Born Bad (2011 Video) User Reviews

Very watchable, even fun but not very believable

[clubberlang786 · 5/10 · 15 February 2012]

The idea behind the film of your daughter falling for a charming man who turns out to the devil is probably every parents nightmare however this film was pretty poorly acted and some of the decisions taken by the teenage girl Brooke were just unrealistic, unbelievable and damn right stupid.

The speed with which she falls for this guy she has just met and starts telling him her innermost feelings is unrealistic. There is a scene where Denny slaps Brooke and then he apologizes to her. They then go to the girl's house and everyone finds out he's bad and the stupid girl still goes with him. Perhaps he didn't slap her hard enough. I felt no sympathy for her and part of me wanted to slap her myself.

The next unbelievable decision was when Denny and his robber friends are terrorizing Brooke's family and she escapes from being tied up in the car. Instead of running away and calling the police she decides to sneak into the house and rescue the family herself from three men armed with guns. Who on Earth wrote this unbelievable plot? A ten year old could probably write better.

Despite all of these flaws it was still quite a fun movie to watch. I suppose the purpose of a film is to entertain and this does do that.

Fathers don't let your daughters go out with strangers

[Ed-Shullivan · 5/10 · 25 November 2013]

Well of course the film Born Bad is not very realistic but it is noteworthy from an educational point of view. Teenagers, especially females, fall prey to older friends all the time in an effort to be accepted by their peers. Before it is too late, if teenagers were to see this film it may wake a few more of them up to falling prey to peer pressures. Yes, I think the film went to extremes by attempting to demonstrate how a disturbed young man named Denny played by Michael Welch, baits his young victims by treating them as that "special one" and once he has their trust he abuses them to his perverse satisfaction.

I do think a lot of criminals work in tandem to get the upper hand on their unsuspecting and innocent victims. Such as in this case we have three men who enjoy breaking in to homes and robbing their victims of their valuables.

The young innocent girl in Born Bad is named Brooke and she is played by Bonnie Dennison. As in real life, we all know of some families who after the father and mother split up, the family decides to move and the new step mother and step daughter have difficulties in accepting each other as they compete for their respective husband and father's attention. Young Brooke who is looking for attention from her father falls victim to bad boy Denny's trap and she soon discovers Denny is not the young man with good intentions that she thought he was.

As I said, the movie is not very realistic but I do believe that some incidents that occur in Born Bad do in fact occur in real life. Upon watching Born Bad some families may be able to relate to how their own young teenagers first got in to trouble. If you do decide to watch this film with your teenagers there are a few lessons in life that your kids could pick up on and avoid some of the pitfalls that Brooke and the other young ladies fell victim to Denny's evil plans. Born Bad is not a classic film, but it could help your teenagers avoid being born stupid. It is worth a watch.

What even was the point of this movie?

[morgangames · 4/10 · 28 April 2020]

Okay confession time, I like lifetime movies especially the ones that are so bad that they are good. This movie was just bad and wired. Basic plot summary. Denny is more than your typical bad boy or abusive boyfriend. If he doesn't get his way it will cost you your life. Opening scene is r*pe then murder of one of his latest ladies. Then Denny meets Brooke. He charms her and of course in the beginning she thinks everything is great. Though he wasn't practically charming or nice. ANOTHER r*pe and murder scene of Brookes friend. Again, she wouldn't sleep with him which is apparently a reason to kill. The rest of the movie is just scenes of him losing his temper without much character development or explanation of his motive or why he's like this. In parts it seems like a cautionary tale to young women. Ladies if a guy screams at you, slaps you for asking a question, loses his temper quickly or calls your friend a s*ut get away . The rest of the movie is far fetched and unbelievable. Characters are also very dumb. IE.. don't hide between TWO clear glass railings..how was she not caught. But apparently the "born bad " guys are pretty stupid and don't check their surroundings properly and believe no one knows the safe combo. Surprise Surprise Brooke saves the day, her family and knocks Denny out with a single blow. And what should be an emotional scene at the end of the movie Brooke is just standing there arms crossed, then hugs her mom. Nothing about the scene indicated she was closed off or angry, so why the crossed arms? Was Bonnie Dennison (Brooke) just cold? Yeah skip this one folks

Born Stupid, more like it.

