Film critics typically rate films more, well, critically than general audiences do. Occasionally, however, a film is lauded by the professionals but seems to fall flat with the majority of viewers. This can be true of animated family films, action blockbusters, and independent dramas alike. R-rated films, which tend to offer directors more creative leeway than those with more family-friendly ratings, are not immune to being underappreciated by fans despite receiving critical acclaim. (Here are 20 R-rated movies with a perfect critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes.)
To assemble a list of R-rated movies loved by critics but hated by audiences, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data on both audience and critical reception according to Rotten Tomatoes, an online movie and TV review aggregator. R-rated movies were ranked based on the difference between their Rotten Tomatoes audience score and Tomatometer (critics) score. Only movies with at least 500 audience reviews, a Tomatometer score of 75% or higher. and an audience score of less than 50% as of April 2023 were considered. Documentaries were not considered. Cast and director credits are from IMDb, an online movie and TV database owned by Amazon.
The list features many independent films, like actress Joey Lauren Adams’s moving directorial debut “Come Early Morning,” starring Ashley Judd as a bar regular who has a habit of quietly sneaking out after one-night-stands, and Michael Lichtenstein’s cult classic “Teeth,” about a teenage girl who discovers that she has a mutation that serves as a natural defense against sexual assaults.
Award-winning directors like Kathryn Bigelow, Brian DePalma, Noah Baumbach, Claire Denis, and Steven Soderbergh are on the list, as are actors-turned-directors Jason Bateman and Nick Cassavetes. Horror masters Ti West and Mike Flanagan have also contributed films to the list. In fact, many of the films featured are horror films. (These are the best R-rated movies of all time.)
40. Unhook the Stars (1996)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 33 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 81% (21 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 48% (1,200 votes)
> Starring: Gena Rowlands, Marisa Tomei, Gerard Depardieu
> Directed by: Nick Cassavetes
39. Cop (1988)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 34 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 83% (18 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 49% (1,950 votes)
> Starring: James Woods, Lesley Ann Warren, Charles Durning
> Directed by: James B. Harris
38. Big Bad Mama (1974)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 34 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75% (16 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41% (4,325 votes)
> Starring: Angie Dickinson, William Shatner, Tom Skerritt
> Directed by: Steve Carver
37. Greenberg (2010)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 34 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 76% (176 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 42% (36,821 votes)
> Starring: Ben Stiller, Greta Gerwig, Jennifer Jason Leigh
> Directed by: Noah Baumbach
36. Come Early Morning (2006)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 35 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 84% (49 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 49% (4,743 votes)
> Starring: Ashley Judd, Jeffrey Donovan, Tim Blake Nelson
> Directed by: Joey Lauren Adams
35. Drinking Buddies (2013)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 35 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 84% (122 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 49% (23,861 votes)
> Starring: Olivia Wilde, Jake Johnson, Anna Kendrick
> Directed by: Joe Swanberg
34. Teeth (2007)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 35 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 80% (70 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 45% (34,927 votes)
> Starring: Jess Weixler, John Hensley, Josh Pais
> Directed by: Mitchell Lichtenstein
33. Goat (2016)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 35 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 79% (77 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 44% (4,017 votes)
> Starring: Ben Schnetzer, Nick Jonas, Gus Halper
> Directed by: Andrew Neel
32. The Informant! (2009)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 35 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 79% (233 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 44% (359,292 votes)
> Starring: Matt Damon, Tony Hale, Patton Oswalt
> Directed by: Steven Soderbergh
31. The Family Fang (2015)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 36 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 83% (82 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 47% (4,496 votes)
> Starring: Jason Bateman, Nicole Kidman, Kathryn Hahn
> Directed by: Jason Bateman
30. Mom and Dad (2017)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 36 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75% (137 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 39% (1,603 votes)
> Starring: Nicolas Cage, Selma Blair, Anne Winters
> Directed by: Brian Taylor
29. Strange Behavior (1981)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 36 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 80% (10 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 44% (501 votes)
> Starring: Michael Murphy, Louise Fletcher, Dan Shor
> Directed by: Michael Laughlin
28. Entertainment (2015)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 37 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 82% (55 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 45% (1,851 votes)
> Starring: Gregg Turkington, John C. Reilly, Tye Sheridan
> Directed by: Rick Alverson
27. Eyewitness (1981)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 37 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75% (12 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 38% (1,866 votes)
> Starring: William Hurt, Sigourney Weaver, Christopher Plummer
> Directed by: Peter Yates
26. The Innkeepers (2011)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 37 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 79% (121 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 42% (93,108 votes)
> Starring: Sara Paxton, Pat Healy, Kelly McGillis
> Directed by: Ti West
25. Nurse Betty (2000)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 38 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 83% (130 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 45% (35,297 votes)
> Starring: Renée Zellweger, Morgan Freeman, Chris Rock
> Directed by: Neil LaBute
24. Absentia (2011)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 38 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 87% (15 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 49% (1,466 votes)
> Starring: Katie Parker, Courtney Bell, Dave Levine
> Directed by: Mike Flanagan
23. Splice (2009)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 38 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75% (197 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 37% (252,017 votes)
> Starring: Adrien Brody, Sarah Polley, Delphine Chanéac
> Directed by: Vincenzo Natali
22. Tales of Halloween (2015)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 38 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 79% (52 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41% (1,281 votes)
> Starring: Adrienne Barbeau, Hunter Smit, Cameron Easton
> Directed by: Darren Lynn Bousman, et al.
