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Worst Movies of 2016

  • Writer: Brandon Thompson
    Brandon Thompson
  • Dec 28, 2016
  • 4 min read

Movies aren't always good and these five films are good examples. For a movie to be bad I think one of the following needs to happen during the movie - I fall asleep (or at least close to), cringed at, wanting to walk out of, wishing I was drunk so I don't have to remember this movie, or just plain bored. Each of these movies fit into one of those.

So here is a countdown of my least five favorite films of the year.

5. Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

When Life of Pi (Ang Lee's last film) came out in Australia it made $28 million. So you think he's latest would be a box office hit. You're wrong. It made only 77,000. Before the movie was released there was hype around the fact that it was shot in 3D, 4K and at 125 Frames per Second. But there were only two projectors in the USA that could project such a movie so I wasn't surprised to find that no cinema in Australia would have it.

But that's only the first disappointment of this film. For a two time best director Oscar winner you would expect a movie of this calibre to have great writing, cinematography, performances, and direction. Somehow this movie only had some alright supporting performances from Chris Tucker and Kirsten Stewart.

Watching this movie in 25 frames a second makes many shots feel odd and when the actor's body is facing the camera and the actor is looking at the record light on the camera it makes you feel uncomfortable. Some of the characters in this movie don't have a subtext. Said characters only exist for plot, are never developed and just plain boring.

4. Dheepan

You would think the winner of the most prestigious film festival in the world wouldn't make it to a 'worst of' list but here we are. The film about Sri Lankan refugees who move to France. While I'm sure people liked this film I just found this one to be cold when it came to emotion.

I don't think the fact that they were refugees and that I have never (and hopefully won't be) been in that situation had anything to do with my lack of sympathy. I ultimately blame the script. The character's actions didn't make sense to me. There were situations that I thought that most people would just walk away. However the ones here just stay and do nothing.

I read that Jacques Audiard's other films are great and that he should've won the palm d'or for one of those but I'm not to sure I want to go and watch them.

3. Batman V Superman

This is one of the few films in recent memory that I know that my opinion wasn't influenced by anything. I saw it at the IMAX in Sydney the night before the critics embargo was lifted and at that point it was just a handful of people who tweeted about it. They claimed that this was the best DC movie since The Dark Knight and that Ben Affleck was better than Bale.

I walked out of this movie hating it. You think a movie with a budget of $250 would be able to hire someone to point out the flaws. I'm looking at you 'Martha' scene. Zack Snyder likes his characters and script the way he likes his visuals. Cold. Little effort at character development and sometimes the script moves slowly.

If Snyder knew about the screenwriting rule, the upside down triangle, where you begin with an idea and as the scene progresses it should refine that idea and progress story. Someone should invent a comb that goes over scripts and points out the scenes in which this rule isn't followed and then give one to Snyder. Better make a couple. He would probably break a couple because of how much he would use one.

2. The Neon Demon

​I don't feel like writing about this movie in detail so I'll do what seems to be popular now. Write some 'sick burns'.

It's ok to have symbolism in your movie but it won't make up for a bad script. The same can be said for The Neon Demon in terms of cinematography, sound, and Keanu Reeves.

Dear Mr Refn, I understand that art is both subjective and that it allows people to express them selves freely but if this movie is truly about your inner 16 year old girl maybe it should be illegal to have a 16 year old girl inside you.

(this one has spoilers)

I liked how the movie uses cannibalism as a symbol for how it cannibalises itself.

0. Suicide Squad (the number '1' doesn't deserve to be put next to this movie)

Fortunately for me I only paid for one of these movies this year but this one in particular gave me the feeling that I was ripped off even though I got to see it for nothing. If I ever get the chance to work with any of the main cast or crew on this film, I probably won't.

Editing can improve a movie but somehow in this case it made it seems as if the movie was being written in the cinema as we were watching it. At one point the writer took a break and 'copy and pasted' an action scene but they were put together. At one point the editor took 5 slow motion shots to show a character had been hit, and the reaction. I've seen action scenes that do that several times over in one shot.

If there was a film this year that I wish I saw while being drunk enough so I don't have to remember it, it would be this one. Just stop making films DC/Warner Bros.

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So these are my most hated movies of the year. What are yours?


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