If It Wasn't For That One Thing: How Movies Could've Been Better

[Shannon L.]

Did you ever watch a movie and think "You know, that was pretty good except for....."  one scene/sequence, actor/actress, or anything else that made your enjoyment of it not quite as good as it could have been?  This thread is for telling us what you'd do differently. 

 

The first ones that come to my mind are:

 

Zach and Miri Made a Porno.  I was really enjoying this movie--I even liked the chemistry between Seth Rogan and Elizabeth Banks--then they had to put in that disgusting, um....relieving her constipation..... scene.  It really kind of killed the mood for me.  I mean, there's gross out humor, then there's....that. 

 

School of Rock:  Much better than I thought it would be, but I think I'd have enjoyed it more with someone other than Jack Black.  He was great with the kids, no doubt, but he got just a little too over the top for me at times.  Not that that stops me from watching it when it's on (should put this in the Stupid Movies thread).

 

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid:  The entire "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" sequence.  ::yawn::

[Athena]

Bridesmaids: I didn't mind this movie for the most part, but I don't enjoy gross humor all the time. I really could have done without the food poisoning and the bridal boutique scenes. I would have liked the movie better without that.

[lottiedottie]

Bridesmaids: I didn't mind this movie for the most part, but I don't enjoy gross humor all the time. I really could have done without the food poisoning and the bridal boutique scenes. I would have liked the movie better without that.

I can agree with that. I liked everything else about the movie except that one scene. 

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

The Godfather Part III: Sofia Coppola's terrible acting almost ruined the movie. And if Robert Duvall's salary demands could have been met, Tom Hagen would have added a ton to the film.

 

The Godfather Part II: Despite Michael V. Gazzo's awesome performance as Frankie Pentangeli, his arc was originally meant to have been Clemenza's.

 

Network: Less Max Schumacher/Diana Christensen romance, even if their breakup scenes rocked.

 

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: Short Round can stay. Kate Capshaw can leave. PLEASE.

 

Star Wars: Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith: Hayden Christensen can play bratty and angry very well, but struggles with any subtle emotions. Surprising that Lucas didn't get a better actor.

 

Outbreak: Great Act I. Great Act II. TERRIBLE Act III.

[Joe]

 

Surprising that Lucas didn't get a better actor.

No one was especially good in the prequels. Lucas, by his own admission, isn't a very good director. So the prequels could have been improved by some better writing and directing. I didn't see anything wrong with the cast.

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

No one was especially good in the prequels.

Disagree. Christopher Lee and Liam Neeson were typically excellent. Ewan McGregor did a very good job in Parts II and III of channeling Alec Guinness (I just rewatched the series using a recommended sequence and went from Part V to Part II; it required zero mental adjustment to see the young Obi-Wan in McGregor's performance). Samuel L. Jackson did what he could with a woefully underused part, and Natalie Portman was mostly solid.

[Ohwell]

The Godfather Part III: Sofia Coppola's terrible acting almost ruined the movie.

Nepotism at its absolute worst.  I'm glad she wisely decided to go behind the camera.

[Spartan Girl]

The old Spider-Man movies: Get rid of Kirsten Dunst's Mary Jane and have Peter go with someone better.  Or better yet, they should have had Kirsten Dunst play Gwen instead!  That way, we could have gotten rid of her and have someone play Mary Jane they way she SHOULD have been played.

[JayKay]

The old Spider-Man movies: Get rid of Kirsten Dunst's Mary Jane and have Peter go with someone better.  Or better yet, they should have had Kirsten Dunst play Gwen instead!  That way, we could have gotten rid of her and have someone play Mary Jane they way she SHOULD have been played.

Man, they should have brought in Black Cat for Spider-Man 3 instead of the Venom Musical. That's the main thing that would elevate the reboots to watchable for me and something Sam Raimi really dropped the ball on. Felicia Hardy would have been a welcome relief from Peter's never-ending emo. I was so bummed when I heard that they were rebooting the franchise - not because of the scrapped world-building and actors, but because I never got to see Black Cat in action.

[Wiendish Fitch]

I wanted to love Return to Oz. It is a spectacular looking movie with wonderful production values, exciting scenes, it's very true to the darker spirit of L. Frank Baum's books, and it's a fascinating story. But I don't like this movie, and nothing can make me watch it again. What would I change, that would improve this movie tenfold?

