# What were the most disappointing movies of 2005? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 28, 2005, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468 "2005-12-28T19:04:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/21 "2005-12-29T07:41:54Z")
Hitchhiker’s Guide, for me. I can’t believe I actually fell asleep in the middle of it. I love Douglas Adams’s books, but to me, the movie totally failed to capture their spirit. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/22 "2005-12-29T07:42:26Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > PS- **Elizabethtown** was a box office disappointment as well. People were hoping Orlando Bloom could carry a blockbuster without a sword in his hand but apparently he can’t yet. I’m not sure he’s ever going to be able to do that. Unless he comes up with a hit on his own in the next year or two, he’ll lose his appeal with the early-teen female crowd and I think he’ll be through. > [@Silentgoldfish](#): > > Well, you’re wrong. Domestic gross (according to [boxofficemojo.com](http://boxofficemojo.com)) is at $128,516,635. Plus overseas gross of $153,600,000 means that right now it’s grossed $282,116,635. In other words, it’s in the black already and it’s only been out a fortnight. And of course, it’s still a ways away from coming out on DVD, where the real money is. ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/23 "2005-12-29T08:15:58Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > I used the figures off IMDB which didn’t include overseas box office and figures which didn’t yet include the previous week. I never claimed it’d lose money, though it’s doing better than my impression had it, but I think it still qualifies as a disappointment. I’m sure Universal expected to be kissing the half a billion worldwide number by 2006. I don’t think it’s that kind of movie. It’s obvious from the way it’s making money that it’s getting a lot of revenue from word of mouth rather than initial weekend take. Quite frankly, anyone who looks at 200 million dollars at the two week mark as a disappointment is looking for fault. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/24 "2005-12-29T08:16:29Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > Just curious: were you familiar with the source material (the graphic novels) before going to see it? Yep. **Sin City** started out as Miller’s backlash against fifteen years of superhero-type comics. He wanted to depict the real world as he understood it. But being Frank Miller, he quickly reverted to ninjas, freaks and swastika-shaped throwing stars. The movie–and Frank Miller as co-director doesn’t excuse this–missed no opportunity to remind the viewer that this didn’t take place in the real world Here’s a hint: Cool cars and hot babes look better against a backdrop of ordinary cars and homely women. There’s nothing special about a powder-blue Cadillac and a lingerie-clad Rosario Dawson if that’s what every guy we see appears to have. And if you show your hero soldier on after catching a hail of twenty bullets, it kinda kills the suspense five minutes later when the bad guy brandishes a gun. Short version: This blew chunks. ---
**Author:** ![First\_Amongst\_Daves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/4491bb/32.png) [@First\_Amongst\_Daves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/First_Amongst_Daves)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/25 "2005-12-29T08:30:51Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I’m surprised that **Kingdom of Heaven** only did $48 million domestic. It wasn’t a bad movie at all and had some really great action scenes and good performances. The overseas gross made it profitable at least. I can’t help that folks were battle-scened out after threee _Lord of the Rings_ movies, _Troy_, and for those of you in the Far East, _Hero_. There are only so many massed sword battles people can take (not me personally -“others”). ---
**Author:** ![JohnBckWLD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d6d6ee/32.png) [@JohnBckWLD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnBckWLD)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/26 "2005-12-29T08:40:58Z")
Five steaming turds, from stinkiest to least corny. 1. Son of the Mask 2. Aeon Flux 3. King Kong 4. Brokeback Mtn 5. War of the Worlds ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/27 "2005-12-29T11:57:01Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > My biggest disappointment this year was Be Cool, a sequel to the great Get Shorty, with an excellent cast, but a crummy and pointless movie (and really obnoxious how it marketed Aerosmith and the Black Eyed Peas). I haven’t seen it, but Elmore Leonard’s book - which to be fair isn’t much cop either - also has a pointless and extended appearance by Aerosmith, in which they are revealed to be just a swell buncha guys. ---
**Author:** ![Nancarrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c37758/32.png) [@Nancarrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nancarrow)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/28 "2005-12-29T12:23:37Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > I used the figures off IMDB which didn’t include overseas box office and figures which didn’t yet include the previous week. I never claimed it’d lose money, though it’s doing better than my impression had it, but I think it still qualifies as a disappointment. I’m sure Universal expected to be kissing the half a billion worldwide number by 2006. Just to toss a random _purely hypothetical_ factoid out, which I’m not sure I can substantiate without being in breach of something or other… the Powers That Be at work reckon it should take a good $375 million worldwide by around March. At least, they’re promising a bonus to all staff if that happens. (… so maybe they know damn well it won’t? :dubious: I ain’t been around here long enough to suss out the politics. or be eligible for that bonus ☹ ) ---
**Author:** ![Ponder\_Stibbons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponder_stibbons/32/343_2.png) [@Ponder\_Stibbons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponder_Stibbons)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/29 "2005-12-29T13:25:50Z")
I didn’t see a good number of the stinkers listed, because I read about them here first. So for me, the biggest disappointment was **HitchHiker’s Guide to the Galaxy**. It had a good budget, first-rate special effects, freakin’ great cinematography and even decent actors. I know, I know, some people didn’t like the casting, but I think the actors did a fine job with what they were given. Heck, I even don’t mind the position of Zaphod’s second head. Artistic license and all, you know? The problem, of course, was the screenplay. Whoever the hell the hack was that did that should be dropped on a deserted island somewhere with no way to ever, ever contact the civilized world again. That putrid pile of dolphin droppings removed almost all of the humour from the work, leaving you with a semi-pointless meandering through some very nice sets. Arrrrrr!!! I do _not_ list **King Kong** as a disappointment, because it was almost precisely what I expected. I never much liked the original 1930’s film in the first place, so the remake actually seemed somewhat of an improvement, but still not all that. ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/30 "2005-12-29T15:29:52Z")
