The massively anticipated Bullet Train has just been released, but, unfortunately, it hasn’t lived up to the hype and has received mixed reviews from critics. The movie had all the ingredients to be great, whether it’s the always charismatic Brad Pitt in a starring role or John Wick co-director David Leitch at the helm, but it ended up feeling more like a Guy Ritchie-lite affair.
There are so many other movies that had all the makings to be great, but for one reason or another, ended up being completely unlike what audiences expected and a huge letdown. Between a zombie heist popcorn flick, a true crime thriller, and what should have been a gangster epic, these movies left Redditors wondering what happened.
The Black Dahlia (2006)
The Black Dahlia is based on a true story about the sensationalized murder case of Elizabeth Short and focuses on the two detectives investigating the case. Ggroover97 argues that the 2006 movie had the ingredients to be great but failed miserably. The Redditor explains, “Going in, I thought was the movie was going to be the next L.A. Confidential. Boy was I wrong. This is perhaps one of De Palma’s worst movies. I just remember myself not finding anything in this movie engaging.”
Unlike De Palma’s other movies, The Black Dahlia doesn’t have the unique visual flair, it lacks the chemistry between the characters, and it simply feels flat. However, as the mystery is left unsolved, the movie has a lot of parallels with the much better Zodiac that was released the following year, and it makes audiences wonder how the 2006 film would have turned out under intended director David Fincher’s direction.
Army Of The Dead (2021)
CallMeMacready points out that Army of the Dead has a fun concept that could have gone in any number of directions and could have been endlessly entertaining, but it was anything but. The Redditor recalls their excitement after seeing the trailer, noting, “A Vegas heist film with zombies, plus the trailer showing that bloke with the giant saw. S*** film with dumb characters and a heist that didn’t even make sense.”
The Reddit user is not wrong, as Army of the Dead makes so little sense, whether it’s the characters’ bizarre choices or the robot zombies. However, the movie still has its fans, and Army of the Dead won the Fan Favorite award at The Academy Awards in 2022, which was the first time the category was introduced.
Intolerable Cruelty (2003)
DrRexMorman thinks there must have been a problem with the system, as Intolerable Cruelty is the result of an equation that seemingly can’t go wrong. The Redditor explains, “Coen bros. + George Clooney + peak Catherine Zeta-Jones + Geoffrey Rush + peak Billy Bob Thornton = big ole mess.” The celebrated directing duo the Coen brothers can hardly do any wrong, and they’ve worked together with Clooney on several occasions, all of which were huge successes, whether it’s O Brother, Where Art Thou or Burn After Reading.
Unfortunately, it didn’t work out quite as well in the 2003 movie, which was a surprisingly subpar run-of-the-mill romantic comedy. While some Redditors think Intolerable Cruelty is underrated, even the Coens will probably admit that it wasn’t all that great. According to Decider, it was the first time the duo worked as directors for hire, doing it purely for the paycheck.
Gangster Squad (2013)
Based on the movie’s marketing, it was looking like Gangster Squad was going to be the next great mob flick and a homage to epic films like The Untouchables. But it ended up being a hammy comedy that was more of a parody of gangster films than anything else. B00mieb00m refers to the film’s amazing ensemble cast as to why it should have been great.
The Redditor comments, “Wasn’t a horrible movie by any means but John Brolin, Ryan Gosling, Michael Pena, Sean Penn, and Giovanni Ribisi felt like dream cast to me.” It’s an absolute waste of the all-star cast that the Redditor lists, and though Gosling and Emma Stone have had a fruitful working relationship, their second collaboration didn’t work out the second time. Gangster Squad definitely looks flashy, as the nostalgic-looking 1940s is absolute candy, but it isn’t good for all that much else.
Waterworld (1995)
Waterworld is one of the most notorious movies ever when it comes to not living up to the hype and underperforming at the box office. It was one of the most expensive movies ever made at the time and had a concept that sounded like Mad Max in the ocean, as it’s set in a dystopian future where the sea level has covered most of the Earth’s land.
But ThrowawayBatman00 thinks it was a huge letdown. Though they admit that the film wasn’t terrible, the Redditor notes, “I don’t even dislike the movie per se but it failed to deliver on what was absolutely a solid concept.” Given how much digital effects have advanced in the 27 years since, and given how there’s still potential in the idea, there could be a great remake if the material was in the right hands.
Live By Night (2016)
Up until 2016, Ben Affleck had a perfect run when it came to his directorial efforts. Gone Baby Gone, The Town, and Argo were all universally acclaimed, and Argo even won Best Picture at the Academy Awards. But everyone has a bad day in the office, and Live By Night was Affleck’s.
Along with the acclaimed filmmaker in the director’s chair, the movie had all the makings for a great mobster flick, and like Gangster Squad, it was steeped in an old-timey mobster aesthetic. But, as GarrisonTweed points out, the film wasn’t representative of the talent involved. The Redditor recalls, “the Blu-Ray commentary was recorded a week after this movie tanked. Ben Affleck starts off with, ‘For the two people listening to this.'”
Eternals (2021)
Eternals is the only movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that is rated “Rotten” on Rotten Tomatoes, which originally came as a huge shock considering that the film was being hyped up as the best MCU movie ever before its release. GroovStoov thinks that the movie should have been great given that it was directed by Academy Award winner Chloé Zhou, was shot on location instead of soundstages, and had such a unique look.
But the Redditor claims, “That might have been the most boring movie I’ve ever sat through in a theater.” And while a pocket of MCU fans was disappointed that Eternals 2 wasn’t announced at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, there’s a reason why. After the rocky road that has been Phase 4, the last thing superproducer Kevin Feige wants to do is remind audiences of the lowest point in the franchise’s history.
Jurassic World: Dominion (2022)
Unfortunately, the Jurassic Park franchise now has more bad movies than good, as Jurassic World: Dominion got the series’ worst reviews yet. However, out of all of them, it was the most likely to be the best-reviewed, as it was supposed to be the epic conclusion of a trilogy, and it brought back Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler, and Ian Malcolm from the first movie.
Bobthemonkeybutt especially notes just how much of a letdown the film was, positing, “The last movie left the franchise open to pretty much anything, and they came up with locust nonsense and an evil corporation kidnapping a clone who’s not really a clone.” The movie went down a tangent that nobody wanted, but, at the very least, it subverted fans’ expectations.
Van Helsing (2004)
With Hugh Jackman coming off his X-Men success and Kate Beckinsale coming off her Underworld success, Van Helsing should have been a spectacular Hollywood action horror movie full of chemistry. But that was far from the final result. FernanditoJr thinks the movie was a huge letdown, especially given that Van Helsing is such an interesting character who has never gotten his due.
Unfortunately, the 2004 movie isn’t the only time a film adaptation of the character has failed. Helsing was going to be a key component in the failed Universal Dark Universe, but the studio was quick to abandon those plans when 2017’s The Mummy bombed.
Nope (2022)
Few filmmakers have ever gotten as much hype so early in their career, but Jordan Peele is doing what no other director is — making Twilight Zone-style horror movies full of huge surprises. Nope has gotten just as much praise as his previous movies, but this user thinks the movie was a letdown despite having the ingredients to be great.
The Redditor explains, “Maybe it was the yearlong hype but just was not what I was hoping for. Fell flat to me.” The movie had been hyped for a long time, as the release date for the film was announced as far back as November 2020, but given Peele’s track record, the plot twists in his movies tend to be polarizing, and that isn’t any different for Nope, nor will it be different with his next movie.