 

Cast someone else as Dorothy.

 

Honest to God, Fairuza Balk is hands down one of the worst child actors I've ever seen. She spends 99% of the movie, with the exception of a scant handful of scenes, in this terrifyingly blank-eyed stupor. In fact, it brings to mind Tom Servo's assessment of Kathy Ireland's acting (hope MST3K fans won't mind if I rip it off):

 

Auntie Em, ever the peach, sends Dorothy to a terrifying asylum with intent of her getting electroshock therapy. How does Dorothy react?

 

DULL SURPRISE! 

 

Dorothy narrowly escapes, only to find herself magically back in Oz, with a talking chicken for company. How does she react to being back in Oz, with the possibility of being reunited with her pals, proving to Auntie Em that she isn't crazy?

 

DULL SURPRISE!

 

But Oz is in ruins, its inhabitants turned to stone! What's Dorothy's reaction to this tragic turn of events?

 

DULL SURPRISE!

 

Dorothy has save her friends from the Nome King, and time is running out. What a stressful situation for a kid to find herself in! Hell, most adults would crack! But don't worry, because how is our slack-jawed cipher child handling this?

 

DULL SURPRISE!

 

Yay! Oz is saved, friends restored to life, Dorothy is sent back home, and how does all this affect her? Say with me, now...

 

DULL SURPRISE!!!!!

 

Seriously, I've seen people show more emotion walking into Bed, Bath and Beyond! The director never once said, "cut, do it again, and act like a human being, for crying out loud!" I don't like watching emotionless, robotic "acting" in fantasy films like this, because the subject matter demands I be emotionally invested, and if the characters don't care, why should I? And don't give me that "it's understated acting" argument, because there's understated, and then there's having the emotional range of a toothbrush. And why would you want understated acting in Return to Oz? This isn't a friggin' Terrence Malik film, it's Disney! Speaking of which, Mia Wasikowska is a splendid young actress, but she was atrocious in Alice in Wonderland. Why did Tim Burton direct her like that? Why would you watch someone with no emotions monotone their way through a two hour movie (Being There notwithstanding). 

Edited June 20, 2014 by Wiendish Fitch

[Snow Apple]

It Could Happen to You. Cop wins lottery and split the winnings with waitress because he gave her half a ticket as her tip. It could have been a cute little movie, but it was completely ruined by Rosie Perez's character. Not every movie needs a villain to block the romance.

[Shannon L.]

In Legends of the Fall, I hated Suzanne.  Every thing about her and no matter which brother she was with.  The fact that she moved on to Tristan (in my eyes, it looked like she moved on before Samuel died), then waited forever, only to move onto Alfred (and why the hell he wanted her is beyond me), drove me crazy.  I know her part was instrumental to the story, but maybe they could've shortened it or something.  Something, anything.... I much preferred Isabelle II (in spite of the stupid nickname). And was that actress stunning or what? 

[Jeebus Cripes]

X-Men: First Class. I hated almost all of the younger cast, including Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique. Their acting was just bad. The only teen character who wasn't horrible for me was the guy playing Banshee. Also, that lifeless mannequin playing Emma Frost needed to be recast in a major way.

[Jamoche]

Who Framed Roger Rabbit? - the ending just doesn't make sense. Oh, I've been told that it does if you know there's supposed to be a tie-in to Chinatown, but a movie has to be self-consistent, not reference things nobody expects to be referenced.

 

What I'd change: Judge Doom is still secretly a 'toon - but not a classic-style toon, he's one of the crappily animated ones from the 60s-70s, trying to wipe out the classics to make way for his kind.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Well, Star Wars was better when Han shot first.

[wallflower75]

I have two movies that fit this category, and interestingly enough, they share a common problem: Keanu Reeves.  I love Much Ado About Nothing (Branagh's version) and Dangerous Liaisons, but my fingers itch to hit the fast forward button whenever he appears.  Woefully miscast in both.

[GreekGeek]

A lot of movies would be better without a romance subplot. I'm sure there are many more recent examples, but the one that comes most readily to mind is The Caine Mutiny. The whole thing comes to a screeching halt whenever we have to see upper-crust Willie's rocky romance with nightclub singer May.

