MovieChat Forums > All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) Discussion > Why do females under 18 hate this film?

Why do females under 18 hate this film?


It's a masterpiece of cinema, was in the AFI top 100 in 1998, is in the AFI's top 10 epics list, is in the IMDb top 250, and yet, on average, females under 18 rate this 3.4. What gives? I'd have thought the combination of thoughtful drama and good-looking guys would make this a very popular film among the girls. Any thoughts?

EDIT: I just thought I'd add this: Females under 18 rate this 3.4, and they also rate Disaster Movie 3.9. Ok. That means that most females under 18 believe that Disaster Movie is better than All Quiet On The Western Front. Sh!t. I hate people and I love myself, and this just confirms it.

But that's only because the automated teller machineyolatrolamaton isn't working.

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well females under 18 voted 6.8 4 i know who killed me

just says it all

Other ratings they have given

Raging Bull 5.0
City of God 6.0
once upon a time in the west 4.7
Seven Samurai 5.1
das boot 3.6
dr.strangelove 5.9
once upon a time in america 5.2

nuff said

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3.4? How does that even happen? Once again, I am embarassed to be in the same grouping as those who rated it below a 7. And it's not like they don't get it, because, well, what's not to get? It's very straight-forward, and a pleasure to watch.

"That platitude couldn't even make it onto a Hallmark card."

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Some people often rate the subject of the movie rather than the production, writing and so forth. I would guess this is even more prevalent with young people.

Seeing a bunch of young men in war is not a fun subject matter. So if they hate it it may be that they hate the idea of war and or death.

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Females under 18 know NOTHING of the world. What can be expected of know nothing pube shavers? They're a bunch of dorx and one hopes they'll grow out of it!

Nothing is more beautiful than nothing.

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True. It is hard to find anything stupider than a teenage girl.

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I disagree with you.
There're only 14 girls under 18 rating 1 and you call all females under 18 know nothing of the world?
What a MCP comment.
There are 11 boys under 18 rating 1. Why didn't you mention this?

I'm a girl and I saw this film when I was 15. I loved it and even now it is one of my long time favorite movies.
Different people have different taste for movies.
So don't say girls under 18 known nothing. Maybe it's you know nothing about girls.

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I just turned 17. I watched this 2 years ago and absolutely loved it. My favorite actors are Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, Robert Redford, and Anthony Hopkins. Along with this movie, I loved The Sting, U571, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and hundreds of others that are twice as old as I am. And for your information, its not just teenage girls that generally don't like these films like I do, but most of the "normal" guys I know hate them just as much if not more and are usually far more ignorant in their reasons for it.

You'd probably find that a lot of women don't like the same types of movies you men like, not just teenagers. I say blame the schools for forgetting to actually teach something.

So don't categorize me with the stupid blonde teenage chicks you seem to pretend to loathe, and I won't categorize you with the typical sexist idiots you seem to pretend to be.

Also, your grammar sucks for you to be preaching on the basis of your apparent intelligence and expert opinion. I'd fix that if you plan to keep mocking a generation.

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[deleted]

"You'd probably find that a lot of women don't like the same types of movies you men like, not just teenagers."

I agree: Women are stupid.

I went to see Twilight and I appreciated it better than all the stupid girls going "zomg Robert is so HAWT!" because I was able to sit there and take in the film for more than just a means of exhibiting Robert Pattinson.

And also: I only realised Jessica Alba was in Sin City when I was actually watching it.

But that's only because the automated teller machineyolatrolamaton isn't working.

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Is Sanchothebailiffwithscones still out there?

Nothing is more beautiful than nothing.

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I agree that women are stupid, lol. I am a 14-year-old female who hates other females my age, romance with a passion, and chick flicks. I absolutely love this film, by the way. I have seen lots of movies from this time period (and believe me when I say lots) and I know when a movie is incredibly ahead of its time. If released today, this same version would be rated PG-13 AT LEAST. This was a time back when they had Production (or Hayes) Code for movies and all material in movies was greatly enforced. In 1939- 9 years later- it had been considered taboo for Clark Gable to say 'Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn." And here we are in 1930, seeing intense battle scenes, dead bodies, and disfigured limbs. Wow. Just wow. Probably movies like this put the Hayes Code into action. :(

"Remember men, we're fighting for this woman's honor, which is probably more than she ever did."
-Duck Soup

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Not to mention there's also brief nudity and implied sex. :D Dear GOD how the Hayes code sucked.

I have a Top 30 list, and the only films in there that were made between 1935 and 1968 are Fantasia and Dumbo, both kids' films which would have had little trouble with troublemaker Hayes (I think Fantasia had a little bit of trouble concerning the female centaurs' breasts, but in true Disney fashion, they solved the problem and made it look good. :D). Also G-rated masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey was made in 1968, just as the Hayes code was eliminated. Interesting. :D

I love how in the film Dr. Strangelove, characters say "Bull!" and "Ape" with audiences knowing full well what should follow. :D

I used to have Kubrick's Lolita (1962) in my Top 30, but the Hayes-induced dancing around the core of the matter started to get on my nerves, so I got rid of it.

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SPARKLE MOTION!

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i'm not sure how likely i am to take someone named "opeth and donnie darko" (without spaces) seriously.

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Maybe - god forbid - some females don't like war movies? Shocking!!!

I'm sure there's plenty of amazing films that you don't like whereas many females do. In general I'd say most females and males like different kinds of films. Of course there's exceptions but in general females don't really like war films.

I would've hoped some of the sexist idiots on this board wouldn't exist any more.

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Maybe - god forbid - some females don't like war movies? Shocking!!!
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And why the f(_)ck not?

