2. Jackie Brown (Quentin Tarantino, 1997)
What they said:
“For all its enthusiasm, this film isn't sharp enough to afford all the time it wastes on small talk, long drives, trips to the mall and favorite songs played on car radios. And although Ms. Grier makes an enjoyable comeback, she isn't an actress well served by quiet stretches of doing nothing before the camera.”
Janet Maslin, The New York Times
What we say:
Tarantino’s greatest film, end of story. Maybe even his last great film...
It might not have the edge of Reservoir Dogs or the insane cool of Pulp Fiction, but it drifts on by deliciously, with a mature and masterly sense of poise and timing.
Here is QT doing his thing, unhurried and assured, rolling out a tight, knowing crime caper by focusing on the characters and letting the story do it’s own work.
It's the performances that push it from 'good' to 'great': scuzzy De Niro, sinister pimp Sam Jackson, stand-up parole guy Robert Forster and smart, still-beautiful blaxploitation goddess Pam Grier – all given room by Tarantino’s smooth, '70s-shaped style to make their understated presences felt.
If the director’s subsequent slide into pastiche exploitation is a response to Jackie Brown’s so-so reception, then those short-sighted reviewers have derailed an incredible talent.
Comments
red157
Mar 3rd 2009, 13:54
I agree with a number of your choices whether they be left-field (Reign of Fire... hell even Van Helsing) or films I didn't particularly consider underrated (Fear or Loathing, Jackie Brown). That said, some of them are just terrible.
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red157
Mar 3rd 2009, 15:12
Ah this wasn't chosen by TF. I see...
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scousegit
Mar 4th 2009, 1:59
Fear and Loathing is superb... i read the book AFTER watching the film and had johnny depp's voice in my head the whole time which has to be a great compliment. However, Eyes Wide Shut as an underrated and REWARDING film? Blimey... there's some twisted people out there, yourselves included, TF
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gwilkie31
Mar 5th 2009, 13:33
The Mist has one of the worst endings I have ever scene. Completely out of place. So, you would rather shoot all you family in the face, making each one watch, than wait it out, search for fuel, cannabilise Granny or whatever? You care for the characters throughout the film and then, at the climax, they give you the middle finger. Bah!
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fortunesfool
Mar 6th 2009, 13:03
Where's Exorcist 3? It's a damn sight better than Jingle all the way! Big up for Strange Days though, vastly under rated movie.
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walkabout
Mar 6th 2009, 15:00
Going by all the grief it got at the time, I would have expected Waterworld to appear here. Glad it isn't, I though it was great!!!
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senlac
Mar 6th 2009, 15:28
I'd like a poll for the 20 most overrated movies!
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bluntmann
Mar 6th 2009, 17:16
I get the appeal of the other 19 but personally Eyes Wide Shut was almost three hours of my life I'd rather spend banging my head against a wall than watch again
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avoidz
Mar 8th 2009, 13:31
Superman III deserves more credit than it's given. The set-pieces you mentioned are awesome. The drunk Supes and subsequent junkyard fight are absolute classics of cinema.
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avoidz
Mar 8th 2009, 13:34
Agreed. This is Tarantino's masterpiece, under-appreciated by most audiences. Easily more enjoyable on subsequent viewings than Pulp Fiction, this is a terrific movie.
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nathanman
Mar 8th 2009, 20:01
Glad Reign Of Fire got a mention here! Cracking film that never really reveived the praise it was due! Also, Strange Days, one of the best films of the last century!
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scabo33
Mar 9th 2009, 17:00
i dont think the mist and jackie brown were under rated.... jus under appreciated
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BooBoo1981
Mar 10th 2009, 18:00
I think the movie that nobody even knows about, weirdly, is True Romance (QT's one romantic masterpiece). Sooooo underrated for sure.
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jgreene02
Mar 10th 2009, 21:04
I'm glad somebody realizes how underrated Silent Hill is. It's easily the best video-game adaption yet. I know that's no saying much, but it's miles ahead of the competition
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Mrmotion
Mar 15th 2009, 21:50
Some of these I can totally agree with- but Cast Away? A more self indulgent Tom Hanks fest Ive yet to see!
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hstemp
Mar 18th 2009, 22:57
erm, where the hell is Howard the Duck in this list????!
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MattyVanHorn
Apr 9th 2009, 15:34
I would add a few more: "Waking Life" and "A Scanner Darkly" - Mr. Linklater's roto-scoped deep thinkers. Intelligence and curiosity are increasingly rare in film, but these two are both gleeful brain-twisters. Add "Sunshine" as one of the most artful, interesting and well-acted sci-fi films of the last decade. I can't recommend this film enough. And a sad last lament to "Serenity", paean to the criminally-canceled sci-fi/western/morality play series. Has any recent sci-fi film deserved a franchise more than this one? (Saw 5...really?)
