Mental Health

Movies – the good, the bad, and the “they’re so awful, they’re great.”

We like to categorize things. We sort. We rank. We judge.

These aren’t great qualities when we do it to people, but when it comes to entertainment – for which options are near infinite and increasing daily – reviews help us make choices, help us prioritize the offerings, and help us take advantage of our limited time.

Our finite well of time is why I no longer push through to the end of subpar offerings or carry on with things I’m not enjoying.

I put down the book I dislike – though I usually peek at the end to see how things pan out.

I stop watching the movie that sucks. I don’t bother fast-forwarding to the end of the movies I dislike, however: that’s what IMDB and Wikipedia are for. I don’t (mostly) don’t leave the theatre if I’ve paid, but the upside there is popcorn.

I’m very rarely one-and-done with movies and books I love. There are exceptions. Schindler’s List was an amazing and important film. It’s imperative that we know about these periods in our history, and it’s important to bear witness, but I think the once is enough.

I’d planned to watch it again with my son when he was old enough, but they had a viewing at his school – grade seven I think – and so I was able to skip watching it again. My copy is unlikely to wear out.

Not so for some of the flicks I enjoy – I worry I’m wearing a groove (not really, this is an analog concern. Digital doesn’t seem to wear out).

The good, on repeat.

  • Serenity (the movie that finished up the Firefly television series)
  • Spectral (action and sci-fi – it’s probably not great, but I love it)
  • Strictly Ballroom (brilliant, inspirational, makes you brave)
  • Aliens (this is my favourite in the franchise)
  • Maleficent (the sequel is also stellar)

The bad, never again.

  • Adam Sandler movies (a few early carve-outs, but they’re mostly awful. I don’t enjoy stupid humour)
  • James Bond movies (come for the misogyny, stay for the sexism)
  • Tom Cruise movies (this is an example of knowledge about the actor impacting the films)
  • Left Behind (we could probably amend this to Nicolas Cage movies – he’s in a lot of dreck)
  • Snakes On A Plane (the Samuel L. Jackson tagline we love is great, but the movie sucks)

So awful, they’re great, semi-required viewing.

Daily writing prompt
What are your top ten favorite movies?
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9 thoughts on “Movies – the good, the bad, and the “they’re so awful, they’re great.””

  1. I used to love all things Joss Whedon, until I found out how he treated some of the women on the set of “Buffy”. I guess it’s the same vibe of “knowing the writer / director / producer” you have with Tom Cruise.

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  3. My husband holds celebrities/public figures that use their platform to push their political views against them, and will refuse to buy/watch their movies/shows or buy/listen to their music. I guess I’m able to compartmentalize better. 🤷🏼‍♀️ My fave movies are:

    -The Matrix
    -Memento
    -Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (the Gene Wilder version)
    -Steel Magnolias
    -City of Angels
    -Moulin Rouge
    -Legends of the Fall
    -Fight Club

    Comedies with stupid humor are not my thing, and I don’t love westerns or war flicks, though I’ve sat through my share of them.

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    1. I love most of these too – I never warmed up to any of the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory movies, though I definitely prefer Gene Wilder.

      I just sobbed my way through Steel Magnolias this weekend.

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  4. I don’t really do lists of favorites of anything. Recently finished the new Deadpool movie everyone’s raving about – it has fun music in it but otherwise *shoulder shrug*. I wanna say that ‘they don’t make them like they used to’ applies to movies, too.

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