Loving Bad Movies

February 14, 2005 11:37 AM

What bad movie(s) do you love? Not in an MST3K way, but you actually enjoy unironically, even though you know they're bad (or considered bad by the majority of humanity)?

Seeing the comment on the traumatic movie thread, I thought to myself, "Hey. I liked SUPER MARIO BROTHERS. Maybe I shouldn't admit that out loud."

Sure, there are bad films we love because they're bad. But there are also bad movies that you love despite the bad.

(My worst has to be BARB WIRE. The gall to remake CASABLANCA with Pam Anderson as Rick! Beautiful.)

What's yours?

posted by Gucky to media & arts (140 comments total)

Pooty Tang.
posted by MegoSteve at 11:40 AM on February 14, 2005

Surf Ninjas
posted by Zed_Lopez at 11:42 AM on February 14, 2005

Daimajin. I am a one man cheerleader squad for giant stone samurai. Godzilla ain't shit.
posted by PantsOfSCIENCE at 11:43 AM on February 14, 2005

There's a flick called Shakedown that I always thought was a terriffic cop flick, plus one of the stars resembles my brother-in-law. I also really loved The Last Starfighter and Gremlins 2.
posted by jonmc at 11:44 AM on February 14, 2005

The flawed but powerful Star Trek III, criminally lumped into the conventional "odd Star Trek movie = bad" dogma with genuine dreck like "Star Trek: Generations."
posted by inksyndicate at 11:45 AM on February 14, 2005

I really like Encino Man.
posted by riffola at 11:45 AM on February 14, 2005

Roadhouse

A polar bear fell on me!
posted by the cuban at 11:48 AM on February 14, 2005

Nate and Hayes. It's a pirate movie with Tommy Lee Jones. I know.
posted by amber_dale at 11:49 AM on February 14, 2005

People say Lost in Translation was horrible, but I genuinely enjoyed it.

Oh, and Total Recall.
posted by odinsdream at 11:49 AM on February 14, 2005

inksyndicate: always thought the same way about Star Wars V.

And The Last Starfighter is not a B-movie, damn it!!!!!!!1111one
posted by grouse at 11:52 AM on February 14, 2005

My wife thinks Real Genius is the worst movie ever made, but I love it and even sort of let it influence my career path.
posted by COBRA! at 11:52 AM on February 14, 2005

The Swarm - the ultimate b-movie.
posted by chill at 11:52 AM on February 14, 2005

I liked Star Trek: Generations. I also liked Star Trek III. The only ones I can't bear, in fact, are the original and V.
posted by Plutor at 11:54 AM on February 14, 2005

Armageddon. Just One Of The Guys. The Ice Pirates. Love them, own them, watch them regularly.

(Nate and Hayes! I love that movie! And COBRA! Your wife is nuts. Real Genius is one of the best movies ever.)
posted by LeeJay at 11:56 AM on February 14, 2005

I like Dirty Dancing.
posted by iconomy at 11:59 AM on February 14, 2005

Gremlins 2: The New Batch

Specifically for the "New York, New York" scene at the end.

No Holds Barred starring the Hulkster.
posted by Quartermass at 12:02 PM on February 14, 2005

Center Stage is pretty bad, but I like it.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 12:03 PM on February 14, 2005 [1 favorite]

COBRA!, your wife is just wrong... Real Genius is an awesome movie. So is Space Balls, even if my girlfriend looks at me like I'm insane when I say so.
posted by odinsdream at 12:04 PM on February 14, 2005

Starship Troopers and Bring it On
posted by govtdrone at 12:05 PM on February 14, 2005

Well, it's news to me these are bad movies. I too love Real Genius and Lost in Translation. I have a special place in my heart for Ice Pirates & The Last Starfighter just like I do now for Team America.
posted by bkdelong at 12:05 PM on February 14, 2005

The Rock (was that bad? I love it...)

and Cruel Intentions...I hated this movie until HBO forced me to see it 37 times and it becomes this strangely appealing flick...
posted by rooftop secrets at 12:05 PM on February 14, 2005

ooooh and Cable Guy. Brilliance that was not understood in its time...
posted by rooftop secrets at 12:06 PM on February 14, 2005

Hudson Hawk starring Bruce Willis
posted by RustyBrooks at 12:07 PM on February 14, 2005

Ishtar. For the music (or more precisely, the lyrics).
posted by joaquim at 12:08 PM on February 14, 2005

Road House was considered bad? And Total Recall?!? I loved those movies!

Others are: the above-mentioned Starship Troopers, and Showgirls.
posted by eas98 at 12:08 PM on February 14, 2005

I've not met a single person who appreciated Wyatt Earp by Kevin Costner. Even Ebert panned it. But it is one of my favorite two or three movies, and I watch it now and again. A true epic, it has much more of an authentic flavor than Tombstone (which was made at the same time). It takes its time with the pacing, something all too rare in movies these days. The performances are subtle but strong, and Quaid's Doc Holliday is much more believable if not as entertaining as Kilmer's.

