People Shared The Most Unexpectedly Amazing Movies They've Ever Seen, And Damn, This Is A Good List
Sometimes...okay, maybe a lot of times, people go into movies with pretty low expectations (I know I certainly do). Whether it's because the trailer made it look bad or you just "heard bad things," not all movies have the same level of enthusiasm going for them when audiences head into the theater or sit down to stream.
New Line Cinema / Via giphy.com
However, sometimes said movies actually really surprise people! So, when Reddit user u/Corn-G posed the question "What was the most unexpectedly amazing movie you've ever seen?" to the AskReddit community, well, I took notes. Here are the top-voted responses:
1.The Lego Movie (2014)
"Could just as easily have been a cop out two-hour-long advertisement."
—[deleted]
2.Arrival (2016)
"I thought it would just be another alien movie, hadn’t really paid attention to any trailers either. Was pleasantly surprised."
3.Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
"When it came out, I was 12 (perfect age for that movie), and nobody could predict back then that it would be that huge. I went inside with my sister, expecting nothing, and came out amazed. I still think that the first movie was great."
—mki_
4.Edge of Tomorrow (2014)
"I think the trailer and the 'starring Tom Cruise' part led to everyone assuming it would be shit. It wasn't shit."
5.Everything Is Illuminated (2005)
"It was a box office flop, didn't do very well at all. My ex took me to see weird movies. I was like, 'ugh...fuck it, at least Frodo (Elijah Wood) is in it.'
That movie surprised the hell out of me. I enjoyed it a lot. People generally loved it as well, but some critics dumped on it for some reason. Whatever."
6.Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (2010)
"It was a random decision, but now I've rewatched it a bunch with different friends! It's incredibly funny, and of course Alan Tudyk crushes it."
7.District 9 (2009)
8.The Cabin in the Woods (2011)
"A friend of mine who worked at the cinema got some friends and me free tickets for two back-to-back movies. We went mostly for the first one and Cabin was just an extra, but oh man. I can't even remember what the first movie was now. We came in with zero expectations and just figuring it'd be a standard horror movie deal, but we were completely blown away once the twist started unfolding. And it doesn't even rely on the twist as a crutch; the twist also functions as an excuse to have fun, and it was a super fun movie."
9.Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
"I'd been kind of burnt out with comic book movies ever since the travesty that was Iron Man 3. And here was this film with an utterly obscure set of characters that I had never heard of. So I wasn't interested. But my family wanted to go, so I decided to tag along. What followed is one of my favorite movies of all time. Bless you James Gunn, you even managed to make a good sequel."
10.Secondhand Lions (2003)
"It's a favorite from my childhood, and yet few people seem to have heard of it."
"Such an unexpectedly touching film!!"
11.Princess Mononoke (1997)
"I thought it was just another anime, then I watched it and got sucked in to Mayazaki's world. Amazing movies."
—[deleted]
12.John Wick (2014)
"I put it on one night when I was in the mood to just zone out and watch something before bed, ended up staying awake for the whole thing. Keanu Reeves was amazing in that movie, the fight scenes were like watching the crazy stuff in The Matrix for the first time, and the story wasn't actually half bad."
13.What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
14.Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
"Truly adore that film. Completely not what I expected."
"That’s one of the only movies that I got so into, I forgot I was reading subtitles. Definitely one of my all-time favorite movies and turned me onto Guillermo del Toro films."
15.Kung Fu Hustle (2004)
"My friend made me watch it and I was not having it. I didn’t want to spend the next couple hours having to read subtitles while watching a foreign film. It’s easily one of my favorite movies and I even prefer the subtitles to the dubbed version. OK, I’m going to watch it now."
16.Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
—[deleted]
"Yes! I thought it was going to be just a basic action/comedy I had no interest in, and I only saw it because my friend picked it out on a total whim. It was the best movie I saw that year. I can't listen to 'Freebird' anymore without thinking of that scene."
—[deleted]
17.Ex Machina (2014)
"Didn't know a damn thing about it, and that's exactly how you should watch this movie."
"My wife and I rented it because it looked interesting. What a fucking great movie. I was completely taken by surprise."
18.Shaun of the Dead (2004)
"Was expecting Scary Movie sort of parody (ie: so unfunny, it's cringe-worthy) but turned out to be epic."
19.Captain Fantastic (2016)
"Had no expectations and honestly knew nothing about it going into it. Went with my sister and loved it."
20.Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
"A beautiful film with some crazy adult humor in it."
"It really was a strange one. First watch I was confused and didn't really get it, but after the second it really does tickle my fancy. Really well done."
21.10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
"Went in just wanting to watch a movie at the theater and it was the only thing I was kinda interested in. Fucking loved it. Had no clue what it was about. Thought it was a sequel to Cloverfield, but wasn't sure due to the lack of aliens and any sort of mention to the first movie. I can't wait for the next one."
22.Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
"I expected it to be absolute crap but I ended up laughing myself to tears."
"Yes I thought there was no way that a Jumaji ‘sequel’ could be good...boy was I wrong. I was legitimately laughing out loud at a bunch of scenes, especially Jack Black's."
23.The Nice Guys (2016)
"I had a couple of hours to kill before starting a shift at the cinema I used to work at, and I got free tickets, so I thought I'd see it."
24.Big Fish (2003)
"Loved that movie, had never heard of it, but it came on Saturday afternoon when I was home alone. It just gripped me from start to finish."
25.The Prestige (2006)
26.Baby Driver (2017)
"The name sounded stupid to me, but the movie is really good on every count — script, cinematography, acting, music, stunts..."
27.Children of Men (2006)
"Knew absolutely nothing about it, loved the story, and the way it was shot was incredible."
"The battle scene they walk through at the end is legitimately one of the best scenes I've ever seen. Gives me chills every time."
28.The Matrix (1999)
"My ex wanted to see it and I was okay with humoring him. Then Carrie-Anne Moss, in a goddamn black leather catsuit, started climbing walls and doing somersaults and putting the smackdown on a bunch of police, and I was hooked."
29.Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
"I saw it when it came out (big Gondry fan) and just so happened to be going through a breakup, and wow, that movie is such a real depiction of how it feels to go through a relationship that ends sort of roughly. Easily one of my top 10 favorite movies of all time."
—[deleted]
30.And finally, Sicario (2015)
"All I knew is that it had something to do with the drug trade and it had Benicio Del Toro. I took my girlfriend who knew less than that...
...we just sat in the theater for a couple of minutes after the lights came on just trying to process how cool it was. One of my favorite movies that year."
