15 Films Audiences Got Right (But Critics Got Wrong)

11. Noah

Saw Cary Elwes
Paramount

Rotten Tomatoes: 76%

IMDb: 5.8

Was Rotten Tomatoes hacked? How did this get a Certified Fresh score?

This may have been voted down among audiences since some disliked its controversial presentation of the biblical story. Whether or not this is the case, the 5.8 rating, which is lower than the scores of most blockbusters, is well-deserved.

Badly acted, irritatingly miserable and overall hollow, Noah is a seemingly endless montage of gloom that stretches out across more than two hours for no reason. Being a historical epic with Russell Crowe in the lead, it felt like an attempt to do Gladiator all over again and launch a wave of biblical epics in the same way Gladiator inspired a wave of historical films. Unsurprisingly, Noah failed to do this.

The positive reception from critics still feels odd to this day. It's possible that this was praised for being a more artistic and different blockbuster than most, but that certainly doesn't make it a particularly good film. This was an off day for the usually fascinating director Darren Aronofsky, but sadly, despite bouncing back with Mother! (2017), reviewers got it wrong yet again; this time, people were too harsh on it.

Should Be Rated: 45%-55%

In this post: 
Saw
 
Posted On: 
Contributor

Film Studies graduate, aspiring screenwriter and all-around nerd who, despite being a pretentious cinephile who loves art-house movies, also loves modern blockbusters and would rather watch superhero movies than classic Hollywood films. Once met Tommy Wiseau.