Opinions of an Average Joe

Tom Maguire
19 May 2003

"Some people can read War and Peace and come away thinking it's a simple adventure story. Others can read the ingredients on a chewing gum wrapper and unlock the secrets of the universe."

The wide range of opinions floating around among us Film Basement dwellers about this weekend's long awaited and much hyped release of The Matrix Reloaded reminded me of an email sent some months ago by our good friend Tim. In it he refers to a hilariously negative user comment from the Internet Movie Database about the Akira Kurosawa classic The Seven Samurai (1954) and how there will always be some bonehead who hates even the greatest of movies. In digging around said IMDb's list of highest rated movies I realized these comments are a comedy treasure trove of well meaning but horribly misguided opinions by people who are most likely the least qualified people on Earth to judge the merits of classic films. And although critics are probably no better judges of movies - as proven by the near universal praise of recent movies like In the Bedroom, Gosford Park, and The Hours (all of which I found thoroughly underwhelming), people who give bad reviews to classic films shine a unique light on a particular segment of the general moviegoing population and also provide us with the first in a series of Opinions of an Average Joe.

The Seven Samurai (1954)
Directed by Akira Kurosawa

From the IMDb:

by Jeff
Virginia, USA

Date: 18 November 2001
Summary: Classic? You gotta be kidding me

I rented the Seven Samurai with some friends. We found it difficult to finish this stinker, and ended up goofing on it towards the end. Where to start? First, the movie was SLOW - was too slow - they had segments which took 20 minutes to show that required only 3. The acting was terrible. The directing was terrible. The sound quality was terrible. The story line was a good one - they just didn't do a good job of turning it into a movie.

Read the original post along with everyone else in the world who loves the movie here at the Internet Movie Database, or better yet rent the Criterion Collection DVD and watch for yourself.