10 Box Office Flops That Are Secretly Great Movies

The Big Lebowski (1998)

Even though the Coen Brothers were already a big name in 1998, neither critics nor audiences quite understood the appeal of The Big Lebowski. It's hilarious but bizarre, at times hallucinogenic, and not concerned with plot so much as its wide array of wack-job characters.

But time has been on Lebowski's side. It's now considered a classic, and we can take comfort from one simple fact: the Dude abides.

The Thing (1982)

On its release, audiences weren't ready for the bleakness or blood of John Carpenter's alien-centric horror The Thing, which came out only two weeks after Spielberg's cuddly E.T.

Not only did The Thing bomb at the box office, critics panned it! The New York Times called it foolish and depressing, while sci-fi magazine Starlog said the film 'smells, and smells pretty bad. It has no pace, sloppy continuity, zero humor, bland characters on top of being totally devoid of either warmth or humanity.'

Many now consider The Thing to be one of the greatest horror movies ever made.

Scott Pilgrim Vs The World (2010)

It's hard to pin down why exactly Scott Pilgrim failed so hard at the box office. Is it the fact that its video game aesthetic was hard to explain in a movie trailer? The fact that many of the film's big stars (Brie Larson, Luke Evans) had yet to hit it big? Maybe the concept sounded too odd and simple?

Whatever the reason, Edgar Wright's comic adaptation has a huge cult following now, but grossly underperformed at the time of its release.

It's a Wonderful Life (1946)

When the copyright lapsed and It's A Wonderful Life could be played on television without royalty costs, audiences rediscovered this warm-hearted, funny, brilliant movie. Before that, it was just a box-office bomb that had been forgotten by time.

If it wasn't for the glory of cheap airtime, it's possible this Jimmy Stewart classic would never have become a Christmas staple – and that would have been a real shame.

Heathers (1989)

Angsty teen Veronica (Winona Ryder) finds herself in with the most popular girls in school. But she hates them, and soon teams up with handsome outcast JD to plot revenge. But JD has a dark side, one that causes a rising body count.

Ryder's agent begged her not to take the job on Heathers, thinking it was career suicide. Sure enough, the movie flopped with audiences, who simply didn't know what they were walking into – it's a strange pastiche of drama, comedy, teen romance, and psychological thriller, all wrapped up in a brilliant satirical bow.

The Iron Giant (1999)

After being burned by their lack of success with The Quest for Camelot, Warner Brothers was afraid to pump any money into advertising another animated film. That, combined with the fact that The Iron Giant made a big departure from the usual animated princesses-and-fairy-tales fare, meant that this movie absolutely bombed at the box office.

It was only later, once critics had given it lots of love and it was available to rent, that audiences discovered this beautiful movie about a lonely boy and his friendship with a giant robot.

Fight Club (1999)

Most people think Fight Club was a cultural phenomenon from day one, but 20th Century Fox had no idea how to market the movie, which they called 'a film for no one'. Domestically, it made only $37 million against a budget of $65 million.

Hilariously, director David Fincher recalls a Fox executive complaining to him: 'men do not want to see Brad Pitt with his shirt off. It makes them feel bad. And women don't want to see him bloody. So I don't know who you made this movie for.'

The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

This Stephen King adaptation is widely regarded as one of the greatest movies in American cinema history. Yet funnily enough it failed by almost every metric. It bombed at the box office. Critics loved it, but in a year of stiff competition Shawshank didn't win a single Academy Award.

And yet, its appeal lives on. The Shawshank Redemption regularly makes lists of the best movies ever made, and its heartwarming message of courage, friendship, and endurance make this one a favorite to rewatch.

Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

Ridley Scott 's career has been plagued by interfering studio execs, and nowhere did they do more damage than with Kingdom of Heaven.

This historical drama was hated by critics on its release – the studio demanded a number of changes to Scott's vision for the movie, including 45 minutes chopped off to keep the runtime down. Dire reviews kept audiences away, and the movie bombed.

When the director's cut was later released, the film was suddenly universally loved by critics, who consider Kingdom of Heaven to have the most substantial and important director's cut of all time.

Citizen Kane (1941)

The central character of Citizen Kane was clearly inspired by newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst. Enraged at the movie's negative depiction of him, Hearst created a media blackout around the film. None of his newspapers were allowed to advertise or review it, and he even managed to bribe several movie theaters into not showing it. The movie lost $160,000 at the box office – almost $3 million in today's money.

Welles got the last laugh though – Citizen Kane is now frequently cited as one of the greatest movies ever made.

Source: Looper.