My Favourite "So Bad They're Good" Films
Only films that are so tacky that you can't help but love 'em make this list.
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- DirectorSam RaimiStarsBruce CampbellEllen SandweissRichard DeManincorFive friends travel to a cabin in the woods, where they unknowingly release flesh-possessing demons.Don't get me wrong. I love this film. It's one of my favourite movies of all time. But even the most diehard fans couldn't defend it's sheer cheese factor. With make-up "effects" that end up being obviously drawn on in black pen and a final sequence that is like Ray Harryhausen took some bad LSD, is it any wonder that after this one Sam Raimi gave up on the idea of doing serious horror and went onto horror-comedy?
- DirectorPeter JacksonStarsTerry PotterPete O'HerneCraig SmithThe population of a small town disappears and is replaced by aliens that chase human flesh for their intergalactic fast-food chain.Peter Jackson's first movie, and as far as I'm concerned, his best. A small group of New Zealanders are charged with the protection of the Earth from alien invaders....God help us all. This film has it all, extreme violence, huge amounts of prothetics, terrible acting, brown trousers, vomit drinking, flying houses, brains being held in with a tight-fitting hat and the New Zealand accents. It's great allround. Forget the Hobbit, Pete, go back to New Zealand splatter films!!!
- DirectorEdward D. Wood Jr.StarsGregory WalcottTom KeeneMona McKinnonEvil aliens attack Earth and set their terrible "Plan 9" into action. As the aliens resurrect the dead of the Earth, the lives of the living are in danger.Some people still claim this is the worst movie ever made. Where-as I agree it's pretty bad, I have to say it's funness to watch makes up for a lot of it's shortcomings. Anyway, it's nowhere near as bad as Reality Bites, or Transformers and they really tried.
- DirectorKendal FlanaganOllie MartinStarsAlan DaleChristine JestonCraig AlexanderA rowdy rock group are accompanied by a film crew to desolate Lake Infinity to produce a music video. One night the musicians visit the local pub while the various members of the film crew satisfy their carnal desires with one another aboard the luxurious houseboat they are all staying in. They are so busy they fail to notice that a rampaging lunatic has snuck aboard the boat, and one by one the various characters are brutally slaughtered in a variety of grisly ways.The best example of why some movies that went straight to video were well worth watching. The story of a rock band that goes to a deserted lake to film a music video and end up being the victims of a slasher (played by Australian entertainment reporter, John Michael Howson). With some cracking lines like "What kind of ar@*hole would do that?" it's a laugh riot. If you haven't seen it, check it out.
- DirectorStuart GordonStarsJeffrey CombsBruce AbbottBarbara CramptonAfter an odd new medical student arrives on campus, a dedicated local and his girlfriend become involved in bizarre experiments centering around the re-animation of dead tissue.One of the staples of the "So Bad It's Good" category. A bad adaptation of one of HP Lovecraft's stories (well, literally, anyway), but a great movie. Herbert West has mastered the art of bringing dead bodies back to life...well, sort of. If you consider turning anything you bring back into a blood thirsty monster a success.
- DirectorClaudio FragassoStarsMichael Paul StephensonGeorge HardyMargo PreyA vacationing family discovers that the entire town they're visiting is inhabited by goblins, disguised as humans, who plan to eat them.Where to start. Oh, I know. How about the fact that Troll 2 doesn't have a single troll in it. Seriously. No trolls. There are Goblins, which are clearly called goblins in the movie. So why didn't they call this movie "Goblin"? Next up, how about the fact that the goblins turn people into trees so they can eat them. Oh yeah, and there is the weirdest scene I've ever seen involving a cob of corn......well, actually there's two of them in the movie if you count the cob of corn covered in strange green stuff that one of the characters is about to eat for some weird reason. Regardless of all this, this is a movie that I've recommended to loads of people and none of them ever come away with anything other than bewilderment plastered all over their face. If you haven't seen it, do so now.
- DirectorDon DohlerStarsRichard RuxtonFaye TillesGeorge StoverAn alien is hunted by a gang of drunken hillbillies who saw him crash-land his spaceship.Wonderfully bad. Terrible acting, costumes, sets, special effects, music and premise, but you won't be able to not laugh uncontrollably throughout the entire film. It's about a drunken hillbilly who's automatic reation to every situation is to fire his shotgun at it (including his own daughter) who happens to see a spacecraft crash and an alien escape the wreckage......gee, what do you think he does next? I only just discovered this gem but it's already in my top 10 of "So Bad They're Good".
