Special Report

Movies Audiences Love but Critics Hate

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With thousands of new movies released each year, audiences rely on professional critics to identify the best the industry has to offer. By doing so, movie reviewers help moviegoers avoid wasting time and maximize their movie-watching pleasure.

And while critical consensus is generally in line with audiences’ likes or dislikes of a film, sometimes the tastes of critics and audiences differ immensely.

24/7 Tempo has identified 30 films that audiences love but critics hate. We created an index based on the disparity between audience and critic ratings based on reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and the Internet Movie Database.

Many of the films with the greatest differences in critical and audience appreciation would be considered low brow. Light-hearted comedies and over-the-top action flicks do not always aim for lofty intellectual goals but exist as unpretentious entertainment for movie lovers, who have no trouble expressing their enjoyment. 

Critics — who tend to look for more than just entertainment and review the movie’s artistic qualities — rarely praise these films. In comparison, these are 76 movies with a perfect score from critics.

It appears that divergence in opinion between critical pundits and the average moviegoer may be becoming increasingly common. Over 1,000 movies — with enough data for comparison — made the original list of movies that audiences love but critics dislike. They date back to the early 1920s. Yet slightly more than half of the films with the largest discrepancy in average ratings were released since 2000. These are the 40 greatest movies of the 21st century.

Click here to see the movies audiences love but critics hate

To determine the movies that audiences love but critics hate, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data on audience and critic ratings from IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. FIlms were ranked based on the difference between a film’s Tomatometer score — the percentage of professional critic reviews on Rotten Tomatoes that are positive — and the weighted average of audience ratings on IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. The average audience score was weighted by the number of audience reviews on IMDb and on Rotten Tomatoes. Only films with at least 75,000 audience reviews on either IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes, 10 critic reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, and an average IMDb-Rotten Tomatoes audience rating of at least 75% were included. Supplemental data on domestic box office came from film industry site The Numbers.

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

30. Ladder 49 (2004)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 79% (343,196 votes)
> RT critics rating: 41% (164 votes)
> Directed by: Jay Russell
> Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, John Travolta, Jacinda Barrett

“Ladder 49” tells the story of two firefighters. One who is injured and trapped in a burning building and has flashbacks of important moments of his life, and the other who is trying to rescue him. Critics were not impressed, but moviegoers were — 81% of audience reviewers gave the movie a positive review on Rotten Tomatoes.

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Courtesy of New Line Cinema

29. The Nativity Story (2006)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 75% (82,859 votes)
> RT critics rating: 37% (131 votes)
> Directed by: Catherine Hardwicke
> Starring: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Oscar Isaac

“The Nativity Story” centers on the story of Mary and Joseph who travel to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus. During their journey, they try to escape King Herod’s forces who want to kill Jesus because of a prophecy that he will become a king. The most negative reviews describe the movie as a fairly bland, straightforward telling of the Christmas story.

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

28. Sweet Home Alabama (2002)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 76% (802,738 votes)
> RT critics rating: 38% (159 votes)
> Directed by: Andy Tennant
> Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Patrick Dempsey, Josh Lucas

A successful, recently engaged fashion designer in New York has to go back home to Alabama to legally divorce her estranged husband but realizes that they still have feelings for each other. One of the few good things critics said about the movie was that Reese Witherspoon was charming.

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

27. The Guardian (2006)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 78% (423,123 votes)
> RT critics rating: 37% (150 votes)
> Directed by: Andrew Davis
> Starring: Kevin Costner, Ashton Kutcher, Sela Ward

“The Guardian” tells the story of a Coast Guard rescue swimmer who trains young recruits and takes an arrogant high school swimming champion under his wing, teaching him about loss and sacrifice. Critics lambasted the movie for its too many cliches.

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Courtesy of Sony Pictures Entertainment

26. Radio (2003)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 77% (171,047 votes)
> RT critics rating: 35% (122 votes)
> Directed by: Michael Tollin
> Starring: Cuba Gooding Jr., Ed Harris, Debra Winger

Based partly on a true story, the film has Ed Harris playing a high school football coach who develops a life-changing bond with Radio Kennedy, a developmentally challenged young man played by Cuba Gooding Jr.

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

25. August Rush (2007)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 80% (229,272 votes)
> RT critics rating: 37% (123 votes)
> Directed by: Kirsten Sheridan
> Starring: Freddie Highmore, Keri Russell, Jonathan Rhys Meyers

A musical prodigy runs away from his orphanage and travels to New York City to find his parents, who happen to be looking for him too. Critics disliked just about every aspect of the movie, with only 37% giving the film a positive review. Audience reviewers felt the opposite way, with 82% liking it.

