Off the Radar or Underappreciated Movies
by onefuncapt-5-639863 | created - 28 Mar 2011 | updated - 01 May 2011 | PublicMovies that didn't get a lot of publicity, but I thought were terrific Not a ranking.
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. Martian Child (2007)
PG | 106 min | Comedy, Drama, Family
A science-fiction writer, recently widowed, considers whether to adopt a hyper-imaginative 6-year-old abandoned and socially rejected boy who says he's really from Mars.
Director: Menno Meyjes | Stars: John Cusack, Amanda Peet, Bobby Coleman, Sophie Okonedo
Votes: 20,954 | Gross: $7.49M
You got to thinking if this kid really was from Mars. The young boy was fantastic
2. The Deal (I) (2008)
R | 100 min | Comedy, Romance
A Hollywood producer starts with his nephew's script on Disraeli, Jewish PM in 1800s UK, and ends filming in Cape Town with a black action star. Will a movie be made? Will he score Deidre?
Director: Steven Schachter | Stars: William H. Macy, Meg Ryan, LL Cool J, Elliott Gould
Votes: 3,692
Very offbeat and funny. William Macy is very underappreciated as an actor
3. Son of Rambow (2007)
PG-13 | 96 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
During a long English summer in the early 1980s, two schoolboys from differing backgrounds set out to make a film inspired by First Blood (1982).
Director: Garth Jennings | Stars: Bill Milner, Will Poulter, Jessica Hynes, Anna Wing
Votes: 32,973 | Gross: $1.78M
British film with lots of laughs and some very tender moments as well. All around great family movie
4. I Am Sam (2001)
PG-13 | 132 min | Drama
An intellectually disabled man fights for custody of his 7-year-old daughter and in the process teaches his cold-hearted lawyer the value of love and family.
Director: Jessie Nelson | Stars: Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dakota Fanning, Dianne Wiest
Votes: 155,357 | Gross: $40.31M
Total tearjerker. Sean Penn's best role ever.
5. Nell (1994)
PG-13 | 112 min | Drama
In a remote woodland cabin, a small-town doctor discovers Nell - a beautiful young hermit-woman with many secrets.
Director: Michael Apted | Stars: Jodie Foster, Liam Neeson, Natasha Richardson, Richard Libertini
Votes: 30,884 | Gross: $33.68M
Jodie Foster was amazing in this role
6. Pleasantville (1998)
PG-13 | 124 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
Two 1990s teenage siblings find themselves transported to a 1950s sitcom where their influence begins to profoundly change that colorless, complacent world.
Director: Gary Ross | Stars: Tobey Maguire, Jeff Daniels, Joan Allen, William H. Macy
Votes: 136,368 | Gross: $40.57M
7. The Greatest Game Ever Played (2005)
PG | 120 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
In the 1913 U.S. Open, twenty-year-old Francis Ouimet played golf against his idol, 1900 U.S. Open champion, Englishman Harry Vardon.
Director: Bill Paxton | Stars: Shia LaBeouf, Stephen Dillane, Elias Koteas, James Paxton
Votes: 33,496 | Gross: $15.33M
8. Juno (2007)
PG-13 | 96 min | Comedy, Drama
Faced with an unplanned pregnancy, an offbeat young woman makes a selfless decision regarding the unborn child.
Director: Jason Reitman | Stars: Elliot Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman
Votes: 549,417 | Gross: $143.50M
Not sure this was under publicized, but certainly under appreciated. This was Ellen Page's coming out movie and she and Michael Cera were hysterical
9. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
PG-13 | 107 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
In the deep south during the 1930s, three escaped convicts search for hidden treasure while a relentless lawman pursues them.
Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen | Stars: George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman
Votes: 331,006 | Gross: $45.51M
10. Death at a Funeral (2007)
R | 90 min | Comedy
Chaos ensues when a man tries to expose a dark secret regarding a recently deceased patriarch of a dysfunctional British family.
Director: Frank Oz | Stars: Matthew Macfadyen, Peter Dinklage, Ewen Bremner, Keeley Hawes
Votes: 121,022 | Gross: $8.58M
Terrifically funny British version of the movie...
11. Flash of Genius (2008)
PG-13 | 119 min | Biography, Drama
Robert Kearns takes on the Detroit automakers who he claims stole his idea for the intermittent windshield wiper.
