# 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:** 3
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/41 "2005-03-12T17:15:22Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > Constantine. Oh, _come on._ It’s fucking Keanu! ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Tonya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/4491bb/32.png) [@Queen\_Tonya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Tonya)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/42 "2005-03-12T17:19:02Z")
_Fat Albert_ surprised me. Not that it was great, but I expected it to be painfully bad. Took my boy and a friend last weekend and it wasn’t nearly as horrible as I thought it would be. Lowered expectations rule! ---
**Author:** ![LifeOnWry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@LifeOnWry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LifeOnWry)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/43 "2005-03-12T17:30:47Z")
**Mean Girls**. I did not LOVE it, but I didn’t hate it either, and I fully expected to hate it a lot. **The Princess Diaries** is another one I expected to hate, and THAT one I loved. (The fact that I saw these can be attributed to the fact that I have a teenage daughter who nags.) ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/44 "2005-03-12T17:39:21Z")
> [@iamthewalrus(:3=](#): > > Zoolander. I had to be talked into watching it by friends. It looked like such a stupid movie. And it was; it was just a good stupid movie. My answer. I thought it would be one of those ubiquitous goofy-dumb-stupid movies; it actually turned out to be a rather clever satire on Hollywood and the fashion industry. ---
**Author:** ![Aagramn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Aagramn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aagramn)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/45 "2005-03-12T17:49:58Z")
I quite enjoyed National Treasure. I don’t like Nicholas Cage, and the plot heavily rips off The Da Vinci code which is pretty flaky itself, but I was still entertained. ---
**Author:** ![Paladud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Paladud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paladud)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/46 "2005-03-12T20:32:01Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > How is that possible? Seriously – how is that possible? I don’t see too many movies. For the record, I’ve only seen two of his other movies (_One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest_ and _Anger Management_) since. ---
**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, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/47 "2005-03-12T21:56:21Z")
> [@LifeOnWry](#): > > **Mean Girls**. I did not LOVE it, but I didn’t hate it either, and I fully expected to hate it a lot. > > ``` > . . . > > ``` > > (The fact that I saw these can be attributed to the fact that I have a teenage daughter who nags.) ooh, me too. the cover is bright pink for fuck’s sake. but I actually laughed quite a lot, and while I won’t be rushing out to buy it, I wouldn’t mind seeing it again. (the fact that I saw this can be attributed to the fact that I have a girly girlfriend who tortures.) (…I deserve it :D) ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/48 "2005-03-12T22:03:29Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > Oh, _come on._ It’s fucking Keanu! Dude! At least rent it in a few months and see for yourself. It ain’t Hellblazer, and it is certainly a flawed movie, don’t get me wrong. But not only is it not half-bad, there are parts that are actually quite good. Think of Constantine as a good movie to show in a double-feature with the occult-noir film Angel Heart, with Mickey Rourke and Robert DeNiro. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/49 "2005-03-12T22:09:01Z")
> [@OtakuLoki](#): > > **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. And is one of my favorite movies ever. Look at who you have: Elisabeth Shue (a later Oscar-nominated actress), who could read the phone book, and I’d watch, Brad Whitford (Mister Jane Kazcmarek), who went on to star in _The West Wing_, Anthony Rapp, who went on to Broadway (he was in _Rent_), Maia Brewton, who later starred as Parker Lewis’ kid sister, Blues legend Albert Collins (“Nobody leaves this place without singing the blues”) Surprisingly good. Let me second (third, whatever) _Pirates of the Caribbean_. I just watched this for the first time today. Johnny Depp keeps proving himself to be one of my favorite actors for very good reasons. Him and monkeys make every movie better. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/50 "2005-03-12T22:17:43Z")
Three Kings. Surprisingly smart movie. Ocean’s 11. It got such bad press, and when I finally saw it, it was pretty damned good. ---
