A Masterpiece... you hate?

Jon Starr

Jon Starr

Veteran
Has anybody watched a 'masterpiece', an old classic that is referred to all the time, and when you finally watch it you don't see what's so great about it? You may even hate it?

I've recently thought about this because I finally watched Solyaris (1972), which had been recommended to me several times. I just couldn't get into it. It was slow. I don't mind slow movies, movies that breath, but this was just too much for me. I was trying to get into it, but the long shots, the constant discussions, and extensive expositions, just made me bored. I watched the whole thing because it's a 'classic' and I'm a big sci-fi fan, but if it wasn't, I would have stopped watching after 30 minutes, or at least the first hour. It didn't even have any beautiful visuals to hold it together, like 2001: space odyssey. It was just images of clouds, moving liquid, and people staring, thinking. It probably didn't help that I had seen the 2002 version and knew what to expect though...

Then there was the Godfather. I was just getting into film by this point, and everyone was shocked I had never seen it. I saw it, and didn't get the big hype. Maybe it's because I've seen so many copy cats and parodies of it out there, I knew what to expect. Plus I've found I'm just not that into movies about power, or any mafia anti-hero movies really.

Does anybody else feel the same? Any 'masterpieces' you just can't stand?
 
Citizen Kane was it for me. I always feel like some folks admire this film because they're told that they should.

I've tried Citizen Kane 3 times. It's an average story with great cinematography -- that's as far as I'll ever go.

Some people truly admire it...that's fine. I admire The Godfather, the OP does not...again, that's fine.

"Whatever floats your boat" as they say.
 
A note about age: WHEN you view a "masterpiece" can have a huge influence on HOW you view that masterpiece. Sometimes you're just not in the right place in your life to really appreciate the story that's being told.

Example: I saw "On Golden Pond" when it first came out in the theaters. Was 17 years old. Was bored to tears. Lame, pointless story. Of course, it went on to win three Oscars (including Best Picture!) and was nominated for seven more(!) I couldn't fathom how that lame story and boring borefest could have garnered any nominations other than Razzies.

Fast forward 25 years. Older, with grown kids who had moved out. I went through a bit of a Henry Fonda phase, watching a bunch of his old westerns, he was just a fantastic actor, and when I'd run out of other things to watch, I came up against "On Golden Pond". Great. Do I really want to sit through that again? Of course not, but ... heck, it was nominated for TEN oscars, so maybe I should give it another shot? I'll tell you what, being in such a different place in my life made ALL the difference in the world. I was moved to tears again, but not from boredom this time! It was a brilliant, superlative, sublime experience. A true masterpiece.

Exact same film. Only thing that changed between the two viewings was my maturity level and viewpoint on life.

When I saw Star Wars with my dad, I was 14. Greatest film I'd ever seen, it was transformative, and I knew at that moment what I wanted to do with my life. My dad, right next to me, was 54 years old. He said "meh, it was pretty good, but it won't win Best Picture." And he was right; Annie Hall won. Probably because most of the voters in the Academy were closer to 54 than they were 14!

I guess what I'm saying is -- if you don't "get" a masterpiece, revisit it when you're in the "target audience" age range, you may be really glad you did.
 
I agree with Star Wars. I laughed at everyone who complained about the prequels, saying they were such crap compared to the originals. The first thing I said was that's because you were 14 when you watched the original and now 25 years later the same basic movie sucks, but every 10-15 year old boy loved them. Not saying the prequels were good or even as good as the originals, but just saying the orginals weren't that great either.

I just recently watched Animal House for the first time and wondered what the big deal was. Of course every scene has been re-used so many times since, it was all old and boring to me, I've seen it a hundred times before. It's just because I didn't see Animal House first.
 
I was actually going to say Solaris as well, and I'm someone who loves 2001 and Barry Lyndon, so I can tolerate a 'slow' film. But Solaris was like watching paint dry, and I found the story rather tedious and obvious. Don't HATE it though, I just didn't enjoy it. Hate I reserve for films that actually offend me on some level. I can't agree at all about The Godfather, but it seems like you don't appreciate that genre of film anyway. Many consider Godfather II better than I but I don't agree. I lose interest in that one about halfway through. I can appreciate Citizen Kane. Having it be repeatedly named "THE GREATEST FILM EVER" doesn't do it any favors, as no film can live up to that expectation. But I am sufficiently entertained by it; from Orson's performance to the brilliant cinematography and Bernard Hermann's score, there is enough to admire.

I don't think anyone would call it a masterpiece but one film I abhorred that many seem to enjoy is The Fifth Element.
 
Barry_Green said:
A note about age: WHEN you view a "masterpiece" can have a huge influence on HOW you view that masterpiece. Sometimes you're just not in the right place in your life to really appreciate the story that's being told.
Click to expand...

Absolutely agreed.

Barry_Green said:
I guess what I'm saying is -- if you don't "get" a masterpiece, revisit it when you're in the "target audience" age range, you may be really glad you did.
Click to expand...

I used to consider silent films to be a curiosity at best. Nowadays, I enjoy many of them, and often get an emotional reaction (I sob at Chaplin's "The Kid" every time I watch it)

I'm always open to retrying acclaimed films I can't seem to connect to. I'm 41 now. I'll wait a few more years and give Citizen Kane another try. Who knows...
 
I run into this problem too. Deer Hunter, Scarface, Godfather, Taxi Driver... There are a lot of classics that I strongly dislike. I'm not sure I'd go so far as to say I "HATE" them, but I definitely didn't enjoy them in the least.

