April 29, 2024 | Jamie Hayes

Movies That Have Been Called "The Worst Film Of All Time"


What's The Worst Movie Of All Time?

The "Worst Movie Ever Made" is a matter of taste at the end of the day—but whatever you think it is, I bet you can find it here. Each of these movies has been called, at one time or another, the worst film of all time.

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An American Hippie in Israel (1972)

In Israel, An American Hippie in Israel has a cult following like The Rocky Horror Picture Show in North America—but not because it's good. IndieWire called it "a serious candidate for the worst movie of all time".

An American Hippie in IsraelAlmog Film Israel, An American Hippie in Israel (1972)

Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever (2002)

Based on a Gameboy Advance game and directed by a guy named Kaos, critics called Antonio Banderas and Lucy Liu's Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever "a picture for idiots" and "a fine achievement in stupidity and dullness".  That landed it at #1 on Rotten Tomatoes' 2007 "Worst of the Worst" list.

Ballistic: Ecks vs. SeverFranchise Pictures, Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever (2002)

Batman & Robin (1997)

There's The Dark Knight, then there's...Batman & Robin. Michael J. Nelson from Mystery Science Theatre 3000 wrote: "Batman & Robin is not the worst movie ever. No, indeed. It's the worst thing ever. Yes, it's the single worst thing that we as human beings have ever produced in recorded history".

Batman & Robin (1997)Warner Bros., Batman & Robin (1997)

Battlefield Earth (2000)

You think there's no way that John Travolta's sci-fi Scientology epic Battlefield Earthis as bad as they say it is. And then you watch it...

Battlefield Earth (2000)Warner Bros., Battlefield Earth (2000)

Caligula (1979)

When Gore Vidal calls your erotic movie one of the worst films ever made, you know you messed up.

Caligula (1979)Penthouse Films International, Caligula (1979)

Cats (2019)

Cats is a 2019 motion capture, computer-animated adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's abstract musical based on the even-more abstract works of T.S. Eliot.  It was completely destroyed by critics when it came out, and by the end of the year at least one critic had called it "The Worst Film Ever Made".

cats movie Jennifer HudsonWorking Title Films, Cats (2019)

Catwoman (2004)

If you hate superhero moves now, you should see Catwoman. It would make you feel grateful for Madame Web.

Catwoman (2004)Warner Bros., Catwoman (2004)

Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)

William Friedkin's The Exorcist is widely considered one of, if not the greatest horror film of all time. The director of The Heretic, John Boormanhated the original. He wanted to make an "antidote" to is One critic described it as "like someone deciding to do a Mona Lisa 2, but with a moustache". Good line.

Linda Blair in Exorcist II: The Heretic 1977Warner Bros., Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)

Freddy Got Fingered (2001)

How many movies that have been called "The Worst Film Of All Time" are featured in the Criterion Collection? At least one! Tom Green's Freddie Got Fingered, which he wrote, directed, and starred in.

Freddy Got Fingered (2001)New Regency, Freddy Got Fingered (2001)

From Justin to Kelly (2003)

Look, the first season of American Idol was a cultural phenomenon. Making a movie starring finalists Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini made total sense.  Who could have predicted it would be such a mess that Time called it "a monstrous Idol movie musical that in the most generous light is the worst film so far this century".

From Justin to Kelly (2003)19 Entertainment, From Justin to Kelly (2003)

Gigli (2003)

Similar to From Justin to Kelly, a Bennifer romantic comedy, at the height of their fame as a couple, seemed like it couldn't miss. They even got Martin Brest to direct, he made some of the best movies ever Well, with this one, he made one of the worst movies ever.

Gigli (2003)Columbia, Gigli (2003)

Glen or Glenda (1953)

One of the most infamous "worst movies" ever, Ed Wood's passion project about a man named Glen who cross-dresses as Glenda. One critic called it "the most catastrophic failure of his singularly bad career".

Glen or GlendaScreen Classics, Glen or Glenda (1953)

Glitter (2001)

Mariah Carey is a star, and no one can ever take that away from her. But is she a movie star? No. Glitter proved that. Flavorwire, Screen Rant,Vanity Fair, Metacritic, and Empire have all called it one of the worst films ever made.

Glitter (2001)Twentieth Century, Glitter (2001)

Heaven's Gate (theatrical version, 1980)

Heaven's Gate was Michael Cimino's passion project gone wrong. It ended up bankrupting United Artists, ruining Cimino's career, and Roger Ebert called it "the most scandalous cinematic waste I've ever seen".

Heaven's Gate (1980)United Artists, Heaven's Gate (1980)

Howard the Duck (1986)

The headline of the Boston Globe's review of Howard the Duck in 1986 was "They Don't Get Much Worse Than Howard". But it technically was the first ever Marvel movie, so it'll always have a place in history for that.

Howard the Duck (1986)Marvel, Howard the Duck (1986)

Ishtar (1987)

For years, Elaine May's Ishtar was considered a completely debacle, a public embarrassment, and one of the worst films of all time. There was a famous Far Side cartoon making fun of it But here's the twist: Ishtar is pretty good. Gary Larson admitted that he made the cartoon without even seeing the movie. Later, when he actually saw it, he apologized.

