# What movie did you expect to suck, that didn't suck? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 11, 2005, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096 "2005-03-11T21:50:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/21 "2005-03-12T03:47:49Z")
Oh, and my ultimate movie that fits this category: _The Color Purple_. I didn’t think it would lack talent or filmmaking style, but just the back of the video box made me need Prozac- I thought it would be horribly depressing with a slant towards pretentious. I watched it, it’s one of less than a dozen movies that ever made me cry, returned the video several days late and bought that and the book on the way home. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/22 "2005-03-12T03:49:06Z")
_Wet Hot American Summer._ I thought it looked stupid, but it was a very good send-up and had some really great lines and moments and twists. ---
**Author:** ![E.Thorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@E.Thorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E.Thorp)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/23 "2005-03-12T05:42:44Z")
**Sliding Doors**. I have a weakness for alternative-reality stuff (time travel too), and Gwyneth carried multiple parts better than I thought she would. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/24 "2005-03-12T05:59:50Z")
Another vote for \*I, Robot \*. I hadn’t heard a single kind word about it, but I actually enjoyed the campy action and the fact that the female lead doesn’t end up naked/tied up/in Will Smith’s bed. I also thought I’d hate _Cellular_, but it, too, was the best of its kind. You know it’s been a slow year when I’m praising brainless action flics for being at the top of their game. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/25 "2005-03-12T06:09:03Z")
**School of Rock** ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/26 "2005-03-12T06:14:02Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > _Wet Hot American Summer._ I thought it looked stupid, but it was a very good send-up and had some really great lines and moments and twists. I’ll agree with that. Also, _The Truth About Cats & Dogs_. I like Janeane Garofalo, but I expected the movie to suck. It didn’t. I also found _The English Patient_ and _Remains of the Day_ would be horrible agonizing chick flicks. I really enjoyed them both and absolutely loved the cinematography. ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/27 "2005-03-12T06:15:07Z")
I also _thought_ they would be agonizing chick flicks. Excuse me. ---
**Author:** ![Tentacle\_Monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba9def/32.png) [@Tentacle\_Monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tentacle_Monster)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/28 "2005-03-12T06:41:20Z")
**Joe Dirt**. Seriously. And a second for **Pirates of the Caribbean**. I kept expecting Captain Jack Sparrow to start ranting about giant bloodthirsty lizards at any moment, though. ---
**Author:** ![nevermore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a587f6/32.png) [@nevermore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nevermore)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/29 "2005-03-12T06:43:21Z")
I’ll second **Super Troopers** , for sure. I was pestered & pestered for months to see it, finally gave in, still thinking it’d be every bit as retarded as the premise… well, it _was_ retarded, but the endearing kind, meow. 😃 **Pirates of the Caribbean** , too. I mean, how could a movie… based on a _Disneyworld ride_(and a boring one at that)…not suck with all the suction of suckdom? and lo, it did not. and I was pleased. > [@Marley23](#): > > _Wet Hot American Summer._ I thought it looked stupid, I’ve been avoiding it for the same reason. IIRC, you have at least good taste in anime, so yay, maybe I’ll check it out now. mine is **Troy**. I went with **FinnAgain** pretty much just so I could make fun of him for being so worked up about it, but in the end was pretty impressed. stop throwing things; it was damn good entertainment. and that is not at _all_ influenced by the profile of Brad Pitt’s smooth, firm, naked a– well. not totally. ^\_^;;;; ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/30 "2005-03-12T06:58:21Z")
> [@nevermore](#): > > I’ve been avoiding it for the same reason. IIRC, you have at least good taste in anime, so yay, maybe I’ll check it out now. You know it’s not anime, right? 😉 Seriously though, it’s a funny movie. Plenty of clever moments, like “Beth, Today is the least of our worries.” “Oh God, Don’t tell me you have crabs…” “Well, yes, but that’s not the point. Meet me at the picnic table in ten seconds and i’ll explain it all.” ---
**Author:** ![Skellington](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Skellington](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skellington)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/31 "2005-03-12T12:27:24Z")
Orgasmo and Rocky Horror. I was told about both at an early age and never thought much of them. Now they are both favs (after The Nightmare Before Christmas and Fight Club). ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/32 "2005-03-12T13:58:05Z")
> [@Paladud](#): > > … I had never seen Nicholson before… How is that possible? Seriously – how is that possible? ---