A worthy follow-up to Dances With Wolves, it has 3+ hour runtime. I wouldn't cut a moment of it.
posted by Manjusri at 12:10 PM on February 14, 2005

Robot Jox.
posted by jeffmshaw at 12:10 PM on February 14, 2005

People say Lost in Translation was horrible

Just who are these "people"? Anybody whose opinion I value really liked it. I know of some who think "White Chicks" is the epitome of sophisticated cinema who hated Lost in Translation, but nobody I know who actually likes movies hated that one.
posted by arco at 12:10 PM on February 14, 2005

3 ninjas is an absolutely terrible movie that ive watched over 30 times. Waterworld is incredibly hated by the majority but I own it and love watching it. And another movie which I watched recently for the second time was brainscan with eddie furlong. If your a comcast subscriber its one of the free movies they're offering on demand. Its a terribly bad (good) horror flick with edward furlong the star of terminator 2. There all extremely terrible movies haha.
posted by pwally at 12:12 PM on February 14, 2005

My wife thinks Real Genius is the worst movie ever made, but I love it and even sort of let it influence my career path.

I consider that a problem with your wife, not you. Real Genius is one of the greatest movies ever made.

I loved Van Helsing, and think that, behind Spider-Man 2, it was the best Summer Movie of last year. I also thoroughly enjoyed Con Air.

(I'm not even going to get into Army of Darkness and Big Trouble In Little China, because those are genuinely good movies.)

And those people who think Hudson Hawk is a bad movie have probably never even seen it. Just like Ishtar.
posted by emptybowl at 12:14 PM on February 14, 2005

The Last Dragon
posted by stavrogin at 12:14 PM on February 14, 2005

Empire Records.
posted by wallaby at 12:15 PM on February 14, 2005

The Magic Christian: it's sloppy, self-indulgent, and crappily put together in places, but oh how I love it.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 12:15 PM on February 14, 2005

I thought Rock Star was absolutely fantastic. But then, I watched the whole thing thinking it was a Spinal Tap-ish parody. Apparently, no one else thinks so.
posted by MrMoonPie at 12:15 PM on February 14, 2005

I'll second Cable Guy, one of the funniest movies of all time. I'd also like to add Boondock Saints, an incredibly flimsy but immensely enjoyable shoot-em-up.
posted by saladin at 12:16 PM on February 14, 2005

I'll second Hudson Hawk
posted by sauril at 12:16 PM on February 14, 2005

I knew someone would mention Bring It On, govtdrone, but it was pretty well received when it came out, and it really is a very good movie. ::justifying to herself::
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 12:17 PM on February 14, 2005 [1 favorite]

Windy City and the The Champ (Voight version) Certainly not great movies, and I am no softy, but I saw these both as a child, and I turn to mush whenever I even think of them. Oh, and They Live, but that is meant to be bad/good. Plus, I am a sucker for bad '60's/70's French comedies a la Louis de Funes. a> Love 'em but they are trash.
posted by Duck_Lips at 12:17 PM on February 14, 2005

Starship troopers is one of the best action films ever, so it seems a trifle harsh to throw it in with the shite. Are all action films in there? Hudson Hawk is an idea I can warm too though.
I echo arco's questioning of the LiT condemnation, wasn't it largely accepted as a bit of classic when it came out?
I do have soft spot for Tombstone though, it's just silly, and Kilmer does just act like he's in another film entirely.
posted by biffa at 12:19 PM on February 14, 2005

Hugo Pool
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 12:21 PM on February 14, 2005

Have no guilty pleasures! You either enjoy something or you don't. That said, I thoroughly enjoy Raising Cain, Pootie Tang, The Ninth Gate, Bring It On, and Gremlins 2. Especially Gremlins 2. Oh, man.

Also? The other day, we had a bad movie night, rented The Punisher, and were surprised at how not-bad it was. Then, afterwards, we saw Alien vs. Predator, and it was too horrible to even laugh at.

So we clawed our eyes out.

In other news, when I was a kid, I found Nothing But Trouble to be sort of fascinating. Those huge babies? The roller coaster? Digital Underground? Oh yeah. It makes you wonder if Dan Aykroyd just sits at home and watches that movie on repeat, laughing hysterically, alone.

Nowadays, Troll 2 wins the Most Fascinating Object award.
posted by Sticherbeast at 12:22 PM on February 14, 2005

The Adventures of Ford Fairlane

"Hit pay dirt with K-dirt!"
posted by mr_crash_davis at 12:24 PM on February 14, 2005

- The Warriors. "Come out and playeeyay!"
Unfortunately, they're remaking it (why that announcement is on About.com's Romantic Movies page is beyond me).
- Meatballs: early Bill Murray.
- Most James Bond movies are awful, but I love'em anyway.

I, too, love The Ice Pirates, Real Genius and Lost In Translation. The Last Starfighter is good, campy fun. And Hugo Pool is great! Who would have thought so many name actors would get together for such a small, odd film?
posted by me3dia at 12:24 PM on February 14, 2005

Without the slightest bit of embarassment:

Elvira: Mistress of the Dark
Transylvania 6-5000
I'm Gonna Git You Sucka
posted by wolftrouble at 12:24 PM on February 14, 2005

Semi-related: Maelstrom magically becomes a fantastic movie if you pretend it's a biopic about Paris Hilton!
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 12:24 PM on February 14, 2005

Hugo Pool is great! Who would have thought so many name actors would get together for such a small, odd film?

