# Stupid movies that know that they're stupid **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 20, 2006, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498 "2006-08-20T22:28:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/41 "2006-08-21T15:39:31Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] It’s been a while, but aren’t they invading Cuban paratroopers? [/QUOTE] Even **stupider**! Genius! ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/42 "2006-08-21T15:50:15Z")
[QUOTE=Sublight] **Flash Gordon** The director may not have known it was stupid, and whoever was playing Flash certainly didn’t know it was stupid. But everyone else involved knew exactly what sort of movie they were in, and were obviously camping it up for the fun of it. [/QUOTE] This is the one with the over-the-top soundtrack by Queen, right? ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/43 "2006-08-21T15:55:27Z")
[QUOTE=Thudlow Boink] This is the one with the over-the-top soundtrack by Queen, right? [/QUOTE] That’s the one. FLASH! …he saved every one of us… FLASH! ---
**Author:** ![amijane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f0a364/32.png) [@amijane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amijane)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/44 "2006-08-21T18:49:06Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] At the risk of garnering some wrath, I’m gonna say _Starship Troopers_ _snip_ The movie was hilariously stupid. [/QUOTE] I was coming in here precisely to list **Starship Troopers**. I simply can’t understand how people miss that the whole thing’s a huge send-up and that it’s hilariously funny. The cod-Nazi uniforms? The hysterical news flashes? The casting of shiny square-jawed teens so pretty they make your corneas wince?? it’s all firmly tongue in cheek and such a fun romp. I mean, Michael Ironsides in _tights_! How can anyone think you’re supposed to take that seriously, who the hell ever took Michael Ironsides seriously in anything? I’ve read the book. Wouldn’t recommend it, except you’ll figure out where Verhoeven got the idea for the Nazi uniforms 😛 ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/45 "2006-08-21T18:54:49Z")
With Dennis Hopper and Debi Mazer, you’d think this might be a good space movie, but [Space Truckers](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120199/) is about as cheesy as it gets. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/46 "2006-08-21T20:00:18Z")
[QUOTE=CalMeacham] **Tangent** already named mine – **Big Trouble in Little China** , in which Kurt Russel plays a hero who’s a jerk, but doesn’t know it. [/QUOTE] Actually, he’s the **sidekick** and doesn’t know it. He’s totally Wang’s sidekick. -Joe ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/47 "2006-08-21T20:15:52Z")
[_Can It Be Love._](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103917/) Self-deprecating and tongue-in-cheek even by the standards of teen sex/grossout comedies, WRT which nobody involved has ever expected to get within sniffing distance of an Oscar nomination. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/48 "2006-08-21T20:33:14Z")
[QUOTE=Priceguy] By all accounts, that was made in perfect seriousness. So was _Manos Hands of Fate_. [/QUOTE] I don’t know about Manos… from what I hear it was made on a bet. That to me doesn’t sound like a movie that was made to be serious. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/49 "2006-08-21T20:34:34Z")
[QUOTE=amijane] I’ve read the book. Wouldn’t recommend it, except you’ll figure out where Verhoeven got the idea for the Nazi uniforms 😛 [/QUOTE] Amen to that. I really don’t see Heinlein’s appeal to anybody who doesn’t use pictures of Ayn Rand when masturbating. Whenever somebody claims this board is full of liberals I think how it’s also full of Heinlein fans. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/50 "2006-08-21T20:49:01Z")
> [@](#): > > Quote: > Originally Posted by CalMeacham > Tangent already named mine – Big Trouble in Little China, in which Kurt Russel plays a hero who’s a jerk, but doesn’t know it. > > Actually, he’s the sidekick and doesn’t know it. He’s totally Wang’s sidekick. > > -Joe You or someone else made that suggestion that last time I suggested this. I won’t dispute it, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s a jerk. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/51 "2006-08-21T20:51:35Z")
> [@](#): > > Amen to that. I really don’t see Heinlein’s appeal to anybody who doesn’t use pictures of Ayn Rand when masturbating. Whenever somebody claims this board is full of liberals I think how it’s also full of Heinlein fans. The image is priceless, but I’ll bet Heinlein _hated_ Ayn Rand. I can’t imagine him agreeing with her or liking her fiction. I can’t imagine him liking her writing even if he agreed with her politics. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/52 "2006-08-21T21:00:02Z")
