There are movies that are generally agreed upon as being among the best so-bad-it’s-good cinema, garnering a cult following or finding infamy through shows like MST3K. Yet, there is so much rich film history full of bad decisions and misguided passion projects that get overlooked; new bad movies are still being discovered, with titles like Miami Connection and New York Ninja lost films that got some love when they were remastered; the American Genre Film Association (AGFA), in particular, remasters new gems on a regular basis. The world of streaming has also helped more good, bad movies become available, with platforms like Tubi ideal for finding entertaining trash.
I have been scrapping the bottom of the cinematic barrel for decades, with some like-minded film fans who adore bad acting, boom mikes in shot, and a good dummy thrown from a building. These 15 films present some of the most outrageous and least known (or forgotten) so-good-its-bad films you can find.
‘Pledge Night’ (1990)
Monster attack in ‘Pledge Night’ (1990)Shapiro-Glickenhaus Entertainment
A supernatural slasher, Pledge Night follows the vengeful spirit of a pranked-to-death college student who returns after a black-magic ritual is performed on a new group of students being welcomed into a fraternity. The vengeful spirit, a pledge named Sidney “Sid” Snyder, died in an accidental dip into an acid bath, giving him a ghastly appearance as he stalks the fraternity bros.
Starting with the crude comedy of a college movie, Pledge Night deviates into some bizarre horror as the monster, Sid, enjoys popping up from toilets and possessing the bodies of others. It is a winning combo of silly kills and some crass humor; Sid very much has those budgeted Freddy Krueger vibes. The movie is actually not that bad; it certainly has its charms with kills, but for those whose version of so-bad-it’s-good usually just falls under B-horror, this one is a hidden gem.
‘Eliminators’ (1986)
Mandroid with a robot and scientest in the action movie EliminatorsEmpire Pictures
There is a whole plethora of bad Terminator rip-off movies, many of which are not good, unless you want a shot-for-shot remake with a black magic twist like Lady Terminator. A lot of these films are just bad, but there are a few that are somewhat inventive and fun; 1986’s Eliminators falls in this category. Here, a man-turned-murderbot gets its conscience back, and decides instead to do good, joining a rag-tag bunch of people (including a “cute” chripping robot) to stop its inventor from activating a world-ending device.
The design of Mandroid is pretty spectacular. They even have the actor in a makeshift tank body going downstairs at one point; it is a scene that induces anxiety and feels like a lawsuit waiting to happen. There is also some enjoyable banter between the motley crew, and the villain is overly evil in an uproarious way. The action is solid throughout, but the Mandroid’s design and execution keep the movie feeling cheap and silly; the perfect balance for a so-bad-it’s-good film.
‘Howling III’ (1987)
Woman transforms in ‘Howling III’ (1987)CBS/Fox Video
An ideal way to try to find a so-bad-its-good gem is to dig into sequels of a middling franchise. Series like Leprechaun and Children of the Corn have a few later entries that fall into this territory. The Howling, a moderate cult hit, would spin off into 8 films, but the third one, Howling III: The Marsipuals, is the best if you love bad cinema. Here, the franchise goes to Australia and centers on two different werewolf factions joining forces to mate and carry on their family line.
There are some wonderfully absurd and inventive sequences here, including a werewolf turning mid-ballet performance. The plot goes to some pretty bizarre lengths, including the birth of an adorable half-marsupial/half-human. The movie has a pretty decent layer of polish, and even the silly effects are delivered with a lot of skill and care, making it feel much less cheap than it is.
‘Psycho Pike’ (1992)
Fish attack in ‘Psycho Pike’ (1992)Water Wolf Production
Oh, Canada, you have given the world so many so-bad-it’s-good gems; The Final Sacrifice remains one of the best films covered on MST3k. Psycho Pike is a film that was kind of lost to history, with only a crude rip of it out there, which is a shame. The movie delivers some pretty wonderfully bizarre deaths involving a large pike puppet, tackles themes of pollution, and features a colorful cast of eccentric characters whose livelihoods depend on the Great Lakes.
Shot on video, this one is a microbudget affair, but the filmmakers make the most of it, delivering memorable kills and characters that make it oddly engaging. The cheese is dripping throughout every moment of this film, but in an age where streaming is flooded with bad shark and Amityville movies, Psycho Pike feels oddly nostalgic for a bygone era when people would make these kinds of features for love of the genre as opposed to trying to trick the algorithm to get views.
‘Prey of the Jaguar’ (1996)
Stacey Keach in ‘Prey of the Jaguar’ (1996)Echo Bridge Entertainment
DC and Marvel don’t hold the exclusive rights to bad superhero movies, as the genre’s popularity would also see plenty of straight-to-video films, many of which have been covered in MST3k, such as Pumaman and Danger: Diabolik. One such hero is ‘The Jaguar,’ a man whose family is murdered for his past work as a secret agent, who dons the costume his child created to get revenge.