It actually seems to be getting reassessed now, but at the time it was a bomb with audiences and most critics. Downey Sr. is a genius.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 12:26 PM on February 14, 2005

My two absolute favorite movies of all time are Starship Troopers and From Dusk Til Dawn. I used to watch them on a weekly basis. They both contain all the elements that comprise only the most entertaining movies: explosions, battles, boobies, attractive people, compelling plots, and monsters. Oh, and the soundtracks kick nine kinds of ass.
posted by TheGoldenOne at 12:30 PM on February 14, 2005

Plan 9 from Outer Space.
posted by ..ooOOoo....ooOOoo.. at 12:30 PM on February 14, 2005

Nowadays, Troll 2 wins the Most Fascinating Object award.

"A DOUBLE-DECKER BALONEY SANDWICH!!!!!"
posted by emptybowl at 12:30 PM on February 14, 2005

Some friends of mine and I get together once a month for Movie Dictator Night. The designated dictator gets to force his or her choice of two movies on the rest of us -- usually the worst possible. In retaliation, the rest of us get to complain and make fun of the flicks to no end. Most recently, we watched Zardoz, which was so bad I can't even remember what the other movie was, but we've seen some bad movies that many of us really enjoyed. It's surprising how many people like supposedly bad movies.
posted by me3dia at 12:31 PM on February 14, 2005

Oh and The Stoned Age. My friends hated it. I adore it.
posted by LeeJay at 12:31 PM on February 14, 2005

Josie and the Pussycats. It's a smarter movie than you think.
posted by turaho at 12:34 PM on February 14, 2005

A lot of people think it's bad, but Bill & Ted's Excellent Adenture is one of my favorite movies, and I also really like the sequel.

I also second the nod for Cable Guy, I think it's far and away the best Carey flick (the "funny Carey" thing) and really well written. I still yell out at random They were speaking some lanugage.. I think it was Asian! but no one gets it. That's a great movie.

And lastly, I really like both Escape from New York and to a lesser degree, Escape from LA.
posted by xmutex at 12:36 PM on February 14, 2005

Battlefield Earth. It "won" the "worst picture" and "worst actor" Razzie Awards in 2000.
posted by glyphlet at 12:37 PM on February 14, 2005

Grease 2! The ultimate so-bad-it's-great movie. Sing along! I want a coooooool rider / a coo-coo-coo-cool rider!

Alternately: turrrrrn back (wuh-oh!) / turrrrrn back (wuh-oh!) / turrrrrn back the hands of time...

I even own the soundtrack.

And what I wouldn't give for Valley of the Dolls to be out on DVD is the US...

And my husband is partial to Fever Pitch, the 1985 film about gambling addiction with Ryan O'Neal. It's horrible-wonderful.
posted by Asparagirl at 12:40 PM on February 14, 2005

Wind with Matthew Modine and Jennifer Grey. Horrible movie that I like for some reason.

Over at CHUD they have a pretty good list of 100 movies that deserve more love.
posted by OmieWise at 12:45 PM on February 14, 2005

I also love Stallone's best comedy, Oscar.
posted by riffola at 12:51 PM on February 14, 2005

"Tremors," "The Fifth Element," and "Waterworld." I love them all.
posted by cass at 12:53 PM on February 14, 2005

Toys
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 12:56 PM on February 14, 2005

Oh, I also love The Fog.
posted by xmutex at 12:58 PM on February 14, 2005

Attack of the Clones. It's really not very good, but I just really enjoyed it.


Except for the 3PO hijinks during the climax.
posted by John Kenneth Fisher at 12:58 PM on February 14, 2005

Joe Versus the Volcano. I totally love this movie. I could watch it again and again. The jokes still make me laugh after the 1000th viewing. And I don't care of people give it the hate. They are obviously stupid.
posted by contessa at 1:00 PM on February 14, 2005

Dude, I have seen Ishtar, and it is bad.

Hudson Hawk rocks. As does Battlefield Earth. But they do not rock in a good way.

The two Resident Evils are awesomely enjoyable movies.
posted by graventy at 1:02 PM on February 14, 2005

The Pirate Movie - Buckle Your Swash and Jolly Your Roger for the Funniest Rock 'N Rollickin' Adventure Ever!
posted by ewagoner at 1:05 PM on February 14, 2005

I feel I would be criminally negligent if I didn't mention "Red Dawn", which is truly the greatest story ever told, and would be even if it did NOT have the guy who played Superfly co-starring as the Cuban commander.

"Coffy" comes in second, due in no small part to the soundtrack ("King George! He's a pimp! He's a pusher! Yeah!").

(oh, and I *heart* stavrogin for mentioning "The Last Dragon", a truly fine-ass kung-fu Motown movie musical. Sho'nuff!)
posted by Vervain at 1:10 PM on February 14, 2005

Anything by John Carpenter.

Especially The Prince of Darkness, They Live, and Escape from New York.
posted by googly at 1:10 PM on February 14, 2005

Car 54, Where Are you?, Wagons East, On Deadly Ground, Flypaper, and The Animal - bad movies featuring John C. McGinley. If I come across any of those movies on cable I'm mesmerized...and this happens pretty frequently because John C. McGinley is one of the kings of late night cable. John C. McGinley is my crack.

