# Bad movies: why are they made? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 1, 2002, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856 "2002-06-01T05:09:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MyFootsZZZ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/myfootszzz/32/12580_2.png) [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2002, 10:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856/21 "2002-06-02T10:22:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Thea Logica \* > \*\* > > Then there are a lot of movies that get ruined by some idiot’s need to throw in lame throwaway jokes. Reference _The Mummy_ and _The Mark of Zorro_ (or was it the mask of zorro? I forget) Both had great plots, storylines, intelligent dialog. Both sucked rocks, largely due to some studio scmuck trying to gear the films to a mass audience, rather than trying to make a good movie. > > Then there was _The Postman_, which a lot of people cite as the ultimate in lame-o movies. I thought it was good. However, if they had gotten a real actor for the title role instead of Kevin Costner (who also made _Dances With Wolves_ less great than it could have been), it could have been awesome. > > \*\* OK Postman was such a bad/silly story, no way it could have been good with any other actors. Maybe if it was rewritten. Mask Of Zorro SUCKED… One of the only reason why it hands down sucked, was because there was this action sequence where a wick/rope to TNT, or some sort of explosives, was lit somehow. Instead of just cutting the fvcking LONG wick/rope, they all scramble to get people in the area to safety. I’ve never seen anything so STUPID. (Btw, I don’t know how that Zorro scene actually played out… it was a long time ago, but all I remember was how STUPID it was. It may have been a trail of flamable liquid leading up to explosive… but it COULD have been prevented. I can’t tollerate such CRAPERY) ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2002, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856/22 "2002-06-02T16:23:11Z")
I’d say _Battlefield Earth_ is a special case, since it was made as a religious act. The principals involved who are Scientologists couldn’t allow themselves to be aware of how stupid it was, or to make changes, lest they commit heresy. Morons. In a few cases, a truly bad movie has been an incredible money-maker. _Armageddon_ lurches to mind. (Maybe it would help if John McTiernan duct-taped Michael Bay to a chair and told him how to direct an action sequence. Maybe not.) It all comes down to money, and sometimes I think movies are deliberately dumbed-down so that they’ll translate more easily in the international market. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2002, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856/23 "2002-06-02T18:03:09Z")
pesch writes: \> For another opinion, check out John Gregory Dunne’s “Monster” \> about he and his wife’s work turning the life of Jessica Savitch \> (the TV reporter who died in a drug-related auto accident) \> into “Tune In Tomorrow.” You’re thinking of the film _Up Close & Personal_. _Tune in Tomorrow_ was a completely different film. ---
**Author:** ![Largo62](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@Largo62](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Largo62)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2002, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856/24 "2002-06-03T07:42:36Z")
Some bad movies are made because Kevin Kostner thinks he’s an actor and probably has someone with influence by the balls (literally, but gently 😃 ). How else do you explain **Waterworld** and **Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves**? **Waterworld** suffered the added disadvantage of featuring Dennis Hopper, one of the worst actors ever. ---
**Author:** ![Guy\_Propski](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/5e9695/32.png) [@Guy\_Propski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guy_Propski)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2002, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856/25 "2002-06-03T13:16:26Z")
I think it’s very simple–they thought they were making a good movie. Ed Wood, Jr., really thought every film he made was a classic. On the flip side, some people think that the movie they are in/made is awful, and it turns out to be a classic( or at least good). Burt Reynolds was convinced that “Boogie Nights” was a flop and would destroy his career. I guess that Oscar nomination changed his mind. Really, it’s all relative. I’m sure there’s someone out there that thinks “Waterworld” is the best picture ever… ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2002, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856/26 "2002-06-03T14:14:01Z")
> [@](#): > > “Well, the really bad films generally occur on the studio level. With independent films, the ratio is much less, because youve got artists trying to fulfill their vision without inhibitions or studio execs hovering over their shoulders, asking them to change this, change that.” I think you’re only partly right here. The key is, people are more likely to see these films. But I daresay that independant filmmakers suck much more than any studio, on the whole. But these guys rarely, if ever, get their bad films into the theatre’s - you won’t even hear about them. > [@](#): > > Instead of just cutting the fvcking LONG wick/rope If I recall corrctly, they did. A stray gunshot (though I want to know the odds on that hit) reignited it. BY this time they’d already stated the evacuation and the wick was too hard to get at. ---
**Author:** ![Tars\_Tarkas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tars\_Tarkas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tars_Tarkas)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2002, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856/27 "2002-06-03T16:32:58Z")
Yes, but none of you have explained the Coleman Francis films yet! (and i saw American Godzilla-named giant Iguana, but felt ripped off. Especially when it became Jurassic park in the middle!!) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-movies-why-are-they-made/111856.md?page=1)