If a film makes 100 million at the box office it’s safe to assume that it has been a hit with audiences (regardless of whether or not the film makes any profit). Despite critical hatchet-jobs, these films made well in excess of double that figure; each making an obscene amount of money.
This list demonstrates that film critics have no power what-so-ever in affecting box-office performance. You’d even be hard-pressed to find many members of the public who actually enjoyed any of the movies that feature, so perhaps the lesson here is to take film reviews more seriously.
15. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)
Critics baulked at its inane script, and Depp’s lack of chemistry with co-star Penelope Cruz. Regardless, it pirated a booty of over a billon dollars at the box-office.
Worldwide box-office: $1,045,713,802
Adjusted for inflation: $1,082,988,500
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 33% rotten
Best quote from a critic: “A movie so dark, dank and devoid of coherence that you’d swear it exists only to pillage gullible buckos of their bucks.” – Al Alexander, The Patriot Ledger
14. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004)
In the first Bridget Jones film, she was a plucky singleton who was determined to forge a successful career in cool Britannia. In this pointless sequel, Bridget was a largely incompetent klutz who couldn’t do anything without a man. Thankfully, The Edge of Reason received a much-deserved critical mauling.
Worldwide box-office: $262,520,724
Adjusted for inflation: $323,748,228
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 27% rotten
Best quote from a critic: “When a sequel has to hit the reset button and take all its characters back to where they started, it probably didn’t need to be made.” – Keith Philips, The A.V. Club
13. Godzilla (1998)
Lambasted for blatantly ripping off Jurassic Park, Godzilla also managed to pick up Golden Raspberries for Worst Remake or Sequel, and Worst Supporting Actress for Maria Pitillo. It made major bucks at the box office, but the critical reception was so poor than a planned franchise was cancelled.
Worldwide box-office: $379,014,294
Adjusted for inflation: $541,681,183
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 25% rotten
Best quote from a critic: “Emmerich and Devlin’s ‘Godzilla’ turns out to be almost as overblown as the 1977 revision of ‘King Kong.’ The only thing that might send you screaming from the theater is the horrifying Puff Daddy song heard over the end credits.” – James Sanform, Kalamazoo Gazette
12. Pearl Harbor (2001)
Historically inaccurate, and surprisingly mushy; critics warned audiences to stay away from the infamously dreadful Pearl Harbor. Though they can be forgiven for suspecting a bomb, it was wildly successful.
Worldwide box-office: $449,220,945
Adjusted for inflation: $712,928,945
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 25% rotten
Best quote from a critic: “The film has been directed without grace, vision, originality, and although you may walk out quoting lines of dialogue, it will not be because you admire them” – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
11. The Da Vinci Code (2006)
Despite the award-winning combination of Ron Howard and Tom Hanks, The Da Vinci Code didn’t work on the big screen. The book’s acclaimed twists became garbled as actors rushed through silly and overly-complicated dialogue. With universal disappointment (and terrible reviews) the biggest mystery was how it managed to make so much money.
Worldwide box-office: $758,239,851
Adjusted for inflation: $876,176,989
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 25% rotten
Best quote from a critic: “Some protesters believe that if you see this film, you’ll go to Hell. They got it backwards. I think if you go to Hell, you’ll probably see this film while you’re there.” – Collin Souter, eFilmCritic.com