#16 Mannequin 2: on the move

IMDB Link

Plot:

A young department store intern falls in love with a female store mannequin who is really a peasant girl fallen under a thousand year spell. She comes to life whenever he removes the cursed necklace from her.

A User Review:

Why oh why did I watch this movie? When I was a kid, I loved Mannequin 1. I guess that's why I thought I would check out this sequel, boy that was a mistake. From the very beginning it is full of flaws. A medieval "peasant girl" rides around in a fancy, satin dress, and comes home to her "quaint" manor house. The characters are all idiotic, the plot is exactly the first movie, only stupider. And by this point Hollywood is no longer new and amusing, he's just irritating. Give this a miss, if you value your time at all. Don't let it waste two hours of your life.

Trivia:

Meshach Taylor reprises his role as Hollywood Montrose.

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#15 Space Camp

IMDB Link

Plot:

American kids go to a space camp during the summer holidays. They learn how to operate the Space Shuttle. A team consisting of a guy who just entered to meet girls, a wanna be astronaut and an instructor who wanted to go on a mission instead of teaching can sit in the Shuttle while testing the engines. Then they're launched by mistake ...

A User Review:

Ok, I first saw this little gem when I was around 9 years old. Back then I thought this film was cool. The other day, they played this movie on the SciFi Channel. I sat there thinking to myself, "This is a lot more stupid than I remember." And It is. I read a review on here that claimed that Kate Capshaw's character is annoying. Is that it? They're all annoying, especially Joaquin Phoenix's character, Max. They're all just a bunch of whiny individuals in the need of a serious beating. So maybe It's cause I'm older now, and more things annoy me, or this film is strictly for kids. On a lighter note, it was good to see Larry B. Scott (Lamar from Revenge of the Nerds).

Trivia:

What was supposed to be a somewhat light hearted action/adventure movie turned into a marketing nightmare. SpaceCamp was scheduled to be released in early 1986 but on 28 January the real-life shuttle Challenger exploded 74 seconds after liftoff, claiming the lives of seven American astronauts. After the Challenger disaster, the release was pushed back months. When it was finally sent to theaters, it grossed less than $10 million in the U.S. Eerily, the malfunction simulated in the film involved the solid rocket booster and was similar to the actual cause of the Challenger accident.

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#14 Prayer of the Rollerboys

IMDB Link

Plot:

Some time in the future, USA has declined and become a country of violence and racial prejudice. Griffin earns his living delivering pizzas while he tries to take care of his little brother. An old friend of his, Gary Lee, is the leader of a gang with big ambitions, the Rollerboys. Gary joins them to help the police keep track of them.

A User Review:

This movie is awful in a really great way. If you don't like bad movies you shouldn't be looking at the work of Corey Haim. But that doesn't mean that bad movies aren't enjoyable. And this one has everything. By everything I mean post-apocalyptic, drug dealing, fascist skating around in formation wearing trench coats. I know what you are thinking "Wait, wait, I have seen this a million times", but you haven't seen an apple eaten as viciously as you will in this film. I wept for that apple, it was violated. Plus you get Corey Haim and Patrica Arquette. I say gather a group of like minded friends, some adult beverages, and enjoy a truly enjoyable bad movie.

Trivia:

Nominated for a Saturn award

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#13 The Super Inframan

IMDB Link

Plot:

The ten million year-old Princess Dragon Mom (Terry Liu) attempts to conquer the earth with her legion of mutant monsters. In response, Professor Chang (Wang Hsieh) creates Inframan, turning a young volunteer into a bionic superhero to save the world. However, the Princess kidnaps Chang's daughter. Can Inframan save her and the planet before it's too late?

A User Review:

A camp classic that you'll want to watch over and over again. A weird, psychedelic mixture of martial arts movies, Japanese giant monster movies, spy adventures, and just plain goofiness. The plot makes no senses, the characters are thinnest cardboard, and the monsters are truly hilarious. If you wonder where they came up with Power Rangers, look no further than here.

Trivia:

In the original Chinese dub, the monsters were named as follows... Demon Princess Elzebub, Witch Eye, Fire Dragon, Spider Monster, Plant Monster, Drill Arm, Long-Haired Monster, and Iron Armor Monsters. In the English dub, they were renamed as follows... Princess Dragon Mom, She Demon, Emperor of Doom, Giant Beetle Monster, Octopus Mutant, Driller Beast, Laser Horn Monster, and Iron Fist Robots. The English dub also lists Elzebub's dragon form as Flying Dragon Lizard.