[spaceytraci1208]

Tombstone is one of my favorite movies; but 2 things would've made it even greater, I think. 1) less focus on Wyatt's romance with the singer. I immediately fast forward through the stupid scene when they're frolicking on horseback on their date (I guess). 2) Michael Biehn was miscast (IMO) as Johnny Ringo; it's really all about his voice. He sounds like he's from The Valley or something; especially when he says "Alright, lunger...let's do it!" Sounds like he's talking about going surfing.

[Sweet Tee]

Tombstone is one of my favorites too (note the icon) and I too either fast forward or squirm through the Wyatt and Josie scene with the horses but in all fairness that's about their only major scene together. Most of it is looks during other scenes and not the focus. Still, I agree that if they had just left that part all together, I would love it more. Then again, I guess they couldn't do the happy ending without her. I mean the rest of his life is in shambles by that point.

[Jeebus Cripes]

I have two movies that fit this category, and interestingly enough, they share a common problem: Keanu Reeves.  I love Much Ado About Nothing (Branagh's version) and Dangerous Liaisons, but my fingers itch to hit the fast forward button whenever he appears.  Woefully miscast in both.

 

Bram Stoker's Dracula as well.

[Ohwell]

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button:  I think Brad Pitt deserved better-looking romantic interests than Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton.   I loved the movie except for that.

[OakGoblinFly]

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button:  I think Brad Pitt deserved better-looking romantic interests than Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton.   I loved the movie except for that.

 

 

And here I was thinking that Cate deserved much better than Brad.  

[Ohwell]

Well, that's why they call 'em opinions. 

[methodwriter85]

I thought the bigger problem with the Curious Case of Benjamin Button was that they focused a bit too much on the un-aging special effects and not enough on developing the character himself.

 

I've said this so many times, but I really, really wish they had cast Taylor Momsen for Cherie Curie instead of Dakota Fanning in The Runaways. They had apparently casted her at 12 and then waited for her to grow up, but she was so wrong for the part. She could do the "poor lost little girl with a broken home" part very well. But Taylor just did not have it in her to play the jailbait sex kitten- her demeanor and persona just could not convey any of that "come hither" wise-beyond-her-years sensuality that Cherie Curie had. She always looked like a little girl wearing her mother's lingerie, which is farrrrrrrr from what Cherie Curie was like on-stage.

 

Everything else is so on-point- you really get a feel for the dirtiness and malaise of 1970's Southern California, and Kristen Stewart really blew me away as Joan Jett. I believed everybody else in their roles EXCEPT for Dakota Fanning.

[arc]

The Godfather Part III: Sofia Coppola's terrible acting almost ruined the movie. And if Robert Duvall's salary demands could have been met, Tom Hagen would have added a ton to the film.

Yeah, this. Michael loses Sonny in the first film, Fredo in the second. Of course the third movie should have him lose his last and most trusted brother!

[BatmanBeatles]

Forrest Gump would have been much better if it wasn't for the horrible dubbing. I wish they would have got actors to play the late presidents and John Lennon.

[spaceytraci1208]

Forrest Gump would have been much better if it wasn't for the horrible dubbing. I wish they would have got actors to play the late presidents and John Lennon.

I love the Gump but I gotta agree; the John Lennon scene in particular makes me roll my eyes

[pootlus]

Batman Begins - yeah, Katie Holmes was about as horribly miscast as they get.  She's a so-so actor at best and looked about 18 in that movie.  I was so relieved when Maggie Gyllenhaal took over in the second one.

[xls]

Godzilla 2014 if

I would have Brian Cranston and Aaron Taylor-Johnson's story lines switched. Id have Brody's son and daughter-in-law  die in the reactor accident and Brody Sr. his wife and grandson through the rest of the movie, with Cranston the military expert.

Oh, and a lot more Godzilla

 

 

Independence Day, started out great.,but if it were miore serious without all the dumb bantering the characters do and the cute Star-Warsy ending.

Edited July 24, 2014 by xls

[benteen]

The Godfather Part III: Sofia Coppola's terrible acting almost ruined the movie. And if Robert Duvall's salary demands could have been met, Tom Hagen would have added a ton to the film.

 

The Godfather Part II: Despite Michael V. Gazzo's awesome performance as Frankie Pentangeli, his arc was originally meant to have been Clemenza's.

 

Network: Less Max Schumacher/Diana Christensen romance, even if their breakup scenes rocked.

 

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: Short Round can stay. Kate Capshaw can leave. PLEASE.