There is a solid foundation here, with some decent gadgetry, action sequences, and a grim backstory that pushes the drama forward. Yet, you do get a budgeted Batman, with as many goofy fight sequences as there are well-choreographed ones. Moreover, the villains here are ‘too evil,’ a feat that is hard to pull off, but the movie just delivers sequence after sequence that pound home the fact that we are dealing with amoral baddies in an awkward way. The cast here also has some B-movie staples, including Linda Blair, Stacey Keech, Paul Bartel, and Trevor Goddard, who infamously played Kano in 1995’s Mortal Kombat.
‘Dragon Hunt’ (1990)
Twin brothers in ‘Twin Dragon Encounter’ (1986)Shapiro-Glickenhaus Entertainment
Dragon Hunt stars twin martial artists, Michael and Martin McNamara, who take their girlfriend on a camping trip to a cabin on an island. Yet, they soon find themselves the target of an old nemesis, who begins to hunt them with his crew for entertainment. The two brothers won’t go down without a fight, and after their girlfriends are captured, they go on the offensive.
If you want a good indicator of a Canadian classic in horror or action, look for a bit of unnecessary politeness, as the first encounter in Dragon Hunt is the most polite bar fight scene you will find anywhere. The martial arts here are actually decent, but it is generally ruined by bad cinematography. There is also a lot of awkwardness between the two brothers, both in their interactions and in their dialogue.
‘The Catcher’ (1998)
Bloodied baseball player in ‘The Catcher’ (1998)
This slasher opens up with Joe Estevez collecting a check and ensuring there is one notable name on the poster, as he berates his young son at baseball, only to be murdered. This is the makings of our slasher villain, and we cut to many decades later, as the young kid has grown up and is a professional baseball player on a losing streak, about to get cut. This triggers something in him, which leads to a murderous spree.
Sports horror movies are few and far between, as most of them end up being awful. This one is no exception, with the movie never given the love of other obscure slashers, existing only in low-quality, grainy VHS rips. If you don’t mind the quality, what this one thrives in is the over-acting – Joe Estevez is so wonderfully delirious for the two minutes he appears – and the baseball-themed kills. Like any good slasher, it will have those moments where you cheer on a bizarre kill, but the rest of the elements are enjoyably bad.
‘Double Trouble’ (1992)
Show of hands. Who remembers the Barbarian Brothers, Peter and David Paul? This is a shame as the duo was actually oddly charismatic, but they never really found success after the 1987 The Barbarians, where they had little in the way of dialogue; meaty muscle men who let their swords speak for them. Here, the two flex their comedic muscles as two bumbling security guards who accidentally become the targets of an evil organization in a case of mistaken identity. So-bad-its-good staple Roddy Piper also co-stars.
The comedy is cringeworthy, but the action delivers. Moreover, the twin weightlifting brothers ham it up to a level that would make William Shatner blush. Still, the two always bring a lot of energy to their films, and here, their balance of action and comedy is a complementary mix. The movie is still horrible, but there are enough entertaining elements to make it a riot with a group of friends.
‘Flyin Ryan’ (2003)
Poster art from ‘Flyin Ryan’ (2003)Concorde-New Horizons
For adults, many kids’ movies are inherently bad because they’re aimed at a younger audience, and there are only a few that fall into the so-bad-it’s-good category. Titles like Quigley (2003), The Peanut Butter Solution (1985), and The Skateboard Kid (1993) have a modicum of infamy in the so-bad-its-good sphere, but one often overlooked is Flyin’ Ryan. An ideal kid fantasy feature, the movie follows the titular teen, who earns the ability to fly when he finds magical shoes. Of course, he uses his powers for good and to build up his confidence.
The world of Flyin’ Ryan is odd, as it is essentially a marketing movie for Nike’s Shox line of shoes. This becomes painfully obvious early on, with the heavy-handed highlighting of the shoes, which is humorous in itself. However, it is the world that Ryan lives in that becomes awkwardly comedic as everyone hates him with a passion for apparently existing. Add in the horrible and silly flying effects, especially when he is fighting adults, stilted acting, bad cinematography, and editing, and Flyin’ Ryan is a fun mess for older film fans.
‘Disembodied’ (1998)
Woman arranging potatoes in ‘Disembodied’ (1998)
Think Frank Hennenlotter meets David Lynch, and you get a rough idea of the utter absurdity of Disembodied. The film follows Connie Sproutz, a bizarre young woman who keeps her brain in a jar and is infected with a mold-like parasite that gives her psychic (and psychedelic) powers and the need to feed on others. On the run, she lands in the dingiest hotel you will ever see in film history and makes friends with a few of the residents. Connie is both the protagonist and antagonist of our story.
You won’t find any mention of this straight-to-video oddity when discussing the best horror of the 90s, because it is so utterly bizarre and grim that it becomes an acquired taste. Yet, it still manages to hit that so-bad-it’s-good mark with some baffling pseudo-science, eccentric characters, and a unique flow that often leads to unintentional humor. For those who like experimental films, the movie does land in that very rare niche of being both artistically inclined and entertainingly bad.