I also quite enjoy The Rock (for the Sean Connery factor), the Lethal Weapon movies (all of them - the first one probably does not rank as being bad though), Underworld, Xanadu, and Footloose.
posted by fluffy battle kitten at 1:12 PM on February 14, 2005

Oh man, I totally forgot about Tremors. I love that movie, although not with the same passion that my little brother does. Most of my friends agree that Battle Royale was an awful movie, but we just can't stop watching it.
posted by saladin at 1:13 PM on February 14, 2005

I love Bill & Ted and I'm not ashamed to say so. Just thinking about them playing Battleship with Satan still cracks me up. Lair of the White Worm. And, House and House II - great fun slightly scary movies.

of course I love bad movies as a rule anyway.
posted by mygothlaundry at 1:13 PM on February 14, 2005

In order of marginally increasing respectability:

Joe's Apartment
Bowfinger
Undercover Brother
most Jim Carrey slapstick comedies
Clash of the Titans
Roger-Moore era James Bond

Tremors and The Fifth Element don't count. Not sure if Connery-Era Bond should count or not.
posted by furiousthought at 1:14 PM on February 14, 2005

Someday I will figure out why I really enjoy Thirteen--excuse me, Thir13en Ghosts. *rolls eyes* It's totally mindless. But it does have some nuanced work by the likes of Rah Digga and Mike Crestejo, which is more than you can say for a lot of films. Or any films.
posted by Skot at 1:15 PM on February 14, 2005

Mars Attacks, Barbarella (really), Swing Kids. And yes, Dirty Dancing! Oh, and John Hughes movies.

And for the record, I like Boondock Saints, and don't consider that embarrassing at all. And I am probably the ultimate case of someone who seems like they should be all over Lost in Translation, but I disliked it. This, coming from someone who thought Coppola's first movie was well done and who wants to have Kevin Shields' babies. Yeah.
posted by ifjuly at 1:19 PM on February 14, 2005

Oh crap, I totally forgot to mention French Kiss. And I DESPISE Meg Ryan movies usually.
posted by ifjuly at 1:19 PM on February 14, 2005

Nobody else like The Postman?
posted by MotorNeuron at 1:22 PM on February 14, 2005

Night of the Comet and The Last Starfighter were two 1980s movies I could watch again and again and again... (and do, I have them on DVD). Can't tell you how many times I watched Real Genius in the 80s. Haven't seen it since, though.

And, as mentioned upthread:
- Tremors (although I can't see this as "bad", the movie is pure genius!)
- Starship Troopers
- Waterworld
- The Postman (what is it about Costner's movies?)

Yeah, and whomever thinks Lost in Translation was bad need his/her head examined.
posted by deborah at 1:24 PM on February 14, 2005

*waves at MotorNeuron*
posted by deborah at 1:24 PM on February 14, 2005

Summer Catch

It's got Jason Gedrick in it, an actor who's never been in a movie you weren't embarassed to like. It also has Matthew Lillard, ( of Thir13en Ghosts) in the only role where you don't want to jump into the movie and kick the crap out of him.

I might even be convinced that it's the greatest baseball themed movie ever.
posted by Yukon at 1:28 PM on February 14, 2005

History of the World, part I. I know it's no one else's favorite Mel Brooks movie but fuck y'all, it's awesome and I can quote the entire thing from memory.

The Postman.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture. I'm aware that it sucks.

Dangerous Beauty.

They Live.

The Transporter.
posted by u.n. owen at 1:37 PM on February 14, 2005

I like this question.

It's easy to name the bad films I love in an ironic sort of way (Buckaroo Banzai, Battlestar Galactica, Real Genius, Sixteen Candles), but it's more difficult to name the bad films I love despite their poor quality.

One that leaps to mind is The Black Hole, a Disney science fiction flick for kids made in the late seventies. While I watch it, I know it's bad, yet there's something about it I just love. (And it's not V.I.N.C.E.N.T.) The music is fantastic. The premise is fantastic (very reminiscent of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea). The sets are fantastic. It's just the acting and the implementation that suck.

Another bad film I love is Logan's Run. (And, no, I don't just watch science fiction. It's just that, as with scifi books, there's a larger ratio of bad to good science fiction than with mainstream.) Yes, the film was made in a shopping mall. I don't care. I love the story. I can't wait for the remake to actually become a reality.

Is When Harry Met Sally bad? Because I love that, too. And Joe vs. The Volcano. (No, I don't have a thing for Meg Ryan.)

There are bad films that I want to love, but no matter how many times I watch them, I just can't. For example, Tron leaves me cold. It's not a good film.

I think the inverse is an interesting question, too, but I've used my AskMe slot for the week. What good films do you just not "get". For a lot of people, Lost in Translation fits the bill. For me, it's the Lord of the Rings trilogy. (Heresy, I know, but there you go. The extended FoTR was okay, but I find everything else painful to watch...)
posted by jdroth at 1:39 PM on February 14, 2005

I'll n^th anything by John Carpenter and Battlefield Earth. Might I add that Wing Commander is a beautiful train wreck of a movie?
posted by bachelor#3 at 1:41 PM on February 14, 2005

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai: Across the Eighth Dimension!

Lost in Translation wasn't bad, it just wasn't particularly good. And I went into it thinking it was supposed to be all kinds of wonderful.
posted by squidlarkin at 1:42 PM on February 14, 2005

Egads! I forgot an entire class of bad movies that I love.

I love old-time movie serials like Flash Gordon and Undersea Kingdom and Jungle Girl and Radar Men From the Moon. I'm building a little DVD collection of these, actually.

When I watch them, I know they're awful, but I love them, and not because they're bad. I love them despite the fact they're bad. I love the innovation, the ingenuity, the wild leaps of imagination. I love that these serials do stuff that no other films dared do at the time. In many ways, it's these movie serials which loom large over modern speculative cinema (by which I mean fantasy and science fiction). There would be no Star Wars without the movie serials of the 30s and 40s.

