There are bad movies. There are good movies. And then there are good movies about being bad. This week we are covering the top 10 movies with “bad” in the title in honor of the recent release of “Bad Education”. If you enjoy some comedy that springs from awkwardness, this is the list for you.
I love Jason Segel. When he isn’t carrying the emotional heart of “How I Met Your Mother”, he is off doing some really quality comedic gems. In Bad Teacher, he provides a similar heart as we follow him and our unlikable lead in Cameron Diaz. Diaz goes all in on this teacher from hell role and truly seeks to earn the words “morally repugnant” as the description of her behavior and attitude to her students. The worse she is as a character the funnier it gets and you’ll find yourself laughing the whole way through. (Blake Hodges)
On paper Bad Grandpa shouldn’t work. It’s a hybrid between real life pranks/gags in the vein of another Johnny Knoxville property, Jackass, that is inter-spliced with a story to keep the plot moving forward. Being a fan of Jackass I thought that this could be fun, but it was a gamble considering that I thought the story bits would be a risk because Jackass didn’t have that formula. Boy, was I pleasantly surprised! Bad Grandpa follows Irving (Johnny Knoxville) and his grandson, Billy, as they take a cross country road trip to North Carolina. What happens next is a series of pranks/gags along the way, running into male strippers, unsuspecting citizens, and a beauty pageant gone crazy. Bad Grandpa is rolling on the floor hilarious. It’s irreverent, gross, inappropriate, and will make you cry tears of laughter. Aside from the joking aspect of it, though, the part I was worried about (the story) is actually quite good and follows the gags along quite seamlessly. If you’re a fan of raunchy humor and Jackass, this is a must. Also, this movie got nominated for a make-up Oscar. These are facts. (Ben Davis)
Okay, I know what you’re thinking. How can a man in his early 20s like a movie about being a middle-aged mom? Well, the answer is surprisingly simple. You get Jackie…I mean Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Kathryn Hahn, and you just let them do their thing. While most of the plot centers on what it’s like to be a mom, the film finds a fantastic message in learning to be okay with all of your flaws and not letting anyone’s ideals influence your life as long as you’re having fun with the people you love. (Austin Belzer)
Michael Bay has made a living off of making high octane action films with his signature gunfights, carchases and most of all, explosions. The prototype for all that would be 1995’s Bad Boy’s starring Martin Lawrance and Will Smith. Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) and Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) are Miami Detectives in charge of protecting a murder witness while also investigating a possible drug deal that is goign to take place. While not having the most complex plot, this Action/Comedy thrives due to its extremely fast pace and the chemistry between Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. Every time they are on screen together you can’t help but chuckle at their banter. Also having a setup where the two have to role reverse and act like one another helps with comedic situations greatly. While this film boasts tons of comedy, it doesn’t lack in the action department in the slightest. The movie has some excellent car chases, shootouts and explosions. It more than delivers in those areas with intertwining the laughs effortlessly. To backtrack to the stars of the film. Martin Lawrence gets top billing in this entry as Marcus. He has some of the funniest scenes in the film with him trying to juggle his marriage and protecting witness, Julie Mott (Tea Leoni). Their back and forths are full of laughs throughout their time together hiding in Mike’s luxurious apartment. Smith proved here that he was more than ready to make the leap to the silver screen. He showed a level of natural charisma like no other and revealed that he was capable of being a bonafide action star. Michael Bay successfully combined the talents of his stars and created a stylish Action/Comedy that is still talked about today. Bay blended genuine laughs with great buddy cop action. This film launched a franchise that is still thriving today with Bad Boys for Life just this year. Bad Boys, Bad Boys whatcha gonna do?! Well you’re going to watch this great buddy cop action film, that’s what you gonna do. (Joe Vargas)
Seth Rogen comedies tend to blend together in the collection of movies he’s made over the years. Bad Neighbors is the one that stands above the fog. For one, it shows that actors like Zach Efron can easily do comedy if they’re given the right role. Bad Neighbors is about a couple with their newborn baby (Seth Rogen, and Rose Byrne) who start experiencing issues in their neighborhood when a fraternity run by Zach Efron and Dave Franco move in next door. After keeping them up all night with their music and constantly partying, while realizing that they can’t move from that area at that time, the couple and their friends decide to take it into their own hands by going to war with the fraternity. If you’ve seen a comedy staring Seth Rogen then you know to expect that raunchy type of humor he’s used to doing. My favorite thing about this movie is how great Zach Efron is at playing this terrible frat boy you really hate, but is also doing a great job because he’s an actor that wasn’t used to doing this kind of stuff before. If you still haven’t seen this movie but the cast and premise has caught your attention then I highly recommend this for an evening of laughs. (Alex Henderson)
