Legendary filmmaker Ridley Scott isn’t the one to mince his words even if it means going against the popular opinion. Be it blasting historians for questioning historical inaccuracies in his recently released biopic Napoleon or slamming superhero movies by labeling them “boring as sh-t.”
He seemingly adopts the same pompous attitude – which to be fair he has earned the right to by delivering incredible movies over the decades – when it comes to defending one of his most criticized movies, The Counselor.
What Ridley Scott Thinks About His Most Hated Movie Which Featured Brad Pitt
The Counselor featured an ensemble cast of Brad Pitt, Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem, Cameron Diaz, and Michael Fassbender, who portrayed Counselor, a high-level lawyer who finds himself embroiled in the violent world of drug tracking and cartels. Pitt portrays a middleman named Westray, who helps him get into a venture with shady nightclub owner Reiner.
It’s been more than a decade since the noir thriller released and Ridley Scott is still as convinced with his work as he was in 2013 despite the movie being vehemently rejected by critics. Film critic Roger Ebert described The Counselor as a movie with “s-x on the brain, but nowhere else.”
When the subject of The Counselor emerged during an interview with Rolling Stone, the filmmaker revealed that he was disappointed with the reaction it received and claimed it remains one of his favorite movies. He said:
“The Counselor is one of my favorites of my movies, but it’s a very dark subtext, and you can feel it coming from minute one. It’s so dark because it’s based on a certain amount of truth. I was so disappointed, and I don’t know who to blame because I think the film is really f—-n’ good. It’s so fun and cynical. People take it so seriously! People are getting it now. It’s always annoying because my films tend to get got later. The famous one is Blade Runner, which was dead for twenty years and then got discovered again by accident at the Santa Monica Film Festival.”
The Pitt starrer also bombed at the box office, garnering just $71 million in worldwide collection. Considering Scott believes it is starting to impress viewers, it’ll be interesting to see the viewing figures it is generating on streaming platforms these days. For now, it continues to be considered one of his worst works to date.
How Ridley Scott’s Napoleon Is Performing at the Box Office
Napoleon, which stars Oscar winner Joaquin Phoenix in a titular role, has started well at the box office, grossing an estimated $21 million worldwide through Thursday. The movie which sheds light on the military commander’s origins and his ruthless climb to emperor as well as his volatile relationship with his wife, Josephine, hit the theaters this Wednesday.
The Apple Original epic is expecting a $70M-$73M five-day global opening, as per Deadline. Interestingly, the movie has enjoyed a strong start in France, where initially the movie received negative reviews. When asked about the same, Scott in his usual style told BBC, “The French don’t even like themselves. The audience that I showed it to in Paris, they loved it.”
Meanwhile, Phoenix has received plenty of praise for his portrayal of Napoleon Bonaparte as well as his chemistry with Vanessa Kirby to bring the historical figures’ toxic relationship to the fore.
