Why some people hate/refuse Fantasy books, movies etc. ?

[Lucas]

I've never finished any Dostoevsky stuff, except Notes From Underground. Which is all the Dostoevsky I probably need (I liked it, don't get me wrong).

LOL, well, you read what's arguably his toughest piece of work, I'm not surprised   . With that story, I think he voluntarily wants the reader to feel hate and repulsion for the protagonist, the locations and the other secondary character that populate the pages. It just oozes with pessimism, although, on the other hand, "Notes from Underground" is one of the most intense pieces of literature I've ever read.

[tar]

I need layers, complexities, things I don't understand at first (or ever sometimes!), a feeling that the words are a window onto a busier world than they are able to convey. The use of the medium is also crucial for me - you used the term wordsmith earlier, and that's what works for me. Writers who are masters at turning words into more than the sum of their parts, not just using them as a simple tool to describe things.

I'd be interested to know if you've tried any of Stephen Donaldson's books (particularly but not limited to Covenant), because that describes his writing to a T.

[Ironwood]

As long as you like Rape.

[lamaros]

Btw apoc, china mieville is pretty universally regarded as an author of fantasy. But who is now being 'accepted' by the literary snobs.

Basically you are a cliche snob, in both word and interests.

I'm told the lev Grossman's recent one is great ( the magician king a sequel to the magicians), As is fowlers 'what I didn't see' collection. There is a lot of sf out there that goes far beyond the crap you so glibly dismiss, but I expect you will never enjoy it unless it starts to gain some snob cred first?

[Speedy Cerviche]

I can't seem to find the stats, but I've seen that women read the vast majority of fiction out there while men read little fiction and stick mostly to non-fiction and news. So if you're a guy and read any fiction beyond great classics already you're putting yourself into a minority and will get cock eyed looks. As others have mentioned, add in the basement dweller factor, and poor quality of the genre, and you're really opening up your tastes to question.

[Bzalthek]

Here's a study I think you may be referring to.
http://www.princeton.edu/~artspol/workpap/WP06%20-%20Tepper.pdf

But you're not really opening up your tastes to question unless you are hopelessly addicted to the whims of your peers.  Given that most people spend so god damn much time watching TV, coupled with the fact that there is absolutely shit on TV 99% of the time, the type of book I read doesn't even rate.