Last Updated on August 3, 2021
Well Schmoes, as 2019 draws to a close we reflect on a year of ups and downs at the movies, both critically and financially. There were some surprises in regards to which highly anticipated movies lived up to their trailers and marketing as well as some dark horses that came out of nowhere to really steal the show. But, if there is one thing for certain, there are always movies that are highly overrated and underrated by critics and fans alike. As the UnPopular Opinion Guy, I felt it was only fitting to issue my list of the movies I felt that the masses got wrong. Some of these may shock you and some may just piss you off, but these are my honest to goodness perspective of the movies of 2019. If you disagree with any of the choices, please voice your own opinion in the talkback below. After all, the only opinion that really matters is yours, I am just here to share mine.
5 – CAPTAIN MARVEL
This was a big year for Marvel Studios with the stunningly good AVENGERS: ENDGAME wrapping up a decade of storytelling in an epic fashion. While SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME was a mediocre footnote to wrap up Phase Three, CAPTAIN MARVEL was a curio that had so much potential and squandered it. Brie Larson did more as Carol Danvers in her scant time in ENDGAME than in the entire running time of her solo film and that speaks volumes. There is nothing inherently wrong with CAPTAIN MARVEL but it also doesn't do justice to the character. There are no unique visuals like DOCTOR STRANGE or anything that sets it apart from the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The 1990s references are fun but they wear thin on repeated viewings. With her origin out of the way, here's hoping the sequel will live up to it's possibilities.
4 – THE LION KING
Disney continues to remake their back catalog for no reason other than milking our nostalgia for all it is worth. While ALADDIN was already a weak, by the numbers take on a modern classic, Jon Favreau's photorealistic THE LION KING is an abomination. Traditional cel animation made these African animals look cute and sold toys by the truckload, but the CGI versions are horror shows that fall into the uncanny valley. Nothing here is original or different and every singer is weaker than in the 1994 version. It baffles me that this movie made as much money as it did when the launch of Disney+ made the original film easily accessible once again.
3 – THE IRISHMAN
The only thing more distracting than the CGI in THE IRISHMAN is how boring it is. As much of a fan of Martin Scorsese as anyone, this movie feels as sluggish and self-indulgent as anything he has done in his career as a filmmaker. It doesn't do anything new or unique in the genre and could easily have lost an hour of it's running time without missing a beat. While Al Pacino is stellar, both Joe Pesci and Robert De Niro look like they are sleepwalking through their scenes. Through the film, De Niro mumbles his dialogue and seems lost and the entire films smacks of needing a better editor. Hell, there is one scene that spends over five minutes arguing over how long waiting for someone to show up constitutes an insult. I wanted so badly to love this movie and I appreciate the craftsmanship that went into making it, but THE IRISHMAN feels like a Cliff's Notes version of GOODFELLAS and CASINO yet is longer than both of those films.
2 – ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD
Quentin Tarantino wanted to make three different movies and clearly none of them was enough to stand on it's own, so he smashed them all together. There are interesting things in this revisionist love letter to Hollywood, especially Brad Pitt's excellent performance as Cliff Booth, but the movie just doesn't work. Leonardo DiCaprio and Margot Robbie are both well cast but neither are given enough to do.The Manson Family/Sharon Tate subplot feels extraneous and the time jumps are jarring. Tarantino has always made the movies he envisioned, but ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD is all over the place and never comes together cohesively. As intrigued as I was by the stories behind the real people fictionalized in the film, you shouldn't have to do research to inform the film you are watching.
1 – JOKER
I applaud Todd Phillips' JOKER for taking a risk by telling a very different kind of comic book story. I also recognize the power of Joaquin Phoenix's performance, which absolutely deserves recognition this awards season. But, on the whole, JOKER is not nearly the masterpiece everyone claims it to be. Phillips' movie is inspired by the works of Martin Scorsese but fails to do anything original and instead feels like a heavy-handed attempt to make a Scorsese movie. It doesn't really say anything and is full of a nihilism that doesn't do much but insist that if you are crazy, you are screwed by society and therefore should take steps to burn the sonofabitch to the ground. JOKER could have said and done something profound but instead feels like a wasted opportunity.
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