Art is subjective—some people are awed by creations that others see no value in. The emotions produced by a work of art are not expected to work for everyone the same way, something that is especially evident in the field of cinema. Movies have turned into the dominant form of entertainment over the past century, with hundreds of thousands produced since the inception of the medium.
Interestingly, there are a few films that are loved and despised in equal measure, a conflict that serves to underscore the strength of their narrative convictions. Although some movies beloved by critics are hated by audiences, it's just as interesting to consider those that viewers themselves cannot agree on.
10 Lost In Translation (2003) Is Considered Loaded & Problematic By Some Viewers
Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation is in part an homage to Tokyo, where the movie takes place. The movie is well known for its unorthodox exploration of romantic relationships in the absence of familiar social elements.
Coppola, Bill Murray, and Scarlett Johansson were each lauded for their respective roles in the film, although a few viewers found the unconscious comparisons with Japanese culture to be loaded and problematic. Lost in Translation can be read through multiple lenses, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing.
9 Titanic (1997) Was Voted The Worst Film Ever Made In A BBC Poll
Titanic is by far the most extravagantly designed disaster movie in cinematic history—a massive budget that fortunately resulted in far greater profit at the box office. The visual effects are a masterclass in technical skill, generating an incredibly authentic representation of the original event.
On the other hand, many thought the screenplay and plot to be relatively less impactful, disparaging the romantic aspects of Titanic while admiring the action. Paradoxical to its success, the movie was "voted the worst film ever by viewers of BBC One's Film 2003."
8 Mother! (2017) Emitted Horror Vibes That Failed To Match Audience Expectations
Darren Aronofsky is known for his offbeat storytelling style, one that is best exemplified by Mother!. It begins as a thriller, with strange visitors hounding the home in which the entire narrative is set, but quickly morphs into something drastically different.
Mother! is a Christian allegory filled with scenes of unbridled brutality, a combination that many viewers (and critics) found to be "as honestly disquieting as it is showy." One of the reasons for audience annoyance was the trailer, whose undeniably horror vibe failed to match expectations.
7 The Hateful Eight (2015) Is Inconsistent & Potentially Problematic
Tarantino has made multiple masterpieces—Reservoir Dogs (1992), Pulp Fiction (1993), Jackie Brown (1997)—but The Hateful Eight is a different matter entirely. The film split critical opinion down the middle, with Peter Bradshaw calling it "intimate yet somehow weirdly colossal," and Owen Gleiberman staunchly declaring it to be "Tarantino's worst film."
Audiences also found The Hateful Eight to be inconsistent, applauding the movie's spectacular performances but snubbing its unidimensional depiction of race relations.
6 Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) Departed From The Franchise's Dynastic Stereotypes
There is no Star Wars movie as divisive as Rian Johnson's The Last Jedi, even though a large fraction of viewers enjoyed their experience of the movie. Reviewers celebrated its departure from the dynastic stereotypes entrenched by The Last Jedi's predecessors, but some fans found that shift to be galling (and contrary to preset expectations).
The film obtained unbelievably low user scores on Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic, in part due to a coordinated "review-bombing campaign," a clear indicator of The Last Jedi's controversial components.
5 Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004) Can Be Viewed Through Diametrically Opposing Perspectives
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind clubs sci-fi with romance with great finesse, obtaining massive acclaim from nearly all sources. While "formally and conceptually complicated," the movie bothered a notable segment of its audience with its ambiguously painful ending.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind can be viewed as a triumph of love against all odds as well as a clinical exploration of the realities of romance, two diametrically opposing perspectives that may or may not be resolvable (depending on personal opinion).
4 Eyes Wide Shut (1999) Alienated Several Members Of Its Audience
Famed director Stanley Kubrick's final film, Eyes Wide Shut is an "intense study of the human psyche" that "create[s] a near-hypnotic atmosphere of commingled desire and dread."
Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman's performances were both touted as being among the best of their careers, but the movie's borderline eccentric narrative, glacial pace, and "melodramatic tension" alienated several members of its audience. Eyes Wide Shut has gradually entered cult territory over time.
3 La La Land's (2016) Lack Of Race Consciousness Is Troubling
Damien Chazelle's La La Land obtained 14 Oscar nominations (a record shared only with All About Eve (1950) and Titanic), but lost Best Feature Film to Moonlight (2016) after an announcer accidentally declared it the winner—in one of the more bizarre Academy Awards ceremonies.
La La Land is a whimsical musical held together by the magical chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone's characters, and it truly deserves most of the praise it gets. However, some found the movie's lack of race consciousness to be troubling, especially since it's all about jazz.
2 Requiem For A Dream (2000) Loses Itself In The Splendor Of Its Filmmaking
Requiem for a Dream is a difficult film to watch, regardless of one's experience with the story's subject matter—the devastating impact of addiction on those unable to escape themselves. Ellen Burstyn was singled out for her heartbreaking performance, receiving an Academy Award nomination as a result.
On the other end of the spectrum, audiences felt that Requiem for a Dream was so lost in the splendor of its filmmaking that it took away from the emotional pith of the narrative.
1 Prometheus (2012) Was A Financial Triumph That Many Viewers Considered To Be A Watered-Down Prequel
The Alien tetralogy is best known for its first two movies, directed by Ridley Scott and James Cameron, respectively. Its third and fourth installments received significantly less praise, despite David Fincher and Jean-Pierre Jeunet's unique takes on the storyline.
As such, Prometheus was already on thin ice when it was released fifteen years after Alien Resurrection (1997). While the first prequel to Alien was a financial triumph, many viewers consider it to be a watered-down attempt to rekindle the iconic franchise.