Cinema can sometimes be a wonderful escapade for all involved, but it sometimes serves up movies that make the audience simply get up and leave the theatre.
Here are the 20 movies a dedicated filmgoer will want to walk out of the theatre. Whether it's a bad romance, a lousy stab at a horror movie, or an action film gone woefully and inexcusably wrong, these films have become so infamous that sitting through them has become an endurance exercise.
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Then again, if you ever get lucky to sit down and watch through a showing of these cinematic disasters, you'll probably want to grab your popcorn, shake your head in bewilderment, and walk out after the first 15 minutes. Here's to embarking on a rollercoaster of regret as we wander over the worst of the worst in film history!
1) Cats (2019)
Based on the opera, "Cats" tries hard to bring iconic characters from the operatic show to life with rather disturbing CGI work and odd choreography. The stars are an ensemble of talented actors like Taylor Swift, Idris Elba, and Judi Dench, who would not bring out the excitement found in stage productions. Viewers would confuse themselves over an ever-incoherent storyline and awkward dialogue delivery.
The visual effects, looking to achieve a surrealist look, have ended up with a very disturbing appearance and are questioned by most people who saw the film, making the movie one of the most infamous adaptations of all time.
2) Cloverfield Paradox (2018)
This science fiction thriller happens to be the third film in the "Cloverfield" franchise, but can't succeed as a good continuation of the story. Starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, this is the one where several astronauts aboard a space station try solving Earth's energy crisis but unleash some terrifying forces in the process. With much expectation from the fans, the film is stuck with so much inconsistency and illogical twists that the viewers get lost in the movie.
The disjointed storytelling and a lack of development among the characters leave fans wanting to get up and leave.
3) Love Guru (2008)
The film stars Mike Myers as Guru Pitka, a self-help guru who tries to assist an NHL player in retrieving his wife, played by Jessica Alba. It runs rampant with crude and stereotypical jokes that truly have yet to land with most viewers.
It doesn't get a good belly laugh, even when featuring an all-star cast that includes Justin Timberlake and Ben Kingsley. Critics ridiculed it for incoherence and dated comedy rife, which makes it quickly deteriorate into cinematic obscurity.
"The Love Guru" is one that is mostly mentioned as the worst comedies to have been made in its time, hence it is quite hard to sit through.
4) Gigli (2003)
This romantic comedy features Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck playing a low-level mobster who has to kidnap a federal prosecutor's brother. The film is disjointed, its dialogue writing is odd, and its pacing is poor, making the viewer perplexed about the actual direction the storyline has taken.
"The A-list cast delivers strained and unnatural performances, failing to bring the two lead characters together in the movie 'Gigli.'
Upon its release, 'Gigli' received significant criticism and is known as one of the biggest box office flops in Hollywood history. As a result, it received low ratings and has been the subject of many jokes about its apparent failure.
5) The Last Airbender (2010)
M. Night Shyamalan's adaptation of the animated series "Avatar: The Last Airbender" is a disappointment with stiff performances and dull narratives.
The Story of Aang, the Last Airbender, could have made the movie long enough to tell Aang's story as well as his rise in trying to bring balance back to a war-torn world.
Here, fans of the show were disenchanted with this movie because the characters were less developed and the dialogues were clumsy. Straying away from the original material source added to fans' disappointment. Critics panned it, heavily trashing its pacing and exposition and using too little action or emotional connection.
Special effects did not do justice to the final product, and rather made it hollow and disappointing in the end, deprecating the popularity of the animated series.
6) Movie 43 (2013)
Directed by and starring Peter Farrelly, this sketch comedy film is featuring a stellar cast of A-list stars like Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, and Kristen Bell. It is termed to be the biggest disaster of all time. Every sketch is shock value-oriented, hence bordering on insulting without making one laugh.
The movies try to parody as many genres as possible, but the lack of cohesive storytelling and reliance on gross-out gags leave those in the audience underwhelmed. Panned by critics as tasteless and generally failing to be funny, it is a chore to watch. "Movie 43" is often considered one of the worst films ever.
7) Jack and Jill (2011)
The film tells the story of Jack, an ad executive who seems to have it all together until his obnoxious twin sister, Jill, comes to town for Thanksgiving. The movie suffers from a predictable plot, stale jokes, and over-the-top antics that quickly become tiresome.
Based on childish humour and scenarios, people condemned it, thus not being able to connect themselves to the characters. In all its efforts to try and bring forth heart-warming moments, "Jack and Jill" is more liked for its cringe-worthy execution and marked as one of Sandler's all-time low moments.
8) The Emoji Movie (2017)
This animated film about the secret life of emojis inside a smartphone is somehow centred on Gene, whose personality is different and multi-emotional, as the movie tries to pose the message of individuality and acceptance.
Unfortunately, the movie lacks originality in terms of creativity, becomes too dependent on product placements, and consists of unimaginative humour. Whatever is promised for the fairy-tale romantic comedy does not get through to the audience's heart.
Critics lambasted it as a cash-grab rather than a true story, and so, at the end of the day, it remains as the forgettable, disappointing family film that fails to resonate with anyone.
9) Transformers: The Last Knight (2017)
The fifth installment in the "Transformers" franchise continues the saga of robot aliens fighting on Earth, but this one struggles with convoluted plot that is hard to follow. Mark Wahlberg returns as Cade Yeager, joined by familiar faces and new characters; however, the film's heavy reliance on special effects and an overly long runtime override some decent action sequences.
The movie has received criticism for its lack of character development and coherent storyline, which made it confusing. The Last Knight exemplifies a decline in quality for the film franchise, leaving audiences disappointed with its nonsensical story, chaos, and reliance on spectacle.