I try to get my wife to watch the serials with me: "Come on, sweetie — just one episode each night before bed?" but after Undersea Kingdom, she just won't do it.
posted by jdroth at 1:46 PM on February 14, 2005

Mystery Men: Got terrible reviews all over the place. I have no idea why I find it so funny, but I own the DVD and have seen it a dozen times, and am not tired of it.

and

The Ring: This movie gets panned by everyone who did and did not see Ringu, but it still scares the shit out of me.
posted by Flem Snopes at 1:48 PM on February 14, 2005

I can't believe nobody has mentioned Commando or Carnosaur, two of the greatest bad movies ever made.

Commando, starring Arnold, is full of so many great ideas, like gun deals going down in smoke-filled bars located in L.A. shopping malls. The one-liners are non-stop, and oh, the bodycount!

Carnosaur: Greatest line - "Holy fucking shit, its a holy fucking dinosaur!"
posted by tweak at 1:51 PM on February 14, 2005

Jeez, your ideas of "bad movies" seem to be mostly cult classics. Let's talk about honest-to-god crap that we really can't justify liking.

I can't stop watching Chasing Liberty. It's the one of the recent spate of First-Daughter-just-wants-to-have-fun movies that stars Mandy Moore, of whom I'd sort of barely heard but damn she fine. And it has a nice B-story romance between Annabella Sciorra (she also fine) and the adorable Jeremy Piven as, wait for it, the Secret Service agents who keep losing her. And it's just completely retarded but I love it dearly and it's on HBO every nine minutes.
posted by nicwolff at 1:59 PM on February 14, 2005

Thirding Hudson Hawk and seconding Wyatt Earp. Also Let It Ride.
posted by filmgoerjuan at 2:04 PM on February 14, 2005

Bring It On, Spirit of '76 starring Redd Kross and Keith Partridge, and the guiltiest of all my pleasures, Blade 2 which I can't help but stop everything I'm doing every single time it's on.
posted by monkey!knife!fight! at 2:09 PM on February 14, 2005

I saw the movie Hook when I was eight and loved it so much that I came home and scribbled five pages about it in my purple diary. The moment, several years later, when I discovered it was considered a bad movie was the moment my innocence was ripped away from me.

But then I watched it again last summer and I thought it was AWESOME!!! TAKE THAT, SUCKERS!!!

Also: Never Been Kissed, Josie and the Pussycats, Sleepless in Seattle, Billy Madison.
posted by granted at 2:13 PM on February 14, 2005

Most of the time I like a movie that the general consensus holds as "bad," I just figure that I'm right and the consensus is wrong. For example, I like Freddy Got Fingered, and I think most people just didn't appreciate it as the surrealist classic that it is.
posted by goatdog at 2:16 PM on February 14, 2005

I'll second Billy Madison and Undercover Brother, and throw in Demolition Man.

I like Buckaroo Banzai (one of few films I've seen several times,) Josie and the Pussycats, and Hudson Hawk, too, but don't think of them as bad. (Oh, the layers of subjectivity on this question...)
posted by Zed_Lopez at 2:29 PM on February 14, 2005

Nobody else like The Postman?

[meek]me.[/meek]
posted by John Kenneth Fisher at 2:34 PM on February 14, 2005

Gotta put in another vote for Buckaroo Banzai, Josie & the Pussycats and Demolition Man (which I just watched again yesterday).

I also quite liked Escape From New York, Big Trouble in Little China and The Specials.
posted by aine42 at 2:46 PM on February 14, 2005

Put me down for Night Of The Comet.

Others include:

Metalstorm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn
Spacehunter: Adventures In The Forbidden Zone (Molly Ringwald, Ernie Hudson, Peter Strauss. Galactic badness.)
The Postman (you're not alone)
Waterworld (ditto)
Dark Star

And many many others....

Oh yeah. Police Academy.
posted by TeamBilly at 3:05 PM on February 14, 2005

Just Police Academy 1? Nobody else liked 2 through 15?
In a similiar vein, Rocky 4 kicks serious ass.

Final Fantasy was awful but I was riveted by the graphics.
Ishtar is a classic.

My girlfriend can't stop watching Troop Beverly Hills.
I guess Kung Fu flicks are cult so don't count but I can't help mentioning Jackie Chan's Fearless Hyena (and the rest of his early work) Mr. Nice Guy and Shanghai Noon (and Knights).
SpaceBalls was great so it doesn't count.
Son in Law, The Lady's Man, and Tango and Cash are also in my guilty favorites pile.
posted by Edible Energy at 3:30 PM on February 14, 2005

The Money Pit is one of my all time faves, and pretty crappy, IIRC.
posted by tristeza at 3:33 PM on February 14, 2005

Red Dawn. Because I lived through enough of the Cold War to worry about evil commie Russian people taking over my country and causing nuclear devastation. And so it is a fond memory of childhood.

Armageddon. Because the combination of Steve Buscemi and space is just too hard to resist.

