Critics are not always right. There is often a disconnect between the critics and moviegoers. Sometimes a critic can dive too deep inside a movie or just miss the point of a film entirely. This is why many movie review websites have both a critic score and an audience score. Here are a few examples of movies that the critics hated but audiences loved.
Fans of Quentin Tarantino might remember this 2008 outlaw biker film Hell Ride. The movie was supposed to be a modern-day take of the 1960s and 70s biker films. Tarantino loved the idea of Hell Ride and decided to become the executive producer. Hell Ride came out a year after Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez’s double feature Grindhouse which was a tribute to the exploitation films that used to play in drive-in theaters during the 1970s. Hell Ride was very similar to both the 70s exploitation movies and Grindhouse so Tarantino decided to back it.
While critics thought Grindhouse was just a mediocre film, they thought Hell Ride was one of the worst movies of the year. The critics thought the film was extremely dated and cheesy as hell. Although the movie had an all-star cast such as Dennis Hopper, Michael Madsen, and David Carradine, many critics saw them as to old to play such rugged bikers. Critics tore Hell Ride apart with many of them saying there were no redeeming factors to the movie.
Although Hell Ride isn’t the best movie in the world, it wasn’t intended to be. It was just supposed to be a fun movie that resembled the B-rated films of the 1970s. Anyone who has seen a 70s drive-in flick will tell you they are nothing special. They are simple films that are just made for mindless entertainment. Hell Ride is just that, mindless, testosterone-fueled entertainment.
Since the film was released, Hell Ride has received a bit of a cult following. Many fans of the exploitation and drive-in cinema liked the movie’s ridiculousness. The movie is obviously not for everybody, but for a select few, it curves their appetite for 1970s shlock cinema.
If you were into skateboarding back in the early 2000s then you probably have at least heard about the film Grind. It is a 2003 comedy about 3 friends who just graduated high school and decide to follow a professional skateboarder around the country in hopes of becoming sponsored. A lot of professional skateboarders and MTV personalities made appearances in the film making it popular with the teenage audience. People like Tom Green, Bam Margera, Ryan Sheckler, and Wee-Man have small roles in the movie. However, this did not save Grind from being completely trashed by critics.
Many film critics despised Grind. They thought the film was juvenile and repetitious with the skateboarding scenes. They also believed the plot was slow with no redeeming factors. The critics knew nothing about the skateboarding culture of the early 2000s or the young audience the film was targeted towards.
While the critics panned Grind, young skaters loved the film and related to it. The movie currently has a critic score of 8% on Rotten Tomatoes but has an audience score of 79%. Many people relate the critics to parents trying to tell a teenage what they should and shouldn’t watch. Of course, teens aren’t going to listen to what some old dude tells them and do what they want. Grind still has a big following with many fans calling it a skateboarding classic. The movie is not going to win any awards or anything but is still very much worth a watch if you have even a small interest in the early 2000s skateboarding culture.
Boondock Saints is a highly original action-thriller that came out in 1999. The film is about 2 Irish Catholic brothers from Boston who take justice into their own hands in order to rid their town of crime. The film was one of the most anticipated films of the year and received a ton of media attention even before the film was finished. The insane amount of hype the film received might be the reason it got so many poor reviews by critics.
As you may have guessed, critics hated Boondock Saints. Many accused the film of being a Quentin Tarantino knock off with very little substance. Some critics even said the movie was just a bunch of action sequences thrown on top of a non-existing plotline. Most critics did not think the film lived up to the hype but the audience tended to disagree.
Boondock Saints was highly praised by film fans upon its release. They viewed the film as a highly original film and a breath of fresh air from the generic action movies during that time. Believe it or not, Boondock Saints has a 22% critic score and a 91% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Some review websites have it rated even lower. This shows just how disconnected critics can be from the general audience at times.
Yet another cult classic that is was panned by critics. Super Troopers is a 2001 comedy about the daily routine of a bunch of goofy state troopers in the small town of Spurbury, Vermont. It is a mix of a buddy cop film and a stoner comedy. Super Troopers was the first film to put the Broken Lizard comedy group on the map. After the film’s release, Broken Lizard went on to make other successful films such as Beerfest.
Although Super Troopers was a breakout success for Broken Lizard, the movie received horrible reviews from critics. Many believed the film was stupid and would only be admired by fans of toilet humor. They also thought the film was put together haphazardly making the plot almost non-existent.
As stated before, the critics are not always right. Audiences loved the movie making it an instant cult classic. The raunchy humor was not as overbearing as the critics claimed and many people loved its immature tone. The movie did so well that a sequel was made in 2018. The film might be a little low brow but that’s what gives Super Troopers its charm. Many review websites have a critic score of around 35 and an audience score in the high 80s or lower 90s. Like most of the films on this list, Super Troopers is not for everyone. The saying, “Different strokes for different folks” fits perfectly in this case.
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