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#12 Freejack

IMDB Link

Plot:

Auto racer Alex Furlong is snatched by time travel, a split second before a fatal explosion, by Vasendak's 21st-century team of techies, who plan to sell his healthy body to an ailing rich man at McCandless Corporation, for a mind transfer. He escapes, but has no rights in this nightmare future of violence and sleaze. The story concerns his survival, and his attempt to revive his relationship with his fiancée Julie, now 15 years older and an executive at McCandless.

A User Review:

This movie was a pain in the ass. In particular, the long drawn out ending featuring the Windows Media Player visualization and the spiritual switchboard. Anthony Hopkins shouldn't have wasted his time with such bullshit. It's possible that Hopkins was not actually with the rest of the actors (Estevez, Russo, etc.) when the movie was being filmed. I suspect he might of filmed his parts separately, either before or after the rest of the filming out of disgust. I find it remarkable that Hopkins decided to act in such a horrendous film only a year after Silence of the Lambs, his masterwork.

Quote:

Hungry Diner: If you keep looking at me, you'll see me kill you.

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#11 The No Mercy Man

IMDB Link

Plot:

A decorated Vietnam War vet returns home to his small southwestern town, only to find carnies and bikers are stepping all over it, prompting him to take action.

Trivia:

Originally filmed and released publicly in 1973 under the title "The No Mercy Man". It was later distributed as "Trained to Kill" in 1975 to mostly drive-in movie theaters as a 2nd run feature. Forgotton about , It eventually surfaced on video in the mid 1980's as "Trained to Kill USA" during the video craze.

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Watch the movie!:

#10 Eye of the Tiger

IMDB Link

Plot:

Gary Busey plays Buck, a former Vietnam veteran/ex-con recently released from the state prison. He returns to the small Midwest town where he grew up only to discover the place overrun by a large motorcycle gang bent on causing trouble. When the bikers murder his wife and traumatize his young daughter, Busey, with the help from a fellow Vietnam vet, as well as his former cell-mate, a drug kingpin living in Miami, Buck arms himself to the teeth and wages a war against the motorcyclists to destroy them once and for all.

A User Review:

When your cast includes Gary Busey, Yaphet Kotto, Seymour Cassel, and William Smith, you know the film will be entertaining--even if it is as absurd as Eye of the Tiger. Busey gives a great impassioned speech in a bingo hall about his days in 'Nam, Kotto cuts a rug whilst dropping grenades from a biplane, Cassel twirls his moustache, and Smith--well, Smith and his semi-mohawk have to be seen to be believed. Let's just say that if you're a fan of Smith's '60s biker movies, you'll love Eye of the Tiger. The only strikes against the film--besides the ridiculous plot and shoddy writing--are the awful Survivor theme song (already used in Rocky III) and Kotto's hair, which appears to be a severely overcooked process 'do'.

Goofs:

Gary Busy was in jail for 10 years but somehow has a 3 year old daughter.

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#9 Miss Cast Away

IMDB Link

Plot:

"Miss Cast Away" (aka "Island Girl") is a mix of "There's Something About Mary" and "Scary Movie" crosses "Cast Away" with "Miss Congeniality." What happens when a plane-load of beauty contestants, on it's way to the Miss Galaxy Pageant, crash-lands on a deserted island? Pilots, Mike Saunders and Maximus Power learn how to survive with a bevvie of beautiful women -- of which none have ever even gone camping. Soon the castaways discover the ancient Noah's ark on the island. The lost ark is being guarded by an oversized prehistoric pig (Jurassic Pork). Noah is boarding apes (a la Planet of the Apes) and our survivors have got to stop his plan and use the ark to get off the island.

A User Review:

The movie attempts to be a parody of many other movies and series, most notably Cast Away, Lost and Jurassic Park. Unfortunately, it fails miserably at any level. The acting does not save the absolutely horrible story, the filming has the quality of a too-often played video tape, the special effects were better executed in Be Kind Rewind (for those who do not now this movie: with aluminum foil)... All this would be funny if the movie managed to be, well, funny. Unfortunately, it is not. It hurts to watch this.

Trivia:

Filmed on location at Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch.

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#8 The Octagon

IMDB Link

Plot:

Scott's life is plagued by two kinds of flashbacks. First are the childhood memories of the rigorous training he and a friend endured under a martial arts master. The second is of a mission Scott went on that ended with him watching his friend get murdered. Scott later becomes drawn closer to a vicious crime ring known as The Octagon. As he gets closer to the truth, Scott learns that these may be the men that murdered his friend so long ago.

A User Review:

The Octagon on the surface is just another in a long line of not-so-great Chuck Norris karate pictures. But wait; there are differences. Admittedly the quality of production is poor, but the addition of ninja assassins as chief antagonists was interesting. It should have intrigued us, but the film was just not meant to be great. The most entertaining aspect of the film is Chuck Norris' voice over narration of his thoughts. His voice echoes in whisper whenever he thinks of anything. This element may have been meant to be mysterious, but obviously it was just another part of the movie that may have swayed the viewer into thinking this was a comedy. This movie is at best described as a guilty pleasure, or something to watch on a night when you can't get to sleep. But for sarcastically humored people, or just undemanding viewers, The Octagon is fun to watch.

