5) Bonnie And Clyde
What they said then:
Some did love Arthur Penn’s crime biopic at the time; however, in 1967, the year of Bonnie and Clyde‘s release, the film was somewhat controversial in its approach to form and taboo material. Some critics took issue with its apparent glorification of violence (Newsweek wrote that the film was a “squalid shoot-em-up for the moron trade”), and others with its structure (“uneven” wrote Variety).
What they say now:
In ’67, legendary critic Bosley Crowther began a campaign against film violence based on his disgust towards Bonnie and Clyde; nowadays, the film seems relatively tame. Also, stylistically quite adventurous and something of a turning point for American cinema – so much so that the American Film Institute now considers it to be the 42nd best film ever made.
4) Metropolis
What they said then:
“A technical marvel with feet of clay,” cried the New York Times. “Unconvincing and overlong,” yawned The New Yorker. “Foolishness, cliché, platitude, and muddlement about mechanical progress and progress in general…quite the silliest film,” read the review in the Times. That last one was written by HG Wells, just FYI.
What they say now:
One of the monoliths of silent cinema, and a science fiction movie that’s been more influential perhaps than any other. 1927 may not have appreciated Metropolis, but critics of 2015 are in awe of it – Roger Ebert for one claimed it was “more powerful today than when it was made.” It came in 35th in the most recent Sight & Sound critics and filmmakers poll, just behind…