21. The Lovers (2017)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 39 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 82% (114 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 43% (2,513 votes)
> Starring: Debra Winger, Tracy Letts, Aidan Gillen
> Directed by: Azazel Jacobs
20. The Object of Beauty (1991)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 39 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 77% (13 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 38% (1,566 votes)
> Starring: John Malkovich, Andie MacDowell
> Directed by: Michael Lindsay-Hogg
19. Happy Christmas (2014)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 39 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 76% (79 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 37% (7,777 votes)
> Starring: Eldar Kim, Anna Kendrick, Melanie Lynskey
> Directed by: Joe Swanberg
18. Blue Steel (1990)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 39 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75% (24 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 36% (8,749 votes)
> Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Ron Silver, Clancy Brown
> Directed by: Kathryn Bigelow
17. Haywire (2011)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 39 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 80% (199 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41% (43,409 votes)
> Starring: Gina Carano, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender
> Directed by: Steven Soderbergh
16. High Life (2018)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 40 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 82% (235 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 42% (1,141 votes)
> Starring: Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche, André 3000
> Directed by: Claire Denis
15. The Mighty Quinn (1989)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 40 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 88% (16 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 48% (6,253 votes)
> Starring: Denzel Washington, Robert Townsend, James Fox
> Directed by: Carl Schenkel
14. The Burrowers (2008)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 41 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75% (12 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 34% (10,871 votes)
> Starring: Clancy Brown, David Busse, Harley Coriz
> Directed by: J.T. Petty
13. It Comes at Night (2017)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 43 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 87% (255 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 44% (20,197 votes)
> Starring: Joel Edgerton, Christopher Abbott, Carmen Ejogo
> Directed by: Trey Edward Shults
12. I Care a Lot (2020)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 43 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 78% (216 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 35% (3,812 votes)
> Starring: Rosamund Pike, Peter Dinklage, Eiza González
> Directed by: J Blakeson
11. The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 43 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (11 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 48% (1,867 votes)
> Starring: Jill Larson, Anne Ramsay, Michelle Ang
> Directed by: Adam Robitel
10. Goodbye, Columbus (1969)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 44 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 92% (12 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 48% (1,116 votes)
> Starring: Richard Benjamin, Ali MacGraw, Jack Klugman
> Directed by: Larry Peerce
9. Night Moves (2013)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 45 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 86% (153 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41% (12,251 votes)
> Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Dakota Fanning, Peter Sarsgaard
> Directed by: Kelly Reichardt
8. Gloria Bell (2018)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 45 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (206 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 46% (625 votes)
> Starring: Julianne Moore, John Turturro, Caren Pistorius
> Directed by: Sebastián Lelio
7. Shadow in the Cloud (2020)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 45 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 77% (122 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 32% (950 votes)
> Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Nick Robinson, Beulah Koale
> Directed by: Roseanne Liang
6. Greetings (1968)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 47 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 88% (17 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41% (1,580 votes)
> Starring: Jonathan Warden, Robert De Niro, Gerrit Graham
> Directed by: Brian De Palma
5. Results (2015)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 48 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 84% (96 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 36% (3,587 votes)
> Starring: Guy Pearce, Cobie Smulders, Kevin Corrigan
> Directed by: Andrew Bujalski
4. Breaking In (1989)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 48 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 90% (10 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 42% (1,311 votes)
> Starring: Burt Reynolds, Casey Siemaszko, Sheila Kelley
> Directed by: Bill Forsyth
3. Enemies Closer (2013)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 50 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 79% (14 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 29% (1,404 votes)
> Starring: Tom Everett Scott, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Orlando Jones
> Directed by: Peter Hyams
2. Semi-Tough (1977)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 51 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 82% (11 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 31% (1,307 votes)
> Starring: Burt Reynolds, Kris Kristofferson, Jill Clayburgh
> Directed by: Michael Ritchie
1. The Souvenir (2019)
> Difference between Tomatometer and audience score: 54 % pts.
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 89% (175 reviews)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 35% (545 votes)
> Starring: Neil Young, Tosin Cole, Jack McMullen
> Directed by: Joanna Hogg