James Berardinelli's 5 Most Overrated Films of the Year

http://www.reelviews.net/reelthoughts/reelthought_1514729800

Once more unto the breach, dear friends...one last time looking back through the haze of the fast-departing year. One final list before turning my attention to the bleak tundra of January and February's films.

Everyone has their own idea of what constitutes "overrated." For me, it's a film that, regardless of whether I liked it or not, has been over-praised in the general conversation, often by my fellow critics. This year, I decided to pick through the debris of the releases and select the five titles I felt were lauded far beyond what they deserved. As with any list, this is highly subjective. You may agree or disagree. You may think I'm out to lunch on all five choices. You may believe my #1 film of the year, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri belongs on an "overrated" list. The intent of a list like this (any list, really) isn't to provide a definitive roster of titles but to provoke rumination and discussion. Rather than discussing the merits of the films on this list, I'll provide a short explanation of why I think they're overrated. Some of the reasons may irk those with a PC-oriented mindset. I don't have sacred cows, except maybe Luke Skywalker. These are alphabetical, not ranked numerically.

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Call Me By Your Name: (Rating: Three out of four stars.) Placing this movie on the list puts me in danger of being labeled as homophobic. I think this is a beautiful, at times touching, love story set against an equally beautiful backdrop. However, it is not, as some critics opine, ground-breaking, heart-breaking, or any other kind of breaking. Or, to put it another way, I fail to see what all the fuss is about. In this divisive cultural/political climate, the fact that it's a serious-minded tale of the love between two men has elevated the movie in the eyes of some critics. I doubt that perception will hold up over time. Having a socially conscious point-of-view doesn't inherently make a production better, which brings us to...