Does popular = good?

[Ghoulish Delight]

Originally Posted by wendybeth

Same goes for the 'music' group the Human League.

Hey now, them's fightin' words.

[wendybeth]

Originally Posted by Ghoulish Delight

Hey now, them's fightin' words.

Lol! Well, you were too young to know the ginormous amount of suckage they wreaked upon the pop world. Their videos were awful as well.



Most of the classic lit I love was at one time considered offensive, poorly written, etc. Innovation is seldom welcome by the masses, at least initially. So, the argument can certainly be made that lack of popularity is not a quality indicator.

[Kevy Baby]

Originally Posted by wendybeth

Just because something is 'popular' certainly doesn't mean it's good- it could very well mean that a large group of people have horrible taste. Case in point: the Porky's movies. They were popular in their day, and they stunk. Same goes for the 'music' group the Human League. I seldom use somethings popularity as an indicator that I should read/watch/play, etc.

I disagree with this. While YOU may not have have liked the Porky's movies, some people DID like them. Those people's opinions may differ than yours, but that does not make them lesser opinions.

Using the Porky's example, one needs to remember that movies are, in their essence, meant to entertain. Sometimes people like simplistic, mindless entertainment - whether due to a simplistic mind incapable of processing complex plot lines and subtleties or because they feel that life is complicated enough and enjoy escapism that doesn't require deep thought. I confess to liking simplistic, and often shallow, movies. I also like deeper, thought provoking movies as well, but tend to gravitate towards the former.

Why? Because my work like is very fast paced, requires a lot of thought and is filled with constant conflict and constant arguments. I am usually exhausted by the close of each week. Mindless entertainment is the perfect escape for me.

Further, being a bad movie, does not render a movie void of entertainment. Susan has a fondness for enjoying "bad" movies (Pirate Movie, Grease 2, and Xanadu come to mind). And if a movie entertains one, is it really "bad" since it accomplished the core goal of entertaining?

[Kevy Baby]

Originally Posted by wendybeth

Hey, I didn't know you were into rodeo!



If it helps, I will offer up a song to chase that one out of your head: The Safety Dance.

By Mennen

Problem solved.

[wendybeth]

I knew you'd come to Porky's defense, KB.

Of course, it goes without saying that these things are entirely subjective. I mean, look at the Oscars- how many times have we watched and thought that the winning Best Picture was the wrong choice? Still, I would argue that Porky's, while it may have been good (gag), was most certainly not great. Not Citizen Cane great, or Casablanca great. Again, my criteria for greatness is my own.

[Alex]

I'm in the same boat with the Oscars. Per my subjective views, winning Best Picture does not correlate strongly with the actual best picture of a year. But winning Best Picture (popularity among a select subgroup) does correlate strongly with picking a good movie. Clunkers, yes; sometimes they actually pick a great one. But almost always a good one.

[Ghoulish Delight]

I'll admit that I see a difference between "Did well at the box office" and "Highly rated on imdb." At least with the latter, it's a less momentary thing, it's "How did you like it?" not, "Did you see it?" and it's generally people who see a lot of movies and have at least some perspective.

But it's still only an element of the quality of a movie. Sure it's an indicator that a movie might be good, but it's not the definition of good. And, to my mind, a lack of popularity can often be an equal indicator that a movie is good. Some of the best art challenges, offends, confuses, etc.

[Alex]

Short answer: No, not inherently.

Longer answer: Frequently, yes. With the caveat that "good" does not equal "great."

Even longer answer: "Good" is, of course, a subjective evaluation and so at best popular can not equal good but rather popular can be a strong correlate to what I find good.

Altered point of view answer: On the assumption that filmmakers feel at least some artistic pride in their productions, then from their point of view (and their money masters) popular does equal good.

Side Topic A answer: Particularly not when it comes to IMDb movie ratings where geek herd mentality reigns. For example, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly; Pulp Fiction; The Empire Strikes Back; and The Return of the King are also in IMDb's Top 10.

Side Topic B answer: If popular does equal good then the top ten films of all time are:

1. Gone with the Wind
2. Star Wars
3. The Sound of Music
4. E.T.
5. The Ten Commandmants
6. Titanic
7. Jaws
8. Doctor Zhivago
9. The Jungle Book
10. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Using the still flawed equation that inflation-adjusted gross = better measure of popularity. This list provides strong support for the idea that popular may not equal great but it is a strong indicator of good.


Side Topic C comment: Personally, The Shawshank Redemption is a top 10 film. It may not be the best in many individual categories but it combines to something that very few movies have for me: rewatchability. I have seen it more times than any other movie, I'm pretty sure.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Originally Posted by Alex

Side Topic C comment: Personally, The Shawshank Redemption is a top 10 film. It may not be the best in many individual categories but it combines to something that very few movies have for me: rewatchability. I have seen it more times than any other movie, I'm pretty sure.

That could just be a statistical anomaly seeing as it's shown on TV more than any other movie, I'm pretty sure.

[Alex]

Originally Posted by Ghoulish Delight

That could just be a statistical anomaly seeing as it's shown on TV more than any other movie, I'm pretty sure.

Not really. Until about two weeks ago (when we were "forced" to upgrade our cable and ended up with TCM) it had been about a decade since I last watched a movie on TV (broadcast or cable) rather than DVD since while I can just barely tolerate fullscreen, I can no longer tolerate commercial breaks).