 

Star Wars: Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith: Hayden Christensen can play bratty and angry very well, but struggles with any subtle emotions. Surprising that Lucas didn't get a better actor.

 

Outbreak: Great Act I. Great Act II. TERRIBLE Act III.

 

I read that Winona Rider was originally supposed to play Mary Corleone in The Godfather Part III but she was ill and Coppola replaced her with his daughter.  With her and along with bringing Robert Duvall back, Godfather III would have been a LOT better.  Still, the script sucked having Michael Corleone acting like he did at the start of the first Godfather throughout the entire movie didn't help.

Edited July 24, 2014 by benteen

[RubyWoo72]

Nepotism at its absolute worst. I'm glad she wisely decided to go behind the camera.

Oh my God yes. She was terrible. Not at all worthy of the make out scene with Andy Garcia!

[ribboninthesky1]

Batman Begins - yeah, Katie Holmes was about as horribly miscast as they get.  She's a so-so actor at best and looked about 18 in that movie.  I was so relieved when Maggie Gyllenhaal took over in the second one.

 

While Katie was miscast, I also felt like Rachel Dawes as a character was poorly written.  I was hoping to find the character more interesting or likeable, but even Gyllenhaal couldn't save it.  To me, Rachel added nothing but angst (and self-righteous guilt?) to Bruce Wayne, but he already had that in the first film with his parents' murder.

[xls]

Oh my God yes. She was terrible. Not at all worthy of the make out scene with Andy Garcia!

She was bad in the walk-on part she had in The Outsiders! Sorry Sofia, you are a much better director than actress.

[Rinaldo]

She was also bad as Kathleen Turner's sister in Peggy Sue Got Married. I remember watching it in the theater and thinking "How does acting this bad get kept and approved in a big-budget movie like this? Why wouldn't they recast?" And then I remembered who was directing, and figured that it was a Coppola family member -- and so it turned out, when the credits rolled.

 

She got so vilified for Godfather III that Pauline Kael, normally given to acid-tongued takedowns without worrying about the recipient's reaction, actually tried to find nice things to say about her. It was uncharacteristic for her, but I figured that as a mother she figured that the poor girl had been slammed enough. It's the only such instance I can recall in Kael's career, and it speaks to how universal the bad reception of Sofia Coppola had been.

[jellysalmon]

A more recent one: Snowpiercer would have been more consistent for me if they took out the bit with

Chris Evans crying and saying babies tasted best

everyone in my theater laughed and it kind of took me out of a film which otherwise had me engrossed.

Edited July 31, 2014 by jellysalmon

[BoogieBurns]

Pitch Perfect. That is one of my favorite movies, but every time I recommend it I have to say "Can you handle two scenes with projectile vomit?" If they can't, I tell them when to mute and look away.

 

Why is that in the movie? Why does the second vomit scene last for so long? Ew!

[jah1986]

Pitch Perfect. That is one of my favorite movies, but every time I recommend it I have to say "Can you handle two scenes with projectile vomit?" If they can't, I tell them when to mute and look away.

 

Why is that in the movie? Why does the second vomit scene last for so long? Ew!

This. I thought I was the only person on the planet who doesn't get vomit humor or why it's supposed to be funny. It's why I won't recommend the movie, which is sad because I really like the rest of the movie.

[ribboninthesky1]

A more recent one: Snowpiercer would have been more consistent for me if they took out the bit with

Chris Evans crying and saying babies tasted best

everyone in my theater laughed and it kind of took me out of a film which otherwise had me engrossed.

 

Interesting, my theater was dead silent during that part. Goes to show how the audience can impact perception of a film, as I thought it was a rather well-done, albeit extremely disturbing revelation.  Do you think you may have felt differently if the audience hadn't laughed?  

 

I think Bridesmaids might have been a better movie without Annie.  Maybe it could have just been a fun, women behaving badly romp otherwise, because she completely dragged the movie down.

[Danny Franks]

X-Men: First Class. I hated almost all of the younger cast, including Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique. Their acting was just bad. The only teen character who wasn't horrible for me was the guy playing Banshee. Also, that lifeless mannequin playing Emma Frost needed to be recast in a major way.

 

I hated all of X-Men: First Class. But for me, the main culprits were McAvoy and Fassbender, who seemed to think they were in a parody... or at least, too embarrassed to be in a superhero movie to play the characters properly. Having said that, the scene where the kids all showed off their powers to one another was just about the worst scene I've ever watched in a comic book movie. That includes The first Hulk movie, where he fights the giant gamma-irradiated dogs.

