20 Baffling IMDb Top 250 Placements You Won't Believe

The Film:

Damian Chazelle's Oscar-nominated drama about an aspiring drummer trying to succeed under an abusive teacher.

Placement: #45

Why It's Wrong:

Inexplicably, Whiplash has been rated as one of the top 50 films ever. What about all those other great independent films further down the ranking?

There are amazing things in Whiplash. J.K. Simmons and the visuals are note-perfect, but the film's weak screenplay wastes all that potential. Its themes of artistic perfection are pure cliche and it's an ugly, cynical movie without a single likable character. Obnoxious, ideologically one-minded and unpleasant to watch, this doesn't have enough depth or story to even remotely justify such a high ranking.

It's higher than Sunset Boulevard, a far more moving depiction of the dark side of fame. It's higher than Oldboy, a film which finds moments of startling beauty and humanity in dark subject matter. It's higher than A Clockwork Orange, which is one of cinema's most powerful films. It's higher than Toy Story, which is one of the loveliest films ever made. Worst of all, it's higher than Apocalypse Now and that's maybe the best film ever made.

Even if one loves this movie, it's difficult to agree with such a high placement. No ranking destroys the credibility of the list more than this one.

Where It Should Be: If it had to be on the list, then #245-#250 at the very maximum. In a just world, a far more worthy film would've taken its prestigious spot.