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Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

24. Tommy Boy (1995)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 86% (252,465 votes)
> RT critics rating: 42% (43 votes)
> Directed by: Peter Segal
> Starring: Chris Farley, David Spade, Brian Dennehy

Much like their follow-up effort “Black Sheep,” Chris Farley and David Spade’s 1995 comedy “Tommy Boy” was not well received by critics. Roger Ebert said, “The movie is an assembly of cliches and obligatory scenes from dozens of other movies, all its better.” Yet audiences loved it, giving it a rating of 90% on Rotten Tomatoes, compared with the 42% of critics who enjoyed it.

Courtesy of Screen Gems

23. Underworld (2003)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 76% (495,989 votes)
> RT critics rating: 31% (162 votes)
> Directed by: Len Wiseman
> Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Scott Speedman, Shane Brolly

“Underworld” is the story of a vampire, who is also a trained killer, who falls in love with a human being chased by werewolves for a mysterious reason. According to Rotten Tomatoes’ Critics Consensus, the movie is “tedious and derivative.” Audience reviewers thought otherwise, and 79% of them liked the sci fi thriller.

Courtesy of Regency Enterprises

22. Man on Fire (2004)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 84% (423,649 votes)
> RT critics rating: 38% (169 votes)
> Directed by: Tony Scott
> Starring: Denzel Washington, Christopher Walken, Dakota Fanning

A former CIA operative is hired by a wealthy family in Mexico City to protect their young daughter. When she is kidnapped, he seeks revenge. Critics describe the movie as having potential and failing to reach it because of excessive violence. Though just 38% liked the film, 89% of audiences did.

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Courtesy of New Line Cinema

21. The Butterfly Effect (2004)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 79% (623,391 votes)
> RT critics rating: 33% (172 votes)
> Directed by: Eric Bress, J. Mackye Gruber
> Starring: Ashton Kutcher, Amy Smart, Melora Walters

“The Butterfly Effect” centers on a college student (Ashton Kutcher) who suffers from headaches so terrible he blacks out. While he is unconscious, he is able to travel back in time and change the past. Though it was received well by audiences — with 81% of audiences giving the film a positive review on Rotten Tomatoes — “The Butterfly Effect” failed to impress critics.

Courtesy of Columbia Pictures Corporation

20. Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 81% (464,882 votes)
> RT critics rating: 35% (164 votes)
> Directed by: Rob Marshall
> Starring: Ziyi Zhang, Ken Watanabe, Michelle Yeoh

Despite six total Oscar nominations and three wins, “Memoirs of a Geisha” received numerous poor reviews, resulting in a 35% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. This critical reaction could be partially to blame for the film’s disappointing box office performance in the U.S. and Canada.

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Courtesy of New Line Cinema

19. Now and Then (1995)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 78% (76,156 votes)
> RT critics rating: 32% (19 votes)
> Directed by: Lesli Linka Glatter
> Starring: Christina Ricci, Demi Moore, Rosie O’Donnell

“Now and Then” is the story of four best friends and an unforgettable summer they spend together in a small town in 1970. Most critics were not impressed. Roger Ebert even described the film as a “contrived Stand by Me kind of story.” Moviegoers were more generous, with 82% giving the movie a positive rating.

Courtesy of New Line Cinema

18. I Am Sam (2001)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 83% (301,038 votes)
> RT critics rating: 35% (145 votes)
> Directed by: Jessie Nelson
> Starring: Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dakota Fanning

Sean Penn received an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of a mentally challenged man fighting for legal custody of his 7-year-old daughter, who in the process also teaches different people, including his lawyer, the importance of love and family. Critics and some viewers thought the film was contrived and sentimental, and gave it a 35% Freshness rating, though audiences on Rotten Tomatoes liked the film better than critics, giving it a score of 86%.

Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

17. Seven Pounds (2008)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 75% (636,645 votes)
> RT critics rating: 27% (195 votes)
> Directed by: Gabriele Muccino
> Starring: Will Smith, Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson

“Seven Pounds” is about a man with a dark seek on a journey to find redemption. He is setting out to change the lives of seven people for the better but complications arise when he falls in love with one of them. Several critics didn’t feel the main characters actions were believable, and felt the movie was too grim and self-serious.

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Courtesy of Warner Bros.

