Movies that Strained Credibility

This was inspired by my thoughts on Titanic -- which movies have you seen have featured such unbeleivably stupid, who would DO this, unrealistic behavior that it pretty much blew the whole movie for you?

My 2 main selections for Movie Stupidity Hall of Fame:

PRACTICAL MAGIC -- OK. A psychotic ex is holding your best friend at gunpoint in the backseat of the car and forcing you to drive him someplace. He makes you pulls over so he can get out of the car to go to the bathroom. Do you (A) drive off and leave him there, (B) run him over, or (C) do what Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman do and sit there whining and wringing their hands and going oh what do we do what do we do until he gets done and gets back in the car????

BREAKDOWN- Kurt Russel's wife is being held hostage in a cellar which is locked with a padlock. At the point Kurt Russell discovers this, he has a loaded gun in his hand. Instead of using the gun to shoot the lock off and get his wife out of there, he decides to play Mr. Macho and use the gun to threaten the bad guys to GET THE KEY AND UNLOCK THE LOCK THEMSELVES, thus giving them plenty of time to catch up to them again and lead to the entire last half of the movie.

SPEED: Do you really think a bus could jump over the gap in the overpass? Fortunately, I can suspend reality while I'm watching a movie and just enjoy it. One of my friends just sighed throughout the whole movie.

DANTE's PEAK: I caught part of this movie when it was TV. If the volcano has rained sulphuric acid into the lake, how is it possible for the old lady to tow the boat in the water because the paddles are dissolving, but the boat doesn't sink?

Kate and Leopold (Meg Ryan, Hugh Jackson) I don't think you even have to be a history buff to find this movie ridiculous, but it does help. An oddball guy finds a time portal which requires jumping off the Brooklyn Bridge. He goes back to 1876 and accidently returns with Leopold, Duke of Albany. (There actually was a Leopold, Duke of Albany. He was Queen Victoria's youngest son and a hemophiliac. She would have never allowed him to go to New York.) It isn't explained why Leo happened to be wearing a uniform from the late 1700's- early 1800's. It is explained that he was in need of cash and looking for a rich American bride. There's also a bit about Leopold being the inventor of the elevator So, when he's in the modern day, none of the elevators work. However, they are still present and people know about them

It's frightening that anyone thought this movie made sense. What really scares me is that I watched it.

Titanic: Okay, whatever, it's a true story, but do we have to make EVERYTHING into a love story?

The Matrix: Yeah...psh. Whatever. I'd rather live in the fake world.

All stupid teen-romance/comedies: No teenage boys are never the way they are in movies.

Good Will Hunting.

I know it's silly, but I can't get over it.

This guy is a genius, right?

Well, even an idiot like me could tell you that just one paycheck from a top job could not only pay for a 6 hour flight out to CA, but he'd have plenty left over to splash out on Minnie.

But no, this guy is soooo smart that he decides the right thing to do is refuse the job, get in his beat up old Nova, which looked like it couldn't even make it down Commonwelth Ave with out cracking it's engine block, and drive all the way accross a continent without even a dime in his pocket for coffee, nevermind a motel or the eneviatble breakdown. I say this genius probably spent 2 months washing dishes in Tulsa trying to make bus fair to finish the trip.

By the time he got there, penniless and shabby, Minnie was probably already dating Justine Timberlake.

"In America" - set in the early '80s, but the daughters have a camcorder that they tote around. I read an interview with the director who said that he knew it was an anachronism and he just let it stand because he wanted to use the camcorders (but the early '80s setting was critical to the story). LAZY FILMMAKING!

Although I love this film, I have to agree with "Titanic". I mean, Rose is in an escape boat - and then she leaps out to find Jack! Then someone secures her another berth in a different boat - now she's out running again! Then she finds Jack handcuffed to a pipe, and this early 20th century upper class gal starts swinging an axe and frees him - right as he's down to the last inch of air in the room! I mean, for the love of Carmen - get back to the incredible shots of the boat!!

guinevere

supersk8er:

I wrote about Titanic on "Movies you were Disappointed in" thread. I agree. Epic tale of course and tragic - but I think the unbelievable love story took away from the real story - the sinking of the Titanic and all those lost souls. "A Night to Remember" treats the subject much better.

I have to add:

"Towering Inferno" - Good cast - Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, William Holden and even - Fred Astaire! but what a stupid ending - talk about strained credibility.

berthes ghost said:

Good Will Hunting.

I know it's silly, but I can't get over it.

This guy is a genius, right?

Click to expand...

Hey, Berthe's Ghost. Thanks to Good Will Hunting I have 3 degrees of separation with J-Lo! You know that famous mathematics problem that is posted on the bulletin board, and Will solves it, to the astonishment of the professors? That problem was taken from the doctoral thesis of a Dutch mathematician named Geert Prins, later for many years my colleague here in Detroit (we wrote several joint papers together). So I know him, and he was in Goodwill Hunting (by proxy) with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, and Bob's your uncle!

MM

heyang said:

SPEED: Do you really think a bus could jump over the gap in the overpass? Fortunately, I can suspend reality while I'm watching a movie and just enjoy it. One of my friends just sighed throughout the whole movie.

Click to expand...

No, I don't -- but I actually thought that scene was so cool that I didn't really care!!

Who is Bob and what does he have to do with J-Lo?