Written By: Dan Geer

Just as a preface, this list will not include simple dramas, comedies or musicals, but will instead focus on films in the science fiction, fantasy, action and horror genres from the last 40 years.

Many movies go underappreciated for any number of reasons. Sometimes we have favorites that the majority (or very vocal minority) do not seem to appreciate but are actually quite good. Other times films are just not really great per se, but perhaps better than people give them credit for. After all, even an average film can be entertaining and fun on multiple levels.

Whatever the reason, there are many films that are simply underrated or misunderstood, or have even been forgotten that deserve more appreciation that they commonly receive, whether by critics or the general movie-going public. The following list represents Popcorn Monster’s top 10 most underappreciated genre films of the last 40 years (click on the titles for trailers)…

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Written By: Dan Geer

Let’s just get this out of the way before I proceed with this article, because I do not want to come off as being overly critical…

I loved the latest 6-episode season of The X-Files. I really enjoyed both the mythology as well as the standalone “monster of the week” episodes. It both reintroduced the mystery back into the mythology that we all thought we understood for over a decade since the original series ended back in 2002, and the standalone episodes gave us great stories we never had in previous seasons. Of course, Darin Morgan’s “Mulder and Scully Meet the Were-Monster” episode was probably the highlight of the season. Simply fantastic!

However, as tradition has it, Season 10 concluded on a cliffhanger like all previous seasons of The X-Files did. It left us with a ton of unanswered questions. The season was too short to really flesh it all out. It only makes sense that Season 11 now has a big responsibility to fulfill in answering, or at least clarifying how the “new” conspiracy ties in with the old.

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Written By: Dan Geer

Ever since the untimely and unfortunate passing of actress Carrie Fisher last December, fans of the Star Wars saga have wondered how this will affect the sequel trilogy and the role of General Leia for Star Wars: Episode IX (she already completed filming for Star Wars: The Last Jedi before she passed).

To be honest, fans are a bit worried. It’s probably not the most appropriate feeling to immediately have after the death of a human being, but it is understandable. The writers and director Colin Trevorrow really have a conundrum on their hands.

It really comes down to this for everyone: Should they write the character out of the story, or should they recast? This is quite a loaded question, but one that I think has a pretty clear answer.

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Written By: Dan Geer

It is no secret that director Roland Emmerich’s Independence Day: Resurgence just did not do nearly as well as expected at the box office. Even though it was the 20th anniversary of the first film when the sequel premiered last summer, not enough people went to go see it. It made only a fraction of what the first film did back in 1996, raking in around $103 million domestically and almost $390 worldwide. While the film did make its money back and then some, it definitely underperformed when comparing to the first film’s earnings, and was not received well critically. The sequel didn’t even take the top spot on its first weekend.

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