new innovation in special effects or costume only adds to the enjoyment of film. While it may be true that reading a book, for example, can stimulate the imagination perhaps a bit more than a movie, I do not feel that good films suffer a lack of imagination. Personally, working through the mystery and plot of this film took more than enough imagination.

No offense, but obviously you haven't seen the Shawshank Redemption, at least like I have. Are you one of those people who can only get interested in action films? So as long as there is shooting in a movie you are on the edge of your seat. The Shawshank Remdemption is based off a true story, which makes it that much more brilliant. On top of that, there are so many things you can learn from the movie, but I won't bother explaining them to you, because you probably won't understand. The acting was superb. The soundtrack was excellent too. I consider Thomas Newman the finest composer of our day, because his music really draws you right into the movie. I believe the soundtrack is just as important as the plot, and acting. You can have a wonderful movie destroyed, because the music wasn't good. The Shawshank Remdemption gives you true hope. Most movies are so unreal that you cannot believe them. I still don't understand how this movie is sooo over rated, because like you said you ask 100 people what their favorite movie and most likely 50 of them will say Shawshank Redemption. If you ask 100 people if Shawshank Remption is one of their top 5 movies, then I would bet that number would jump to 90 people. So I think you may need to work on your algorithms for calculating whether a movie is over rated or not.

you are a fool!!!!!

John,

Shawshank Redemption was based on a true story??? I honestly had no idea. Can anybody confirm this is true?

Not sure that changes much. I should probably subtract fewer points for predictability if it was a true story.

I find it interesting that you thought you can learn a lot from this movie. That it takes 20 years to dig out of prison with a spoon? I hope I never need to know that.

Mr. Anonymous,

I am a fool???? I honestly had no idea. Can anybody confirm this is true?

I know nothing about the screenplay's origins (beyond Stephen King's involvement), but I can speak with great authority to the plausibility of digging to safety underground. This scenario has appeared in so many serious movies (like Raising Arizona) that it must be true. I think the key is to dig slowly, quietly, and in secret. You'll notice in _War of the Worlds_ that Tim Robbins' noisy attempts to escape a bad situation via tunneling won him a quick death at the hands of the towering and intimidating Tom Cruise.

I really do not understand how Silence of the Lambs made this list solely on the number of oscars it won. i find that ridiculous.

Do people really watch predictable, boring movies with no intellectual depth at all just because they make them "feel good" about themselves? Even if the plot is lame? 0_o
And here I thought that movies are watched mainly for their storylines (precisely the reason that one would read any good book). That said, Shawshank Redemption's storyline didn't do it for me. The fact that this emotionally manipulative piece of dung is #2 on IMDB totally befuddles me.

You want a GOOD inspirational movie about hope and perseverance? Watch "Rocky."

Andrew, you find it ridiculous that I consider it overrated simply because it won all those oscars? what other criteria could possibly be more relevant? Strange.

So, you say The Shawshank Redemption's storyline didn't do it for you, but the storyline of "Rocky" did?

How does "Rocky" have intellectual depth? Could it be the raw eggs or could it be "Yo, Adrian!" that makes it a deep movie?

I agree that it is an all right movie, but I also believe "The Shawshank Redemption" is good as well.

And just because a movie wins awards doesn't mean it is overrated. Doesn't that mean that the movie is deserving, technically? Most things that are good are also overrated, so what's the point in this list?

Both the Green Mile AND Shawshank Redemption rely on ridiculous Deus Ex Machina instruments in the plot just so we end up "liking" Andy Dufresne/John Coffey. And both are Stephen King inspired and Frank Darabont-directed. And the only way that Shawshank shows Dufresne having a hard time of it is being gang raped by some trite homosexual convicts.

Maltese Falcon may have looked new in its time, but now it is a stale film. Both Bogart, Lorre, Greenstreet and Huston would do better films. Yet this is considered a great movie. It is not so noirish as some would think, and it just looks really cooky and not one of those films that hold up well. Borat is another film that is way overated. It is juvenile in its humor, and the creator was much better with THE ALI G SHOW, which I did enjoy. But that someone like Michael Medved put this film in his top ten films of the year really blows me away.