Starship Troopers. Because I truly believe that it is a satiric masterpiece. In fact, moreso because the director may not be aware of it's status as such.
posted by xyzzy at 3:35 PM on February 14, 2005

I adored The Black Hole when I was a kid, but the novelization's ending brought on a fit of depression. *retrospective sniffle*
posted by thomas j wise at 3:37 PM on February 14, 2005

I love Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice In the Hood, and I don't care who knows it. Break all them shelves!
posted by Succa at 3:43 PM on February 14, 2005

Throw in another vote for Gremlins 2: The New Batch. I bought the DVD last year (along with the first film) mostly for the commentaries, but I've watched both films a number of times since. Also votes for Bowfinger (no way it's bad though; it's Steve Martin's best work since Planes, Trains, and Automobiles), History of the World Part I ("I bring you 15 commandments... 10! Ten commandments!"), and most any movie where John Candy is the main attraction. He worked better when he was teamed with someone (John Candy and Steve Martin in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, John Candy and Mel Brooks in Spaceballs, etc.) but when he was the only big name actor the critics and audiences went hard on him. Summer Rental, Delirious, Uncle Buck: check them out one time, won't you?

And don't miss Frequency. One of the best sci-fi films that's not really a sci-fi film. Gotta love Dennis Quaid in a good role. Oh, that reminds me: Innerspace is worth your time, too!
posted by Servo5678 at 3:49 PM on February 14, 2005

Hudson Hawk is a great movie...despite what people think as were Waterworld, The Postman, and Starship Troopers.

I want to add Basquiat to the list, and the ever entertaining Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas... a great piece of disturbing if you ask me.
posted by Benway at 3:52 PM on February 14, 2005

Termintor 2
Predator
French Kiss
Shining Through
posted by invisible ink at 3:58 PM on February 14, 2005

Whoa! Escape From New York, Tremors, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, Battle Royale, Terminator 2, Predator, and Big Trouble In Little China are considered *bad*?? On what planet? Planet Arse? They're classics! As are many of the other movies you are mentioning. You want movies that you love, but would never, ever admit it, except in a friendly forum like this, where we're all sharing our secret shames.

Road House. Patrick Swayze. Sam Elliott. Ben Gazzarra. Sweaty pants. Lots of fighting. My way or the highway. 80's love scene with Kelly Lynch. You *know* it's shite, but damn, it's the best fun ever.

Nico (Above the Law in the US). Steven Seagal. That ponytail. Cheesy plot used a hundred times a year. But damn, when he makes with the fisticuffs and pool cues, you're up on your feet egging him on. Plus, it's his first movie, so he hadn't got fat and weird yet.

Superman 3. Yes, Richard Pryor is in the wrong movie, and the shitty computer graphics suck - but that opening sequence with the pies, the water-filled car and Supes to the rescue is sheer genius. And the whole Mean Superman subplot is more exciting than the main plot - make the whole movie about his struggle with Mean Superman! Forget the stupid computer stuff!

Rocky 4. Oh no! The evil Russian is much stronger, and has all sorts of fancy electronic gear! Rocky is just running in the snow, and using lumps of wood/meat! It's more or less the same plot as the other Rocky movies! Can he possibly win? But you're *still* biting your fucking nails towards the end, dammit.

The Night Before. One of Keanu's first starring roles - a high school lad gets drunk on prom night, and accidentally sells his date to a pimp. Cue lots of night time shenanigans and silliness. It's fucking brilliant fun, and as mad as it sounds. "I'm handcuffed to a piece of metal! My father is a cop, he's trained to notice these things..."
posted by ralphyk at 4:03 PM on February 14, 2005

I love Joe Dirt, even though it gets a 9% rotten tomato rating. (I think it would've been better if they didn't cast Dennis Miller.) I also thought Night at the Roxbury was really funny, but I think Will Ferrell can do no wrong.
One of my favorite movies from childhood that is, in retrospect, bad (yet I still enjoy watching it every so often) is Girls just want to have fun.
posted by sophie at 4:29 PM on February 14, 2005

Tommy Boy
The Running Man
I'll second The Specials even though I'd label it as a cult classic rather than a bad movie. It only has a 5.8 on imdb, but those people are wrong.
posted by Gary at 4:30 PM on February 14, 2005

Though widely panned, the 1989 version of The Punisher is probably the greatest movie ever made.
posted by nixerman at 4:31 PM on February 14, 2005

I love Joe Dirt, even though it gets a 9% rotten tomato rating. (I think it would've been better if they didn't cast Dennis Miller.)

I'll second Joe Dirt. I was forced to watch it and fully prepared to hate it but I was taken with how sweet it was. This was a fun question.
posted by LeeJay at 4:41 PM on February 14, 2005

I actually cried from happiness at the end of Joe Dirt when he gets the girl and the crowd cheers him on. I also love They Live. Joe v. the Volcano is in my all time top 5.

I can still enjoy One Crazy Summer even though I've probably seen it 200 times and know it practically word-for-word.
posted by mathowie at 4:46 PM on February 14, 2005

White Christmas. And yes, I know the "Sisters" song by heart. I have impeccable taste.
posted by idest at 4:47 PM on February 14, 2005

Second Robot Jox. I just re-watched that movie yesterday; it was still as deliciously horrible as I remembered.
posted by neckro23 at 5:06 PM on February 14, 2005

Beverly Hills Ninja If it happens to be on somewhere, I can't help myself. Farley gives me the giggles.
posted by Mrmuhnrmuh at 5:08 PM on February 14, 2005

Ah...a "good crap" thread! Some of the movies people are putting in this category sure don't seem to belong there to me. I loved The Ring, but I'd never call it "good crap", same with Big Trouble In Little China, the fact that it's intentionally campy horror-comedy does not mean it's actually crap.

