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Science fiction is one of cinema's most historical and important genres. Since Georges Méliès' 1902 loose adaptation of Jules Verne's From the Earth to the Moon, filmmakers have been obsessed with exploring the far corners of our universe and using the vast expanse to highlight and critique aspects of our life here on earth. The interstellar dreams of creatives only accelerated when Star Wars exploded onto screens, becoming the highest grossing film of all time and inspiring a whole new generation of artists and audiences.
Of course, for every Alien there is an Attack of The Killer Tomatoes, for every Matrix, a Jupiter Ascending, and for every RoboCop...a RoboCop 3. Laughably bad films have always existed alongside the classics, but there is a step below even the realm of inventive insanity and so bad it's good energy which many sci-fi films feature. Some films are merely bad from start to finish. Whether it be having an inventive premise and utterly squandering it, being so poorly planned to insult the audiences' intelligence, or worst of all, lacking any originality at all, many films, even in a genre as diverse and creative as science fiction, manage to lack nearly any redeeming qualities.
10 'Aliens vs Predator: Requiem' (2007)
Directed by The Brothers Strause
Image via 20th Century Fox
After a teaser in Predator 2, a series of comic books, and even video games, the hype for Alien vs Predator was immense among science fiction fans worldwide. The ultimate film, however, was...underwhelming to say the least. Featuring a silly plot about an underground Aztec pyramid (in the arctic) and a PG-13 rating which robbed both franchises of their usual bloodlust, AVP was panned, and fans demanded a second crack at the vaunted crossover. When they finally got it...AVP didnt look so bad anymore.
Directed by The Brothers Strause, Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem adds an R rating, a subtitle that means nothing, and a dour nihilistic tone to the franchise that left all viewers feeling unsatisfied and frustrated with the franchise. In addition to a bare-bones plot, Requiem also features worse action overall. Yes, there is blood now, but when every scene is over-edited shot in utter darkness and featuring characters the audience doesn't care about, the addition of gore becomes meaningless. The worst Alien movie AND the worst Predator movie, Aliens vs. Predator Requiem, takes interesting ideas like a xenomorph predator hybrid, or an alien infestation of earth, and precedes to do nothing with them before unceremoniously killing off all of its characters, rendering the film in canon, and in real life utterly meaningless.
Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem
Release Date December 25, 2007
Director Colin Strause , Greg Strause
Runtime 94 Minutes
9 'Zardoz' (1974)
Directed by John Boorman
Image via 20th Century Fox
At a glance (usually the above glance), Zardoz looks like a great time. Following the hit film Deliverance, director John Boorman was given carte blanche to make a passion product and that passion boiled over in the wannabe sci-fi epic that is Zardoz. Starring a post-bond Sean Connery in the skimpiest science fiction outfit of all time, the film surrounds itself in campy futuristic aesthetics and yet attempts to tell a surprisingly prescient story filled with themes of politics and class warfare.
This sounds like the formula for a hidden gem, and some see it as such, but unfortunately, in reality, Zardoz's nature of being split between camp spectacle and self-important themes means that it is unable to do anything with a full heart. The film is not dumb enough to be fun and yet not smart enough to be moving, constantly pulling itself between different directions and ideas in a way that is more confusing than is experimental. Through time, the idea of Zardoz has drifted from what the film actually is, and it is remembered much more fondly than it deserves to be.
Zardoz
Release Date February 6, 1974
Director John Boorman
8 'Battlefield Earth' (2000)
Directed by Roger Christian
Image via Warner Bros. Pictures
Battlefield Earth is an adaptation of the famous novel by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, and carries itself with the exact level of quality, subtlety and attention to detail that dubious honor would imply. One of the most infamous and well known critical and financial failures of all time, mountains of text have been written about the film's disastrous plot and acting, its comical, constantly tilting camera angles, and its heavy-handed pandering towards its origins. Mountains more will no doubt follow due to the film's downright baffling existence.
After revitalizing his career throughout the 90s with indie films like Pulp Fiction and mainstream action flicks like Face/Off, John Travolta cashed in all of his goodwill to see this would-be sci-fi epic get made, and nearly immediately saw his career back in its 1980s state. Travolta's passion is evident on screen, its the most apparent and memorable thing about the mess of a film, but it sticks with viewers for all the wrong reasons. The actor stars as Terl a member of an evil race called Psychlos (a play on author L. Ron Hubbard's disdain for psychiatry), and he gives a ham-fisted and cringe-inducing performance befitting that role. Even in a film wherein every other element is boring, predictable and unwatchable, Travolta's passion shines through, but it may blind audiences if they look directly at it.