I was just discussing this topic this morning. Apparently it’s a running controversy whether the Roger Ebert/Russ Meyer authored Beyond the Valley of the Dolls is nudge-nudge, or just bad. There is evidence that it’s the former; Austin Powers international Man of Mystery apparently lifts entire lines of dialog from it (this from a co-worker; I haven’t researched it myself.). ---
**Author:** ![well\_he\_s\_back](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/3ab097/32.png) [@well\_he\_s\_back](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/well_he_s_back)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/53 "2006-08-21T21:13:02Z")
How about the recent “Ocean’s 12”? As any kind of “real” movie it was dog poop, but seen as a total put-on, it was hilarious (or rather some hilarious moments). ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/54 "2006-08-21T21:56:56Z")
Starship Troopers is just the tip of the Verhoevan iceberg. His entire body of work drips contempt for the audience, all the while serving up heaping helpings of bone-numbing stupidity. Verhoevan always knows he’s making stupid movies, sometimes the actors in the movies are in on the joke, sometimes not. For instance, Elizabeth Berkley was the victim of very elaborate practical joke by Verhoevan in Showgirls, while Gina Gershon knew it was a joke. Sharon Stone was always in on the joke too. Other actors, not so much. You actually feel bad for them, being manipulated so, but then Verhoevan tries to convince you they are just dumb actors who deserve it every bit as much as the audience. Compare and contrast Verhoevan’s body of work, pandering to the audience’s baser instincts with contempt, vs a director that panders but doesn’t hold himself above the audience, like say, Roger Corman. Verhoevan wants to punish the audience for wanting to see naked tits, Roger Corman made movies about bare tits because he liked bare tits himself. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/55 "2006-08-21T22:29:32Z")
[QUOTE=Push You Down] I don’t know about Manos… from what I hear it was made on a bet. That to me doesn’t sound like a movie that was made to be serious. [/QUOTE] Depends on the bet. The bet was that Hal Warren could make a good horror film on a tiny budget. So at least he tried. It also appears he believed to have succeeded until the film premiered. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/56 "2006-08-21T22:52:47Z")
[QUOTE=dropzone] Amen to that. I really don’t see Heinlein’s appeal to anybody who doesn’t use pictures of Ayn Rand when masturbating. Whenever somebody claims this board is full of liberals I think how it’s also full of Heinlein fans. [/QUOTE] Adds **dropzone** ’s name to list… ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/57 "2006-08-21T23:16:19Z")
[QUOTE=Jake] How 'bout \* Plan Nine from Outer Space?\* Or the one with…I think it was Rosie Greer…, who had his head attached to some white guy? Both alive with one body. Hilairous! [/QUOTE] Some white guy? Some white guy!? I believe you mispelled the phrase “Academy Award winning actor Ray Milland”. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2006, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/58 "2006-08-22T00:00:56Z")
[QUOTE=Priceguy] Depends on the bet. The bet was that Hal Warren could make a good horror film on a tiny budget. So at least he tried. It also appears he believed to have succeeded until the film premiered. [/QUOTE] Where’s the source of the “good horror” claim? I’ve only ever heard as just ‘make a movie’ on that small of a budget. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2006, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/59 "2006-08-22T00:17:11Z")
[QUOTE=Lemur866] Verhoevan always knows he’s making stupid movies, sometimes the actors in the movies are in on the joke, sometimes not. [/quote] How do you **know** he knows it? ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2006, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498/60 "2006-08-22T03:38:23Z")
[Nice Girls Don’t Explode](http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0093617/) is a favorite of ours - stumbled across by accident on HBO or some such channel, nearly 20 years ago. We haven’t seen it on TV since then, so we finally bought a copy! Definitely does not take itself seriously. > [@](#): > > Dear Mom… BOOM [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-movies-that-know-that-theyre-stupid/369498.md?page=4)