Some movies are bad, but some movies are so bad that they're almost good. Whether you've seen The Room more times than you can count, or prefer High School Musical to any other film, these are the best movies that are also really, really terrible...
Godzilla
In 1998, this Japanese franchise was adapted into a movie, and the world has never forgiven the industry for what they released. Matthew Broderick, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer star in this film that boasts a shoestring plot, weak special effects, and a 16% on Rotten Tomatoes. but hey, who doesn't like a big lizard?
Lionheart
It's Jean Claude Van Damme, the early 1990s, and poorly choreographed fighting sequences. Together, these elements can only create one thing: the perfect terrible movie. With only 33% of fans appreciating this chaos on Rotten Tomatoes, it seems that this is a specific kind of film for fans to love...
Wild Wild West
Wild Wild West starred Will Smith, Salma Hayek, Kevin Kline, and Kenneth Branagh. Together, they somehow completed this trainwreck of a movie. Despite having a gigantic mechanical tarantula also adorning their cast list, this movie was kind of a mess when it came to production. Though it bombed in the box office, it's more like a comedy today!
The Room
You can't make a good-bad movie list without including The Room, which is often credited as being the worst movie ever made. Directed by Tommy Wiseau, this film takes bad acting to a new low, budget cuts to a new high, and audiences more confused than ever before. It's so bad that's it's great!
Spice World
Spice up your life with the 1998 classic starring pop girl group the Spice Girls! Though it tanked with critics and currently holds 35% on Rotten Tomatoes, the fun of this movie was seeing these singers turn into actors. That's probably how it managed to generate $151 million at the box office and $100 million in home video sales.
Road House
Patrick Swayze plays the coolest, suavest bouncer to ever live in this 80s flick. For fans of action movies, just know this: Swayze, at one point, rips a man's throat out of his body without any struggle at all (physically or morally). There are random explosions, cheesy one-liners, and the most cringe-worthy fights ever shown on screen.
White Chicks
Talk about a pitch! This film follows two black cops who go undercover as white girls to solve a case. While the plot may sound insane, it's become one of the favorite comedies from the past few decades. Not to mention, this film also has an unmatched soundtrack. You won't be able to listen to "A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton the same way ever again...
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Fans of this popular Nickelodeon series were devasted to go to the theaters and see this monstrosity on screen. The film barely followed any of the original source material and made a mockery of a highly praised show. It goes up in the ranks as one of the worst movies ever made, and despite the demand for a remake, no director has dared try to revise this.
Final Destination
Some people say Final Destination is good. Some people say Final Destination earned its 33% on Rotten Tomatoes. Either way, all sides can agree that Final Destination is kind of an insane movie that spawned several sequels. The plot of this movie is essentially the question: What if death wasn't just fate, but it was hunting you down?
Anaconda
Make Brazil scary, snakes ginormous, and Jennifer Lopez as 1990s as you possibly can, and you've got the plot of Anaconda from 1997. Aside from the actress, this movie also showcases the talents of Jon Voight, Danny Trejo, and Ice Cube. With crass special effects, this movie feels nostalgically gimmicky in a comfortingly bad way.
She’s All That
She’s All That employs the classic trope of "attractive girl takes off glasses and suddenly she's popular." With stars like Freddie Prinz Jr., Rachel Leigh Cook, Lil’ Kim, Usher, and the late Paul Walker. If you love a plot that actually turns your brain into mush backed by the sound of 'Kiss Me' by Sixpence None the Richer, see this immediately.
Idle Hands
Made in 1999, this movie was scored poorly by critics with only a 16% score on Rotten Tomatoes. However terrible, that doesn't stop it from being a guilty pleasure for millions. A pothead kid whose hand develops a mind of its own is so stupid that it just might work. Even better? The entire soundtrack is from the band 'The Offspring' because why not...
SPF-18
Teen heartthrob Noah Centineo stars in this plotless and confusing movie about a girl and her surfer boyfriend staying at Keanu Reeves' summer home. With an 8% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it seems like everyone loved to hate this movie about life, love, Christianity, violating contracts, betrayal, and country music...
Bad Hair Day
Sure, this is a Disney Channel original movie, so it's destined to be bad, but this has to be one of the worst. A teen girl wakes up on Prom day with a melted dress, broken shoes, and the worst hair day imaginable. Somehow, she also had time to hide a rare, priceless necklace. How will she make it to the big dance and avoid jail?
Showgirls
The 1990s were the golden age of bad movies it seems because this 1995 film broke records at the Razzie awards (if you don't know, the Razzie Awards are essentially the opposite of the Oscars). It got nominated for 13 awards, a record that has yet to be broken. This movie flopped so hard Elizabeth Berkely dropped her agent...it's a must-watch!