I love Supernova, which truly is crap, but I can see the good movie hiding underneath the layers and layers of studio/director/editor political bullshit that doomed it. It's nowhere near a good movie, but I fervently believe it could have been, and I love it anyway.

I also love Behind Enemy Lines, because it has some amazing performances in it (people either get Owen Wilson as a serious actor, or they don't) and the whole sequence with the plane getting shot down was truly edge-of-your-seat for me. Unlike Supernova I was surprised that it got panned.

My own version of Mission To Mars, which has no painfully creepy-fake male bonding, no astronauts not acting like astronauts and no Disney alien. If you skip the horrible parts, and pretend it's actually about a mission to Mars, it's quite a good movie. Okay, it's a terrible movie, but the parts of it I love, I love.

Also Screamers, which I think has a lovely doomed/desperate feel to it.

Another shout out for They Live, Battlefield: Earth, and both Escape From movies.

And wolftrouble, I'm a master of kung fu, karate, ju-jitsu and a whole bunch of other shit you ain't even heard of (also one of my favourites, along with Fear of a Black Hat).
posted by biscotti at 5:11 PM on February 14, 2005

I admit it. I'm a Goldy Hawn freak. Put Goldy in anything, and I'll watch it. (Overboard is the only one I own on DVD...but the rest...got em on video.) It's true.

I'll get me coat...

(Oh, and seconding of Magic Christian. That movie, despite some production problems, is genius.)
posted by dejah420 at 5:16 PM on February 14, 2005

Amongst the smartest movies-based-on-cartoons: George of the Jungle.

Also for some reason I have to watch Sister Act 2 every time it's on TV.
posted by softlord at 5:21 PM on February 14, 2005

(I think Big Trouble in Little China really is crap, even though it means to be all winky-winky. It's crappy pretend crap crap!)
posted by redfoxtail at 5:27 PM on February 14, 2005

Club Paradise (IMDb score: 4.3), an early Robin Williams vehicle about a guy who moves to a tropical island and ends up renovating a run-down beach resort. One of those 80s underdog-winning-over-moneygrubbing-bad-guys feel-good comedies that have "zany" somewhere in the blurb. Directed by Harold Ramis (Groundhog Day etc.), co-starring Rick Moranis, Eugene Levy, Peter O'Toole, Simon Jones and Twiggy (!). I'm shocked that it's not available on DVD.
posted by gentle at 5:42 PM on February 14, 2005

It's *all* about Ishtar, baby.
posted by Johnny Assay at 5:46 PM on February 14, 2005

Hawk the Slayer: any Dungeons & Dragons player will tell you, this is the real thing.

And, I admit with some embarassment, I liked Masters of the Universe. Frank Langella was awesome as Skeletor. (That anyone could be awesome as Skeletor is a remarkable accomplishment.)
posted by SPrintF at 5:58 PM on February 14, 2005

I have to second Pootie Tang. Fortunately it shows up often enough on HBO that I can just start watching it. I made my wife watch it with me last time.

Also, The Big Lebowski. It's about 60/40, maybe 70/30 hate among people I know.
posted by britain at 6:00 PM on February 14, 2005

Gymkata. I'm not sure if this also qualifies, but Labyrinth is excellent in a bizarre "WTF?!?!" kinda way.
posted by mek at 6:06 PM on February 14, 2005

I really like K-PAX. The music and cinematography are really great. The Grand Central and Taxi Ride scene music is some of the best from any movie IMO.
posted by abcde at 6:06 PM on February 14, 2005

Hm. I just don't know what qualifies as a bad movie anymore. I guess it's a "bad" movie if it has a camp of detractors. Well, then, here goes...

First and foremost: 13th Warrior. It's a great movie, in the sense that it is very well made, but it kind of straddles two genres and so offends the partisans of either: on the one hand, it's fantasy; on the other, it's grounded in a real historical account by a 10th century Arab who sojourned with the Norsemen. It's filled with really cool historically (and psychologically) accurate details; it's also filled with blatant howlers. But it's really great—trust me.

A fourth for Hudson Hawk. What's not to like? It's like watching To Catch A Thief (the TV show), only better.

A second for Big Trouble in Little China. I have to watch that again every couple of years.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, Barbarella. But all I remember is the opening striptease. But that's totally worth it.

Paradise, Drop Dead Fred, and Princess Caraboo, because I'm a sucker for Phoebe Cates. Actually, Princess Caraboo got decent reviews; I include it because it is undeservedly obscure. Drop Dead Fred was hilarious. I guess I don't have to explain what I liked about Paradise.

John Hughes movies have their detractors, but he's generally acknowledged to be a more than competent filmmaker. I think it's just the subject matter that turns some people off. C'mon, Molly makes it so real. So, yes, I like them too, but I'm not sure if that counts.

And speaking of Molly, how about Tempest? Cassavetes, Rowland, Ringwald, Sarandon, and Raul Julia as Caliban. It's the clarinet solo...no, it's when he summons the storm...no, it's when he kills the goat...no, it's Molly.

I'd nth Mystery Men, too. There are cringy bits, but that just means they were taking chances, right?
posted by bricoleur at 6:17 PM on February 14, 2005

I really liked Femme Fatale. I really like Brian DePalma, period (ok, except for Mission to Mars, though even that had a few good moments.) Femme Fatale has some really bad acting in the form of Rebecca Romain-Stamos--though decent enough stuff from Antonio Banderas--but the whole movie is worth the opening "Bolero" jewel-heist sequence. And there are some nifty tricks that DePalma uses, especially near the end.