Battlefield Earth
Release Date May 12, 2000
Director Roger Christian
7 'Jiu Jitsu' (2020)
Directed by Dimitri Logothetis
Image via The Avenue Entertainment
When former Oscar award winner Nicolas Cage's fall from grace is fully documented Jiu Jitsu may deserve to be the crown jewel among the actors' sea of recent films, sure to infest flea markets and garage sales for decades to come. Though often lost in the vast collection of films which could be considered Cage's worst, Jiu Jitsu is a truly remarkable disaster which manages to squander a prime schlock premise and a cast of trained martial artists by utilizing them in the most tedious and unimaginative ways possible.
Adapting a comic book of the same name, Jiu Jitsu tells the story of a team of martial artists who must do battle with an invading alien force every 6 years, the outcome of which decides the fate of the earth. It is a little bit like the titular tournament from the Mortal Kombat franchise, only more heavily focused on a singular martial art, and done nearly entirely in landscapes which are color graded to be as dull and lifeless as possible. Jiu Jitsu has the ingredients to create a classic B Movie experience and many have recommended it based on these elements. However, five years after its release, most viewers have realized that once they get past their fandom of Cage or their love of sci-fi, Jiu Jitsu is indeed bad, but not the type of bad that they want it to be.
Release Date November 20, 2020
Director Dimitri Logothetis
Runtime 127 minutes
6 'Highlander II: The Quickening' (1991)
Directed by Russel Mulachy
Image by InterStar
Highlander was never meant to be science fiction. The original tail of Connor MacLeod (Christopher Lambert) battling other immortals for the fantastical 'prize' was firmly rooted in fantasy tradition and yet unique enough to inspire the imagination of a generation of viewers and become a cult classic. Highlander II: The Quickening then decided that everyone was aliens the whole time, in what has become known in the annals of film history as one of the worst retcons of all time.
Christopher Lambert and Sean Connery return from the original film for the prequel/sequel hybrid but are visually less enthused and energetic. The needlessly complex plot, sudden shift in genre, and the torturous design choices that those aspects necessitate visibly wore on the actors and led to Highlander II being decidedly less enjoyable than the first outing. Though the series would continue after this maligned sequel, nearly every plot revelation in it would be swiftly excised and overwritten. Highlander II is the rare science fiction film which didn't belong in the genre, didn't want to be in the genre, and yet has become inextricably linked to the genre, even if that link is as a black mark.
Release Date November 1, 1991
Director Russell Mulcahy
Runtime 91 Minutes
5 'Rollerball' (2002)
Directed by John McTiernan
Image via Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures
Perhaps roller skates were stunning and futuristic when the original Rollerball was released in the 1970s, but by the time of the 2002 remake, the sports accessory was firmly dated to the past. Rollerball is set in the distant future of 2005 and focuses on the titular deathsport, a roller derby-esque affair featuring motorcycles, a metal ball, weapons, and some of the sloppiest editing in any sports film ever made. While the original film is remembered for its prescient social commentary and use of the sport to explore greater themes, Director John McTiernan explicitly asked for these elements to be toned downin his remake as he wanted more time to focus on "cool" sport of rollerball.
Rollerball is the worst film of John McTiernan's career by a long shot and its behind the scenes turmoil is well documented. Aside from choosing to drop the social commentary from a genre that features it as a primary selling point, McTiernan frequently fought with creatives and producers about nearly every minute choice in the film. As part of this feud with producers, McTiernan hired a P.I. to commit illegal wiretaps and later lied about this event in court. This makes Rollerball the rare film to lead to a prison sentence for its director. By all accounts, the studio meddled with and hurt the final cut of Rollerball, but by those same accounts, McTiernans version would have been no better, making the war over the remake over the top, needlessly cataclysmic, and ultimately pointless. All attributes which can sadly be assigned to the film itself.
Release Date February 8, 2002
4 'Moonfall' (2022)
Directed by Rolland Emmerich
Image via Lionsgate Films
Rolland Emmerich's name is near synonymous with that of the disaster movie. Directing such big budget sci-fi calamities as Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, and 2012, Emmerich has formed a filmography based around bending the laws of physics to wreak havoc upon famous landmarks, and to rake it in at the box office. The most recent film from the director, Moonfall, was supposed to be no different, but unfortunately, was met with much more hostility and dislike than his usual fare. While the 2022 disaster movie doesn't feature the most overwhelmingly bad, directing, effects acting or overall quality that would typically land a movie on a worst of list it unfortuantely may feature one of the most unbelieviable and worst premises of all time.
As the title would suggest, this scifi film sees the moon suddenly rapidly, and sneakily move out of orbit too descend towards Earth. Were the moon to move in such a sudden way, Earth's population would be well aware nearly immediately, and would be long dead before the satellite got anywhere close to physically colliding with the planet. The movie's answer to this problem: the moon is actually an old alien space station built around a white dwarf star. So don't worry, it all makes sense, because the moon is actually a second star about as massive as the sun and yet orbits the much lighter Earth somehow. Moonfall is the rare film that starts dumb and rewards you for your patience by getting insultingly dumber.