**Kingdom of Heaven** did poorly because it was good. “Let’s all share” and “Christians and Muslims can live together in peace” just doesn’t play as well as “Kill 'Em All” in the Sticks. Most disappointing for me: **Must Love Dogs**. I’m a sucker for a good rom-com and with the sexy Diane Lane and one of my faves, John Cusack, I figured it couldn’t miss. We walked out. Not a laugh in it. Not an original thought. Supporting characters, and leads I’ve seen a million times. Terrible movie. I can’t name a worse rom-com from the last 10 years, seriously. Compared to this, _Two Weeks Notice_ and _You’ve Got Mail_ were masterworks. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/31 "2005-12-29T15:46:39Z")
Sin City wasn’t a _disappoinment_- but it was way too violent, and not “all that and a side of fries” as promised. A Sound of Thunder was both \*very very \* bad, AND a disappointment. Sahara had a few great moments- but the plot was “reedikulus” and those moments couldn’t save it. HGttG was eh. ☹ I was very very happy with Narnia- of of the best in this decade. 🙂 Be Cool wasn’t a disappointment- as I have pretty well figured that 90% of Revolta movies are crap. ---
**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:** [December 29, 2005, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/32 "2005-12-29T15:48:06Z")
Oh God, Elizabethtown was awful. There’s these weird and brillant moments in the movie, but over all it was probably the worst movie I saw all year. ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/33 "2005-12-29T15:56:37Z")
I saw _The Island_ and _A Sound of Thunder_ , both as free sneak previews. I still want my money back. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/34 "2005-12-29T16:02:14Z")
Not being an investor in any movie production company or any movie theatre chain, I don’t care at all if the movie made money or lost money. That’s their problem, not mine. As a movie goer I only care about the quality, or lack thereof, of the product itself. From that perspective I was most disappointed in _Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy_ which, as others as already said, failed to translate the book’s great good humor into movie form. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/35 "2005-12-29T17:31:22Z")
Be Cool (2005) 5.6/10 (10002 votes) ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/36 "2005-12-29T17:34:03Z")
That post got away from me too soon. But really, that is the only mention that film deserved. I was also disappointed with Star Wars. Of course, the previous two prepared me for it. I thought War of the Worlds stunk up the theater. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/37 "2005-12-29T17:39:13Z")
> [@middleman](#): > > I thought War of the Worlds stunk up the theater. Not “stink”- it “noised” up the theatre- with the constant screaming, precociousness and bad over acting by Montana or whateverhernameis. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/38 "2005-12-29T18:00:39Z")
Disappointing apparnatly means different things to different people. I, for one, don’t care much at all for how much a movie makes. Except when it impacts on what could’ve been a good franchise. For instance, with the dreary decline of almost everything Trek related, I was really looking forward to the Firefly movie, **Serenity**. And when I saw the flick, I was not dissappointed at all. It was a good sci-fi movie. However, the only friends of mine who also enjoyed the movie were previous fans of the TV series. All the others saw it as just another of 2005’s 'splosions! movies. This disappointed me because it meant that the movie would not do at the box office and the hoped for franchise of movies would thus probably not happen. Sci-f- movies, TV show, franchises, etc… cannot survive for long with only sci-fi fans watching them. Just not a large enough base. Now, for a movie that was just completely disenchanted with, we travel back to a galaxy far far away, in a time long long ago. Shit. I’ve seen better things oozing out of my own wounds. I enjoyed the big ass ape. All 3 hrs worth. Douglass Adams rose from the grave and gave us an odd little bastardisation of his own stories, but I didn’t mind too much. He had previously changed something in the franchis with each different newest release, version, or part. Funny thing, my non sci-fi friends who had never heard or seen of the franchise loved the movie. Odd thing, that. There were several non sci-fi shows that made me miss my eight bucks and two hours spent in the effort to attempt to be entertained by them, but none that I can recall causing me to gnaw off any limbs. Maybe I’ll recall one or more later… ---
**Author:** ![Gadarene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Gadarene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gadarene)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/39 "2005-12-29T18:19:55Z")
**Push You Down:** > [@](#): > > For me, The Baxter, a small film done by some of the State/Stella alumni and starring Michael Showalter (sp) and Michelle Williams. > > The premise of the movie is that it is a romantic comedy from the perspective of the nebbishy loser who gets left at the alter when the female lead goes off with her one true love. Think Bill Pullman in Sleepless in Seattle. That’s what the movie itself tells you it is going to be, but what you get is a standard romantic comedy that pokes fun at romantic comedies. It’s a failure on every level. I completely agree. I’m a huge State/Stella fan, and I could not have hated that movie more. I just watched it last night, and there wasn’t a single shred of wit to be found. Paul Rudd was the only (momentary) bright spot. Just awful. …But I really liked Hitchhiker’s Guide, so it looks like I’m in the minority in that. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468/40 "2005-12-29T19:12:16Z")
> [@NoClueBoy](#): > > Disappointing apparnatly means different things to different people. I, for one, don’t care much at all for how much a movie makes. Except when it impacts on what could’ve been a good franchise. So true. It used to affect my enjoyment if a film I liked didn’t do big business. Then I realized how silly that was. The movie was still there whether it was a hit or not. It would still make it to DVD. It might even become a mega-hit the second time around (see: Redemption, Shawshank). But I do root for GOOD movies to make money and bad movies to tank. Not because I care about their box office, but because I want more good films and fewer bad films to be made. Most of the time, my faves are at the bottom of the box office list. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-most-disappointing-movies-of-2005/337468.md?page=3)