[ximpsblexprncssx · 1/10 · 28 January 2012]

This poor imitation of Fear (starring Mark Wahlberg and Reese Witherspoon) leaves much to be desired. Minimal character development and terrible acting do nothing to save a ridiculous story that cannot even qualify for the "so bad, it's good" category. We are taken on a wholly unbelievable ride with Denny (Michael Welch), a serial rapist and murderer, who meets good girl Brooke (Bonnie Dennison) and apparently falls in love with her just about instantly. Within two minutes of meeting each other, Brooke is opening up to Denny about her terrible relationship with her father and her stepmother and with a few cups of her face and some soothing dribble about how she's a good person, "born bad" Denny has her wrapped around his finger.

Credit to Welch, there is an underlying creepiness to Denny even at his most charming befitting his homicidal tendencies, but he is given so little to work with here that one wonders what enticed him to take on the film in the first place. Denny seems to posses superhuman powers that would make the Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers of the world green with envy as he is stabbed, smacked and shot and somehow still manages to run around wrecking havoc. It is clear, however, the writers never intended for this film to be anything remotely like realistic with stupidity abound throughout the film. This is 86 minutes of my life I will never get back. Don't do it, folks.

Born bad (Movie was as bad as the character Denny)

[ilovefamilyNfrns2 · 14 August 2011]

I actually registered just to write this review. I do not like how the relationship between Denny and Brooke starts off. The portrayal of the relationship just wasn't very realistic and it went to quickly in my opinion. I have to say that the script was awful. Michael Welch was very good with the acting, but the plot was predictable. As the movie kept going it got a little better, but for me the characters lacked in personality. The quality of the movie was poor in almost every way. I can't get over how boring and dull the script was. The one good thing that came from this movie is awareness to bad people out there and that your kid could be infatuated with one.

SMOTHERS HER WITH LOVE

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 28 December 2018]

Denny (Michael Welch) is a psycho killer rapist. Brooke (Bonnie Dennison) is a moody teen with undefined step-mom issues. The two plots come together as Brooke must save her family against armed intruders with a kitchen knife and a frying pan.

Denny is a nice smooth sweet talker, someone that would put Eddie Hasko to shame. However underneath it all, he is a Psycho rapist killer which was revealed in the first scene, so there was zero guess work where this was headed. Acting was fair in a plot that couldn't keep me engaged.

Sex, rape, and nudity (Donnabella Mortel + one)

Trainwreck!

[just_anana · 3/10 · 14 January 2012]

"Born Bad" very apt name for this foul piece of work. However, I'm bumping UP my rating to a generous 3 out of 10 stars, due to the fact that I can't turn away from it! Somehow, the rice-paper thin plot, acting skills that don't even rival the likes of adult film stars, and a leading man who is far from credible are not enough to send me running for the remote and stop this madness from polluting my living room. Fortunately, trailers were included for other films generated from the same studio; arming the consumer with information needed to avoid the rest of their work like the Plague (the theme of another Asylum film, of course). Perhaps I'm actually enjoying how bad Born Bad is; after all I only paid $1 for it at Redbox, and you get what you pay for. See you again soon Born Bad, in Wal*mart's $5 DVD bin.

Don't watch this

[tsinghacu · 1/10 · 11 November 2021]

Do not watch this. Within the first few minutes, I wanted to vomit. I was utterly disgusted and hurt at the same time. It was so hard to watch this movie after that. Do yourself a favor and just skip this movie.

Absolutely horrible film

[jasonyacavone · 1/10 · 20 February 2021]

This movie is horrible and has a sick twisted perversion to it.

Jared Cohn's Bad Boy

[wes-connors · 6/10 · 16 July 2011]

An opening scene establishes pleasant-looking Michael Welch (as Dennis "Denny" Nelson) is actually a killer rapist. Then, we meet rebellious teenager Bonnie Dennison (as Brooke Duncan). She is unhappily moved to a smallish town and resents pregnant stepmother Meredith Monroe (as Katherine), who keeps trying to get chummy. "My step-mom is trying to be my mom," she tells Mr. Welch, on their romantic first date. Wealthy father David Chokachi (as Walter) hopes his daughter and son Parker Coppins (as Kyle) will come to accept their new mom. Welch muscles his way into the family, then revels terrorist tendencies...

Here is yet another reason for fathers to give their daughters' nice-acting boyfriends a second look - there could be a killer lurking behind that charming exterior. "Born Bad" presents the usual psycho situations, but with money and effort spent well. You've got to admit, this one really moves; the final half picks up a lot of steam, and keeps the suspense level high. Writer/director Jared Cohn (who also acts) has a future with this sort of thing. Allowing some slack, the fate of "Bryan" is too unclear, and although Ms. Monroe is directed to say Welch was "checking me out" in the car scene, the reverse is clearly true. Check it out.

