# 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:** 6
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/101 "2026-05-04T17:23:58Z")
Nobody who thought a comedy biography of Albert Einstein where he’s Australian, and instead of coming up with the theory of relativity, invents a method of putting bubbles in beer, could possibly be serious. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/102 "2026-05-04T17:41:26Z")
I give Thunderbirds a pass, mainly because it has the most hilarious scene of any movie ever. In scene the main character is about to take off in the rocket. The camera does a close up of the guy’s hand on the throttle. You see several strings attached to his hand. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/103 "2026-05-04T17:47:49Z")
> [@sciurophobic](#): > > Nobody who thought a comedy biography of Albert Einstein where he’s Australian, and instead of coming up with the theory of relativity, invents a method of putting bubbles in beer, could possibly be serious. One might even consider such a person to be a yahoo. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/104 "2026-05-04T18:54:49Z")
I know those words, but those posts make no sense. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/105 "2026-05-04T19:06:13Z")
An Australian, with the stage name “Yahoo Serious,” made and starred in a comedy film called “Young Einstein,” with the plot described by @sciurophobic . [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096486/](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096486/) ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/106 "2026-05-04T19:08:47Z")
Indeed 🙂 [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/xq0XNILIYTw/hqdefault.jpg "I know those words, but that sign makes no sense") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xq0XNILIYTw) ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/107 "2026-05-04T22:19:17Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > If you have seen the movie, you know that they completely neutered the comic book character’s “foulmothed sarcastic” personality: he was generally depicted as a “nice guy.” On the other hand, the comic book character had a very niche appeal, even back then (it was a strange, surrealistic comic book, not like any thing else that Marvel or DC were publishing), and was not at all well known by the general public in 1986 (when comic book movies, other than Superman, were just not a thing). The complaint about Howard in the movie is he was too cuddly and his voice didn’t match what the comic’s readers thought it would sound like. I, for one, always imagined him sounding like Walter Matthau. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/108 "2026-05-04T22:51:34Z")
(Don’t tell Yorgos Lanthimos!) I remember when “Joe Dirt”, which I have never seen but it still plays regularly on TV, was in the theaters, and the ads said “ZERO Academy Award nominations! ZERO Golden Globe nominations!” They knew what they had LOL. While we’re on the subject, my sister couldn’t resist this jigsaw puzzle when she saw it for sale. > **[Funware - 101 Pooping Puppies 1,000 Piece Puzzle](https://southernagriculture.com/products/101-pooping-puppies-1-000-piece-puzzle?currency=USD&country=US&variant=40015169290419&stkn=d676985bf62d&utm_campaign=gs-2021-07-14&utm_source=google&utm_medium=smart_campaign&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=17508739089&gbraid=0AAAAAD4G6cEnFITSqUkHy8_mLB3XUMvzg&gclid=Cj0KCQjwh-HPBhCIARIsAC0p3ce25CeP3vHdgzNThEfHrE_297IQvW4F9DGDPok-slfB7XNvKr4_-FUaAkIIEALw_wcB)** > > 101 Pooping Puppies 1,000 Piece Puzzle  A fun and challenging puzzle for anyone with a good sense of humor. If 1 pooping pooch is funny, then you’ll get a barrel of laughs putting a puzzle of 101 together! 1,000 Piece Puzzle Completed 27" x 19" Shop... ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/109 "2026-05-04T22:52:37Z")
> [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > Disco itself pretty much fell off the charts in 1979. By the summer of 1980 disco was pretty much as dead as 1950s cocktail lounge music. And just when we thought it was dead and gone Kiss, Wings, and Lipps Inc came around with disco hits in '79 and '80. Goodnight Tonight was really pathetic and I liked Wings. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/110 "2026-05-04T22:56:08Z")
I saw the first four “Sharknado” movies on TV. My favorite scene was towards the end of “Sharknado 2” where ZZ Top were extras in a panicked subway scene, and in “Sharknado 4,” there’s a scientist who walks around in the halls, and whenever he does this, two very attractive lingerie-clad Asian models do The Catwalk behind him, and any companions he may have with him. I’m a straight woman, and I thought that was hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/111 "2026-05-04T23:25:45Z")
Unfortunately (?) I haven’t seen any of the sequels because I mostly watch movies with my wife and she groans at the very mention of “Sharknado”. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/112 "2026-05-04T23:40:27Z")
I never saw any of the Sharknado movies but I don’t think they were aiming for high art. They knew they were making something comedic. (Whether or not they succeeded in that, I cannot say.) ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/113 "2026-05-04T23:45:49Z")
_Back to the Future_ I mean, you have this teenager, and his best friend is a disgraced nuclear physicist… Actually, John Mulaney explains it better (Jump to 40 seconds because I don’t know how to cue it up) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/I2nvxXSJBGE/maxresdefault.jpg "Back To The Future") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2nvxXSJBGE) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/114 "2026-05-04T23:50:31Z")