10) The Starving Games (2013)
This parody of "The Hunger Games" attempts to play a mockery towards the popular franchise, but it ends up as a messy heap of badly done jokes and incognizant gags.
It has a protagonist known as Kantmiss Evershot, who is forced into a competition where she has to fight for survival. However, the comedy fails and serves more on slapstick and tired clichés that manage nothing more than dead silence.
It was derided by critics and audiences alike as a dull, incoherent effort, one of the most forgettable attempts at satire. "The Starving Games" is ultimately a reminder of how hard it is to parody what's beloved.
11) The Wicker Man (2006)
This remake of the 1973 classic has Nicolas Cage playing a police officer tasked with solving the mysterious disappearance of a woman on a remote island. This movie is replete with Cage's strange acting and unbelievable plot twists that deprive this suspense movie of any thrill. Critics detested it for a limp story lacking tension and coherence, which confused viewers and disappointed them.
It is later, in pop culture itself, that iconic moments like Cage's infamous "Not the bees!" scene have become meme-worthy and overwhelmed the intent behind the film. Overall, "The Wicker Man" is remembered for its missteps, not for its scares—a crucial blip on the radar of horror film history.
12) A Thousand Words (2012)
This comedy-drama has Eddie Murphy playing a talking literary agent who one day comes to be rendered speechless after a meeting with a bizarre tree. The movie tries for a mix of analysis of communication and self-discovery, but forgets about the theme in its forced humour and uneven tone. The critics didn't like it, stating that Murphy was not charmed in this one and that it was a pretty dumb movie.
The most predictable plot does not create emotional involvement for the viewer; therefore, audiences are never satisfied with this movie. "A Thousand Words" eventually was a forgettable film in Murphy's career, evidence that nothing novel had been created in storytelling.
13) The Nut Job (2014)
This animated film outlines the misfit squirrel Surly as he plans a heist to steal the nuts from a store. Besides the animation, however, this film suffers from an uninspired plot and underdeveloped characters.
The humour is contrived to the point of needing to depend on sounding terrible in clichés rather than tapping into the audience emotionally. Critical reception noted that the film failed to create an engaging story or emotional connection, resulting in a lack of satisfaction for family audiences.
"The Nut Job" is always left as an unfulfilled expectation for a fun, entertaining animated adventure that leaves its viewers to hunt around the poles for something better to watch.
14) Left Behind (2014)
This is an adaptation of the popular series of Christian novels that tells of a post-apocalyptic world after the Rapture. The film takes some survivors left behind, who have to question their new reality. Unfortunately, it has low production values, wooden acting, and incoherent plotwork.
Critics panned it for being preachy and unable to produce depth so that the audience was not drawn to the battles of characters. "Left Behind" did not connect with the intended audience, thus, also reducing the impact of its source material.
15) Scary Movie 5 (2013)
Scary Movie 5 is one of the five instalments in the series of a parody of various scary movies. Because the film relies heavily on stale jokes and because the storyline fails overall, there is not the same magic to the film as there was in the first movie. Moreover, it also lacks the same magic and newness as its predecessors and is panned as full of old-fashioned cliché with no creativity.
While comedy has become one of the defining elements of the series, "Scary Movie 5" does little else, leaving the viewer wanting much more.
16) Survivor (2015)
This one is an action-thriller film. The acting of Milla Jovovich takes centre stage as a U.S. embassy worker trying to stop a terrorist attack, while being pursued by a hitman. Although the premise is promising, this movie suffers terribly from its predictable plot and lack of suspense. Dry acting and pulsatingly inconsistent pacing makes it rather dull to watch.
Critics bemoan the fact that it doesn't hold together well as a suspenseful tale or even as a character play, thus not being an easy vehicle to invest in emotionally. "Survivor" ends up as a forgettable action film entry, failing to deliver the kind of thrills audiences expect from a movie of this type.
17) Alone in the Dark (2005)
In this movie adaptation of a popular video game, Christian Slater plays the role of an investigator who deciphers some sort of conspiracy connected to the existence of ancient evils. Given all the terrible production quality, this movie is heavily criticized by most people, especially for its silly dialogues and wooden performances that eliminate every scary quality.
The criticism is somehow right because the movie, due to a completely disordered storyline, is hard to watch.
"Alone in the Dark" has often been referred to as one of the worst video game adaptations.
18) Norbit (2007)
Eddie Murphy plays various persons in this comedy. The film tries to combine humor and romance, but bases itself on abysmal stereotypes and off-colour gags that wear themselves thin within a few minutes.
The critics bashed it for being repetitive and incomprehensible, with most saying it went backwards with Murphy's career.
The acting is earnest, but over-the-top and unbelievable, which makes the film painful to watch. "Norbit" is just a film about how to not integrate comedy with controversial material that disappoints the audiences.
19) Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star (2011)
This Nick Swardson film is a comedy about an unsuspecting young man who discovers that his parents were adult film stars and then attempts to become an adult film star himself. The movie is extremely crude and absurd; it gets converted to a tiring watch pretty quickly. It was savaged by critics for its lack of creativity and interesting characters, which makes the film a bore to sit through.
The movie fails to make the audience laugh because it has to rely entirely on shock value instead of true comedy. "Bucky Larson" went down in history for failing to entertain the public, and that sealed its place among some of the worst movies ever made.
20) The Love Witch (2016)
This is a retro-style film where the beautiful witch Elaine tries to achieve love in the face of modern dating dilemmas. Even with a big look, this film is marred by pacing problems and stilted dialogue that mess up the flow of the movie.
Critics added that the film's tribute to 1960s cinema does not quite go deep enough to engage the audience.
It tries love and desire situations, but pales in interest when there is little development for its characters and the scenes drag on. "The Love Witch" is an example of the style over substance when it comes to filmmaking.
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