Super Mario Bros.
Have you ever wondered "Hey, why don't they make a video game into a movie?" Well, this film is probably why. Despite having about $48 million to work within the budget, this star-studded cast still couldn't hold up against cheesy writing, embarrassing costumes, and a god-awful excuse for a plot. Gamers have to see this!
Troll 2
No, you didn't miss the original Troll movie, this is the first and only of the franchise. A director's wife who spoke very little English wrote this script for an American cast. Obviously, some crucial plot points got lost in translation. There's even a documentary from 2009 about this movie titled "Best Worst Movie" made by one of the child stars from it!
Mac and Me
Whether you see them or not, almost all classics have an unpopular spin-off. 'Mac and Me' was what took place about six years after E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial smashed the box office. This version of the famous friendship grossed a pathetic $6 million in total, which was about half of the budget. Despite this, Paul Rudd lists it as one of his favorite flicks!
Masters of the Universe
'Masters of the Universe' was supposed to give fans of the He-Man franchise the movie they'd been asking for. To be fair, this is technically a movie, but no one was asking for it to be terrible! With a cramped schedule, a tiny budget, and not a lot of interest from studios to give it a fair chance, this highly anticipated superhero film was a beloved flop.
Howard the Duck
Not every legend has a perfect past. Take, for example, this movie which was first envisioned by George Lucas of Star Wars fame. Lea Thompson said she took the next movie she was offered just so she could get a single step away from letting her romance with a talking duck tank her acting career permanently. Yikes!
Maximum Overdrive
Stephen King stepped into the director's seat for this adaptation of one of his stories, but maybe he should have stuck to the books. This campy creation left critics and fans unsatisfied but has become a cult classic in the years since. If you love over-the-top gore and corny dialogue, this might be the perfect addition to movie night...
Reefer Madness
You've never seen a PSA quite like this one. Reefer Madness is about the perceived dangers of marijuana use in the 1930s...and some serious liberties were taken. Basically, a few puffs of the devil's lettuce and you might find yourself framing someone else for a murder you committed in an insane rage. Classic weed-smoker behavior!
The Heavenly Kid
A cool high schooler dies in a tragic game of chicken that ends up driving him off of the edge of a cliff, losing his life and girlfriend in the process. The only way he can get into heaven is by helping his former girlfriend's son get cool at school... for some reason. He almost even has a romance, as a ghost, with his ex...
The Wicker Man
"Not the bees!" is a phrase people have been screaming since Nic Cage coined it in this 2006 flick. Whether played as a drinking game or just to marvel at how many times Nic Cage makes an unreasonable demand in a very loud voice, this movie has something for everyone. An hour and 42 minutes is not enough for this remake...
Dante’s Peak
This objectively bad 1997 action movie reads more to viewers like a comedy thanks to its laughable mountain sequences. Pierce Brosnan spends half the movie mourning his dead girlfriend who "loved rocks" (editor's note: ????) and the other half just staring at rocks in different locations. Oh yeah, and the many, many explosions.
Obsessed
Beyoncé doesn't act a whole lot these days, but this is Queen Bey before she had her daughter, Blue Ivy. Sure, this thing has some wonky dialogue, a loose premise, and terrible quality overall. However, it also has Bey yelling at a woman for stealing her husband (in the form of acclaimed actor Idris Elba) so consider it a new favorite!
Stone Cold
Brian Bosworth stars in this 1991 cop movie about a renegade who must hide undercover so that he can take down a biker gang with some questionable (re: racist) ideologies. Aside from some gory scenes and cringe-worthy conversation, it also features a komodo dragon that eats pretty much exclusively Snickers and potato chips.
Youngblood
Have you ever thought that St. Elmo's fire could use a little bit more hockey? If so, look no further! It's got everything that made 80s movies good-bad including slow-motion action shots, a fun-filled training montage, and a romance between a cool athlete and the coach's daughter. This is how you make a movie so bad it's good!
Hercules
Did you know Hollywood made a live-action Hercules film? Yeah, no one else did either, and it even starred Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson! He has long, frizzy hair in the film, as well as a comically insane lion hat and a wooden club just like Bam-Bam from the Flinstones. It's also gory, cheesy, and everything in between.
You Got Served
Sometime in the last decade, Hollywood gave up on dance movies. Maybe 'You Got Served' was the final straw. The dances were fine, but famously, dancers are pretty bad actors. In terms of good actors, this film only had Omarion, Marques Houston, Meagan Good, and Steve Harvey to work with on their cast list. Yikes!