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SPARKLE MOTION!

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cos some people just find them boring and not very entertaining not everyone has to like the same stuff can't you just accpet that some people have different tastes and interests?

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Generally, I find that men are more often "proper" film watchers. Even the total a'holes who only like seeing sex comedies will come out of a film and say why they liked or disliked it. It's always dependent on the quality of the film (Knocked Up? pffft)

Women, on the other hand, seem to be immune to any filmmaking shortcomings, as long as there is a goodlooking lead male, and a female supporting actor (love interest), and a deplorable bad guy, and the women cry because the music tells them to, and then they come out and say it was great, even though it sucked.

I really like Mamma Mia! and Twilight. Definitely more so than all the women in the theatre. Mamma Mia! was full of annoying middle-aged Greek women who thought it was amazing that the British actress said a Greek word, and there were also the others who just liked Abba, and were visibly bored in between, and those who liked that Dominic person. Twilight was full of girls who would have been better served watching a porn film. "OMG, Look at Robert! He's sort of taken his shirt off! AAhhh!" While I watched it and took in the storyline, the acting, the cinematography, which I'm sure none of the girls did.

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SPARKLE MOTION!

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Yeh sure a lot of females are like that, mostly teenage girls, but many also appreciate a good film when they see it. I'm a female and I love films like The Shawshank Redemption, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and To Kill a Mockingbird, which are considered to be some of the greatest films ever made.

There's also a lot of teenage males who only enjoy films full of violence and stuff, but most will grow out of that, just like many females will grow out of their movie tastes as a teenager.

So basically, who really cares? When you're a teenager you don't want to have to think about stuff like war, you just want to have fun. So just let the girls gush over the guys on screen and enjoy the film for yourself!

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@opethanddonniedarko

That is such an ignorant and stupid generalizing statement to make about ALL teenage girls--have you even met enough teenage girls to throw that out there as if it's the godfosaken truth. Yu sound like a teenage boy who's got some unresolved issues with girls, so you're dragging that into a movie review. Give me a damn break! Boys under 18 will go to a film with the quickness if it's got a naked chick in it, so don't even try it. Also, I'd say,a LOT of teens under 18 probably aren't interested in watching serious, heavy war films. Basically, you don't know what the hell you're talking about. FYI, I was an 11-year old girl myself when I first saw the film (I loved old films, and still do) and it stuck in my mind all these years---I just recently checked it out to see it again for the only the second time on DVD,and found out that it even better than I remember it being---more in-depth, a little more realistic and a much grittier take on the subject of war itself, surprisingly so for a film made in 1930. It's pretty much a classic and deserves to be called that.

Dismmising a whole gender due to their taste in movies is downright stupid, but then that just shows how low your maturity level is.

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Wow. What is with all the sexist comments in this thread? I'm a twenty year old girl, and saw this at sixteen. I loved it. It's not fair to say that all girls under 18 hate this movie, but people that age in general.

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I was speaking in general terms. Of course I don't mean EVERY female under 18 thinks the same, but generally they have an immature attitude towards films. Razor_to_rosary, you're an exception because you say you watched it at 16 and loved it, as everyone should.

I do realise that males under 18 have a tendency to go for really violent films regardless of their overall quality, but I find that they know what they're watching is crap (BECAUSE they're gratuitously violent), but watch them anyway, just for the thrill of witnessing something too violent to want to witness for real. I know because I'm one of them, I'm 18 and I look forward to every new Saw film, even though they're increasingly sucky.

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SPARKLE MOTION!

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I haven't seen any versions of this movie but I read the book in my US honors history class senior year of high school, which originally was my junior year (I was able to graduate high school in 3 years as opposed to 4, so I was technically only a junior for a month). I was 18 at the time and I loved the book. It was one of just about the only books I actually read that was assigned in school. I was and still am terrible about reading on demand, I just can't do it. I need to want to read the book in order to read it.

I started reading it like I always do and quickly found I loved it enough to actually want to read it and find out what happened.

I have wanted to see the movie pretty much since then, but I haven't done that. one day I will. But if this movie is as good as the book (or as good as a movie adaptation can be) then I will have no problems liking the movie.

btw, I am far from 18 these days but even if I saw this when I was 18, I'm sure I would have loved it.

Of course, I was never your typical girl. So that might say something. Plus, the movies teens see today are mostly crap. They wouldn't know a good movie if it bit them!

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For all you cine-idiots on this thread, AQOTWF was made BEFORE the Production Code went into effect!
As dissing a whole gender of human beings because of their movie preferences says a whole lot about YOUR stupidity!

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Great generalization, really. Applause all around. It's almost like you're saying that females under 18 are daft or just utterly tasteless.

Thanks for allusion of female shallowness, too. What, a girl must like a film if there are good looking blokes in it?

I am a female under 18, and first saw this when I was 13 and found it incredibly moving and of great historical relevance.

There are many moments throughout the film of great poignancy that I think anyone with a mind or heart can relate to, and perhaps the polls don't show it -- but that doesn't mean you should generalize so quickly.

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"Thanks for allusion of female shallowness, too."

Not female shallowness, but teenage shallowness. I think teenage males may rate this high simply because there are explosions in it.

I don't consider the IMDb ratings of those under 18 as any indication of the quality of the film. I always discount it.

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[deleted]

Exactly. Because the category "females under 18" is always so much smaller in number than the other categories, their ratings tend to be the most polarized. Basic statistics.

Plus, in the case of most classic films, the number of young females watching it as opposed to, say, Bring It On is gonna be less. Generational gaps, film quality variation and lack of understanding or attention span will also skew many age<18 enjoyment of films like this one. How many young girls can relate to World War I?

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