Movies that were late bloomers
Here is a list of movies that were barely noticed upon release but have since seen their stature grow on video and cable.
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- DirectorBrad BirdStarsEli MarienthalHarry Connick Jr.Jennifer AnistonA young boy befriends a giant robot from outer space that a paranoid government agent wants to destroy.This movie, directed by The Incredibles and Ratatouille helmer Brad Bird, may be the greatest animated film ever. However, at the time Warner Brothers was shuttering their animation department and the film bombed at the box office.
However, it has since garnered many accolades and Bird credits the movie for opening many doors for him. - DirectorAlex ProyasStarsRufus SewellKiefer SutherlandJennifer ConnellyA man struggles with memories of his past, which include a wife he cannot remember and a nightmarish world no one else ever seems to wake up from.Dark City opened to little fanfare in 1998 despite the fact that none other than Roger Ebert declared it was a "triumph of art direction, set design, cinematography, special effects--and imagination."
It has since earned a well-deserved following as a high-point for 90's sci-fi. - DirectorMike JudgeStarsRon LivingstonJennifer AnistonDavid HermanThree company workers who hate their jobs decide to rebel against their greedy boss.People forget that this movie grossed a piddling $10 million in theaters.
It's second life on cable and DVD has established its place as the seminal workplace comedy. - DirectorRidley ScottStarsHarrison FordRutger HauerSean YoungA blade runner must pursue and terminate four replicants who stole a ship in space and have returned to Earth to find their creator.There is probably no movie that has benefited from the passage of time more than Blade Runner.
Released around the same time in 1982 as ET, The Thing, and Star Trek II, Blade Runner was largely overlooked and left critics sharply divided.
It was only years later when Ridley Scott released his director's cut that removed the voiceover narration that opinion began to shift on the film.
Now it is considered one of the all-time great film and RIdley Scott's signature film along with Alien. - DirectorPhil JoanouStarsCasey SiemaszkoAnnie RyanRichard TysonA nerd gets himself in hot water with the new bully, a quiet bad boy who challenges him to fight on the grounds of their high school after the day's end.Maybe the most unheralded teen comedy ever, this movie is notorious for Steven Spielberg removing his name from the credits at the last minute because he didn't want his name associated with Aaron Spelling's.
Still criminally underrated, it has withstood the passage of time and if anything become even better.
Check it out if you haven't already. - DirectorJames CameronStarsEd HarrisMary Elizabeth MastrantonioMichael BiehnA civilian diving team is enlisted to search for a lost nuclear submarine and faces danger while encountering an alien aquatic species.Due to running time concerns and special effect problems director Jim Cameron originally released a stunted 2 hour 20 minute version of The Abyss that failed to catch fire in theaters.
However, after the success of Terminator 2 Cameron decided to go back and revisit the film, resulting in a new 2 hour 50 minute cut that is now considered the definitive version. - DirectorRob ReinerStarsCary ElwesMandy PatinkinRobin WrightA bedridden boy's grandfather reads him the story of a farmboy-turned-pirate who encounters numerous obstacles, enemies and allies in his quest to be reunited with his true love.Shockingly, it's first weekend at the box office it grossed less money than "Like Father, Like Son" starring --drumroll, please -- Kirk Cameron!
Its lifetime domestic gross is barely $30 million, which places it #1258 on the all-time list.
Now it's only one of the most quoted and beloved fantasy films ever. - DirectorRob ReinerStarsRob ReinerMichael McKeanChristopher GuestSpinal Tap, one of England's loudest bands, is chronicled by film director Marty DiBergi on what proves to be a fateful tour.Another Rob Reiner movie...it was the 117th highest grossing film...of 1984.
Like Princess Bride it became a hit on video, and is recognized by AFI as one of the greatest comedies ever. - DirectorGeorge MillerStarsMel GibsonBruce SpenceMichael PrestonIn the post-apocalyptic Australian wasteland, a cynical drifter agrees to help a small, gasoline-rich community get rid of a horde of bandits.Considering how well known it is now, you would think that the Road Warrior would have made more money in theaters. It wasn't even in the top-30 grossing movies of the year.
- DirectorBryan SingerStarsKevin SpaceyGabriel ByrneChazz PalminteriThe sole survivor of a pier shoot-out tells the story of how a notorious criminal influenced the events that began with five criminals meeting in a seemingly random police lineup.One of the all time great mysteries that launched the career of director Bryan Singer. But it barely dented the box office.
I remember seeing it in a theater that had maybe three people in it.
Next door, Showgirls screened to a full house. - DirectorBob ClarkStarsPeter BillingsleyMelinda DillonDarren McGavinIn the 1940s, a young boy named Ralphie Parker attempts to convince his parents, teacher, and Santa Claus that a Red Ryder Range 200 Shot BB gun really is the perfect Christmas gift.If somebody tells you they saw this in theaters call their bluff because they are most likely lying.
Reviews at the time were mediocre but now they are almost universally stellar.
The movie is so universally beloved that it is aired 24 hours straight on TBS around the holidays.
The little-seen sequel My Summer Story is one of the most unknown sequels ever. - DirectorPete TravisStarsKarl UrbanOlivia ThirlbyLena HeadeyIn a violent, futuristic city where the police have the authority to act as judge, jury and executioner, a cop teams with a trainee to take down a gang that deals the reality-altering drug, SLO-MO.It was about as good a Dredd movie that could be made. The jury is out on whether it will grow its audience on video or cable.