Trivia:

When Richard Norton (as "Long Legs", not Kyo) is kicked in the Groin by Chuck Norris, he grabs himself and yelps out "Oh shit... shit!". Norton himself said that when he was assisting with the stunts on the set of "The Blues Brothers" and told John Belushi the fight he'd be in, Belushi was the one who told him to say "Oh shit!" when getting kicked in the groin.

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#7 Hangmen

IMDB Link

Plot:

Rob Greene has information about an undercover terror team inside the CIA led by Joe Connelly. To stay alive with the knowledge, he is advised to stay undercover by his supervisor Andrews. Connelly's men try to kill Greene, but he can escape and warns his son Danny that he also may be in danger and that he should look for Dog Thompson, an old military friend of Greene's. Together with Thompson and Bone Conn, another ex-soldier, Danny tries to escape Connelly's henchmen. Meanwhile, Connelly figures that Danny's friend Lisa would make a good target in order to get Danny and also his father.

A User Review:

I had a bad feeling when I saw the cheap title work. It only took a couple of scenes to confirm that this movie is a real stinker! The only enjoyment I got out of this was to laugh at the technical flaws (example - the background "car sounds" audio just disappears during the scene with Danny and Dog in Dog's car). Production shows a total lack of imagination (example - slow motion machine gun fire repeats many times). Sandra Bullock plays essentially a bit part, completely unnecessary to the plot. To say that this movie actually HAS a plot is doing more justice to the writing than it deserves. The antique computer hardware is kind of interesting. This film was released in 1982 (not 1987 as the IMDb database indicates) and then current "high tech" was an amber screen on a 4.8 MHz IBM PC with floppy drives. Maybe the PC was the real star of the movie... at least it was interesting.

We got this on DVD for a couple of bucks in the bargain bin at WalMart. As the other reviewer notes, we paid too much!

Trivia:

Sandra Bullock's film debut.

In Joke:
Snakes in the Vents!

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Watch the full movie!

#6 The Mighty Peking Man

IMDB Link

Plot:

Word of a monster ape ten stories tall living in the Himalayas reaches fortune hunters in Hong Kong. They travel to India to capture it, but wild animals and quicksand dissuade all but Johnny, an adventurer with a broken heart. He finds the monster and discovers it's been raising a scantily-clad woman, Samantha, since she survived a plane crash years before that killed her parents. In the idyllic jungle, Johnny and Samantha fall in love. Then Johnny asks her to convince "Utam" to go to Hong Kong. Lu Tien, an unscrupulous promoter, takes over: Utam is in chains for freak show exhibitions. When Lu Tien assaults Samantha, Utam's protective instincts take over: havoc in Hong Kong.

A User Review:

Words cannot describe this movie, it must be experienced! Things to watch for: the explorers climb a cliff with no supplies, but somehow a huge tent filled with sleeping cots is set up in the next scene; the plane diary is in English in a Chinese movie and although the jungle girl can only grunt, she can read the handwriting in the diary with no trouble; the "costume" she wears keeps peeling off when she runs...you can even see some of the glue peeling in a couple scenes; AND, the tree-climbing scene is NOT to be missed!!!!!

Trivia:

Listed as one of the "sweded" movies in Be Kind Rewind

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#5 The Perils of Gwendoline in the Land of the Yik Yak

IMDB Link

Plot:

Gwendoline arrives in China in a box, and is helped out of her immediate predicament by a female contact and a devil-may-care adventurer. She's on a mission to find her father, who was last seen searching for a rare butterfly in the Land of the Yik Yak. They confront the evil Cheops in an attempt to find Gwen's lost father and the butterfly, and face many other challenges to their mission.

A User Review:

This movie is one of the great old "B" movies from the 80s. The acting is totally amateur, but perfect for the campy theme. It has everything needed for an adventure movie of this type; jungle localles, dirty boat captain, gambling, savages, and the always welcome nude scenes (wow, but Beth really made the movie!!)

Rent it, buy it, borrow it!! It's worth the time!!!

Trivia:

According to director Just Jaeckin the final temple location of the film was actually shot on one stage with "roll-away" walls that were dressed and rearranged before each scene to give the appearance of many different rooms.