One actor that is probably connected to the word “Bad” very often is the one and only Nicolas Cage. Whether you are someone who just believes he is a bad actor or someone who believes he just chooses too many bad movies, I think we can all agree that he makes bad choices with his money. Cage is now notorious for taking any offer to make money. But can you imagine if Cage teamed up with a legendary director like Werner Herzog? That would be a great way to flesh out his manic talents, right? Oh wait! There is already Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans! Cage plays a crazed and drugged out cop who sees Iguanas…who can say no to that? Honestly, the off-the-rails performance by Cage is worth the price of admission. But then you get a crime drama centered around the infamous times post Hurricane Katrina. Crazy Cage plus an intriguing crime drama? Count me in! (Shane Conto)
Who doesn’t enjoy watching movies with kids using foul language and doing bad things? The OG movie to feature a group of misbehaving children is the baseball classic, The Bad New Bears. But we can’t just blame the kids for their bad behaviors, I mean look at their coach! Resident drunk and failed ball player, Morris Buttermaker, gets bribed into coaching this ragtag team of misfits. What would be a recipe for disaster for a baseball team? Having kids afraid of the ball? Players who cannot hit or field? A coach who spends more time drunk at practice than sober? I bet the cherry on top would be that your team sponsor is something as inappropriate as everything else like a bail bondsman or something. Walter Matthau was grumpy well before being an old man in this fantastic role. Tatum O’Neil and Jackie Earl Haley carry the cast of kids as well. Who would have guessed this would ever be the biggest box office home run of 1976? (Shane Conto)
Well before Ozark cemented Jason Bateman as just as talented behind the camera, who would have thought Bateman could deliver as a director? There have been plenty of actors turned directors in the history of cinema but how many of them would tackle something as odd as a plot centered around a spelling bee? Allow me to spell it out for you. You have Bateman playing a sarcastic and condescending jerk who exploits a loophole to enter a kids’ spelling bee. Yes…you read that right. Then he befriends a young Indian kid who is his competition. Oh…it gets better. Throw in a mystery surrounding his motivations and you have an unexpectedly fun dark comedy. Bateman delivers tenfold in his cruel humor as he provokes just about everyone in his path. Kathryn Hahn and Allison Janney are great supporting additions to the proceedings. Is this one the deepest and most profound comedy you will watch? Certainly not. But are you a fan of the dry and cutting humor of Jason Bateman? If so, this film will deliver. This chimerical picture is a droll and caustic experience (yes, I looked up those dictionary words). (Shane Conto)
Sometimes I look at the IMDb top 250 list and just feel perplexed. Why is Rear Window so low? Why is Fight Club so high? Why does Joker even sniff this list? But seeing The Good, The Bad and The Ugly at number 9 just feels so right. This is a classic, all-time movie which everyone needs to see at some point. It’s a tale about greed and violence that shows the serious repercussions of those two acts. Clint Eastwood is at the peak of his Spaghetti Western persona playing Blondie, Eli Wallach as a glorious riot as Tuco, and Lee Van Cleef is the perfect menacing villain as Angel Eyes. The movie does lull the tiniest bit in the second act, but when it ramps back up, the showdown at the end is the most tense and nail-biting moment in all of movie history. It also has an iconic score that I heard parodied a thousand times in children’s movies before I’d ever heard of this movie. I have so many more thoughts on this movie, but they can all be boiled down to – go watch it now! (Robert Bouffard)
I didn’t know what to expect when I saw this film. I knew I wanted to see it because of the cast and to see Chris Hemsworth play a bad guy. I mean…C’mon it’s Chris Hemsworth. Moving on, the film is set in 1969, the plot follows seven strangers each hiding a bag secrets before coming together in the El Royale hotel for one night. It starts off with a bang at the beginning but slows down to give us the backgrounds of everyone involved in these hotel rooms. It gives off the neo noir feel to this thriller. It’s definitely dark and fun to watch because you don’t know which way it will go. The cast (Jeff Bridges, Dakota Johnson, Jon Hamm, Cynthia Erivo, etc.) gave great performances, especially Hemsworth as the sinister but charismatic cult leader Billy Lee. I mean if he’s ever a cult leader, I would definitely follow. Even though it wasn’t a QT film, it felt like one. The retro soundtrack, the title cards and of course, the shots of graphic violence. Either way, if you’re looking for a “bad” time, this is a good film for you. (Chantal Ashford)