Movies have a way of leaving an indelible mark on our psyche, becoming a part of our core memory. Some classics shaped our younger, formative years, while others have become all-time favorites, whether to commemorate a lost love or channel the inner badass we believe lives within ourselves.
But some films make us fret about spending two hours of our lives on them, whether out of dissatisfaction or because we always want the fresh experience of seeing them for the first time. This list is a collection of responses from people online who didn’t hold back their strong sentiments.
Like in the previous Bored Panda list, you may see some familiar titles here, which can bring back a flood of memories, good or bad.
A Serbian Film.
I remember reading a professional review that ended basically with (not verbatim, and I may be misquoting, but it’s close) “And if after reading this review you still want to see it I have completely failed you as a journalist. This was not a movie, it was 2 hours of having my soul r*ped”.
Whenever this topic comes up, so do the usual titles. If we’re talking about movies that changed the way we view life as a whole, Steven Spielberg’s Jaws pops up in everyone’s minds—so much so that even clinical psychologists from Columbia University were made to believe that their lingering phobias of sharks and the open sea are “as sensible as fearing a T-Rex attack in Manhattan.”
The Final Destination film series likewise created a similar impression. The story revolves around impending doom from freak accidents like slipping into a bathtub or getting cooked alive in a tanning bed, which has caused some deep-seated trauma.
Then there are the cringeworthy movies that left an unpleasant taste in the mouth. These films felt like nothing but wasted time and money. But what exactly makes a ‘bad’ movie?
Film director Peter Markham, whose credits include The English Patient and Gangs of New York, wrote an article where he laid out some descriptions of what he thinks makes a film unpalatable.
“[It] proselytizes. Evades the moral questions it prompts. Has story problems. Shifts genres to fix its story problems. Uses transitions to avoid story issues. Churns out the same old tropes and clichés. Pulls its punches. Has no punches to pull.
“Leaves no traces in one’s memory, no heart, no challenge, no sense of itself, nothing. Panders shamelessly to contemporary culture and assumptions, whether they be facile or laudatory.”
Tastes in films vary from one person to another. Critics weren’t a fan of Scarface when it first hit theaters in 1983. Simply put, they weren’t fans of the violence. Here’s what Newsweek’s David Ansen wrote about the film at the time:
“If Scarface makes you shudder, it’s from what you think you see and from the accumulated tension of this feral landscape. It’s grand, shallow, decadent entertainment, which like all great Hollywood gangster movies, delivers the punch and counterpunch of glamor and disgust.”
Fight Club is a similar case. With a budget of $63 million, it grossed a mere $37 million at the box office. Critics have deemed it a flop because of these poor numbers at the onset.
Grave of the fireflies. I get weepy whenever I used to see the little tin cans of candy at the Asian super markets.
Despite further criticisms about promoting stereotypes against Cubans, Scarface eventually became a cult classic that everyone began quoting. “Say hello to my little friend” became a notable catchphrase. A-list rappers like Jay-Z and Nas saw themselves in Manolo Ribera and Tony Montana, respectively, the film’s main protagonists.
For the late renowned critic Roger Ebert, the film depicted realism that people could relate to. As he wrote in his review, “[director] Brian DePalma and his writer, Oliver Stone, have created a gallery of specific individuals, and one of the fascinations of the movie is that we aren’t aren’t watching crime-movie clichés, we’re watching people who are criminals.”
Sausage Party, hands down. That’s some messed up s**t going on in there.
Avatar…for me, it was unwatchable it was so stupid. (I really tried).
As for Fight Club, critics credit its success to the affinity it developed with the younger market. Here’s an excerpt of Variety’s review of the film in 1999:
“Despite certain hostility from some sectors, especially in the U.S., this bold, inventive, sustained adrenaline rush of a movie about a guru who advocates brutality and mayhem should excite and exhilarate young audiences everywhere.”
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. I want to experience watching it for the first time again.
>! That scene where SpongeBob and Patrick are drying to death and are singing Gooby Goober together almost made me cry !
