Movies Whose Acclaim Completely Eludes Me

In no particular order:

1. Forrest Gump: OK, the many bits of history thrown in was a novel gimmick (recently done again in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"), but I was bothered by the message of the film, which seemed to be that it's honorable to be not-so-bright and accepting of whatever life hands you. And it's very bad to protest government actions---you will pay for this recklessness.

2. Little Miss Sunshine: Just plain dumb. Insultingly dumb. And a little creepy at times (e.g., when Alan Arkin was teaching his young granddaughter to dance like a stripper).

3. Jerry Maguire: OK, I will admit bias against Tom Cruise, which didn't help matters here. The underlying message of the movie isn't a bad one, i.e., it's a good idea to treat your clients well and be honest in all dealings with them. Yeah, that's all fine and good. But the annoying catchphrases and bizarre, incredible plot twists (e.g., Jerry marries single mom Dorothy because he likes hanging out with her kid??!!!) were just too much.

4. Atonement: Where to begin . . . OK, this one definitely scores high for eye candy, but I didn't buy the plot for a second. Our 'tween narrator sends the object of her crush to prison rather than let her sister pursue a love affair with him???!!! And from that point on, things only get even more depressing (e.g., the hero and heroine die horrible, lonely deaths at a young age). It might have been a good book (I don't know, as I have not read it), but why anyone would subject herself to this nonsensical gloomfest is beyond me.

5. Crash: I think the lack of sympathetic characters was a big problem for me here. Then we've got racial stereotypes, incredible plot twists (I lived in LA for a number of years and find it really difficult to believe that these folks just keep running into each other---that doesn't happen in such an enormous, sprawling city), and an overall mood of unpleasantness that left me scratching my head. This was not Oscar material.