For me often I think it comes down to morality. Not saying everyone in the movie needs to be moral, but a person (particularly a protagonist) with obvious character issues that never change is a huge putoff for me. I sit and stew in frustration. Bleh.
 
Not really a "masterpiece" but, The Departed. I just didn't see an amazing film worthy of an Oscar in there. Especially when you take into consideration that Scorsese should have won his statue for any number of his other more superior films like Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Casino, or even Gangs of New York. Hell, I thought The Aviator was a masterpiece next to The Departed.

Also, I don't know if it is necessarily considered a masterpiece yet, but Terence Malick's recent The Tree of Life, while exquisitely shot from a cinematography point of view, it just sorta left me a bit cold. I can see why some people were wowed by it though, and I do appreciate what he was trying to do with the film. It just seemed, I don't know, too much disparate stuff (1950's rural life intercut with timeless spacescapes, for example) that didn't seem to go together like I thought it might. Also, the Sean Penn stuff seemed like it might have had more to it but was cut down in favor of the growing up stuff. Maybe a director's cut will be released and I can give the film a fresh look in that case?

As for The Godfather and Godfather II (haven't seen much of part III, maybe I'm lucky?), in addition to Goodfellas and Casino, I can't really think of a mob movie or mob-related film that really comes close to comparing to those four films. The Untouchables is a damn good one, but in the same league as Scorsese or Coppola? Probably not.

One I do have to put some attention on is Bound. Its more of a neo-noir thriller with the mob angle serving as the background moreso than the main point/motif. I do love how they had a very stylized feel and used the Chicago mob (just listen to the accents) in that one. Also, its just a damn good thriller. I suppose it got overshadowed by the Wachowski Bros. success with The Matrix.

And Batutta, The Fifth Element is awesome. I would say it actually qualifies as a comic book movie more than it does a science fiction film. Its art design and overall look was inspired heavily by the kind of late 70's/early 80's stuff like Heavy Metal and was designed by two of the artists of that time, Jean Giraud (Moebius) and Jean-Claude Mézières. Actually, next to Sin City and 300, I don't think any other comic book films truly captured their source material or in the case of The Fifth Element, its source of inspiration any better.
 
Last edited:
While hate is a pretty strong word, I will say I did not think much of The Deer Hunter when I finally saw it a few years ago.
 
I guess "hate" was the wrong word to use in the title. I don't HATE many of these films either. I just dislike them. Godfather I understand why it's a masterpiece, and appreciate it for that, but I didn't enjoy it in the slightest. Just not my type of film.

But of course everything is subjective.

I just feel like because I'm in this field, I need to 'appreciate' the 'masterpieces', but I just don't feel they always stand the test of time. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that they are referred to, parodied, and there's a lot of elements and story ideas that we've seen rehashed time and time again. So when I watch an old classic for the first time, it isn't a new idea, and doesn't have the impact as though watching something original for the first time. It's not like I look at the original Tron and say "wow, what amazing special effects!"
 
along the lines of Barry's point of WHEN you watch a film....a film may be a masterpiece of its time. Meaning at that time the things contained in said film were just totally mind blowing, or unorthodox or a technological achievement ect. But now when you watch it...all those things are the norm or by now it just seems ridiculous, thus diluting or even nullifying its masterpiece label...BUT it was said film that set the precedence.

edit:ahh yes...same point as Jon
 
Nektonic said:
And Batutta, The Fifth Element is awesome. I would say it actually qualifies as a comic book movie more than it does a science fiction film. Its art design and overall look was inspired heavily by the kind of late 70's/early 80's stuff like Heavy Metal and was designed by two of the artists of that time, Jean Giraud (Moebius) and Jean-Claude Mézières. Actually, next to Sin City and 300, I don't think any other comic book films truly captured their source material or in the case of The Fifth Element, its source of inspiration any better.
Click to expand...

I just don't like it. I don't like the characters. I don't like the story. I don't like the design. I absolutely DETEST every second that Chris Tucker is on screen. Most annoying character I think I've ever seen. It has a vibe you often see when foreign directors attempt their version of a Hollywood Blockbuster, a kind of tone def self consciousness and winking humor that grates on me. Like I said, i know alot of people seem to like that movie. I'm not one of them.
 
Batutta said:
It has a vibe you often see when foreign directors attempt their version of a Hollywood Blockbuster, a kind of tone def self consciousness and winking humor that grates on me.
Click to expand...

That about sums up what went wrong with Alien Resurrection.
 
Nektonic sez: As for The Godfather and Godfather II (haven't seen much of part III, maybe I'm lucky?), in addition to Goodfellas and Casino, I can't really think of a mob movie or mob-related film that really comes close to comparing to those four films. The Untouchables is a damn good one, but in the same league as Scorsese or Coppola? Probably not.



You should DEFINITELY check out Once Upon A Time In America if you like these sorts of Mob related films.

Without question one of my absolute favourites in any category.



: )


dmc
 
Blade Runner.

Yep, I know. Everyone loves it. "It's so great." I watched it and was bored pretty much the whole time.

I guess the stoning will commence now.
 
I fully expect to get assaulted by this but... The Godfather I & II & III. I am going to go all Peter Griffin here and say "It insists upon itself".

Let the bashing begin. I deserve it.
 
I watched The Shining last night (I'm 35 and I've never seen it before)...I thought it sucked...I mean, I wouldn't go as far as to say I hated it, but I'm not sure why everyone thinks it's such a classic. It was pretty boring, long as hell, and if I had a wife as annoying as Shelly Duvall's character I'd probably go nuts take an axe to her too!

Her character ruined the entire movie for me.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top