- DirectorAmir ShervanStarsRobert Z'DarMathew KaredasJanis FarleyJoe Marshall and Frank Washington are two tenacious police detectives who seek at all costs to stop the Katana, a renegade Yakuza gang composed of violent and sadistic killers who want to lead the drug trade in Los Angeles.This is sheer terrible-ness wrapped into one easy to access package. What is so bad about it? The acting, the sets, the characters, the script, the music, the editing, the "martial arts"....but most of all, the wig. Still, with nothing (and I do mean nothing) good in it's favour, it's still a hilarious movie that I have to watch at least once a year. So "I'm telling all you *beep* you gotta check it out.
- DirectorPaul W.S. AndersonStarsLaurence FishburneSam NeillKathleen QuinlanA rescue crew is tasked with investigating the mysterious reappearance of a spaceship that had been lost for seven years.Paul W.S Anderson is the master of "So Bad They're Good", and this is his best one. Sam Neill & Laurence Fishburne are great in a movie that isn't sure if it wants to be Alien or a haunted house movie. Sean Pertwee & Jason Isaacs are also great in this movie, even if their parts aren't large enough.
- DirectorPaul BartelStarsDavid CarradineSylvester StalloneSimone GriffethIn a dystopian future, a cross country automobile race requires contestants to run down innocent pedestrians to gain points that are tallied based on each kill's brutality.Sheer awesomeness. I love this movie, regardless of how badly made it was. What's not to love. Whackjobs drive around in deathmachines deliberately trying to run over pedestrians. Great movie. The poor remake we got recently was a disgrace.
- DirectorPhil TuckerStarsGeorge NaderGregory MoffettClaudia BarrettThe monstrous Ro-Man attempts to annihilate the last family alive on Earth, but finds himself falling for their beautiful daughter.Often called the second worst movie ever made, just behind Plan 9 From Outer Space, Robot Monster is about Ro-Man, an alien who appears to be just a gorrila suit with a fish bowl on his head, who has wiped out all the people of Earth except for one family. He spends the majority of the film trying to finish the job, falling in love with the daughter of the family, switching on bubble machines and talking to his evil robot monster buddy on the video phone.
- DirectorNeil MarshallStarsSean PertweeKevin McKiddEmma CleasbyA routine military exercise turns into a nightmare in the Scottish wilderness.This is just pure fun, if not well put together fun. A group of soldiers are sent on a training mission and end up fighting Werewolves. What's not to love about that idea? Again, the cast helps this a lot with Kevin McKidd, Sean Pertwee and Liam Cunningham as the nasty Capt. Ryan from "Special Forces" giving great performances.
- DirectorWoo-sang ParkY.K. KimStarsY.K. KimVincent HirschJoseph DiamandA martial arts rock band goes up against a band of motorcycle ninjas who have tightened their grip on Florida's narcotics trade.The work print of this movie was bought by some guy who had no idea what he was buying and later released. Thank god for that, otherwise we might never have heard the kick ass music that "Dragon Sound" played (if you haven't, go onto YouTube and search for Dragon Sound - Friends). This movie was a work of passion for Y.K. Kim, Tae Kwon Do Grandmaster, who just had to tell everyone the story of he and his college friends, who played music by night and kicked the butts of all the "stupid cocaine" during their down time.
- DirectorRoland EmmerichStarsDennis QuaidJake GyllenhaalEmmy RossumJack Hall, paleoclimatologist, must make a daring trek from Washington, D.C. to New York City to reach his son, trapped in the cross-hairs of a sudden international storm which plunges the planet into a new Ice Age.This is why Roland Emmerich shouldn't be given huge amounts of money to make movies. Apart from the disater scenes (which are very entertaining) this is an overly cliched film about how humans (namely Americans) can overcome adversity by giving mother nature the big middle finger and then just getting on with life in another country. Still Jake Gyllenhaal and Dennis Quaid are great actors and can make this watchable.
