The 1970s were an era of incredible creativity in Hollywood, although this meant that some movies were ahead of their time and failed at the box office. While this was the decade of major hits like Jaws, The Godfather, and Star Wars that have remained touchstones of popular culture ever since, there were also plenty of films that failed financially and only gained appreciation years later. Sometimes it takes time for audiences to realize a movie’s greatness, and all these releases failed to make an impact at the time.
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Some of the best movies from the 1970s underperformed at the box office and have festered in obscurity as cult classics and hidden gems. Even major directors like Steven Spielberg had films that flopped in the 1970s, but looking back, it’s clear his signature style was still intact. From iconic performances like Gene Wilder’s Willy Wonka to all-time great horror movies, just because a film failed at the box office doesn’t mean it’s not great.
You are watching: 10 Box Office Bombs From The 1970s That Everyone Loves Today
10
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
Directed by Jim Sharman
Few movies boast a more committed and enthusiastic fanbase than lovers of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, a film that continues to draw large, costumed crowds at midnight movie events. With iconic music and an incredible ensemble of strange, quirky characters, this cult classic was a defining LGBTQ+ release whose songs have become touchstones of popular culture. With Tim Curry as the transvestite alien scientist Dr. Frank-N-Furter, it’s hard to think of a movie whose reputation has shifted so radically over the years.
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The Rocky Horror Picture Show
R
Comedy
Horror
Musical
Sci-Fi
7/10
8.7/10
Release Date
August 15, 1975
Runtime
100 minutes
Cast
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-
Richard O’Brien
-
Peter Hinwood
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Although The Rocky Horror Picture Show stands as one of the most successful movie musicals of all time, the truth is that it was negatively received upon release. When the movie first came to theaters, it drew small crowds and was not well received by general viewers until it was reshown as part of midnight movie screenings later in the 1970s. This slowly built up the movie’s status as costumed viewers would attend screenings and sing along, eventually turning it into the beloved classic we know today.
9
Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory (1971)
Directed by Mel Stuart
While Gene Wilder’s characterization of the iconic chocolatier Willy Wonka feels like a masterclass in whimsical movie magic, the truth was that Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory did not do well upon release. Despite being a pop culture juggernaut, this Roald Dahl adaptation struggled at the box office and only took in $4 million against its $3 million budget. It was only due to repeated television airings in the 1980s that the movie started to gain popularity and slowly earned its reputation as a kids’ classic.
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Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
G
Family
Musical
Fantasy
8/10
8.2/10
Release Date
June 30, 1971
Runtime
100 minutes
Cast
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-
Jack Albertson
-
Gene Wilder
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Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory gained belated success in 1996 when it was re-released in theaters for the 25th anniversary, which fared much better and took in $21 million at the box office. This popularity has endured as Wilder’s performance has been the source of endless internet memes, and the movie was remade by Tim Burton as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with Johnny Depp, as well as receiving a prequel origin story with Timothée Chalamet simply called Wonka.
8
1941 (1979)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
While most will agree that Steven Spielberg stands as one of the greatest filmmakers who ever lived, one genre he struggled with was slapstick comedy, as proven by the underperformance of his comedic war movie, 1941. Coming after the major successes of Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Spielberg put his all into this ambitious farce featuring major comedians like Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, and John Candy. While Spielberg’s talent was on full display, 1941 did not meet financial expectations and stood as a rare misstep in the director’s early career.
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1941
PG
Action
Comedy
War
5.3/10
Release Date
December 14, 1979
Runtime
118 Minutes
Cast
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-
Dan Aykroyd
-
Ned Beatty
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While 1941 gained a reputation as a total failure, its impact has steadily improved, and scenes like the dancehall fight sequence hint at Spielberg being the perfect filmmaker to remake West Side Story so many decades later. Looking back, 1941 was an impressive movie, although it’s hard to argue with the assertion that Stanley Kubrick reportedly told Spielberg that it was “great, but not funny” (via Collider.)
