When “mother!” opened nationwide last month, it divided critics in a way no film had in a very long time. For every review that called the movie a masterpiece, there was one detesting it as nothing but Darren Aronofsky’s sick, bloated metaphor. Such a polarizing response can be exciting, and it would appear based on a new study that Aronofsky’s latest really does rank as one of the most divisive films of the 21st century.
The Gizmodo UK team has released their official ranking of the 50 most critically divisive movies of the last 17 year, and it’s a list that includes the likes of such provocateurs as Lars von Trier, Terrence Malick, Jonathan Glazer, Harmony Korine, David O. Russell, and more. Gizmodo looked at over 9,000 films listed on Metacritic with at least 40 reviews. Films with less than 40 reviews were not considered because they would’ve tipped the scale.
Movies were ranked based on what Gizomodo refers to as their Standard Deviation, or the diversity between the reviews that make up the Metacritic score. The score essentially provides a number to represent how much critics agree or disagree on each film. You can head over to Gizmodo UK for the complete numbers breakdown. IndieWire has listed the top 20 below.
The Most Divisive Films
1. “Melancholia”
2. “The Counselor”
3. “Sin City”
4. “The Neon Demon”
5. “Inception”
6. “The Hateful Eight”
7. “21 Grams”
8. “Youth”
9. “Under the Skin”
10. “Somewhere”
11. “The Wolf of Wall Street”
12. “The Passion of the Christ”
13. “Savages”
14. “To The Wonder”
15. “I Heart Huckabees”
16. “Spring Breakers”
17. “Nymphomaniac: Volume I”
18. “mother!”
19. “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”
20. “A Million Ways to Die in the West”
Gizmodo also included the movies with the lowest Standard Deviation, which represents the films critics most agree upon. 2017 titles “Get Out” and “Lady Bird” are represented in the top 10. The list is below.
The Most Agreed Upon Films
1. “Boyhood”
2. “Gravity”
3. “Moonlight”
4. “A Separation”
5. “Carol”
6. “Get Out”
7. “American Splendor”
8. “Spirited Away”
9. “Midnight in Paris”
10. “Dallas Buyers Club”
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