On the flipside, some highly touted films failed to deliver on fan expectations. And these aren’t just one-off criticisms from someone who didn’t like the movie. This is unanimous feedback from fans of a TV show with a strong cult following.
We’re talking about The Many Saints of Newark, a film by David Chase, the creator of The Sopranos. The multi-awarded HBO series has stood the test of time thanks to modern social media, which strengthened the movie’s hype.
‘Many Saints’ served as a prequel to the series, as it centered around the race riots in the 1960s and ’70s. Dickie Moltisanti, who became an uncle to Tony Soprano, held the lead role, as the film showed snippets of the characters that comprised the show that fans grew to love.
Hereditary. i don’t wish i never watched it, i just wished i hadve waited a few more years to watch it. 15 was too young.
The film featured actors like Screen Actors Guild award winner Alessandro Nivola, Jon Bernthal, and Goodfellas star Ray Liotta, among many others. However, it garnered predominantly unsatisfactory reviews.
For critics, the film was ‘overplotted’ and ‘much less interesting’ than its television counterpart. AV Club’s review particularly focused on the Dickie Moltisanti character arc.
As you continue scrolling, let’s liven up this discussion more. Are there any more films on this list that should be included? What titles stand out to you in a not-so-appealing way, for whatever reason? We’d love to hear about them in the comments!
Threads 1984
Its a movie that makes you feel like grime or sludge on a ball of insane people. Unlike a lot of movies this is one where all of the worst s**t thrown at you in this depressing movie you know could happen, it might never happen but it’s reminding you there is a cloud of terrible death out there there could be unleashed and if you survive you’ll wish you was dead.
Springbreakers with Selena Gomez. Up until the day the most stupid, vapid wannabe movie that had no right being as bad as it is. If it was a parody and didnt take itself serious then maybe. But it wants to be a serious movie and it fails spectacularly at it. I still sometimes weep at the 1.5h which were lost and that i will never get back.
Human Centipede 2. Seriously, as a fan of graphic horror, even I said WTF I’m turning this s**t off.
But I’d rather be tied to a chair at gunpoint, max volume, throbbing headache, a shirtless & smiling Diddy holding a strap on, then EVER watch the Cuties. fuuuuuck that movie. I’m sorry but If you purposely turn that s**t on, I’m kicking you out ASAP because there’s no way you haven’t gotten the memo.
The Thomas the Train movie. My kid wanted to go, but he was bored as s**t halfway through. I demanded we stay just to torture him for making us go.
Both Percy Jackson movies because you know something is messed up when even the authors ask them not to release the movie because that is no longer his story.
Maze runner…. 1st one decent, 2nd 3rd there are no maze even.
Dancer in the Dark. Anyone who has seen it would understand why.
I didn’t see the whole thing but I heard about it and just watched the last 15 minutes because that’s what the commotion was about. I think it’s called Megan is Missing? Yeah, f**k that movie tbh.
When I was quite young boy (I guess 10-12 years old, 1985), I was flipping through the channels and there was this movie where I saw a flash of skin, maybe a breast on a French channel. I thought: “Hum, intriguing…I want more” and watched the movie. But 10 minutes into the movie, at some point two guys started kissing, drinking champagne and letting it spill into each others mouths, while moving and breathing heavily. My young mind was traumatized, it was not what I wanted….! Was I excited? Was that sex? Is this normal? And I remember feeling very perturbed and very sick to my 10-year old stomach, unable to fall asleep. Please Remember : I WAS 10 YEARS OLD, and that’s in the 80s. I am 50 now and all I am trying to say is that some of my “sexual teachings” were smooth and natural, but some were brutal, like this introduction to homosexuality way too graphic for my young self. I did not turn gay or homophobe or whatever. It is just an event in my life that was significant and I wish it had happened differently.
Still remember vividly as I type this. I think the movie is called “My beautiful launderette” or something like that.
EDIT: Holy s**t, this is a movie with Daniel Day-Lewis. The universe makes sense now.