It got bad reviews (though Ebert liked it!) and tanked at the US box office. But I like it.
posted by zardoz at 7:18 PM on February 14, 2005

I absolutely love Blue Chips. It's way underrated.

I also thought Dick, with Michelle Williams and Kirsten Dunst, was really funny.
posted by SisterHavana at 7:22 PM on February 14, 2005

I'm surprised no has mentioned The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, maybe everyone else really DID hate it.

Also, any of the Dolemite movies and The East is Red
posted by thewittyname at 7:34 PM on February 14, 2005

Over 100 answers and no one else has mentioned Tombstone? Well, I'll be your huckleberry...

I also love Lost in Space. A lot. So much so I wish there had been a sequel. And no, I don't have a head injury.
posted by kittyloop at 8:15 PM on February 14, 2005

13th Warrior. It's... grounded in a real historical account by a 10th century Arab who sojourned with the Norsemen.

It's framed that way, yes. But Michael Crichton's Eaters of the Dead, the source of the film, is actually a retelling of Beowulf from the perspective of his fictional Arab narrator.
posted by SPrintF at 8:55 PM on February 14, 2005

Final Fantasy was awful but I was riveted by the graphics.

I even like the story

[ducks]
posted by scarabic at 9:10 PM on February 14, 2005

The Peacemaker. Kidman. Clooney. Action suckitude with Clooney showing all four of his "I'm an actor" expressions.

And heaven help me, Spiceworld. Yeah, I said Spiceworld.
posted by Dreama at 9:42 PM on February 14, 2005

I love They Live. Best fight scene ever.
Also, Runaway.
posted by oflinkey at 9:44 PM on February 14, 2005

I'd call Big Trouble in Little China a "good" film, an excellent synthesis of western and eastern filmmaking that was really ahead of it's time, before Rush Hour and The Matrix. I'd also call Battle Royale a good film, a violent but well made film like Clockwork Orange or Straw Dogs. They Live is a good bad film though, that fight scene over trying on a pair of sunglasses is bad yet a great scene too because of it's ridiculous length.

Bad films I like, Biodome. And dozens of Hong Kong films... the really bad ones they don't show in art houses, stuff starring photogenic pop stars like Gen-X Cops and Gen-Y cops (Paul Rudd what are you doing there?), and like every Ekin Cheng film, such as the Young and Dangerous series, and especially Legend of Speed, a street racing movie that includes a race where the Ekin hits the nitro and we get a sequence resembling something from 2001.
posted by bobo123 at 10:13 PM on February 14, 2005

Who said Frequency was a bad movie? I love it! Its emotional, and I appreciate what its about.

Last Starfighter: It is what it is, and its good. What's wrong with wish-fullfillment as a movie, instead of just a nice dream?
posted by Goofyy at 11:46 PM on February 14, 2005

No one has given any love to Dude, Where's My Car?

I will agree with others on Hudson Hawk, Spirit of '76 (my favorite movie), Demolition Man and The Postman.
posted by sciatica at 2:19 AM on February 15, 2005

Ahh, the finer works of Wesley Snipes : "Passenger 57", "New Jack City", and of course, "Blade 2".
posted by kuperman at 4:14 AM on February 15, 2005

Highlander (just the first one)
Romancing the Stone (I could watch this movie over and over again and never get bored)
posted by papercake at 6:03 AM on February 15, 2005

Deep Blue Sea, baby. "As a consequence, the sharks got smarter." Samuel L.'s big speech. The shark wrangler.

It's a good thing.
posted by The Card Cheat at 6:47 AM on February 15, 2005

Seconding Mars Attacks and Mystery Men here.

It seemed that many people hated Terrence Malick's, The Thin Red Line, but it's easily one of the best films I've ever seen.

I liked Event Horizon a lot before it turned all Hellraiser. There are so many bad science fiction movies with interesting and well-done production design and this was one of them.
posted by picea at 7:19 AM on February 15, 2005

KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park.

And another vote for Joe Dirt.
posted by Cyrano at 7:54 AM on February 15, 2005

13th Warrior. It's... grounded in a real historical account by a 10th century Arab who sojourned with the Norsemen.

It's framed that way, yes. But Michael Crichton's Eaters of the Dead, the source of the film, is actually a retelling of Beowulf from the perspective of his fictional Arab narrator.

Yes, there's that, too; I'd forgotten about that angle. But Ibn Fadlan was a real person, and a few of the scenes in the movie (notably the funeral scene toward the beginning) follow his accounts of the Rus (the Swedish wayfarers from whom Russia got her name) quite closely.
posted by bricoleur at 7:57 AM on February 15, 2005

A lot of these don't really seem to be bad. The Thin Red Line? Was nominated for a pile of Oscars. Lost in Translation? Made a lot of critics' best of the year list.

I really loved Josie and the Pussycats also, though. DuJour means friendship!

Also, My Sister Eileen is pretty much cheese, but I still love it.
posted by SoftRain at 2:01 PM on February 15, 2005

I'll second any of the Dolemite movies, especially the first one. Lamest kung-fu ever.
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls was brilliant.
A second for Spirit of '76.
another vote for They Live ("put on the god damn glasses!")
And Turkish Star Wars...
posted by hellbient at 11:53 AM on February 16, 2005