10 Classic Films That Were Shamefully Ignored At First

When we tend to think of the greatest motion pictures ever made, we also tend to think of their associated box office success. Movies as revered and beloved as Citizen Kane and Vertigo - both voted the greatest movies of all-time by the BFI on separate occasions - had to have been embraced by both the critics and the public upon first release, right? Surely it would have been impossible for the public to overlook such obvious works of genius? Uh-uh. That, dear friends, is not always the case. You might find it wholly surprising, in fact, to learn that a fairly large haul of "classic" movies were originally ignored by the movie-going public when they shipped into theatres long ago. Whether it came down to poor marketing, lack of obvious appeal, or the simple fact that people decided to stay in on that particular weekend, here are 10 highly regarded cinematic gems that nobody took any real notice of upon their first releases. Oops. What does this teach us? That the movie-going public don't always know a great movie, even when it hits them in the face. And also that on occasion it takes a while for some classics to earn their place in film history.