- DirectorCullen BlaineStarsMargaret TriggRichard GessweinJayne SmithRobotic Officer Tactical Operation Research. A prototype robot intended for crime combat escapes from the development lab and goes on a killing rampage.What do you get when you make a movie about a robot police officer, without the skill of being Paul Verhoeven? R.O.T.O.R., that's what. This film has to be seen to be believed. So much "what?" going on. You build a robot policeman to be a traffic cop, so you make him able to be debilitated with a car horn? What? According to a robot police officer, not only is it an executable offense to speed, but just being a passenger in a speeding car is enough to get you a death sentence. What? R.O.T.O.R isn't expected to be ready for 50 years, but they already have a locker with all his stuff in it and he has a motorcycle with his name on it with the keys in the ignition, just sitting there, waiting to be used in 5 decades. What? Don't let this put you off watching it. It's glorious.
- DirectorPaul W.S. AndersonStarsMilla JovovichMichelle RodriguezRyan McCluskeyA special military unit fights a powerful, out-of-control supercomputer and hundreds of scientists who have mutated into flesh-eating creatures after a laboratory accident.The first in a line of movies based on a computer game, and probably the best one. Again Paul W S Anderson proves why he has the mortgage on cheese. Everytime something slightly interesting happens we get blasted with loud music. Wow. Way to build tension. That's never been tried before. I do still quite enjoy this film, and everytime the boys are around drinking beers and we want to watch something light and mindless, this is high on the list.
- DirectorStuart RosenbergStarsJames BrolinMargot KidderRod SteigerNewlyweds and their three children move into a large house where a mass murder was committed. They start to experience strange, inexplicable manifestations which have strong effects on everyone living in or visiting the house.Some people may disagree with this one being in this list, but let's face facts, it isn't exactly a masterpiece, is it? It's still really enjoyable and I loved it, but it is extremely cheesey and now that more is known about the case, it isn't as easy to swallow.
- DirectorLen KabasinskiStarsLanny PoffoDarian CaineBrian Heffronyoung woman, Dakota (Renee Porada) has finally found a way to "control" her Lycanthrope metamorphosis and desires to live a "normal life".This spot could be taken by any Len Kabasinski movie, but this one gets the nod because it has "Leaping" Lanny Poffo in it. If you haven't seen any of Len's films, but you think you are a fan of bad movies, you don't know what you are missing.
- DirectorPaul W.S. AndersonStarsSanaa LathanLance HenriksenRaoul BovaDuring an archaeological expedition on Bouvetøya Island in Antarctica, a team of archaeologists and other scientists find themselves caught up in a battle between the two legends. Soon, the team realize that only one species can win.Mr Anderson does it again. See, he truely is the master. The one thing he does well is casting. Ewen Bremner is great to watch in anything, as is Lance Henriksen. However, the contrived plot points (like getting Henriksen to play Bishop so you can sort of tie it in with the rest of the Alien universe) make this very laughable.
- DirectorMel GibsonStarsGerardo TaracenaRaoul Max TrujilloDalia HernándezAs the Mayan kingdom faces its decline, a young man is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression.I was really enjoying this movie, until it became a series of cliched get away set peices, then I found myself laughing at it more than actually being interested in what happened to the main character. And as for the ending, sheesh!!! Really? *SPOLIER ALERT* "And then the Spanish came along..." Too bad. It was a great idea. It is still worth watching though. Mel may be a complete nutcase, but man he can make a nice looking movie.
- DirectorEli CraigStarsTyler LabineAlan TudykKatrina BowdenAffable hillbillies Tucker and Dale are on vacation at their dilapidated mountain cabin when they are mistaken for murderers by a group of preppy college students.I just watched this and already it is in my list of "So bad they're good". I loved it. Alan Tudyk is great. In my opinion, it doesn't get any funnier than a guy mincing himself up in a woodchipper, fountain of blood pouring out the other end with someone pulling on his legs, only to ask "You OK?" when it stops.
- DirectorSteve MinerStarsWilliam KattKay LenzGeorge WendtA troubled writer moves into a haunted house after inheriting it from his aunt.A horror (I guess) movie that stars The Greatest American Hero and Norm from Cheers, about a house that knows what scares you and will try to get you to kill yourself. The "Vietnam" scenes are laughable, the monster costumes and puppets are hysterical, the acting of everyone else, apart from the two main characters, is terrible.
