Okay, it’s question time: What do you think the worst film ever made is? Now that a title has popped into your head, I want you to think about what it is about this specific film that makes you loathe it so much. Unlikable characters? Poor production values? Bad acting? All of these factors can play into reasons why someone doesn’t like a movie.
But on the flipside, they can also make what is critically considered a bad movie, a great one. Whether you choose to call them “guilty pleasures” or think of them as cult classics, we all enjoy movies that we know aren’t the best on an artistic level but watch and enjoy anyway for reasons ranging from the fact that some films are just the cinematic comfort food to they offer good background noise. I’ll give you an example. I’ve seen the 1991 Christina Applegate comedy Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead at least 20 times. For those of you who haven’t seen this masterpiece, it stars Applegate as the oldest of five slacker siblings who is forced to get a job in order to feed her family after the babysitter tasked with caring for the brood dies while their mother is off on a lavish vacation in Australia. It’s a silly movie for sure, but one that is elevated due to charming performances from Applegate — who consistently has proven herself as an underrated comedic actress — as well as Keith Coogan, Joanna Cassidy and a pre-fame David Duchovny. Yes, the premise is so bonkers that you have to just go with it, and the climatic finale set at a backyard fashion show is the height of late-80s silliness. But still, this is a fun flick that while is not what is typically thought of by society as “good” is entertaining nonetheless, and to me I’d rather watch a movie that is entertaining than what that is critically lauded but dull any day of the way. (I’ll spare you my thoughts on how this film along with Adventures in Babysitting and The Secret of My Success form an unofficial trilogy that speak volumes about the role of capitalism in the 1980s for another time).
This is just one of many films that I feel this way about. What are yours? For this weekend’s Open Thread, I want you to tell us what “bad” movies you enjoy and why. And remember, as long as they give you enjoyment, there’s no such thing as a “bad” movie. Like what you like, and feel no guilt whatsoever.