****** Born Bad (7/11/11) Jared Cohn ~ Michael Welch, Bonnie Dennison, Meredith Monroe, David Chokachi

Not believable for a second but has its moments

[TheLittleSongbird · 4/10 · 12 September 2013]

Born Bad is far from a good movie by any stretch of the imagination- from this viewer's point of view anyhow- but it also could have been much worse. It does at least have two good performances, Michael Welch who is chillingly effective(at least for two thirds of the movie) and Meredith Monroe who makes for a movingly sympathetic mother figure. The production values are competent also at least, and the beginning rape and murder scene was very graphic and disturbing(which did give the impression that this could be a decent movie if done right), Lifetime's other movies are tame compared to this one scene. The rest of the acting is not so good though, the worst case was David Chokachi whose acting as the father was dull and veering on overwrought. Bonnie Dennison also doesn't have very much to do other than be all doe-eyed and naïve. And while Welch is fine for most of Born Bad, the final act was where the movie really started to lose steam and his acting became rather over-the-top with a lot of his lines literally screamed. Everybody else never get a chance to properly distinguish themselves. The soundtrack is rather monotonous and heavy, it rarely gains momentum and generally it's dreary and unimaginative to listen to. The characters are characterised and written stereotypically and with little development to them, and relationships between characters seldom ring true, especially between Welch and Dennison. Not helping them much is that the script gives them little to work from, especially in the final act it's lifeless and unintentionally cheesy(especially in the melodramatic parts), "he looks like an alright guy" is such a clichéd and cringe-worthy line. The story had a promising start but meandered very quickly, if anything it was here where Born Bad let itself down most. It lacked any kind of atmosphere, thrills, suspense and even total engagement, was way too rushed and was more predictable- incredibly so, you pretty much knew how the movie was going to end when it started- and hilariously stupid(somebody actually gets shot in the stomach and then they seem okay afterwards? Bad continuity that is) above all else. The direction lacks character and comes across as flat generally. So all in all, has its moments with two good performances, a promising beginning and competent production values, but mostly predictable, stupid, rushed, lifelessly scripted and just un-engaging really. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Pretty close to Fear movie..

[unitedbmx2012 · 10/10 · 8 May 2020]

Believe plot or not. Its just a fun movie. Regardless of storyline. Most suspense films that are creative are more interesting. Fear part 2 I call it. Low budget film kept me in it

Welch HAS NOT seen the TWILIGHT of his career !

[guestar57 · 7/10 · 17 November 2011]

Extreme scenes open this wild ride of a film,Shows the audience a character…Well who was BORN BAD.

Michael Welch has a JAMES DEAN screen prescence, He controls his emotions and brings you into his reality.

Great cast and plot that just flows with a ' Roller Coaster' of emotions drawing you into the jeopardy and sheer terror.

Wanted to hate ( And probably was made to by plot) these bad guys from the start and feel for the family that they invade.

Great cover (poster art) and to think Welch comes from the TWILIGHT movies,Huh,May have to watch one now to see in another role.

Good Denny/Bad Denny

[lavatch · 5/10 · 6 August 2019]

"Born Bad" was a by-the-numbers thriller that is driven by a character named Denny Nelson, who has a split personality worthy of Jekyll & Hyde. Denny exude charm for the family of Brooke, win their trust, and then turn like a dime into a psychopathic maniac.

There is a defining moment in the film where the narcissistic Denny is staring at himself in a bathroom mirror, when Brooke's kid brother blunders in and catches Denny in the act of snorting cocaine. It is all downhill after that where the "dark side" of Denny emerges to disrupt the lives of Brooke's family.

As the film progressed, it became less and less credible as the indestructible Denny is stabbed, shot, and pummeled, yet somehow remains standing. The filmmakers tried to achieve a note of redemption at the end with a happy family. But it is hard to eradicate the bad taste of the sleazy character Denny, oozing charm one moment, then turning into Jack the Ripper.