Director: Marc Abraham | Stars: Greg Kinnear, Lauren Graham, Alan Alda, Tim Eddis
Votes: 17,824 | Gross: $4.23M
Great movie about man vs corporation
12. Turk 182 (1985)
PG-13 | 102 min | Comedy, Drama
Jimmy Lynch is angry because his older brother, who was injured as a result of an off duty fire rescue, is denied benefits by the city.
Director: Bob Clark | Stars: Timothy Hutton, Robert Urich, Kim Cattrall, Robert Culp
Votes: 4,112 | Gross: $3.59M
Timothy Hutton was great in this forgotten gem
13. Whip It (2009)
PG-13 | 111 min | Drama, Sport
In Bodeen, Texas, an indie-rock-loving misfit finds a way of dealing with small-town misery after discovering a roller-derby league in nearby Austin.
Director: Drew Barrymore | Stars: Elliot Page, Drew Barrymore, Kristen Wiig, Sarah Habel
Votes: 70,222 | Gross: $13.04M
Ellen Page was outrageous in this coming of age movie.
14. The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)
PG-13 | 126 min | Drama, Fantasy, Sport
A down-and-out golfer attempts to recover his game and his life with help from a mystical caddie.
Director: Robert Redford | Stars: Will Smith, Matt Damon, Charlize Theron, Bruce McGill
Votes: 59,476 | Gross: $30.70M
Not really a movie about golf, it's about relationships. Xlint flick
15. Adventures of Power (2008)
PG-13 | 89 min | Comedy, Music
In his quest to become the world's greatest air-drummer, a small-town dreamer must overcome obstacles and ridicule to save the day.
Director: Ari Gold | Stars: Ari Gold, Michael McKean, Jane Lynch, Shoshannah Stern
Votes: 1,989 | Gross: $0.02M
Who would have thought a movie about air-drumming could be so entertaining?!
16. The Ninth Gate (1999)
R | 133 min | Mystery, Thriller
A book broker discovers his latest find may summon Satan.
Director: Roman Polanski | Stars: Johnny Depp, Frank Langella, Lena Olin, Emmanuelle Seigner
Votes: 197,585 | Gross: $18.66M
One of Johnny Depp's lesser known movies, but he (and it) were terrific
17. Kick-Ass (2010)
R | 117 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
Dave Lizewski is an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan who one day decides to become a superhero, even though he has no powers, training or meaningful reason to do so.
Director: Matthew Vaughn | Stars: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloë Grace Moretz, Garrett M. Brown
Votes: 593,641 | Gross: $48.07M
This is a must see. Nicholas Cage plays second fiddle to a 12 year old girl... I had a s**t eating grin on my face throughout the whole movie
18. Seabiscuit (2003)
PG-13 | 140 min | Drama, History, Sport
True story of the undersized Depression-era racehorse whose victories lifted not only the spirits of the team behind it but also those of their nation.
Director: Gary Ross | Stars: Tobey Maguire, Jeff Bridges, Elizabeth Banks, Chris Cooper
Votes: 76,806 | Gross: $120.28M
Great horse story but an even better people story.
19. Ping Pong Playa (2007)
PG-13 | 96 min | Comedy, Sport
A kid dreams of playing professional basketball in order to escape his dead-end job, living in the suburbs, his bossy older brother and running his Mom's ping pong classes.
Director: Jessica Yu | Stars: Jimmy Tsai, Andrew Vo, Khary Payton, Jim Lau
Votes: 3,123 | Gross: $0.08M
20. The Hammer (2007)
R | 88 min | Comedy, Romance, Sport
A 40-year-old who gave up a promising amateur boxing career 21 years ago is offered a path to the Olympics.
Director: Charles Herman-Wurmfeld | Stars: Adam Carolla, Oswaldo Castillo, Heather Juergensen, Harold House Moore
Votes: 6,278 | Gross: $0.44M
21. The Legend of 1900 (1998)
R | 169 min | Drama, Music, Romance
A baby boy discovered on an ocean liner in 1900 grows into a musical prodigy, never setting foot on land.
Director: Giuseppe Tornatore | Stars: Tim Roth, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Mélanie Thierry, Bill Nunn
Votes: 69,164 | Gross: $0.26M
22. Sunshine Cleaning (2008)
R | 91 min | Comedy, Drama
In order to raise the tuition to send her young son to private school, a mom starts an unusual business -- a biohazard removal/crime scene clean-up service -- with her unreliable sister.
Director: Christine Jeffs | Stars: Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Jason Spevack
Votes: 74,148 | Gross: $12.06M
Tell Your Friends