So Bad It's Good

You know the phrase that something was "so bad that is was good"? I am a firm believer that movies can be so horrible that it makes them great. My love for cheesy films stems from a steady diet of Mystery Science Theater 3000 as a kid. It was, and still is to this day, my favourite television show. What's not to love about a bunch of guys riffing bad movies? It's fantastic.

However, in his book A Year at the Movies, Kevin Murphey (voice of Tom Servo and writer for MST3K) says that he doesn't like bad movies. He's never seen a movie that was so bad, he liked it. Granted, this man has made his living for over 20 years watching countless awful movies over and over again just to write a few funny jokes. For that, I am thankful, but I can see where he is coming from.

I still love bad movies though. I can watch them without the riffs, without the laughs. Why? Well, first off, I eventually adopted the ways of the MST3K crew and started riffing movies on my own. I now even riff television shows, commercials, music videos... It seems I can't watch anything without making jokes.

But there is something else. Why do I love bad movies so much? Obviously, I am a huge fan of independently made films. Big budgets, great computer graphics, well know Hollywood actors... I don't believe you need that to make a substationally good movie. I've become very cynical toward most movies these days. I don't give them a chance if their budget is like $8230948 million with a cornicopia of a big cast.

There is just something about anyone who wants to make a movie picking up a hand held camera, gathering a bunch of friends with different talents and making a movie together. You wouldn't have half of the classic horror movies out there if it wasn't for this DYI ethic. Do you know who we have to thank for that? Edward D. Wood Jr. Hands down, worst director, writer, producer and actor of all time. His film Plan 9 from Outer Space has been voted The Worst Movie of All Time thirty years in a row and rightfully so. The sets are made of cardboard, the actors don't know their lines (or refuse to say them), the acting is stilted, the writing is horrible.

Yet, this movie is a classic. Many directors cite Wood as influence including Tim Burton who immortalized Wood in the film Ed Wood starring Johnny Depp as the title character. (Great movie, by the way. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. It's Burton's second best - right after Big Fish.) It was his motivation to go out there and do what he loved to do. It's definitely inspirational.

So the next time you're at the movie store (or browsing Netflix) don't just overlook a film because you haven't heard of it. Give it a chance. Maybe it'll totally suck, or maybe you'll actually find a great movie that didn't get the credit it was due because Tom Cruise wasn't playing the lead. Or just maybe, it'll be so bad that it's good.