Pretty Good for a Lifetime Movie

[tbadley451 · 11 July 2011]

This movie reminded me a lot of the 1996 movie Fear with Mark Wahlberg and Reese Witherspoon.The acting was also very good. I also had no idea when i started watching the movie that the bad guy in the movie was the same guy who was in the Twilight movies. In twilight, he plays a geeky character who couldn't hurt a fly.However in this movie he plays a very sadistic rapist and murderer. Very good acting from Michael Welch. He plays one of the most psychotic people I've ever seen. Plus he's also kind of hot. The last half hour is very thrilling and action packed! All in all a decent T.V. movie. I would be willing to watch it again if it was ever on again.

Lifetime Style

[gab-67599 · 7/10 · 20 January 2022]

This is one of the better LM's, nudity and language made it feel like an almost real movie. It did drag on around the end though. So although this was a bit long for me, it was better than some LM's. Worth seeing if you enjoy LM's. Your typical low budget where in 26:14 you can actually see the camera crew in the reflection of the house. Good acting though so it kept in interesting.

Teens...

[MikeyKup · 8/10 · 14 July 2021]

First, Michael Welch: he seems like he was born for this type of role, he did a great job. The movie itself was decent. It seems similar to FEAR, but I prefer this one, honestly. Denny was genuinely charismatic and Brooke, well she was a mess of a character. I cannot relate to the story, but I have known naive teens like her, so it's not unrealistic, just very unfortunate. Not much substance in the film, but it was still entertaining. Honestly, Denny / Mike Welch was what made this movie enjoyable, otherwise the story is rather bland. Great soundtrack + score. Shame they didn't release the OST.

Good Lifetime Movie

[Smerdyakoff · 6/10 · 23 September 2019]

I confess I am a junkie of Lifetime films. They are hokey but enjoyable and thoroughly old fashioned. The women are all moderately good looking, their husbands and/or brothers are nice guy but simps. The women start out being wimpy but in the end get all Rambo, as they team up to do in the psycho criminal murderer boyfriend from hell. This one had the usual mystery drifter, charming but ruthless, and his pair of dimwitted accomplices. He already has been shown killing a random girl by himself then a friend of the damsel in distress with the help of his posse. But for a while his good looks and charm fool the nice blond upper class family. The guy who played the bad boyfriend really did a good job, the rest passable

In short, it is a passable film if you have Amazon or Lifetime, but don't spend your money to see it.

Bad to the bone

[da prof · 26 December 2014]

While BORN BAD story-wise isn't better or worse than a thousand other Lifetime Originals, I liked one thing about it: the villain is motivated by just plain old-fashioned lust. This, in contrast to so many Lifetime villains who terrorize and kill because they've seen the original STEPFATHER movie and are obsessed with killing their way to the "perfect family!"

Also, the filmmakers didn't stint on the action. Poor Meredith Monroe has to fight off three home invaders with her hands duct-taped part of the time, and with only minimal help from the rest of the family.

Again, there's nothing original to be found here, but the pace is fast, the acting is vivid if never subtle, and the main guy playing the villain is enjoyably detestable.

Born Bad a born loser

[geoffox-766-418467 · 25 May 2013]

No votes as I have mixed feelings. The cast kept my interest. Especially Meredith Monroe who made it believable and touching on the family side. Papa is played handsome David Chokachi (Baywatch fame) and had very little to do but act tough and helpless. Each time he made an attempt to fix things he gets shot down. Wifey seems to do the work here. Then we have the obnoxious daughter played by Bonnie Dennison, who to me, was not the pretty thing worth all the fuss about. Kid brother played by Park Coppins cried a lot. Villains played by Michael Welch (over the top acting), Kaiwi Lyman (greasy idiot) and Carl Donaldson (a thug) were acceptable. Victims Donnabella Mortel and Tony Christopher had little to do but wait to get done in. And you waited for that to happen. Some of the acting kept me tuned in. Script was very predictable. You knew the ending in the beginning. Just had to painfully watch these poor actors deliver this dull uninteresting dialog. Not even the direction had any distinction. Too bad.

Born Bad Falls Into Familiar Trap **1/2

[edwagreen · 6 August 2011]

The film had promise where a girl who dislikes her step-mother, meets a boy who seems to be the right guy for her. Of course, he has a terrible dark side.

The film descends into madness and sheer terror once the guy finds out that her family is on to him. It becomes unbelievably violent as our culprit seems to have 9 lives.

Violence abounds in this picture. Here we have a young lady who is defiant due to her dislike of her step-mother, who is pregnant by the way.

We have the girl who realizes she has made a big-time mistake. Is it too late for her to rectify the situation?

The picture also has the familiar tale of turning the tables.