16. The Phantom of the Opera (2004)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 81% (412,167 votes)
> RT critics rating: 33% (171 votes)
> Directed by: Joel Schumacher
> Starring: Gerard Butler, Emmy Rossum, Patrick Wilson

In this adaptation of the “The Phantom of the Opera,” a disfigured musical genius who lives beneath the opera house of Paris falls in love with a young soprano and enacts a plan to keep her with him. The movie is “boring, and lacking in both romance and danger,” according to Rotten Tomatoes’ Critics Consensus.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

15. Empire Records (1995)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 80% (181,620 votes)
> RT critics rating: 31% (35 votes)
> Directed by: Allan Moyle
> Starring: Anthony LaPaglia, Debi Mazar, Maxwell Caulfield

“Empire Records” details a day in the lives of a group of bohemian record store employees as they attempt to save their store from being taken over by a corporate franchise. Critics wrote it off as “mostly a silly and predictable teen dramedy,” as summarized in Rotten Tomatoes’ critics consensus, and 31% gave it a positive review. More than 180,000 viewers rated it on the site as well, 83% of whom gave it a thumbs up.

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Courtesy of Universal Pictures

14. Half Baked (1998)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 78% (194,266 votes)
> RT critics rating: 29% (24 votes)
> Directed by: Tamra Davis
> Starring: Dave Chappelle, Guillermo Di­az, Jim Breuer

Before rocketing to comedy superstardom, Dave Chappelle co-wrote and starred in this stoner comedy about a group of friends tasked with getting their friend out of jail. Critics found it under-produced and unfunny, with only 29% of those rating it on Rotten Tomatoes giving it a positive review. Audiences, on the other hand, delivered an 81% positive rating.

Courtesy of Fox Searchlight Pictures

13. Super Troopers (2001)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 85% (262,915 votes)
> RT critics rating: 35% (89 votes)
> Directed by: Jay Chandrasekhar
> Starring: Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, André Vippolis

“Super Troopers” is a lowbrow comedy about dope-smoking Vermont state troopers trying to save their jobs by making a drug bust. It was written by the comedy troupe Broken Lizard, who also play the five state troopers. The film enjoys a 90% approval rating from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics did not share their enthusiasm, giving a Freshness rating of 35%. Chuck Wilson of L.A. Weekly said the movie featured “actors who aren’t actors so much as just a bunch of guys goofing off.”

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures and Momentum Pictures

12. P.S. I Love You (2007)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 76% (254,226 votes)
> RT critics rating: 25% (104 votes)
> Directed by: Richard LaGravenese
> Starring: Hilary Swank, Gerard Butler, Harry Connick Jr.

“P.S. I Love You” tells the story of a young widow whose late husband has left her letters to help her recover from his death and move on. According to Rotten Tomatoes’ Critics Consensus, the movie is a cliche and did not cast the right people as the leads.

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Courtesy of Warner Bros.

11. A Walk to Remember (2002)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 78% (31,402,117 votes)
> RT critics rating: 27% (103 votes)
> Directed by: Adam Shankman
> Starring: Mandy Moore, Shane West, Peter Coyote

“A Walk To Remember” tells the story of a mean high school senior who falls in love with a naïve young woman he and his friends used to make fun of. Critics did not like the plot of the movie. According to the Rotten Tomatoes’ Critics Consensus, the romantic movie is “bland and oppressively syrupy.”

Courtesy of New Line Cinema

10. John Q (2002)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 75% (169,539 votes)
> RT critics rating: 23% (131 votes)
> Directed by: Nick Cassavetes
> Starring: Denzel Washington, Robert Duvall, Gabriela Oltean

“John Q” is a movie about what a desperate father will do to save his son’s life. In this case, John Quincy Archibald (Denzel Washington) takes the people in an ER hostage to force the hospital perform a heart transplant surgery on his son because his health insurance won’t cover it.

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Courtesy of Lionsgate

9. Daddy’s Little Girls (2007)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 80% (225,958 votes)
> RT critics rating: 26% (54 votes)
> Directed by: Tyler Perry
> Starring: Gabrielle Union, Idris Elba, Tracee Ellis Ross

In “Daddy’s Little Girls,” a struggling mechanic and father of three girls fights his drug-dealing ex-wife for custody of the girls and falls in love with his lawyer. Critics called the movie amateurish and melodramatic.

Courtesy of Screen Gems

8. Stomp the Yard (2007)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 81% (468,001 votes)
> RT critics rating: 25% (89 votes)
> Directed by: Sylvain White
> Starring: Columbus Short, Meagan Good, Ne-Yo

“Stomp the Yard” is the story of a street dancer who, after his brother is murdered, moves to Georgia, enrolls in college, and joins a step-dancing team. Critics gave thumbs down to “Stomp the Yard” — just 25% gave it a Freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes — noting its “soap opera-style subplots,” while conceding the film contained impressive dance scenes. Audiences gave the movie a score of 82%.

