When it comes to critically scathed movies, 2021 was full of them. If it wasn't critics digging their heels in, it was general audiences questioning the quality of some huge blockbuster movies and franchises.
Between the very first "rotten" MCU movie, a Warner Bros. flick that was a two-hour commercial for HBO Max, and the ninth entry in a horror series, Redditors really will stand by what they love. With a lot of these movies, there's still a lot to enjoy about them — even the very worst ones.
Boss Level
Boss Level is a Hulu exclusive movie that's a cornucopia of genres, melting together sci-fi, action, adventure, and at times, it gets pretty philosophical too. On the face of it, Hulu subscribers wouldn't give the generic-looking, adrenaline-fuelled action movie a second glance, but it's better than people would have guessed.
ThrowingChicken hilariously mentions that the movie was "way better than it had any right to be." They say that because Boss Level has no discernable stars, it looks like a Robert Rodriguez movie without the irony, and it features a done-to-death narrative, as the protagonist is stuck in a time loop. And though it might be underrated, it's still ranked as one of the best original Hulu movies.
Nobody
In the wake of John Wick, there have been so many movies inspired by the gun-fu action sequences that it's almost become an overused subgenre. However, Nobody is one of the better John Wick clones, and 123wink456 thought the movie was underrated, interestingly specifically noting that "the most underrated element was the music."
The opinions on the film are all over the place, as there are Redditors who believe Nobody is also overrated. But regardless of where viewers stand, it got a warm enough reception and has enough of a fanbase that, according to JoBlo, a sequel is in development.
The Kid Detective
The Kid Detective isn't exactly about a kid detective, but a messed-up adult detective who is still solving the same silly childish cases as when he was young... that is until he's given his first adult case. Heshotcyrus simply calls the film "criminally underrated," which could be a hilariously unintentional pun given that the detective is chasing down criminals.
Few movies are as compelling and entertaining as this, and it has the energy and humor of a Shane Black movie. It hasn't quite reached the audience it deserves yet, but with more word of mouth, it has the potential to become a cult classic.
The Last Duel
The Last Duel is one of two movies directed by Ridley Scott in 2021, and it had all the makings to be a modern classic: it sports the onscreen reunion of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck and it's a medieval epic. But though it's hard to call the film underrated, as the movie sits comfortably with a very respectable 7.5 on IMDb, there simply wasn't enough interest in it. The movie bombed at the box office, and nobody cared about seeing the historical epic.
However, GMG1234 is a huge fan of the film, saying that "The Last Duel was incredible, criminally underrated, and underappreciated." There's also an argument to be made that Scott's second movie of the year, House of Gucci, is underrated too. The film received an even worse reception than The Last Duel, but there's still a lot to love about it.
Space Jam: A New Legacy
Where the original Space Jam is a beloved classic for many millennials, the same can't be said for the sequel. But in what is faint praise, one Redditor believes that Space Jam: A New Legacy is underrated, arguing that they've "seen far worse movies rated better than this movie."
Space Jam: A New Legacy was accused of being one giant commercial for Warner Bros. and HBO Max, as there were so many references to their catalogs of movies. And while that might have been a primary reason for including them, it was still exciting to see them all together on screen. Space Jam: A New Legacy has hilarious characters, and watching Porky Pig rap is something viewers never knew they wanted.
Eternals
Eternals' failure amongst critics and many audiences is no secret, and for a movie that was being hyped as an MCU entry with a shot at winning the Best Picture Academy Award, it fell flat. It was generally criticized for being long, sluggish, and lifeless.
However, it got an ungodly and unjustified amount of hate by MCU fans, and ArtyMarty6 defends the film by saying that it's "severely underrated considering all the hate it got on Twitter." The user praises several action scenes and the vast amount of characters. And though a 1980s Eternals would look completely different, it has one of the best ensemble casts a superhero movie has ever seen.
The Tomorrow War
Every direction cinephiles turn lately there seems to be a new movie starring Chris Pratt. If he isn't playing Star-Lord in an MCU movie then he's voicing the Italian plumber in a Super Mario adaptation. And he also starred as the lead role in the giant, Amazon-produced sci-fi spectacle The Tomorrow War.
But the movie didn't pan out as well as the studio had hoped. It was critically scathed, but Jhausss thinks it was a riot, claiming that "It’s a 7 at worst. Solid alien movie." That's extremely high praise for the way the movie turned out, but while it isn't exactly the masterpiece that District 9 is, it isn't exactly the disaster that Battlefield Earth is either.
The Guilty
The Guilty came and went without almost anybody batting an eyelash, which is surprising considering that Jake Gyllenhaal is attached to the project. Top_Gate_9017 is one of the few who saw the film, and they call it a "unique movie with a super interesting story and solid acting." The movie is set almost entirely in one room, and it follows a police officer who is forced to work in an emergency call center after being investigated for misconduct.
The thriller is more overlooked than anything, as it was generally enjoyed by critics who watched it. But while it does have a 74% on Rotten Tomatoes, it only has a 6.3 on IMDb, and the movie is deserving of a much higher score than that.
Spiral
The Saw series arguably got worse and worse with every consecutive movie. However, a reboot in the form of Spiral promised a fresh, new take on the series and a return to the more thriller roots of the original.
Unfortunately, it wasn't the return to form most people wanted, but Thundergun7276 sings its praises, saying, "sure, it wasn’t like the normal saw movies, but it was awesome." Spiral might have signposted who the real killer is a little too early, making it fairly predictable, but the mystery was still compelling up to a point. And on top of that, detective Zeke Banks is the best Saw protagonist.
The Little Things
The Little Things is a surprising movie from director John Lee Hancock, as he usually directs uplifting and inoffensive biopics, such as The Blind Side and Saving Mr. Banks. But the 2021 movie is a much different entity. It's a disturbing thriller that follows a veteran cop and a new recruit attempting to track down a serial killer.
The movie was critically scathed and it didn't get a much better reception from general audiences. But muhname reckons that the critics just didn't get it, claiming that "reviewers picked up on its subtleties." And in fairness, what really happened in the movie is open to interpretation, which makes for some fun debates.