15 People Share the Movie They Completely Misunderstood the First Time

Some movies make perfect sense the first time around. Others need a second viewing, a few more years of life experience, or someone pointing out that the action movie you loved as a teenager was actually making fun of everything you thought was cool about it. When Reddit users shared the movies they initially misunderstood, their reasons ranged from missing major themes to simply not getting the joke. In some cases, growing older completely changed whose side they were on. In others, even watching the movie twice wasn’t enough to figure out what was happening. These 15 films prove that sometimes the movie doesn’t change at all. The person watching it does.

Starship Troopers

One viewer remembered enjoying it as an over-the-top “Rambo in space” action movie. Years later, another viewing brought a sudden realization: all that exaggerated militarism wasn’t being played straight. It was satire.

Raising Arizona

The Coen brothers’ particular brand of comedy doesn’t work for everyone immediately. One Redditor thought Raising Arizona was simply stupid the first time, then revisited it as an exaggerated tall tale and couldn’t stop laughing.

Arrival

At first, one viewer dismissed Arrival as slow science fiction. A second watch made them realize they’d missed what the story was really asking: whether a beautiful experience is still worth choosing when you already know how painfully it will end.

Rollerball

Sometimes understanding a movie takes nearly 50 years. One Redditor said life experience finally helped them understand the original Rollerball, while another remembered being deeply disturbed by the film when they first saw it in theaters.

Welcome to the Dollhouse

The first viewing hit a little too close to home for one Redditor who had experienced bullying. Watching it again changed things: what had once felt painful started registering as a very dark comedy.

2001: A Space Odyssey

Being told 2001 inspired Star Wars creates some pretty specific expectations. One Redditor saw it in theaters at eight years old with exactly that introduction, which probably didn’t help when Stanley Kubrick delivered something very different.

Tenet

One viewer watched Christopher Nolan’s Tenet twice, convinced the second attempt would finally untangle its time-bending story. It didn’t. Judging by the other replies struggling with the movie, they were far from alone.

Office Space

Office Space didn’t click immediately for one Redditor, but a friend kept insisting they give it another chance. Eventually, they understood why people find its painfully mundane workplace misery so funny.

Anchorman

One viewer’s first verdict on Anchorman was pretty brutal: silly and stupid. On the second watch, those exact qualities apparently became the joke, and suddenly they couldn’t stop laughing.

The Big Lebowski

The Dude apparently needed some time to work his magic. A Redditor who revisited The Big Lebowski years after their first viewing was simply glad they’d decided to give the movie another shot.

RoboCop

As a kid, it’s easy to watch RoboCop and see a violent futuristic action movie. That’s exactly what happened to one Redditor, who only later recognized how much satire had flown completely over their head.

Dune

David Lynch’s Dune nearly lost one viewer the first time around. Then they read Frank Herbert’s novel, watched the movie again, and suddenly everything started making sense. It eventually became one of their favorites.

Suspiria

Sometimes the entire first-watch reaction can be summed up as “What was that?” That’s how one Redditor felt about Dario Argento’s Suspiria. Starting with the second viewing, though, they loved it.

500 Days of Summer

At around 15, one viewer thought Tom was completely right and Summer was the problem. Watching the movie again years later prompted a very different reaction to their relationship. As the Redditor put it, that’s what growth feels like.

Napoleon Dynamite

One Redditor watched Napoleon Dynamite on a friend’s recommendation and came away thinking it was stupid. A year later, they happened to watch it again while babysitting and discovered that, actually, it was really funny.