Battleship
'Battleship' is a movie based on the board game of the same name and stars pop icon/ fashion sensation Rihanna. It also stars celebs like Taylor Kitsch, Alexander Skarsgård, Brooklyn Decker, Tadanobu Asano, and Liam Neeson. Even with all that star power, this battleship crashed and burned in the box office. Still great for a watch though!
Save the Last Dance
If you love the movie Step Up with Channing Tatum, you'll at least tolerate the film Save the Last Dance, which has essentially the same plot. A ballerina and a hip-hop dancer fall in love with each other's steps. However, while Channing Tatum at least had the moves to prove it, Julia Stiles lacks the same style. Her questionable dancing is reason enough to watch!
The Fast and the Furious
There are good-bad movies, and then there's a good-bad franchise. 'The Fast and the Furious' is the definition of so bad that you love it. It's over the top, completely unrealistic, and dangerously stupid. That being said, who doesn't want to see Paul Walker and Vin Diesel as they race through explosions and bad guys?
He's Just Not That Into You
This 2009 romantic comedy isn't all that romantic, and barely even a comedy, but it's the perfect level of mush to make you watch over and over again. Three best friends try to moderate their relationships at different stages and all must come to learn that they're not the exception to the rule. Sometimes, he's just not that into you!
Just One of the Guys
The "undercover girl dressed up as a boy" trope is pretty problematic looking back, but if you can get past that, this is a gender comedy that will make you yell, cry, laugh, and wonder. A girl is told she can't make it in journalism at her local high school, so she disguises herself as one of the guys to get investigative.
Bad Boys II
Everyone knows that when Michale Bay is on a project, there are going to be tons and tons of explosions. This is the blueprint for everything else he's ever done. There are car chases, boats zooming through fires, and of course, too many random combustions to count. Drugs, deception, hate, crime and destruction are the minor characters in this one.
Battlefield Earth
Battlefield Earth somehow has a whopping 3% rating on Rotten Tomatoes...does the score even go that low? This 2000 movie starred John Travolta as an inexplicably tall alien in dreadlocks. It's also based on a book written by the guy who invented Scientology. That alone should tell you everything you need to know about this one.
Surviving the Game
Ice-T, you did not need to be in this movie. 'Surviving the Game' is about a group of wealthy men played by Rutger Hauer, Gary Busey, F. Murray Abraham, and Charles S. Dutton. Their game of sport? Hunting down a homeless man played by Ice himself. This movie is somehow both bone-chilling and terrible, what a combo.
Mission: Impossible II
The best good-bad movies are ones so cheesy and corny that you can't help but be excited by them. The Mission: Impossible series is this concept in a nutshell. With overdramatic slow-mo scenes, hyper-stylized cinematography, and conversations dripping in campiness, this is a must-see. The second is even better for the super ridiculous face-switching plot.
Nothing but Trouble
This movie has an impressively low score of 8% on Rotten Tomatoes. Demi Moore and Chevy Chase are trapped in a haunted house of hilarity and absurdity. If you're still not sold on the flick, know this: inside the house, there is a rollercoaster named "Mr. Bonestripper." Also, Tupac raps over an organ solo. Is that enough yet?
Demolition Man
Even though Sandra Bullock is in this movie, take that quality with a grain of salt. For example, she says the line "Taco Bell was the only restaurant to survive the franchise wars" in this film, which is just the brink of what kind of dialogue you're bound to hear. Somehow, it still has above 60% on Rotten Tomatoes...
The Mule
Yes, even movies as recent as 2018 can be lovable flops. 'The Mule' starring Clint Eastwood follows an old man who brings drugs across borders, but he's almost too good at his job. The DEA gets involved, and chaos obviously ensues. Comedians John Mulaney and Pete Davidson have both listed this as one of their favorites!
The Chase
The Chase was released in 1994 with a cast including Charlie Sheen, Kristy Swanson, Anthony Kiedis, and Flea from the band Red Hot Chili Peppers. In terms of total unbelievability, Sheen and Swanson's characters have sex during one of the car chase scenes. That's right--during! Also, Sheen plays a party clown. Insane from start to finish.
The Happening
Often criticized for being too slow, too uncomfortable, and hysterically stupid, 'The Happening' is one of M. Night Shyamalan's worst films to date (excluding 'Avatar: The Last Airbender', of course.) Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel's chemistry is so forcefully strained and awkward that the audiences almost hope they die in the viral outbreak!
Gigli
Talk about movies that didn't age well! Gigli has been described as offensive on several fronts, from being homophobic, ableist, and racist. However, it did preserve the romantic coupling of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez, both of whom star in this action-packed thriller. At one point, Ben describes himself as a "hustler original gangster’s gangsta" if that tells you anything.