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ubcool
Apr 10th 2009, 18:48
sorry but excluding the mist , jackie brown and jingle all the rest really are bad. i vote alien 3, exorcist 3, tranformers animated movie, navy seals, planet terror, escape from la, screamers, captain ron
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leontheiguana
Apr 22nd 2009, 20:09
I agree with some of these (Jackie Brown is a masterpiece) but really... Van Helsing? It's not the Mashup thats bad - it's the script (Wit? Seriously?), the performances, the final fight, the bad pacing, the shlocky special effects... I think maybe you're trying to defend a guilty party.
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thekillingjoke
May 23rd 2009, 23:11
I too agree with most. But I can't say I agree with Van Helsing. As for the rest Eyes Wide Shut is phenomenal. Jackie Brown is by far the best QT. However I do think that Southland Tales is more of a guilty pleasure than actually a good film.
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MikeyRix
May 29th 2009, 20:28
"Maybe even his [Tarantino's] last great film..." Excuse me? "Kill Bill: Volume 1", anyone?
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Smokinator
Jan 3rd 2010, 13:35
the mist is one of my fav films and th ending made me cry, but apart from that review you had on the page i would say its not underrated, because most other critics love it, but i would say it is underseen- meaning that a lot of ppl do not know about it.... like MOON
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stevolbauer
Jul 2nd 2010, 15:34
I agree with many of these choices, Reign of Fire was seriously underrated and I dont know why, its class. Blades of Glory is actually really funny. But Jackie Brown is not QTs best film, while it is brilliant, Pulp, Dogs, Kill Bill and Basterds are all better.
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TinEar85
Jun 19th 2011, 2:56
Wow, for a movie site, you people have terrible taste in movies.
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TinEar85
Jun 19th 2011, 3:08
Duh, I just read the rest of the headline. Damn ADD. I guess I should be blaming the voters not the website.
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darkstarr71
Jul 15th 2011, 13:55
EYES WIDE SHUT just misses out on being the last great Kubrick movie for one important reason; it is set in the wrong time. If it had been filmed as a period piece, this would have been a masterful send-off for a truly great director. The original Arthur Schnitzler short story "Traumnovelle" was written in 1926, and had Kubrick set the story in this time period, the social and moral conventions of the time would have made sense of the characters attitudes, outlooks and responses to events in the film. Having chosen to set it in the New York of 1999, we find the characters unbelievably shocked by thoughts of marital infidelity, prostitution, issues of familial pimping and orgies. I mean, a masked orgy in a locked mansion house, with no real shocking scenes of carnal indulgence? Set in 1999 it generated yawns and confusion, whereas within the societal conventions and strict class structures of 1926, the “shock-horror” reactions of the characters make a heck of a lot more sense. So re-watch and mentally CG in a 1920’s milieu and you have yourself a fitting period end to an illustrious career. Oh, and for the record, VAN HELSING is irredeemably bad and cack-handed on every level, and stands as the only film I’ve ever come close to walking out on in disgust. Only the entry fee of nearly £10 made me stay to the shoddy, gruelling finish. Eeuuuuggghhh…!!!
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darkstarr71
Jul 15th 2011, 13:57
g*****n - where's my LINE BREAKS??????!!!!!!!
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darkstarr71
Jul 15th 2011, 13:59
Gosh darn it....where's my g*****n?????!!!!!!!!!!!!
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darkstarr71
Jul 15th 2011, 13:59
Gosh darn it....where's my g*****n?????!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been PG rated
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darkstarr71
Jul 15th 2011, 13:59
Gosh darn it....where's my g*****n?????!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been PG rated!
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Igrayne
Jul 30th 2011, 14:32
True Romance is not a Tarantino film, you can tell because it is not c**p. Not that Tony Scott is much better but he does not p**s me off with over the top quirks and ripping films off under the excuse they are "homages".
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FBNReichart
Feb 5th 2012, 12:01
Silent Hill is clearly over your head if you think it has no plot READ http://www.gamefaqs.com/ps/198641-silent-hill/faqs/4180
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alanupu
Jul 7th 2012, 12:59
Cast Away I did not realize it was a movie I was under the impression it was a long advert for Fedex. Product placement gone mad that alone is enough to warrant not including the movie in this list let alone the basketball
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rustbearcleaver
Aug 30th 2012, 18:14
I would say the most underated movie is Gran Torino. A classic in my mind...
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