At this point does “cinematic shitshow” have any meaning whatsoever? ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2026, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/115 "2026-05-04T23:57:40Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > At this point does “cinematic shitshow” have any meaning whatsoever Forgive me. It’s a comedy bit about getting Back to the Future greenlit (“we thought it’d be funny if the boy went back in time and tried to fuck his mom.”) My more sincere contribution is the only movie I ever walked out of. > **[The Pest (1997 film)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pest_(1997_film))** > > The Pest is a 1997 American black comedy film inspired by the classic 1924 Richard Connell short story "The Most Dangerous Game". > Comedian John Leguizamo plays a Puerto Rican con artist in Miami, Florida named Pestario Vargas (also known as "Pest") who agrees to be the human target for a German manhunter for a $50,000 reward. > The film was released by TriStar Pictures on February 7, 1997. So the pitch is that you’re just going to be _annoying_? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/116 "2026-05-05T00:19:53Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > Clue (1985) is one of the best (light) movies ever made. I totally agree. I even use a quote from it (not that anyone gets it) “Too Late!”. > [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > The poster child for this has to be **Casino Royale** (1967). The first part (and iirc the first director) with David Niven is very good. To me, Niven was one of the best Bonds. The last parts- with Woody Allen- are terrible. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > We have to stop bringing up successful films that are on our personal shit list, in my opinion. Good point. > [@Steven\_Maven](#): > > Nobody sets out to make a bad movie. Ed Wood. > [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](#): > > Going back awhile and trying to stay with the topic, who decided to Greenlight _Popeye_ back in 1980? Great film, I love it. Ebert liked it. Rotten Tomatoes kinda likes it. The gross wasnt bad at all. > [@Locrian](#): > > Forrest Gump. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > We have to stop bringing up successful films that are on our personal shit list, in my opinion. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > Forrest Gump was an incredible success and doesn’t belong here. Right. > [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > Why do people here continue to think that just because _they_ don’t like a film most other people do, that it was a mistake to make it? Right. Look, I get complaints about **Casino Royale** (1967) (Had some great moments, but…), and even maybe **Popeye**. But once you bring up Forrest Gump in this thread- that just wrong. Now, I respect that someone didnt like Forrest Gump, thats fine, “De gustibus non est disputandum”, but that is not this thread. > [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > _ **Ishtar** _ was a notorious bomb Good one, but on paper-it looked great! > [@Lumpy](#): > > I actually saw _ **Ishtar** _ in theater and while it left no impression I can remember now, I think I understand what they were aiming for: to somehow revive/ pay tribute to the “The Road To” movies of Bing Crosby and Bob Hope. Clearly someone was swayed by nostalgia, but they just didn’t pull it off. Yep > [@pkbites](#): > > Has anyone mentioned _ **Heavens Gate** _ yet? Another film that looked great- on paper. We can understand why it was greenlit. But it turned into a pile of manure. > [@Lumpy](#): > > The OP is asking why obvious losers were greenlit. The thing is, if a dubious concept somehow made good at the box office, then whoever greenlit it either got very lucky or else somehow saw potential that others did not. Right. Heavens Gate and Ishtar should have been greenlit- they just werent made correctly. > [@Cheesesteak](#): > > Movies that are solid pitchable ideas that were poorly executed. Yep, those two for example- > [@Cheesesteak](#): > > I mean Heaven’s Gate pitch was an epic western with top talent directed by a guy who just won an Oscar. Yeah, it turned out to be a disaster but greenlighting it wasn’t necessarily a bad concept. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/117 "2026-05-05T00:31:24Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > Forgive me. It’s a comedy bit about getting Back to the Future greenlit (“we thought it’d be funny if the boy went back in time and tried to fuck his mom.”) I never saw that motherfucking version of Back to the Future. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/118 "2026-05-05T00:36:06Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > Forgive me. It’s a comedy bit about getting Back to the Future greenlit (“we thought it’d be funny if the boy went back in time and tried to fuck his mom.”) And if anything, the mother made a pass at the kid. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/119 "2026-05-05T00:43:04Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I never saw that motherfucking version of Back to the Future. “He doesn’t get to! He doesn’t get to! Because this family friend named Biff he comes in and tries to rape the mom in front of the son. The dads got to beat the rapist off of her. And also we’re going to imply that a white man wrote Johnny B Goode.” It’s all in the delivery. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703/120 "2026-05-05T01:00:32Z")
_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. While production might not have been a shit show, I don’t understand how someone could have looked at this and thought, “Yeah, this will be a decent movie.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-greenlighted-this-cinematic-shitshow/1029703.md?page=7)