Catwoman
Some characters in the Marvel Universe get the royal treatment when it comes to their movie adaptation. Catwoman is not one of those, as this movie has Halle Berry--yes, the famous one-- rubbing cat food all over her face. It received less than 10% on Rotten Tomatoes, and even though it was rumored to be remade, you can't forget this one.
Sharknado
Some movies are so bad, you have to wonder if they were made that way purposefully. This film bravely dared to ask the question "What if a shark was caught in a tornado...would that be bad?" The answer: yes, absolutely. The graphics and special effects are comically poor, the writing is tacky, and the plot is wild. Queue up immediately.
Con Air
Nick Cage is trapped in the sky with a group filled with felons, criminals, bad guys, and hooligans. Whether you love it, hate it, love to hate it, or hate to love it, it seems like everyone has got an opinion on this film. One thing everyone can agree upon though is that Nic Cage probably should have gotten a haircut for this part!
Teeth
'Teeth' is a movie that you'll wish you never heard about, but once you have, it's all you'll want to talk about. A young girl is coming to terms with her sexuality and her Christian upbringing when puberty hits her in a big way...her vagina has teeth. Even worse, it has a mind of its own, and it's hungry for human flesh...
So Undercover
Miley Cyrus doesn't act much anymore, but this movie might be why. As a private investigator, she goes undercover (like, so undercover) in a college sorority house. Of course, she finds some love and romance along the way, as well as true friendship. For anyone stuck in their early aughts middle school phase, this is a very comforting film.
Barely Lethal
Everyone knows the stories about the normal guy who must become a spy, but what about the spy who wants a normal life? When a teenage assassin played by Hailee Steinfeld wants to have a normal life, she must learn that being a secret agent might just be easier than high school in some ways. Get ready for every teen trope!
Spontaneous
A high school is riddled with a strange disease that causes students' heads to explode out of nowhere, isolated to only one town, one school, and one grade. The worst part is that they never reveal how this happens, but at least you get to watch an adorable love story play out in the meantime.
Emo the Musical
Ethan is a sad high-schooler who finds himself in quite a pickle when he finds himself in love with a happy-go-lucky girl named Trinity. This causes trouble with his bandmates and other cliques at school. Watch this movie if for nothing else than the soundtrack, which features a song all about how Jesus Christ would have been emo.
Christian Mingle
You know her as Gretchen Weiners, but Lacey Chabert is in this film as a totally different character. She fakes being Christian so that she can date and eventually marry a Christian man. Unfortunately, it seems like there's a bit more to it than just going to Church, and Chabert has to learn about that the hard way...
Chalet Girl
Felicity Jones and Ed Westwick (of Gossip Girl fame) star in this cheesy romantic comedy about a rich man and a lowly chalet girl who, despite their economic differences, still find things in common. These things include laughing, falling, being hot, and liking snow. The storyline is terrible but the romance is enough to keep it watchable...
Two Night Stand
As a one-night stand comes to a close, these two friends-to-enemies find out that they're snowed in for at least another day. They must cohabitate for 24 hours without any power, and during this time they fall in love. It's incredibly corny, but also kind of sweet, which is exactly the vibe of any watchable good-bad movie.
Hurricane Bianca
A teacher is fired in Texas for his sexuality, so he hatches up a master plan. He disguises himself as a drag queen in order to teach. Along the way, he teaches as a drag queen by roasting but also teaches the kids about acceptance. The best part is that Bianca Del Rio is a real drag queen you can go watch perform!
The Kissing Booth
'The Kissing Booth' was written originally on Wattpad, and you can absolutely tell. Starring teen heartthrob Jacob Elordi as the bad boy next store, Joel Courtney as his goofy younger brother, and Joey King caught in the middle, this is about as classic high school as a movie could get. You know... how everyone made out in front of their school at 16...
Lizzie Borden Took An Ax
Every Lifetime movie is a little bit good-bad, but this one is one of the best of the worst. Based on the mysterious murder of Andrew and Abby Borden in the town of Fall River, Massachusetts back in 1893, this is campiness at its core. This movie follows the most popular theory by historians, and Lizzie is the one with the ax...
High School Musical 2
'High School Musical'? Perfect teen film. 'High School Musical 3'? High-quality production. But 'High School Musical 2'? Bright, neon colors stamped onto a green screen background. Troy is a nightmare the whole film, and his friends are all mad that he got them summer jobs where they have to work. Each song is about love and friendship. A perfect good-bad film.