# Who greenlighted this cinematic shitshow? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [May 1, 2026, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703 "2026-05-01T18:25:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/261 "2026-05-15T17:40:16Z")
So, when do we have our watch-along party? It’s free on the [Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/Theodore_Rex_1995_Full_Movie)! ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/262 "2026-05-15T18:02:27Z")
**Dumplings** Premise: A woman is obsessed with her own aging, so she seeks out a dumpling restaurant where she had heard the dumplings there help you with aging, maybe even reversing aging. It works. Problem is… **the dumplings are made out of the remains of aborted fetuses**. The owner(played by Bai Ling) offers an abortion service and a dumplings service. One business, uh, feeds the other. Certainly a premise I am surprised was greenlit. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/263 "2026-05-15T20:10:23Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Certainly a premise I am surprised was greenlit. Meh, I saw Sweeney Todd a few weeks ago. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/264 "2026-05-15T20:33:19Z")
Meh. The film was originally a short film in an Asian horror anthology called “Three Extremes,” so the extremity of the plot is _literally_ the theme. I mean, if you want to bring extreme horror into this there are way worse examples, but they really don’t fit the thread. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/265 "2026-05-15T22:22:45Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > I mean, if you want to bring extreme horror into this there are way worse examples, but they really don’t fit the thread. Yeah, I agree. Lots of extreme horror films make no real sense. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/266 "2026-05-15T22:35:52Z")
Sounds like a modest proposal to me. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2026, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/267 "2026-05-16T00:57:28Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > > [@Gyrate](#): > > > > Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid isn’t so much “funny” as “clever”. > > I liked it. It was better than I expected, but not a must-see. > > And Rigby making his “famous cuppa joe” scene was brilliant. Same for me. I can watch and enjoy it but not a must-see. And the coffee pouring bit is still hilarious - the simplicity of the gag is delighful. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2026, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/268 "2026-05-16T01:19:36Z")
Dumplings? According to _ **South Park** _ it was the jumbo shrimp. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2026, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/269 "2026-05-16T01:21:41Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > _Freddie Got Fingered_, the Tom Green vehicle from 2001. I never really got the comedy of Tom Green and nothing about this movie ever looked funny. Awhile back I saw a Youtuber describe Tom Green as “Logan Paul for millennials”, and as an Elder Millennial, I’d have to say it’s a pretty apt description. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2026, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/270 "2026-05-16T02:37:25Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Not the Mama! > [@Maserschmidt](#): > > I understood that reference! It wasn’t a movie, but the fact that _Dinosaurs_ the TV series got made is bizarre. “Let’s make a parody of classic '50s sitcom plots, where all the actors are wearing movie-grade animatronic dinosaur costumes, but also fill it with a bunch of left-wing social justice messaging, and end the series with runaway capitalism causing a mass extinction where everyone dies! The kids’ll love it.” ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/898d66/32.png) [@Johnny\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Q)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2026, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/271 "2026-05-16T06:51:41Z")
Lost a lot of weight, too. ---
**Author:** ![JohnnyEcks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnnyecks/32/18197_2.png) [@JohnnyEcks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnnyEcks)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2026, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/272 "2026-05-16T16:03:34Z")
Here’s a subcategory to ponder: movies made to exploit a trend that was over before they were released. Disco is an obvious example, with films like Xanadu and Can’t Stop the Music missing out on their narrow window of opportunity. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2026, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/273 "2026-05-16T18:14:47Z")
“As I’m sure you remember in the late 1980s the US experienced a short-lived infatuation with Australian culture for some bizarre reason” — _The Simpsons_, “Bart vs. Australia”. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/274 "2026-05-19T14:17:55Z")
> [@JohnnyEcks](#): > > movies made to exploit a trend that was over before they were released. Ah, the CB radio craze! 10-4 good buddy!‘’ Somehow, _Solarbabies_ has to fit in here, too. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/275 "2026-05-19T14:27:14Z")
> [@JohnnyEcks](#): > > Disco is an obvious example, with films like Xanadu and Can’t Stop the Music missing out on their narrow window of opportunity. AIUI, they tried to get _Xanadu_ out in time but got plagued by seemingly endless rewrites. To the point of filming before the script was finished. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/276 "2026-05-19T14:35:57Z")
**Convoy** with Kris Kristofferson and Ali McGraw — a masterpiece!🤮 ---
**Author:** ![JohnnyEcks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnnyecks/32/18197_2.png) [@JohnnyEcks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnnyEcks)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/277 "2026-05-19T14:46:38Z")
Ah yes, the short lived late 70s trucker craze, loosely linked to the custom van fad. See “The Van” from 1977. Tagline:" Fun-Truckin’". ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/278 "2026-05-19T14:51:58Z")
This was all because of that song by Mannheim Steamroller? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/279 "2026-05-19T14:56:40Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > **Convoy** with Kris Kristofferson and Ali McGraw — a masterpiece!🤮 This is an interesting one. First, it made a fuckton of money, because for once it was a trend-exploitation movie that was timely rather than late. Second, it was a Sam Peckinpah movie, which doesn’t fit in anywhere for him. But I’m sure he made out. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/280 "2026-05-19T15:04:35Z")
> [@JohnnyEcks](#): > > loosely linked to the custom van fad. “…and that’s all right with me.” “Shitshow-wise”, _Convoy_ the film had as must to do with Convoy the song as _Starship Troopers_ the film had to do with the novel. A couple of names were the same. Forget the plot, they couldn’t even get the trucks right. But, to this day, you can still buy Rubber Duck hood ornaments. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703.md?page=15)