**Author:** ![neofishboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/neofishboy/32/444_2.png) [@neofishboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neofishboy)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2005, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/51 "2005-03-12T23:56:28Z")
**Galaxy Quest**. I avoided it in the theater due to my deep-seated aversion to Tim Allen (and general indifference to things Trek-related), but since catching it on cable this has become one of those movies that I simply _cannot_ get tired of watching. Sam Rockwell and Tony Shalhoub in particular were brilliant. ---
**Author:** ![Zjestika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/8edcca/32.png) [@Zjestika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zjestika)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/52 "2005-03-13T00:27:41Z")
> [@Tixenfleaz](#): > > 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. And, believe it or not, the sequel **Babe, Pig in the City** sucked much, much less. I Netflixed it after someone on the board mentioned how suprised and thrilled they were by the movie, and after I got it in the mail it just sat on the coffeetable for a couple days. My SO wasn’t interested in it at all, and finally extreme boredome on my part and extreme duress on his made us watch it. I have never made so many telephone calls after seeing a movie. It’s now on the Netflix queue of everyone I know. ZJ ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/53 "2005-03-13T00:28:47Z")
I share a lot of the answers here. Especially **Pirates of the Caribbean**. Even when it made tons of loot and got good reviews, I thought everyone was stupid but me. But that movie was awesome. I almost NEVER re-watch movies and I rewatched that one. The other answer that comes to mind that I don’t think anyone else mentioned was High Grant’s **About a Boy**. My wife has brought me love, comfort and my only child. But she has also brought me other such chick flicks as _Two Week’s Notice_, _Notting Hill_, _Miss Congeniality_ _Under the Tuscan Sun_ and ANYTHING with Ashley Judd. So when she brings home About A Boy, I figured we’d have another crappy Blockbuster night. But that movie was really good. It had true substance. There was even Oscar talk surrounding it. Another “chick flick” that was pretty good, but lacked About a Boy’s substance was **How to Lose a Guy In Ten Days.** Cute. I wouldn’t pick that type of film, but if my wife’s picks were this humorous and watchable, I wouldn’t grumble when it was her turn to select the DVD. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/54 "2005-03-13T02:01:35Z")
> [@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 thought it would be good, because the cast of the friggin State is in it(!!), but no. I didn’t end up liking it much at all. Tank Girl, Treasure Planet, The Big Hit, National Treasure, Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, King Arthur, Troy, Pirates of the Caribbean, Elf and Godsend were far better than I’d guessed before hand. ---
**Author:** ![Large\_Marge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/50afbb/32.png) [@Large\_Marge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Large_Marge)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/55 "2005-03-13T02:04:27Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > Dude! At least rent it in a few months and see for yourself. It ain’t Hellblazer, and it is certainly a flawed movie, don’t get me wrong. But not only is it not half-bad, there are parts that are actually quite good. Think of Constantine as a good movie to show in a double-feature with the occult-noir film Angel Heart, with Mickey Rourke and Robert DeNiro. Are you sure you weren’t drunk at the time? 😉 I went with some friends very grudgingly to see **Something About Mary** and it made me laugh so hard I almost peed my pants. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/56 "2005-03-13T02:04:43Z")
I second **LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring**. I really didn’t care, but everybody else was excited, so I thought I’d give it a try. I’m very happy I did. **Ocean’s 11**. I’m surprised by how much I adore this movie. I’ll watch it whenever it’s on. **Not Another Teen Movie** cracked my shit up. “Have you ever seen _Pretty in Pink_?” “Yes, I masturabe to that movie.” Hee ---
**Author:** ![Roadfood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc348/32.png) [@Roadfood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roadfood)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/57 "2005-03-13T04:12:04Z")
> [@elfbabe](#): > > > [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > > > But Depp made that movie worthwhile for me! > > I have yet to find someone who _doesn’t_ feel that way about that movie. Yo, right here. I went in without much expectation one way or the other, and walked out with it on my list of the twenty-or-so worst waste-of-time movies. And Depp’s mumbling, inane performance is a big reason why. ---
**Author:** ![elfbabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b782af/32.png) [@elfbabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfbabe)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/58 "2005-03-13T04:24:55Z")
> [@Roadfood](#): > > I went in without much expectation one way or the other, and walked out with it on my list of the twenty-or-so worst waste-of-time movies. You clearly haven’t seen enough REALLY horrible movies. ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/59 "2005-03-13T05:29:53Z")
\*\*Kung Pow: Enter the fist. \*\* I thought it was going to be stupid, but a friend rented it and we watched it. I was right. It was stupid…but it was also quite funny, and I don’t mind rewatching it when it comes on TV. ---
**Author:** ![Go\_You\_Big\_Red\_Fire\_Engine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/eada6e/32.png) [@Go\_You\_Big\_Red\_Fire\_Engine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_You_Big_Red_Fire_Engine)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096/60 "2005-03-13T08:45:28Z")
I’ll second **Not Another Teen Movie** , and **Three Kings**. And add **The Butterfly Effect** and **Secret Window**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-did-you-expect-to-suck-that-didnt-suck/294096.md?page=4)