Ishtar (1987) Warren Beatty Dustin HoffmanColumbia, Ishtar (1987)

Loqueesha (2019)

Comedian Jeremy Saville independently wrote, directed, produced, and starred in Loqueesha, in which he plays a radio host who gets rich and famous impersonating a Black woman on the radio The Guardian said, "The worst film ever made. Worse than The Room, in every way. The one-star rating it currently has on IMDb is actively generous".

Loqueesha (2019)The Best Movie, Loqueesha (2019)

Mac and Me (1988)

Mac and Me, a shameless ET knockoff about a boy in a wheelchair who befriends an Alien, is a total piece of junk—but it spawned Paul Rudd's never-ending Conan bit, so it was all worth it.

Mac and Me (1988)MGM, Mac and Me (1988)

Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966)

insurance and fertilizer salesman Hal P. Warren was convinced that anyone could make a horror movie, and he set out to prove it.  The result was Manos: The Hands of Fate, and it conclusively proved that no, not everyone can make a horror movie.

Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966)Sun City Films, Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966)

Movie 43 (2013)

Dennis Quaid, Greg Kinnear, Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Liev Schreiber, Naomi Watts, Anna Faris, Emma Stone, Richard Gere, Uma Thurman, Chloë Grace Moretz, Gerard Butler, Halle Berry, Stephen Merchant, Kristen Bell, Terrence Howard, Elizabeth Banks, Kate Bosworth, Johnny Knoxville, Justin Long, Chris Pratt, Josh Duhamel, and Jason Sudeikis All of them appeared in one of the worst movies ever made: Peter Farrelly's Movie 43, consisting of a series of gross-out vignettes.

Movie 43 (2013)Relativity Media, Movie 43 (2013)

Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957)

No one can say Ed Wood lacked for effort, but unfortunately that's not always enough. The Golden Turkey Awards dubbed it the "Worst Film Ever" in 1980.

vampira plan 9 from outer space, Reynolds Pictures, Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957)

Reefer Madness (1936)

Originally called Tell Your Children, Leonard Maltin called the 1936 anti-drug propaganda film Reefer Madness "the grand-daddy of all 'Worst' movies".

Reefer Madness (1936)George A. Hirliman Productions, Reefer Madness (1936)

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964)

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians at least has one thing going for it: It's the only legendarily bad movie to have been featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000, Rifftrax, and Cinematic Titanic. T

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964)Jalor Productions, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964)

Showgirls (1995)

Showgirls was a shoe-in for the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Film—and even better, director Paul Verhoeven became the first person ever to attend the ceremony to accept the awards in person Think he got the last laugh, though.

Showgirls (1995)Carolco Pictures, Showgirls (1995)

Super Mario Bros. (1993)

Bob Hoskins, Mario himself, called Super Mario Bros. "the worst thing I ever did". It also started a 30-year curse over any kind of Mario movie before they finally broke it in 2023.

Super Mario Bros. filmHollywood Pictures, Super Mario Bros.(1993)

The Babe Ruth Story (1948)

When Hall of Famer Ted Williams calls your Babe Ruth biopic the worst movie he has ever seen, you know you've really messed up.

The Babe Ruth Story (1948)Roy Del Ruth Productions, The Babe Ruth Story (1948)

The Conqueror (1956)

"Hey Pilgrims, it's me Genghis Khan and I'm gonna conquer you". An honestly not too far off impression of John Wayne as Genghis Khan in The Conqueror. Let's not even get into the crew members who got cancer from shooting near a nuclear testing range... "Worst Movie Of All Time" doesn't even cover it.

John Wayne Publicity Photo 1952 in suitUnknown author, Wikimedia Commons

The Garbage Pail Kids Movie (1987)

No one had very high expectations for The Garbage Pail Kids Movie, despite the involvement of Pulitzer Prize-winning creator Art Spiegelman. But no one expected it to be THIS bad The New York Times called it "too repulsive for children or adults of any age".

The Garbage Pail Kids Movie (1987)Atlantic Entertainment Group, The Garbage Pail Kids Movie (1987)

The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies (1964)

The first-ever "Monster Musical," The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies managed to take the #1 spot on the 2004 DVD of The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made.

The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies (1964)Morgan-Steckler Productions, The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies (1964)

The Last Airbender (2010)

You would think hiring M. Night Shyamalan to adapt a popular children's TV series would be a slam dunk. They even gave him $150 million to do it Ebert, as always, put it best: "The Last Airbender is an agonizing experience in every category I can think of and others still waiting to be invented".

The Last Airbender (2010)Paramount , The Last Airbender (2010)

The Master of Disguise (2002)

"Am I not turtle-y enough for the...Turtle Club?" I don't see the problem here.

The Master of Disguise (2002)Revolution Studios, The Master of Disguise (2002)

The Room (2003)

There's a reason they call Tommy Wiseau's The Room "The Citizen Kane of bad movies". It's impossible to really describe it. You'll have to just go see it—it's probably playing at a small theatre near you at least once this week.

The Room (2003)Wiseau-Films, The Room (2003)

They Saved Hitler's Brain (1968)

Is it possible for a movie to have have the best title of all time and be the worst film of all time? Yup: They Saved Hitler's Brain, from 1968.

They Saved Hitler's Brain (1968)Paragon Films Inc., They Saved Hitler's Brain (1968)

Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023)

Now that Winnie-the-Pooh is in the public domain, no one could stop the twisted horror version of Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey from coming out. Well, maybe someone should have. It's came out in 2023 and it's already being called one of the worst movies ever made.

Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023)ITN Distribution, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023)


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