The Worst Movie Sin

[ahab]

I was replying to another thread and thought of this. what is the worst sin a movie can commit? I think that the worst movie sin is an unfunny comedy, or in this case komedy. Some movies can fail but still succeed. Plan 9 is the classic example. Silly plot, ludicris dialogue, bad direction, terrible acting, and a lack of a continuity supervisor. It fails on every level except the most important one.....it is so damn entertaining. that is why we have this site here and all of the people who love this movie because of its faults. What are your thoughts on the worst movie sin. Does anyone agree or disagree about why Plan 9 is so loved.



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[Neville]

For me, either unfunny comedies or mediocre films filled with pretensions are the worst.

[Squishy]

Actually, I think the last half of what Neville just mentioned is what makes "Plan 9" tick. It's not even mediocre, as Ahab pointed out--yet the Criswell material, the various discussions of God and the Grand Scheme A'Tings, The Soloranite Debate, and on and on are as pretentious as you can get...and I love every second of it.

Worst Sin? For me, it's being a hyped-up star vehicle for someone who doesn't warrant it. Klinton Spilsbury? Mariah Carey? Sam J. Jones? Pia Zadora? You cannot tell me no one putting these flicks together didn't see the train coming miles and miles away.

"God help us...in the future!!"
--Criswell

[Dano]

Unfunny comedy is a bad one, but sometimes that's just a matter of not enough talent.  For me the most unforgiveable sin that is done on purpose is a star using a movie as an ego vehicle.  Mel Gibson has been the worst offender in recent memory: Braveheart, Patriot, and We Were Soldiers are all offensive in the way they take extreme pains to make Mel look like the most infallable heroic guy in the whole wide world.  Signs could have been a better movie too if Gibson had just allowed himself to be a human freaking being instead of some kind of demigod superhero in humble farmer's clothing.

Other actors (usually males) guilty of this sin are Costner (Robin Hood, Dances With Wolves - remember that string of films where he just had to get his vanity ass shot in every one?), Steven Segal (who seems to have some ongoing fantasy-delusion about being a very dangerous man in real life - yeah right), Sean Connery has even toyed with this sin.  Can't think of any actresses.

Basically anything where the actor's ego and pretensions become characters in their own right.

[Dano]

I just read Neville's post on the Pelican Brief.  JULIA ROBERTS is a major female offender when it comes to a star letting their massive ego interfere with the quality of a production.  I knew there was someone.

[ahab]

I just though of another movie sin. the MESSAGE MOVIE. I really hate it when movies try to tell me how I am screwing up or what is screwed up and i should be more concerned about it. All I'm asking for is a brief distraction from my normal life. I can handle movies that present their message quietly, but not when they repeatedly bash my head with a shovel.


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[wheresthecarrot]

I think my least favorite thing in movies besides the ego vehicle sin are the one that obviously have done all they can to take work from another person.

American Beauty is a good example.  They did that thing with the plastic bag.  Their video of it was fake, as in, they set the bag up to do that.  However.  There is a 1970's independant film in which there is a real bag floating around.  American Beauty seriously stole the entire concept and cheapened it.  No credit or anything was given tot he origional production.  It still p**ses me off to think about it.

[nshumate]

I think the single worst sin a movie can commit is BEING BORING.  Tedium is worse than any of the normal "bad movie" hallmarks.  Just hold my attention, dammit!

[Flangepart]

Hard to top you guys so far.
....Nathan's BEING BOREING is realy the ultimate resault of all the other offenses mentioned. Bad Komedy? Boreing! Star ego trip? Boreing! Message? Boreing!
....Now, any of those can resault in unintended entertainment (Plan 9), but if it don't reach that platau....Boreing!

[Mofo Rising]

I second Nathan that being boring is just about the worst thing a movie can be.  I've seen movies where just paying attention to the action on the screen took nothing less than a sheer act of willpower.  If you start looking at the clock in the first ten minutes of a film, you know you're in for a bad ride.

[Creepozoid]

I'm fine with unintended humor but chick flicks make me wanna puke. Belonging to that genre is easily the worst sin a movie can commit.

[Chris K.]

Dano wrote:
>
> Unfunny comedy is a bad one, but sometimes that's just a
> matter of not enough talent.  For me the most unforgiveable
> sin that is done on purpose is a star using a movie as an ego
> vehicle.  Mel Gibson has been the worst offender in recent
> memory: Braveheart, Patriot, and We Were Soldiers are all
> offensive in the way they take extreme pains to make Mel look
> like the most infallable heroic guy in the whole wide world.
> Signs could have been a better movie too if Gibson had just
> allowed himself to be a human freaking being instead of some
> kind of demigod superhero in humble farmer's clothing.

I gota' agree with you there, Dano. Looking at Mel "I have to be a big-shot" Gibson playing any "heroic" character makes me want to beat him senseless. His character always consists of "If you are not with me, then you are no better", as well as having an invincible quality that is just so freakin' ridiculous (i.e. in BRAVEHEART, Gibson is choping off legs and throwing knives in peoples chests and HE DOESN'T GET ONE SINGLE SCRATCH-I might add this also happens in THE PATRIOT as well). These are just brainless action movies of course, but when a brainless action movie like BRAVEHEART wins an Academy Award for Best Director and Script I just have to say "Wait a minute there". But that's the Academy for ya'.

But as a hero, Gibson really comes off as a brash, homophobic, full-of-it dude who always has to fight alongside the so-called "good guys" when in retrospect he is no better than those he is fighting against. For once, Gibson needs to play a regular human being (one could say he did play a regular human being in WHAT WOMEN WANT, but that was another ego trip for Gibson involving women who just can't resist him-go figure) instead of the ususal invincible hero that he just really fails at. But to me, Gibson acts like a dumb blonde. All he needs is a blonde wig and he would be set for life.

[Fearless Freep]

I would agree that boring is the worse.  Nearly as bad is something that falls far short of it's goals.  Like a comedy that's not funny or a horror movie that's not scary.  I  try to look for what the filmakers were trying to do, what they had to work with, and how close they came.  As a result, I'm much more lenient toward low budget movies that try  and fail then for big budget movies that don't really try.

As such, chick films don't bother me.  I don't watch them, they don't entertain me, but they are aiming at a fairly particular audience and outcome and most manage to hit it pretty well.  Same with 'message' films.  I may think you're an idiot, and I may criticize what you're trying to say, but if something means enough to you to put the effort into it, I would fault you merely for the act of saying it.

[Fearless Freep]

Mel Gibson in "Payback" was pretty much the antithesis of most stereoptypes of the roles he plays.  He was the protagonist, but not a hero.  Course he really wasn't that heroic in the Mad  Max movies, either.  His "heroism' was just an outcome of his own self interest that happened to benefit others.   "Braveheart" and "The Patriot" may have been big roles in big movies, but they are actaully fairly atypical, I think , from what he normally plays; or rather, they really don't sum up with he does

[Chadzilla]

Dano wrote:
>
> Signs could have been a better movie too if Gibson had just
> allowed himself to be a human freaking being instead of some
> kind of demigod superhero in humble farmer's clothing.
>
>

Huh?

No problem with the other examples, but I saw no demigod superhero character traits in Gibson's character in Signs.  Maybe I blinked and missed it, but he just looked kind of sad and lost through most of the movie and just wanted people (and aliens) to leave him alone.