It's a Bad Movie, But It Was Fun to Watch Anyway


There are three types of interesting movies. First, there are great movies that are great fun to watch. Second, there are great movies that are not particularly enjoyable to sit through. Finally there are those movies that are bad movies, but for some reason are still quite fun to watch. Using some Q. Tarantino related films as examples, "Pulp Fiction" is the first type, "Resevoir Dogs" is in the second group and "From Dusk to Dawn" is in the third. What puts a film in the bad but fun category can be anything - a great performance, a single great scene, breath taking cinematograpghy etc. For instance, in "FD2D" I love the opening sequence. That plus a wild soundtrack makes for enjoyable viewing experience.

I'm interested in hearing about what others think are examples of bad but fun films. Please explain specifically what you thought made an otherwise bad movie still fun to watch.

I'd like to nominate "Congo". It's beyond dopey, but watching first class actors (Tim Curry, Delroy Lindo, Joe Pants and Ernie Hudson) ham it up to the max is a joy. I particularly like the goofey accents.
onhwy61

Showing 4 responses by wmcmanus

LUDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH! So bad that's it's actually quite good, and very cool musically. It's about a German kid who was a bit gender-confused and decided to change his sexual orientation on a permanent basis, but the operation failed!! To give you an idea, the chorus of the lead song is something like, "Six inches out and 5 inches back and they left with an angry inch!" What a strange film!!
Thanks for the correction, Glen.
It's "Hedwig and the Amgry Inch" not Ludwig.
Here are two classics:

BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA starring Kurt Russell, who plays the role of tough-guy Jack Burton in a cheesy fantasy action sci-fi film from the mid-80's. The opening scene is worth the price of admission!! Kurt Russell is alone, driving a semi-truck on a dark and stormy night and talking some trash in monologue style on a CB radio. You'll bust a gut laughing! Here's a link if you want to check it out:

http://www.popmatters.com/film/reviews/b/big-trouble-in-little-china.html

(Apparently they've now released a DVD version with some deleted scenes, etc.)

PRINCESS BRIDE - My favorite movie in this category (which I wouldn't quite classify as "bad" but it's definitely on the cheesy side). The story is a combination of action, adventure, drama, comedy and "true love" all wrapped into a fable that is being told by a grandfather (Peter Faulk) to his grandson. Billy Crystal's cameo appearance as a witch doctor is hillarious!
Check out CLERKS (especially) but also CHASING AMY and anything else by Kevin Smith. Most people have had a full dose after those two... MALLRATS was a little over the top and JAY AND SILENT BOB STRIKE BACK was total nonsense!