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Good question. I know many will differ with me on this, but Star Wars tops my list. It has terrible acting, stilted dialogue-- although the effects were certainly impressive for their time. It's a shame Lucas isn't better known for American Graffiti. Also: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. I don't have much respect for Ford as a filmmaker, and I resent his implication that John Wayne (or his character, anyways) is cooler than Jimmy Stewart. No way. A much better Western moral tale is the Oxbow Incident. I think La Dolce Vita is one of Fellini's lesser films, not that that's really a hit against it. I hated A Beautiful Mind. I thought Being Jon Malkovich was one of the lesser films of 1999. Oh, and Breakfast at Tiffany's is off the hook for one reason: Audrey Hepburn.

On a similar note: guilty pleasures. My picks:

Anything by John Hughes (You can't go wrong with 80's teen angst. It's like OMD manifested in film.)
The Cable Guy
Wayne's World
Rules of Attraction (poor script, sophomoric directing. It tries so hard that it fails-- but also charms)
Anything with Fred Astaire

I think a couple things save Star Wars: the fact that nothing like it had been done so well before; the music; Harrison Ford; and Darth Vader. Oh, and lightsabers. George Lucas created such a tactile vision of his universe... which he pretty much abandoned when he green-screen'd Episodes I-III.

And John Ford...? Anyone who has . . . 145 movies listed to their credit on IMDB deserves props. Especially when he's won 4 out of 5 Oscars for directing. I don't think he was trying to imply John Wayne is "cooler" than Stewart.... I mean they are acting. Who can deny that movie wasn't perfectly cast?

I won't defend Fellini... if you've seen one you've seen them all, just about. Post-war Italy was rough, we know already!

Okay, saying that he implies that John Wayne is cooler isn't a valid cinematic criticism. More to the point is that John Ford (or the screenwriter) makes a rather simplistic and, from my point of view, unpalatable, more statement by showing that Jimmy Stewart's character was never really heroic until he abandonded his passificism and took violent action, and that John Wayne's character was the real man because he *actually* killed Liberty Valance. And since it is a film about morality, I think the moral message of the film is a relevant feature in criticizing the movie. Part of my distaste for it is due to the fact that Ford sits so far to the right, politically-- which isn't necessarily a valid way to criticize film. But, whatever, I'm sure John Ford has directed some good films. I just don't like his directing style, and I don't like his point of view. There are movies other than TMWSLV that explore similar issues with more sophistication and style.

Fellini is a great director, and I never thought that any of his movies were (just) about post-war Italy being rough. I think what he has to say is more universal and interesting, and he always says it with such charming panache.

Sorry, I meant "...moral statement by showing that Jimmy..."

The Talented Mr. Ripley bored me to tears. I don't really have anything to back it up, because I don't remember much about it. All I remember is thinking, "God, this movie sucks!"

Also, when I was a kid, I hated The Land Before Time. The original, that is--before they made 17 direct-to-video sequels. All of my friends loved it, but it once again bored me to tears.

Dustin, isn't this thread about "classic" movies?

Provided that it is, I'm going with Some Like It Hot as worst classic ever. Marilyn Monroe annoys me to no end, and Tony Curtis reminds me of one of my college psych professors. I know it's a comedy (and therefore plays by slightly different rules), but it takes the Clark Kent theory to new levels with unconvincing alter-ego disguises. I like Jack Lemmon, and I really appreciate Billy Wilder films (Sunset Blvd. is one of my favorite classics), but I just couldn't wait for it to be over. Much like Napoleon Dynamite, you have to like the characters to like the movie. And when you can't stand Marilyn and cringe whenever you hear Tony Curtis talk, it kind of ruins your chances of ever liking it.

Oh and Andy, I just noticed that you used the word "lexicon" in your post. Don't ever talk to me again.

I like Some Like It Hot. Marilyn's cromulence really embiggens the role.

There is a guy that looks and talks like Tony Curtis where I work. He comes in every day just about to use the computers.

Actually he talks like Tony Curtis doing a Cary Grant impression (like in Some Like It Hot).

OK, so maybe The Talented Mr. Ripley and The Land Before Time aren't exactly in the same class with Citizen Kane and The Godfather.

For some reason I was thinking The Talented Mr. Ripley was in the IMDb top 250, but I was wrong. Still, I've heard a lot of people say they thought it was brilliant. I disrespectfully disagree.

As children's movies go, I think many people do consider The Land Before Time a classic (at least many people who were kids in the 80s). Without any due respect to those people, they're pooheads.