FAQ
TerraEarth.com
TerraEarth Gallery
Usergroups
Memberlist
Profile
Register
Log in
By definition a "guilty pleasure movie" is something at is:
a) generally viewed as a bad movie.
b) not necessarily well-known, except as a "cult classic"
c) a reasonable person might be ashamed to admit they like it.
These are just general terms though, and don't always apply. Unlike my other list this isn't in any particular order, except my number 1 pick.
10. Event Horizon
Oh wow. Event Horizon. Words don't do how stupid this film is justice. It's about a spaceship that's alive and tries to kill the people who come inside it because it traveled to Hell. As silly as that premise is, I like it and it's hard to explain why. I think its because it taps into all of my inner geek-doms. It's got sci-fi, it's got action and it's got loads of horror. And while the main premise is a tad silly these individual elements are executed fairly well, particularly the horror elements. Not to mention the score kicks ass. If you haven't had a chance to watch this one yet, get some friends, get some alcohol, and enjoy.
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 23% Rotten, 61% Liked It
9. Sphere
Another bad sci-fi movie that I can't stop watching. It does help that it has two of the best actors of their time Dustin Hoffman and Samuel L Jackson and that the story is quite frankly awesome. It's about a scientific team that is summoned to examine an alien ship that crashed in the Pacific Ocean, but more nerve-wracking yet, it appears to have crashed a very long time ago. While I won't dare spoil the plot here, let's just say that it has one of the most interesting plot devices I've seen in a sci-fi movie and while it does have a case of the macguffins, I think it was well executed. That's certainly not the opinion of the general population.
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 12% Rotten, 38% Liked It
8. Cube 2: Hypercube
Yet another bad sci-fi movie that I love to watch. This one, though, is way harder to defend. First off, if you've ever seen the original Cube then you know that this movie series is more about the "What" of sci-fi then the "Why" behind it. Nothing is really explained except what we are told at the outset. These people are stuck in a cube which has seemingly infinite rooms, some of which have deadly traps. Nobody knows how they got there, what they are doing there or (most importantly) how to get out. Like I say not much else is explained and this is more about the spectacle than the story telling. The visual effects for its time are pretty cool, but (again, aside from a killer score) this movie doesn't have much else going for it. And yet I like it. I think I really like the mystery aspect and how it doesn't really explain anything. As frustrating as that is, a bit of mystery is a good thing. Or would be in a better movie.
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 50% Rotten, 40% Liked It
7. Rankin / Bass "The Hobbit"
Shifting Gears from Sci-Fi to Fantasy let's take you on a tour of my childhood. It was this freakin' movie. This was my introduction to Tolkien. Now nobody (or at least surprisingly few) will argue that Ralph Bakshi and Rankin Bass ruined The Lord of the Rings. But this version of The Hobbit I think is pretty good. I prefer the music to the Peter Jackson version with the exception of "Far Over Misty Mountains Cold", which I think sounds much better in the Jackson Version. Here's some samples courtesy of Youtube.
Rankin / Bass Version (Chip The Glasses AND Far Over Misty Mountains)
Peter Jackson Version (Far Over Misty Mountains)
Peter Jackson Version (Chip The Glasses)
Anyways, I also think this version captured the tone of the book better than Jackson's "forced peej conflict" / "lets make a trilogy for no good reason" version. Don't get me wrong I still like his version, but I like this one better... so far.
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 67% Rotten, 54% Liked It
6. The House On Haunted Hill (1959 Version)
This is an oldie but a goodie. As "horror" movies go, it's pretty tame, but honestly I think that's what I like about it. It can't just throw out gore constantly to make it seem creepy nor can the imagery be too scary. It has to rely on the soundtrack, tone, lighting, camerawork and story to make it scary. Now that said it's not the kind of movie that will give you nightmares, but it does create a very good mystery and tells a good story. Plus it stars Vincent Price. So what's the story? Well five people are invited to a supposedly haunted house with the promise that they'll get $10,000 (which in 50s money is roughly the equivalent of a couple hundred thousand dollars today), if they can only stay the night. Campy, but excusable, I find myself turning this movie on very frequently, especially around Halloween.
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 95% Fresh, 70% Liked It
5. Stephen King's "The Langoliers"
Not the best of Stephen King's Works, nor is it the best movie adaptation. But whenever this comes on I will watch this thing start to finish. The story is about an airplane that in a freak accident finds itself in a bleak and empty ghost of the real world, and only a few of the passengers appear to be onboard. It has a great mystery, but the storyline is a tad inane and the Nostalgia Critic did point out that the monster is a bit of a let down. Now as a kid I found it terrifying but I was a kid [read: stupid]. Still a pretty good one to watch if you get the chance though.
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 50% Rotten, 47% Liked It
4. Silent Hill
Video Game Adaptations generally suck. I mean I love Final Fantasy and I can't sit through Final Fantasy: Advent Children but every once in a while. And the less said about Spirits Within the better. So watching Silent Hill was an interesting experience as, sadly, I have never actually played a Silent Hill game. But I did own the Silent Hill 3 Soundtrack at one point and I can tell you right off that musically it isn't only faithful, but identical. And it seems to at the very least get the basics right, which certain films (by a certain, now shut down animation company that shares the name of its video game producti- okay it's a Final Fantasy Spirits Within joke) did not. But still a lot of people, even fans of the game said that this wasn't the greatest (and its sequel has an even worse score...).
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 29% Rotten, 65% Liked It
3. Day of the Dead
This one probably doesn't count as, after all, it is a Romero film. But it never got quite the popularity of Dawn of the Dead or the original Night of the Living Dead. It's viewed as a little over-the-top when the previous films were... well not exactly more subtle, but a bit more grounded in reality... as far as movies about zombies go. But it's that over-the-top nature that my friends and I love and we can quote this thing practically start to finish. The story is the few remaining humans alive are forced to take refuge in an underground bunker and a team of scientists are looking for a way to reverse the Zombie virus. Basic boiler-plate zombie fodder, but executed so well.
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 81% Fresh, 72% Liked It
2. Hook
Dustin Hoffman, Robin Williams and Maggie Smith. If that isn't reason enough to watch this "kids movie" then the fact that it is hilarious (if sometimes childish) and pretty deep (if somewhat sappy) should be more than enough. It's basically the story of Peter Pan as a grown up who has forgotten his life as Peter Pan. However when Captain Hook kidnaps his children, he has to return to Neverland to save them and to do that he must remember who he once was. It's childish, I know, but I love this movie.
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 29% Rotten, 72% Liked It
1. Clue
I will literally watch this movie back-to-back and no matter how many times I watch it I never seem to get bored of it. It stars Tim Curry who is one of my favorite actors in anything and is basically the story of the board game Clue. The unfortunate guests at a dinner party are connected by the murder of Mr. Boddy and must find out who killed him, where and with what. A classic "whodunit" film which interestingly enough actually has three possible endings. In the original theatrical release different showings were shown different endings. Partly as a cool little added fun but (in my opinion) mostly a way to shell in extra funds for repeat viewings. The humor is spot on, the dialogue is fast-paced and witty and it has some of the best slapstick humor in a film. If you haven't seen this yet, you need to watch it.
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 62% Fresh, 85% Liked It
House on Haunted Hill scared the hell out of me when I was younger, and Vincent Price is a badass.
