Top Ten: So-Bad-They’re-Good Films

We all know that sometimes certain things can go wrong in the filmmaking process that result in a below-average film and that can make for a bad viewing experience for the audience. Then there are those films that are so bad, so terribly executed by all involved, that they go full circle and become awesome. Be prepared to laugh and cringe in equal measure as you take a look at our Top Ten So Bad-They’re-Good Films:

#10: Plan 9 From Outer Space

A staple on Worst Films lists everywhere, this is a classic for a reason. Directed by “The Worst Director in the World”, Ed Wood, the film is a masterclass in how not to make a film.  Don’t have enough money for special effects? No problem! Just go to the toy store, get a couple of plastic UFOs and dangle them from a string. Your star has just died? Easy! Just get your chiropractor who looks nothing like your star and make him hold a cape in front of his face for all his scenes. With wobbly sets and non-sensical dialogue this makes for a very entertaining watch.

#9: Kingdom of the Spiders

Bill Shatner! Fighting killer spiders! Need I say more?

#8: Batman the Movie

Thought Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman was the first time the character was committed to celluloid? Think again. This 1966 gem, based on the original TV series, is colourful, campy fun. Starring Adam West (only marginally less crazy-sounding here than his character on Family Guy) and Burt Ward, this is a far cry from Mr. Nolan’s most recent growly grouch.

#7: Frankenhooker

After losing his girlfriend Elizabeth in a freak lawnmower accident, distraught Jeffrey Franken (get it?) attempts to bring her back by killing and dismembering prostitutes. Using Elizabeth’s severed head and various body parts from the ladies of the night, he manages to reanimate her. Unfortunately she comes back as a murderous sex maniac! Cue bad eighties hooker outfits, lots of dry ice and saxophone solos. Add to that  a confusing drug sub-plot and people exploding and you have the makings of a very good night in.

#6: Night of the Lepus

Throughout the years there have been horror films about killer spiders, killer ants, killer kids, killer birds, killer clowns etc. But what could be scarier than all of that put together? Well, bunnies, of course! This film takes place in a small Arizona town that’s beset by a plague of killer rabbits. Using actual rabbits filmed against miniatures and actors in rabbit costumes to bring his Big Bad to screen, director William F. Claxton fails to raise the “AAAARRRGHH” he wants from his audience, instead invoking a hearty “Awwww”.

#5: The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies!!?

The “first monster musical” this tells the story of three friends who visit a carnival only to find it’s run by some sort of cult and some monsters. No actual zombies appear until the third act. I defy you to make any sort of sense of the plot when sober. No catchy musical numbers either, but loads of ridiculousness.

#4: Boss Nigger

And the most offensive title on this list award goes to… Later amended to The Black Bounty Killer (not much of an improvement) this blaxploitation stars former football player Fred Williamson as the titular Boss who, along with his partner, takes over the position of sheriff in a small Western town. Watching it you can’t help but feel the editor must have had a serious substance problem (hey, it was the 70′s!) since it often feels like important scenes have been left out and whole plot points are dropped like hot potatoes. Catchy theme tune, though.

#3: Zombie Lake

A women’s basketball team arrives in a quiet French village. They proceed to play volleyball in a random lake (obviously). Nazi Zombies rise up from the bottom of the lake (obviously). Nazi zombies gnaw on the girls’ necks like vampires while their zombie make-up comes off (quite obviously). Villagers kill zombies (yay!). Possibly the worst production values of any film ever made, this will make the continuity nerds have seizures. We cut from a shot of the girls happily standing waist-deep in the lake playing volleyball to an underwater shot of their feet treading water, the zombie make-up comes off in almost every scene they’re in, and I won’t even start with the really bad dubbing. Look out for the zombie on the far left when they first appear. Awesome job, zombie extra!

#2: Troll 2

Troll 2 has nothing to do with the film Troll. In fact, there aren’t even any trolls in it! When little Joshua’s family decides to take a trip to the town of Nilbog (read it backwards) they encounter the weird,vegetarian townsfolk and their friends, the goblins. The goblins want to turn Joshua’s family into vegetables and eat them, but thankfully the ghost of Grandpa Seth comes to the rescue with a nice bologna sandwich. Goooooo meat! Writer/director duo Claudio Fragasso and wife Rosella Drudi didn’t speak a word of English and neither did their Italian crew. Which made things a little difficult for their amateur American cast. Don’t tell them, but you can really tell that no one has the faintest idea what’s going on. If you’d like to know a bit more about how the film was made and how it became a cult hit, take a look at the documentary Best Worst Movie, directed by little Joshua himself (Michael Stephenson) And remember kids, “you can’t piss on hospitality!”

#1: The Room

This film really needs to be seen to be believed. Mystery man Tommy Wiseau wrote, starred in, directed and funded the film himself and has tirelessly championed it as a masterpiece. Which it is, just not in the way he thinks. It centres on a love triangle between Johnny (Wiseau), his girlfriend and his best friend. Sounds simple enough. But the execution of the plot is done so terribly it becomes hilarious. I guarantee you this film has the worst acting, worst dialogue, worst editing and the worst special effects you will ever see, apart from that film you made with your parents’ video camera when you were eight. The film has become a cult hit, with screenings held all over the world where the audience throws plastic spoons at the screen, and counts among its fans stars such as Jonah Hill, Paul Rudd and Kristen Bell. Trust me, watch it now! You won’t regret it.

Have you seen any of these films? Share your experience in the comments!
Do you have other suggestions of So-Bad-They’re-Good films? Tell us!

Read our other Top Ten lists here