7
The Wicker Man (1973)
Directed by Robin Hardy
The British folk horror The Wicker Man was one of the most unnerving and atmospheric horrors of the 1970s, although shockingly, it did not do well at the box office. Described by Cinefantastique magazine as “the Citizen Kane of horror movies,” the influence of this tale of Pagan ritualism in a remote landscape can be felt in everything from Midsommar to The Witch. Telling the story of a police officer investigating the case of a missing girl on an isolated Scottish island, it’s later revealed that the cult-like inhabitants have embraced a type of sacrificial Paganism.
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The Wicker Man
R
Horror
Mystery
Thriller
10/10
7.0/10
Release Date
December 6, 1973
Runtime
88 minutes
Cast
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-
Diane Cilento
-
Britt Ekland
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The Wicker Man suffered from studio interference, and director Robin Hardy was forced to cut several essential scenes in the original release. It was only years later, with the release of restored versions of the film, that The Wicker Man was able to be seen for the genuine masterpiece it is. While the terrible 2006 American remake starring Nicolas Cage also bombed at the box office, unlike this version, it has not received any sort of reappraisal.
6
Phantom Of The Paradise (1974)
Directed by Brian De Palma
With movies like Scarface, The Untouchables, and even Mission: Impossible, director Brian De Palma has had a truly incredible career, although he often doesn’t get credit for just how interesting his filmography is. One notable 1970s release that deserves more attention is Phantom of the Paradise, a wild rock opera that borrowed heavily from works like The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Phantom of the Opera. Telling the story of a singer-songwriter haunting a music hall, this unusual release failed at the box office but has since become a cult classic.
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Phantom Of The Paradise
PG
Comedy
Drama
Fantasy
Musical
Release Date
October 31, 1974
Runtime
91 Minutes
Cast
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-
Paul Williams
-
William Finley
-
George Memmoli
-
Harold Oblong
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As a parody of everything from Faust to rock ‘n’ roll, Phantom of the Paradise was an outrageously unusual release that was bursting with creativity. The film’s strong cult following even led to the fan-organized music festival Phantompalooza, which celebrated the legacy of the movie. Despite receiving mostly negative reviews back in the 1970s, Phantom of the Paradise has endured as a hidden gem just waiting to be discovered by lovers of movie musicals.
5
The Long Goodbye (1973)
Directed by Robert Altman
There have been plenty of movies featuring the classic hard-boiled detective Philip Marlowe over the years, although Robert Altman’s The Long Goodbye was among the most interesting. Taking a satirical spin on film noir movie tropes, Elliott Gould starred as Marlowe in a story that shone a harsh light on 1970s Hollywood and the self-obsessed outlook of the rich and famous. With a self-referential sense of humor, The Long Goodbye was a thrilling look at how meaning has been eroded over time and old notions of friendship, loyalty, and purpose were falling away.
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The Long Goodbye
R
Drama
Comedy
Crime
7.0/10
Release Date
March 8, 1973
Runtime
112 Minutes
Cast
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-
Elliott Gould
-
Nina van Pallandt
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The Long Goodbye was released without much fanfare back in 1973; however, looking back on it today, it was one of the most interesting crime stories of the 1970s. While its satirical look at noir cliches is often overshadowed by the legacy of Chinatown, which came out the following year, Gould’s performance here was just as good as Jack Nicholson’s Jake Gittes. With Marlowe reimagined as an untidy, unshaven, and at times goofy detective, The Long Goodbye was a clever and unique noir story.
4
The Man Who Would Be King (1975)
Directed by John Huston
The Man Who Would Be King was a pet project for director John Huston, whose plans to make the movie date back as far as the 1950s. While this Rudyard Kipling adaptation was decades in the making, the film failed to make much of an impact upon release and underperformed financially. As an epic adventure story about two ex-soldiers embarking on a wild adventure, things take an interesting turn when one of them is mistaken for a god in faraway Kafiristan.
