Overrated Films

Some movies are classics because they really do deliver every time. There are movies, Top Hat with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, to name one, that I could watch a million times without getting tired of them. There are other movies that I watch once, and then decide that was more than enough. Others are talked about a lot, but I find it hard to understand why. Despite the hype, here are some movies that I find distinctly underwhelming.

1. Star Wars (the entire series). I know there are some funny moments, and that light sabers are cool and ewoks are cute. Even I make jokes about using the force. However, thousands of people have signed themselves as Jedi under the religion section of census polls. I've had people either shout at me or almost cry because I said I wasn't a fan of them. They are definitely worth the beyond cult following they have.

2. The Lord of the Rings (the trilogy). I know a lot of people will strongly disagree with me on this one. First of all, they were in desperate need of a good editing. The end sequences alone last as long as other feature films. Yes, everyone likes the struggle against good and evil and that classic story line, but this one just doesn't hit the mark.

3. Forest Gump. Normally Tom Hanks movies are, if not great cinema, at least entertaining (think You've Got Mail). He proved that he can actually act in movies like Philadelphia. This one, though, was overly contrived and completely unbelievable. Rather than being uplifting, I found it insulting. Take the catchphrase, for example. I know exactly what I'm going to get in a box of chocolates: chocolates. It's not complicated.

4. Four Weddings and a Funeral. Everyone I know loves this movie. It's compared to really cute romantic comedies such as Notting Hill. However, this film is slow moving with a barely existent plot. It lacks the subtle situational comedy of other films in the genre, and the characters just aren't as likeable.

5. Napoleon Dynamite. This low-budget independent film became hugely popular and made a surprisingly huge amount of money. The only catch is that it's not as funny as everyone thinks it is. It lacks both a plot and a punch line.