Moonfall
Release Date February 4, 2022
Director Roland Emmerich
Runtime 120 minutes
3 'Heartbeeps' (1981)
Directed by Allan Arkush
Image via Universal Pictures
The unexpected and runaway success of the original Star Wars in 1977 saw Hollywood embrace science fiction like never before. There were obvious imitators like Roger Corman's Battle Beyond the Stars, downright knockoffs like the appropriately named Turkish Star Wars, and a slew of franchise rapidly shifting gears towards scifi, such as James Bond's laser gun toting Moonraker. Perhaps one of the most downright disappointing films of the post Star Wars rush, however, was 1981's robot love story Heartbeeps.
Heartbeeps is not only disappointing due to its status as a cheaply made, poorly directed, unromantic and unfunny romantic comedy (though that is all applicable), it is also disheartening as perhaps the highest profile Hollywood outing for beloved and iconic comedian Andy Kaufman. Kaufman is one of the most influential and formative comedians of all time who is known for his innovative forms of "anti comedy" and his willingness to blur the line between his act and real world life like nearly no performer had done before or since. Heartbeeps shares none of this energy, featuring a predictable and derivative storyline, combined with dreadful comedy that makes the film drag despite its brisk runtime. True to his nature, Andy Kaufman famously joked that he would refund anyone who had seen the film, and ironically, due to the film's absolutely dismal box office, he likely could have.
Heartbeeps
Release Date December 18, 1981
Director Allan Arkush
Runtime 79 minutes
2 'Nukie' (1987)
Directed by Sias Odendaal and Michael Pakleppa
Image via Trimark Pictures
Even outside the clips constantly shown by Paul Rudd on Conan, Mac and Me is a so bad it's good classic, filled with crazy scenes like a McDonalds-fueled dance party, and a finale in which an alien couple accidentally robs a convenience store at gun point. Mac and Me is an E.T. knockoff worth seeing. Nukie, on the other hand, and E.T. knock off is worth avoiding at all costs. This 1986 South African science fiction film feels like it should earn some benefit of the doubt due to its low budget ambition and its humble origins, but Nukie's derivative premise, mean-spirited energy, and terrible sound design create an almost unwatchable experience.
Of course, the other major factor that makes Nukie difficult to watch is the downright horrifying design of the titular alien himself. Nukie's design avoids any realistic interpretation of cute and instead provides the worst traits shared by the merging of the uncanny valley with cheap monster design from films such as Troll 2. This design is hard to sympathize with, difficult to root for, and crucially limited in motion, meaning that Nukie is unable to even do much of anything throughout the film. Baffling and boring is never a combination a film wants to boast, and yet confusing decisions and utter incompetence are nearly the entire legacy of Nukie.
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During their stay in a seemingly quaint and quiet town, a young boy tries to warn his family about the goblin-like creatures intent on turning them into plants to be eaten. As bizarre events unfold, they must unravel the mystery and find a way to avoid their grim fate.
Release Date October 12, 1990
Director Claudio Fragasso
Cast Michael Stephenson , George Hardy , Margo Prey , Connie Young , Robert Ormsby , Deborah Reed
Runtime 95 minutes
Main Genre Comedy
Writers Rossella Drudi , Claudio Fragasso
1 'Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2' (2004)
Directed by Bob Clark
"Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2". Image Courtesy of Sony Pictures.
The first Baby Geniuses film was famously lambasted by iconic critic Roger Ebert who detested the film's uncanny premise and stated: "Babies are cute only when they’re being babies. When they’re presented as miniature adults, there is something so fundamentally wrong that our human instincts cry out in protest." As a cosmic response to this criticism, a second and even worse Baby Geniuses would be created, only this time with superpowers, terribly dubbed mouths, an even smaller budget, and Jon Voight playing a Nazi supervillain.
Admittedly, the utter chaos the above description promises makes Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2, sound like it may be so bad it's good classic. However, the final product is nowhere near this enjoyable, and that disappointment only adds insult to injury. Superbabies' pandering tone grotesque effects, and mind-bogglingly low intelligence level make the film an unbearably painful and mind-numbing watch. The plot points and, dialouge, and premise are too complex to be understood by a target audience of babies, and yet the constant explanation and execution of these elements is far too stupid to be enjoyed by anyone older. This makes Superbabies the rare film made for absolutely no one. No one that is other than seemingly Jon Voight, who would go on to star in a baffling 3 more Baby Geniuses films (though presumably not as a Nazi).
Release Date August 27, 2004
Director Bob Clark
Runtime 88 Minutes
English (US) ·