- DirectorSteven LisbergerStarsJeff BridgesBruce BoxleitnerDavid WarnerA computer hacker is abducted into the digital world and forced to participate in gladiatorial games where his only chance of escape is with the help of a heroic security program.This cheese-fest is one of my favourite 80's viewing experiences. Just what the hell was it all about anyway? Don't ask me. I've seen it a number of times and the only thing that sticks in my head are the "Light-cycles".
- DirectorJonathan KaplanStarsMatthew BroderickHelen HuntWillieAn Air Force pilot joins a top secret military experiment involving chimps, but begins to suspect there might be something more to the mysterious "Project X".This movie doesn't know if it really wants to be a light, romantic film, or one about the horrors of training chimpanzees to fly military aircraft into radioactive deathzones. However, it is still an entertaining movie to watch.
- DirectorRussell MulcahyStarsGregory HarrisonArkie WhiteleyBill KerrAs a vicious wild boar terrorizes the Australian outback, the husband of one of the victims is joined by a hunter and a farmer in a search for the beast.This is one of my favourite Australian films, and by far my favourite movie about a killer pig. Granted, there isn't much competition there, still it's great. A big, killer pig tries to eat an entire outback town. Need more?
- DirectorYannick DahanBenjamin RocherStarsClaude PerronJean-Pierre MartinsEriq EbouaneyAn end of the world battle between gangsters, cops and zombies.A great French movie about a group of unlikely "friends" who have to fight off a zombie attack. How do you think it works out for them? It has plenty of stuff to make even the most ardent zombie fan squeel with delight.
- DirectorTerry GilliamStarsMichael PalinHarry H. CorbettJohn Le MesurierA young peasant with no interest in adventure or fortune is mistaken for the kingdom's only hope when a horrible monster threatens the countryside.This Terry Gilliam classic is a load of fun. Sure, it may not have the production levels of some of his later films, but it does have Michael Palin, and a Terry Gilliam animated monster.
- DirectorTrey ParkerStarsTrey ParkerMatt StoneElle RussPopular Broadway actor Gary Johnston is recruited by the elite counter-terrorism organization Team America: World Police. As the world begins to crumble around him, he must battle with terrorists, celebrities and falling in love.Bad, as in bad taste. The production values of this marionette masterpiece are first rate. The jokes aren't always. I do, however, think my favourite part is the substitution of a couple of black pussy cats for killer panthers. A laughed myself silly at that (some would say I didn't have far to go).
- DirectorMichael SpierigPeter SpierigStarsFelicity MasonMungo McKayRob JenkinsA quaint Australian fishing village is overcome by meteorites that turn its residents into the ravenous undead, leaving a small group of those unharmed to find a way out.A great little Australian zombie movie about a group of survivors trying to get out of a town overrun by the undead (hence, the name). There are some very funny lines in it, including one of my favourite in any movie, "When I was a kid, we ******' respected our parents, we didn't ******' eat 'em!".
- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsDan O'BannonDre PahichBrian NarelleIn the far reaches of space, a small crew, 20 years into their solitary mission, find things beginning to go hilariously wrong.The only of John Carpenter's films that comes close to the "So Bad" part of the criteria for this list. However, like the majority of the rest of his movies, it sure qualifies for the "It's Good" part. Astronauts are terrorised by a beachball. Really, that's it.
- DirectorRenny HarlinStarsBruce WillisWilliam AthertonBonnie BedeliaJohn McClane attempts to avert disaster as rogue military operatives seize control of Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C.How can you go past a movie that's tag line is "Die Harder?". Well, if public opinion is anything to go by, not very easily. I actually liked this one, which is more than I can say for the rest of the series. The casting of William Sadler probably helped a lot. The plot to this is very much like the first one. Bruce Willis has to save his wife from terrorists on Christmas Eve. They didn't even bother changing the day the second one was set on. "Oh well, it worked last time".
- DirectorMike HodgesStarsSam J. JonesMelody AndersonMax von SydowA football player and his friends travel to the planet Mongo and find themselves fighting the tyranny of Ming the Merciless to save Earth.This is one cheesy movie, but like all the others in this list, it has a certain something that you can't help but love. In this movie's case, that something is fairly easy to spot...or hear as it were. Right from the opening titles the wonderful music of Queen is front and centre.