Courtesy of 20th Century Fox

7. The Boondock Saints (1999)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 86% (335,547 votes)
> RT critics rating: 28% (29 votes)
> Directed by: Troy Duffy
> Starring: Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus

This “juvenile, ugly movie that represents the worst tendencies of directors channeling Tarantino,” according to the Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus, was enjoyed by 91% of users on the site and given a rating of 7.8 out of 10 on IMDb. Only 28% of critics gave it a positive review, with most finding it idiotic and immoral.

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Courtesy of Universal Pictures

6. The Life of David Gale (2003)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 78% (111,883 votes)
> RT critics rating: 19% (157 votes)
> Directed by: Alan Parker
> Starring: Kevin Spacey, Kate Winslet, Laura Linney

Director Alan Parker (“Mississippi Burning,” “Midnight Express”) helmed this film starring Kevin Spacey as an ardent opponent of capital punishment who winds up on death row. A strong cast of Spacey, Kate Winslet, and Laura Linney helped lift its audience score to 81% on Rotten Tomatoes, but the Critics Consensus found the anti-death penalty film an “implausible, convoluted thriller that pounds the viewer over the head with its message,” and only 19% of critics gave it a Freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

5. Step Up (2006)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 80% (615,704 votes)
> RT critics rating: 21% (107 votes)
> Directed by: Anne Fletcher
> Starring: Channing Tatum, Jenna Dewan, Damaine Radcliff

This early film in Channing Tatum’s career about a troublemaker given an opportunity to pursue dance in a serious manner is a hit with fans, receiving an average 83% positive reviews among the more than 615,000 viewers on Rotten Tomatoes. Only 21% of critics enjoyed it, by contrast, though even its detractors often had positive things to say about the movie’s dancing.

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Courtesy of New Line Cinema

4. Drop Dead Fred (1991)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 75% (198,542 votes)
> RT critics rating: 11% (37 votes)
> Directed by: Ate de Jong
> Starring: Phoebe Cates, Rik Mayall, Marsha Mason

“Drop Dead Fred” follows young adult Elizabeth Cronin (Phoebe Cates) as she reconnects with her imaginary friend, Drop Dead Fred (Rik Mayall). The movie received positive reviews from merely 11% of critics on Rotten Tomatoes, with Gene Siskel calling it “easily one of the worst films [he’d] ever seen.” A much higher 77% of nearly 200,000 users gave it a positive review on Rotten Tomatoes, and IMDb users rated it 6.0 out of 10.

Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

3. Grandma’s Boy (2006)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 81% (226,296 votes)
> RT critics rating: 16% (62 votes)
> Directed by: Nicholaus Goossen
> Starring: Allen Covert, Linda Cardellini, Shirley Jones

Adam Sandler-produced “Grandma’s Boy” — about a pot-smoking video-game tester who moves in with his grandma — has something of a cult following among those whom critic Nathan Rabin refers to as “slackers and stoners.” Rotten Tomatoes’ Critics Consensus describes the movie as “a gross-out comedy that’s more gross than comedic” and as being “lazy and unrewarding.”

Courtesy of Samuel Goldwyn Films and Destination Films

2. Facing the Giants (2006)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 82% (88,236 votes)
> RT critics rating: 16% (25 votes)
> Directed by: Alex Kendrick
> Starring: Alex Kendrick, Shannen Fields, Jason McLeod

This faith-based film from ordained minister Alex Kendrick about God and football was off-putting to critics who dismissed it as “banal” and “insipid” who gave it just a 16% Freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Jeff Strickler of the Minneapolis Star Tribune said the “proselytizing in this football movie is about as subtle as a blindside hit by a 300-pound defensive end.” Audiences gave it an 85% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with one viewer likening it to a Christian version of “Remember the Titans.”

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Courtesy of Lionsgate

1. Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005)
> RT and IMDb avg audience rating: 83% (89,170 votes)
> RT critics rating: 16% (115 votes)
> Directed by: Darren Grant
> Starring: Kimberly Elise, Steve Harris, Tyler Perry

Filmmaker Tyler Perry has starred in numerous critically acclaimed movies, including “Star Trek” (2009) and “Gone Girl” (2014). He has had a more difficult time receiving good reviews for his comedies — such as the Madea movies — many of which he has written himself. “Diary of a Mad Black Woman,” for which 16% of the critics reviews on Rotten Tomatoes are positive, is one example. Rotten Tomatoes users, however, blessed the film with a score of 87%.

 

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