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A film is an art form that should be taken very seriously. It allows the artist to showcase their imagination through visual storytelling and create something fantastic for audiences around the world to appreciate.
Unfortunately much like any form of artwork, there’s always people out there who make films without any knowledge on how to do so or have a sluggish sense of direction. Resulting in a product that comes off as terrible for audiences to view. (Unless you can have fun with it like MST3000)
We will be going over what is considered 10 of the worst films ever made thought out time starting from the 1930s to 2010s. Trailers will be provided by Youtube.
10. Reefer Madness (1936)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbjHOBJzhb0
This film is considered one of the oldest examples of terrible cinema. Its purpose is to act as a feature-length PSA about the dangers of drugs (specifical marijuana).
Unlike movies like Requiem for a Dream that deal with the consequences of drugs in a realistic, depressing manner while maintaining a steady story and staying respectable. Refer Madness treats this issue into a higher extream that intends to overblow the subject to an absurd level.
What might make this worse, is that it’s become a bit of a standard in PSA’s to scare people away from the issue without giving much thought about talking about it?
9. Plan 9 From Outer Space (1959)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2ukRYsYPmo
When we think of terrible directors today one of the oldest/infamous examples of directors of low budget (even for the time) is Ed Wood. One of the most famous cases of his impression in the history of infamous cinema is “Plan 9 From Outer Space”.
Although the film suffers from dated special effects and cheesy writing, one of the biggest and most baffling decisions made while shoots were the emergency recasting of Tom Mason as Bela Lugosi’s character. When the former Dracula actor passed away, he was recast during production with another actor most certainly couldn’t pull off his experience nor mannerisms, which made bits of the film quite distracting.
However, much a lot of Ed Woods work, it’s been seen as a cult classic for how surprisingly bad it is. In a so bad it’s great way.
8. Manos: Hands of Fate (1966)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sF03ZFt8t8w
Said to be one of the most critically panned low budgeted horror films, Manos is everything a person would think of when it comes to a bad movie.
Uncomfortable writing, badly dubbed dialogue, and jarringly blurry camera work that results in a lot of the film looking way more ugly then intended to be.
Today, even the word Manos alone is enough to trigger the mind of film critics alike.
7. Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDraTxCzewY
The 1973 movie The Exorcist was one of the most innovative films in horror. It created so much of the tropes that are often imitated but never duplicated in modern horror. The sequel, on the other hand, was not.
Directed by John Boorman (Deliverance and Hope and Glory) this film takes all the ideologies of the first and simplifies them to a degree so over the top and silly that it takes away from the real horror that one would be supposed to feel.
(In that way, this film might actually be more influential in modern horror than the first).
6. Heaven’s Gates ( 1980)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyet47PdQXA
Easily clocking in as the absolute longest film on the list. The late director Michael Cimino (The Deer Hunter) takes us through an almost 4 hour trip into an epic that should be interesting but comes off as far more pretentious and drawn out then it should.
Furthermore, there was also controversy about the film cruelty towards animals, as it was reported that one of the horses died on set during the making of the film.
However, a more shortened cut of the film has seen better reception and has even been added to the criterion collection.
5. Howard the Duck (1986)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2RNrmCJLtA
While both Marvel and Lucasarts may have a safe home with Disney. There was a time when they’re combined powers created something quite strange in the public eye.
Howard the Duck was based on a line of marvel produced comics with the same name. The film suffers, however, though terrible writing decisions, forced character interaction, and effects that clearly came from Lucasarts B team.
Furthermore, for a concept as crazy as it sounds, the final result was also reported to be quite dull.
4. Troll 2 (1990)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkNB0w1fYKk
When it comes to films that are often referred to as “So bad, it’s good” people often think of the room, birdemic, or even anything on this list. But none of which can match the same length of Troll 2.
It’s bad enough that the “Trolls” in this film are actually goblins, but its infamous reputation on directing and writing is so strong that it surpasses anything possible about the first trolls film.
There has even been a documentary on the film called “Best Worst Movie” that has gotten a thousand times better reception.
3. Batman and Robin (1997)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RBXypX4qWI
Say what you will about the DCCU, but you can’t deny there was a time when comic book movies had virtually no standards. While there might have been some good ones such as Blade and Xmen, the 90s were full of less than stellar comic book films, and Batman and Robin were by far the worst.
While Director Joel Schumacher may have found success in Batman Forever 2 years prior, even fans of that film couldn’t stand the changes made.
The film suffers from terrible casting, a rushed story, and special effects and dialogue that’s full so much unbearable cheese that it’s quite sad. Especially when you consider this was the last Batman movie made before Bob Kane’s (co-creator) passing.
It wouldn’t be 8 years later until Christopher Nolan could come in to clean up Joel’s mess.
2. Battlefield Earth (2000)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhNuXvlCTTc
When the new millennium came around, no one could have expected the worst movie of that decade could have come so early, but it did.
The film was adapted from a book written by Scientologist founder L. Ron Hubbard. Although the movie itself has nothing to do with those ideologies, it still suffers from many issues.
These include actors trying way too hard to emote, poorly done special effects, a messy story, and especially terrible cinematography with that infamous tilted camera.
1. Movie 43 (2013)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9fBCkwDW8c
When it comes to the worst of comedies, this film is the ultimate example of everything wrong with the art form.
The fact they were able to get some very well known people to sign on this project is quite astounding seeing how the whole film is nothing but a series of skits with sick humour and a lack all dignity.
It’s been shunned by every soul that has ever been given the fortune of seeing this movie.