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#4 Collision Course

IMDB Link

Plot:

Tony Costas, a brash, obnoxious, sexist and racist Detroit cop who has long since stopped following the rules, gets told that he will have to work with Inspector Fuji, a straightlaced policeman from Japan. Fuji is in Detroit searching for a Japanese engineer who has gone to America with plans for a top secret car part. The pair naturally fail to get along at first, but as the investigation continues, they almost begin to come close to tolerating each other's presence.

A User Review:

This movie will go down down in history as one of the greats, right along side of Citizen Kane, Casablanca, and On The Waterfront. Someone please convince Leno to do a sequel! Leno and Morita are a comedy duo, the likes of which haven't been seen since Abbot and Costello. The evil that emanates from Chris Sarandon, Tom Noonan, and Randall "Tex" Cobb will give you the chills. Dingman's character as the buffoonish oaf hearkens back to the days of Shakespeare's comedies. And the climax. My goodness, the climax. I won't ruin it for you, but it makes the explosion of the Death Star pale in comparison. If you can track down this hard-to-find gem, do yourself and your family a favor and buy it immediately. I'm still holding out hope for a special edition DVD one of these days.

Trivia:

When Pat Morita guest-starred on The Tonight Show in 1989, with Jay Leno serving as guest host, they recalled that the movie had run out of money on the last day of filming, with key scenes yet to be shot and no budget left for editing and post-production.

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#3 Crystal Heart

IMDB Link

Plot:

A 22 year old man who has lived inside a crystal room because of a rare illness, meets an up and coming rock star, and the two fall in love.

A User Review:

The film is god awful, but it is an unintentionally hilarious classic. Someone who thinks they have all the early eighties cinema ingredients - an Italian production team in fact - get it hilariously wrong, including a sub-Moroder synth soundtrack, one of the most embarrassingly unerotic sex-scenes ever filmed or participated in by mankind and the aforementioned Spanish-Italian villain whose every line is a phonetic fart. Buy or rent immediately if you find it!

Trivia:

Directed by the director of Never Too Young To Die!

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#2 The other movie that started it all: Death Race 2000

IMDB Link

Plot:

A champion of a brutal cross-country car race of the future where pedestrians are run down for points has a change of heart while being hounded by rivals and a conspiracy seeking to stop the race.

A User Review:

Death Race 2000 is one of those dependable all time favourite trash classics that I watch regularly and never fail to get a smile out of. Anytime you're down just put Death Race 2000 on and you're guaranteed to be cheered up! Directed by the late Paul Bartel, co-produced by b-grade legend Roger Corman, and co-written by Charles Griffith, this is simply one of the most enjoyable and entertaining exploitation movies of all time. The setting is the near future where a totalitarian regime keep the populace happy with a violent and extremely popular sport of hit and run car racing. The champion of the people is Frankenstein (David Carradine) who has to race against a flamboyant group of rivals, led by his mortal enemy Machine-Gun Joe Viterbo (Sly Stallone!) who is intent on knocking him off the top. This is a rip roarin' non-stop action-packed black comedy that is an absolute hoot! I can't recommend this one highly enough. Essential viewing!

Trivia:

David Carradine refused to wear leather, so costume designer Jane Ruhm had to make Carradine's iconic black outfit out of another fabric that looked just like leather.

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#1 One of the two movies that started it all: Never Too Young To Die!

IMDB Link

Plot:

A young man is drawn into a provocative espionage adventure by his late father's spy associates. Together they try to discover who killed the young man's father. High point may be Simmons as a crazed hermaphrodite plotting to poison L.A.

A User Review:

"Many films fall into that 'so-bad-they're-good' category. The guys at Troma have even made it a revered art form. But Troma has yet to match "Never Too Young to Die." Without realizing it, the filmmakers have achieved the ultimate tacky 80's action movie. It has just a perfect balance of tacky 80's acting (with "Jessie" from "Full House," Gene Simmons from KISS, and Vanity--what ever happened to her?), tacky 80's action, tacky 80's music, and tacky 80's production design. The plot is the most convoluted mess I've ever seen. That is to say that there really is a plot, but you find yourself smacking your forehead repeatedly in disbelief as the writers juggle tacky 80's clichés, predictable plot turns, and convenient situations that no one would ever buy. And sometimes, it just doesn't make any sense at all. But when all is said and done, the final product is a movie that is just delightfully crappy. My suggestion: rent this movie with some friends and some booze, and have a rollicking good time bashing this movie. I give it a 0 for its poor quality and a 10 for its "entertainment" value. Total score: 5"

Trivia:

The costume Gene Simmons wears for his nightclub act is actually the same costume that actress Lynda Carter wore for her television special Encore!, in which she tried to look like a member of the band KISS while singing "I Was Made for Loving You".

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The Many Days of bad movie night

Will I be able to dredge up ALL movies we've watched at bad movie night? How many have we watched? Prepare yourselves adventurers!