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The Man Who Would Be King
PG
Adventure
Drama
War
See more : Who are Kristin Kreuk Parents? Meet Peter Kreuk and Deanna Che
10.0/10
Release Date
December 19, 1975
Runtime
129 Minutes
Cast
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-
Sean Connery
Daniel Dravot
-
Michael Caine
Peachy Carnehan
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As an incredible movie that deserves to stand alongside Huston’s greatest works like The Maltese Falcon and The Treasure of Sierra Madre, The Man Who Would Be King was well received by critics but never became the major blockbuster hit it should have. With Sean Connery and Michael Caine among its cast, The Man Who Would Be King deserves far more credit and is a must-watch movie for lovers of old-school epic adventures.
3
Harold And Maude (1971)
Directed by Hal Ashby
The twisted sense of humor of Harold and Maude has aged incredibly well, but audiences back in 1971 weren’t convinced by this strange love story about a teenager and a 79-year-old woman. Despite a beautiful soundtrack from Cat Stevens and thought-provoking themes about existentialism, living life to the fullest, and making connections with the most unlikely of people, Harold and Maude was a failure at the time, and it took 12 years (via New York Times) for the film to even turn a profit.
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Harold and Maude
PG
Comedy
Documentary
Drama
Romance
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10.0/10
Release Date
December 20, 1971
Director
Hal Ashby
Cast
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-
Ruth Gordon
-
Bud Cort
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Coming from the future director of The Last Detail and Being There, Harold and Maude has since been reappraised as one of Hal Ashby’s greatest movies. With a hilarious performance from Bud Cort as the young, death-obsessed Harold and a career-defining turn from Ruth Gordon as the elderly Maude, this dark love story had plenty of heart, even if reviewers at the time dismissed the movie as creepy and off-putting.
2
The Last Movie (1971)
Directed by Dennis Hopper
While Dennis Hopper’s directorial debut, Easy Rider, was a classic of 1960s counterculture, he was unable to repeat this success with his follow-up film, The Last Movie. With complete creative control and a budget of over $1 million, Hopper haphazardly shot hours and hours of film, which was put together in the midst of severe alcohol and drug abuse. With a short four-week theatrical run, Universal did have faith in The Last Movie, and it failed financially.
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The Last Movie
R
Drama
Western
Release Date
September 29, 1971
Runtime
108 Minutes
Cast
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-
Dennis Hopper
-
Stella Garcia
-
Don Gordon
-
Peter Fonda
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The failure of The Last Movie led to Hopper being essentially exiled from Hollywood, and it took more than a decade for him to build his career back up. As a sprawling and ambitious film, the reputation of The Last Movie has grown over the years, with viewers coming to respect its unwieldy, non-linear style.
1
Sorcerer (1977)
Directed by William Friedkin
While everyone will immediately think of The Exorcist when talking about William Friedkin’s work during the 1970s, it was Sorcerer that stood out as his most underrated movie. This action thriller started off as a smaller-scale project before its budget ballooned to over $22 million as it told the story of four outcasts transporting two trucks filled with dynamite. As Friedkin’s reimagining of The Wages of Fear, the movie was dismissed by critics at the time and only managed to recoup $9 million at the box office.
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Sorcerer
PG
Thriller
Adventure
Drama
8.0/10
Release Date
June 24, 1977
Runtime
121 Minutes
Cast
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-
Roy Scheider
Jackie Scanlon / Juan Dominguez
-
Bruno Cremer
Victor Manzon / Serrano
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As a film that was released around the same time as Star Wars, it seemed audiences were not in the mood for a grim, existential thriller, and Sorcerer never got a fair shot at the time. While its misleading title may have led viewers to think it was some sort of fantasy film, Sorcerer has since gained belated praise for its nerve-wracking suspense and incredible action sequences.
Sources: Box office figures from Box Office Mojo, Collider, New York Times
Source: https://dinhtienhoang.edu.vn
Category: Entertainment