- DirectorAbel FerraraStarsAbel FerraraCarolyn MarzBaybi DayAn artist slowly goes insane while struggling to pay his bills, work on his paintings, and care for his two female roommates, which leads him taking to the streets of New York after dark and randomly killing derelicts with a power drill.This movie is hard to watch, even for a fan of it, like I am. As much as I like it, I can recognise it's faults. The subject matter doesn't scream enjoyable movie. It's about a guy who's failures in life and love lead him to the somewhat sickening notion that all life's problems can be solved with a power tool......that is everyone else's problems, even if they don't ask for them to be solved.
- DirectorRoger NygardStarsDenise CrosbyFrank D'AmicoBarbara AdamsDenise Crosby takes a first look at the huge fans of "Star Trek" and how the series from around America has affected and shaped their lives.This film qualifies on the basis of the people who are in this documentary, rather than the film itself. They are the saddest collection of no hopers, sci-fi nerds and worst of all, a washed up actress who is still trying to make a living off a show she quit 10 years before this film was made. I love the film. It's hard not to laugh at it. Then you realise that what may be an hour and a half laugh-fest to you is actually someone's life. Then you go "ppfft, at least it's not me" and continue laughing.
- DirectorTakashi YamazakiStarsTakuya KimuraMeisa KurokiToshirô YanagibaIn 2199, the crew of the space battleship Yamato embark on a dangerous journey to the planet Iskandar to acquire a device that will rejuvenate the war-ravaged Earth.I loved this film, but even as a fan of the movie (and the Star Blazers cartoon it's based on) I found it hard to keep up with what the hell was going on. It doesn't even bother trying to explain what's happening and why the characters react the way they do to each other. There's a doctor who carries her cat around everywhere. Why? It's not explained in the movie. It happens in the cartoon, that is the male character she's based on from the show does it because he used to be a vet, but I think we are expected to know that already. Then there's the guy who sacrifises himself for the main character, claiming that he was "like a brother to him". Really? There's no interactions between them during the whole movie, but now we are expected to believe he's so fond of this guy he'd let himself die to help him? However, for all it's downfalls, it's still a very entertaining Japanese sci-fi movie. Just don't look to hard for the answers.
- DirectorGary GoddardStarsDolph LundgrenFrank LangellaMeg FosterThe heroic warrior He-Man battles against the evil lord Skeletor and his armies of darkness for control of Castle Grayskull.The best thing about this movie, is that Frank Langella appears to have had no idea when making this, what a pile of dog crap it was. He acts the hell out of this movie. Then again, Frank acts the hell out of most movies he's in, that's why you cast him. This had such potential, but was terribly conceived and executed.
- DirectorRowdy HerringtonStarsPatrick SwayzeKelly LynchSam ElliottA bouncer hired to clean up the baddest honkytonk in a Missouri town. Armed with a black belt in karate and a degree in philosophy, Patrick Swayze sets out to tame the Double Deuce for its owner.This seems like such a stock-standard 80s action picture schlock fest, until you get to the end, where the entire town turns up to take turns executing the big bad guy with shotguns. The sound effects are hilarious in this movie.
- DirectorDavid A. PriorStarsCameron MitchellTroy DonahueTed PriorA group of sadistic mercenaries kidnap people off the streets and set them loose on the grounds of their secret camp, so the "students" at the camp can learn how to track down and kill their prey.This very generic First Blood rip off is painful in places, but it's still enjoyable enough to watch, especially any part that Cameron Mitchell is in. Also, the main character BEATS A GUY TO DEATH WITH HIS OWN SEVERED ARM!!! Top that, any movie ever made!!
- DirectorMenahem GolanStarsSylvester StalloneRobert LoggiaSusan BlakelyTough trucker Lincoln Hawk is determined to win back his son and triumph at the world arm wrestling championships.Yes, yes it is, very much "over the top". This would be forgettable if it wasn't for the overly serious manor in which everyone in this film seems to treats an arm wrestling competition.
- DirectorStewart RaffillStarsChristine EbersoleJonathan WardTina CasparyAn alien trying to escape from NASA is befriended by a wheelchair-bound boy.Who said commercials should be no longer than 30 seconds? What's wrong with making an hour and a half commercial for McDonalds?