Cinecast Mailbag (8/24)

Is it safe to come out of hiding for a little mailbag? Or are we still targets of that cinematic fatwa?

I've been listening to your show, I've e-mailed you a few times, and generally, I've become a fan of your podcast. But, your list of overrated movies, frankly, makes me want to punch you both in the face. - Wesley Rumph

Wesley. You're not alone, my friend. And isn't that the fun of Overrated Lists? (And to Wesley's credit, he did add that he had no intention of "literally" punching Adam and I in the face. I am, however, still waiting for the figurative punch in the face.) Overrated lists are by definition contentious. If we all agreed that a film was overrated, it wouldn't be overrated, would it?

E-mails from listeners so far (and we've only revealed our 6-10 overrated!) seem to be falling into two camps: 1) "You're an idiot. You totally missed the point of Brazil" and 2) "I'll see your 'Brazil' and I'll raise you "Citizen Kane." Fury and competitiveness. Sometimes in the same e-mail.

For the record, I've seen every movie on my top 10 list more than once. In some cases, the movie's flaws only became apparent to me on a second viewing (eg, "American Beauty"). In other cases, a second viewing only cemented my original impression ("Usual Suspects," "Fight Club," "The Royal Tenenbaums").

Some more overrated movies from Cinecast listeners:

"The Matrix" - I always thought people who like this had really missed out on Hong Kong Movies and (the novels) of Phillip K. Dick. (Magnus from Berlin)

"Gone With The Wind" - A time capsule of wish-fulfillment of nostalgia that has us follow for over three hours one of the most despicably shallow characters in film history. (Tony Leal)

"Star Wars" - If I can't even stop myself from nodding off during the Death Star scene at the end of the first one, it's hopeless. (Jared, Boston)

"Clerks" - I really wanted to like this movie, which was such a hit with so many of my friends. But the movie just bored me, and I felt there were some misogynistic overtones. I thought "Mallrats" and "Chasing Amy" were much better, but I almost didn't see them because I disliked Clerks so much. (Susanna Montezemolo, Washington, DC)

"Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" (and really the whole series) - Awful. Everything about Lord of the Rings is paint-by-numbers trash. (Tom Haley, Wheaton, IL)

Keep those e-mails coming!