**Author:** ![Judith\_Prietht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b19c9b/32.png) [@Judith\_Prietht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Judith_Prietht)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/33 "2005-03-12T15:33:13Z")
**Win a Date With Tad Hamilton!** I thought it was going to be an insipid chick flick romantic comedy. And while it certainly has a lot of chick-flickiness about it, it also had Topher Grace, who’s IMO a pretty good actor, and Josh Duhamel, who played an arrogant movie star to the hilt. It also struck me as pretty well-written. ---
**Author:** ![Tixenfleaz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9a140/32.png) [@Tixenfleaz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tixenfleaz)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/34 "2005-03-12T15:39:50Z")
A girlfriend and her son once forced me to take them to a cutesy kiddie flick full of talking animals. **Babe** most certainly did not suck, despite all my dire predictions. ---
**Author:** ![Tenar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@Tenar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenar)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/35 "2005-03-12T15:46:05Z")
I know this was about 1,000 years ago, by cracky, but when \*\*Road Warrior \*\* came out, I thought “guys with cars and weapons in the desert. This should suck.” Loved it. (I loved Mel, too, before he turned out to be such a jerk. But that’s another story.) I was also surprised by how cute **Zoolander** was. Not a great movie, but the “walk off” in the “old Members Only warehouse” with the cameo by David Bowie made it worthwhile. That, and the part where Derek tries to go back to his roots in the “coal mining country of New Jersey.” \*\*Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban \*\* surprised me because I thought the first two movies sucked, and it didn’t. They blew a couple of good opportunities to clarify things for people who hadn’t read the book, but overall it was a good movie. The only genuinely sucky part was the actor who plays Harry’s pathetic attempt to act like he was crying; then again, it’s not exactly an easy thing for any kid his age to pull off, unless they are a hell of a lot better actor than that kid could ever dream of being. ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/36 "2005-03-12T16:21:05Z")
**Adventures in Babysitting** It sounded like such a stupid movie premise. And my sister, who saw it in the theatres, was about 12 at the time, and not very good at expressing why it was so good. It’s now one of the movies I want to preserve for all time. ---
**Author:** ![voguevixen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5ac83/32.png) [@voguevixen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voguevixen)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/37 "2005-03-12T16:49:30Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > **School of Rock** Same here! I usually hate Jack Black but I just laughed and laughed and laughed through this one. Joan Cusak is really good in it too. ---
**Author:** ![drm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e57/32.png) [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/38 "2005-03-12T16:52:32Z")
This might seem like a strange pick, but **Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring**. Before it came out, I hadn’t even seen a trailer. I had been crazy busy for the months before at work so I didn’t make it to the theatre and hadn’t had high speed internet for the last 8 months because it wasn’t available at my new appartment yet. I didn’t even have time to read reviews but I was sure of only two outcomes. I would absolutely love it or Peter Jackson would screw things up beyond recognition. I was sure it would be the later because I had just seen a string of bad movies. My friend saw it opening day and I asked him what he though, he said he loved it and it was the best movie he’d seen all year. I told him to fuck off, was then I was positive it would suck but went to see it anyway. As it happens, waiting for the next two installments becamse the focal point of my life over the next two years. Other picks, **Pirates of the Carribean** **I, Robot** ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/39 "2005-03-12T17:05:39Z")
Back in the prehistory of time when I was 14, my sister took me to see a science-fiction movie at one of the now-vanished cinemas in downtown Oshawa. I had seen _Logan’s Run_ a few months earlier, and I thought it _sucked_. I remember looking at the small ads for another movie, something called **Star Wars**. I figured that, with a name like that, it would be crappy as well, but what the hey, why not go and see it anyways. So we went. The movie started. I read the introductory words on the screen, and thought, “Could be bad, could be good. But I’m keeping my guard up.” Then the starfield and planetary horizon appeared, a small ship appeared, fleeing from some unseen menace. Then the Imperial cruiser came into view… and got bigger and bigger and bigger… and my jaw progressively dropped. And I fell into the movie. We did not drive home. We _flew_. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/40 "2005-03-12T17:11:34Z")
**Buffy the Vampire Slayer** [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096.md?page=3)