 

One for me is Ruby Rhod, in The Fifth Element. That is one great little scifi movie, with a career defining performance from Mila Jovovich, and Bruce Willis at his John McClane-iest best. Gary Oldman is a fantastically over-the-top villain, the visuals are stunning, and there's a wonderful sense of fun throughout the whole thing. And then you've got Chris Tucker, shrieking like an idiot and ruining it all the damned time. I really wanted him to get his head bitten off by a Mangalore.

[jellysalmon]

Interesting, my theater was dead silent during that part. Goes to show how the audience can impact perception of a film, as I thought it was a rather well-done, albeit extremely disturbing revelation.  Do you think you may have felt differently if the audience hadn't laughed?  

Hmm. Interesting. I definitely had a cringe reaction to 

babies taste best

so I think I would have been taken out of the scene regardless, but you're probably right that the audience made it worse. 

 

One for me is Ruby Rhod, in The Fifth Element. That is one great little scifi movie, with a career defining performance from Mila Jovovich, and Bruce Willis at his John McClane-iest best. Gary Oldman is a fantastically over-the-top villain, the visuals are stunning, and there's a wonderful sense of fun throughout the whole thing. And then you've got Chris Tucker, shrieking like an idiot and ruining it all the damned time. I really wanted him to get his head bitten off by a Mangalore.

Perhaps my most unpopular opinion: due to my love of the movie Friday I actually enjoyed Chris Tucker in The Fifth Element. But I can totally see why everyone else despises him.

[DrSpaceman]

I can't blame Sofia Coppola for GFIII. She didn't help, but that movie had money problems besides her.

[Wiendish Fitch]

I would have liked Stripes so much better if it had just ended with the drill routine. The final act is just a mess, IMO.

[tribeca]

Watching Notting Hill again makes me remember how much I disliked the decision for the William's sister to get together with Spike at the end.  The poor nice guy stock broker was left all alone. 

Edited August 2, 2014 by tribeca

[Milburn Stone]

This. I thought I was the only person on the planet who doesn't get vomit humor or why it's supposed to be funny.

 

Apparently, all moviemakers now think that unless we actually look at vomit, we won't understand a character is vomiting.

 

If I could, I would sentence them to a lifetime of seeing a big heaping serving of vomit on their plate every time they sat down to a meal.

Edited August 2, 2014 by Milburn Stone

[BizBuzz]

I would have liked Stripes so much better if it had just ended with the drill routine. The final act is just a mess, IMO.

 

If you watch Stripes as two separate movies, it works. 

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

I would have liked Stripes so much better if it had just ended with the drill routine. The final act is just a mess, IMO.

Speaking of Stripes, what's with that scene where the men are all getting acquainted with the DI, one guy says "If any of you ever touches me or my stuff, I'll kill you," and the DI just waves him away? Why wouldn't a guy like that be Section 8'ed immediately? Edited August 2, 2014 by Sir RaiderDuck OMS

[spaceytraci1208]

Regarding Friday The 13th...Jason Voorhees died as a child, correct? So how the hell did he grow into a 6ft+, 200 lb or so monster? Was there ninja turtle ooze in Crystal Lake?

[methodwriter85]

The first two acts of The Place Beyond the Pines were good. The rest? Not so much. The movie really hit a snag in the third act. The

bizarre plot of Bradley Cooper's son trying to mess with Ryan Gosling's son might have made sense if they spent more time developing the characters, but as it stood I felt very confused by it. If Jason was a messed up kid who had dealt for years in simmering anger for losing his dad, they might have earned the scene of him pulling the gun on Avery Senior, but they didn't.

 

The movie couldve been amazing, but it was just missing a great third act and finish for it to hit that mark. Emory Cohen and Dane DeHann are both good actors but the writing just felt off for me in regards to their characters.

Edited August 3, 2014 by methodwriter85

[BizBuzz]

I think this topic is just a little too mild for what I just spent the last almost two hours watching.

 

All during this movie, I was so engrossed.  The scenery.  The story.  The narration.  The twists.  The dialog.  The acting.  Everything.

 

And then came the last 10 minutes, and I am like WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?

 

Yes, I am yelling. 

 

The movie was The Words.

 

If anyone here can explain the ending to me, please, be my guest.  I will thank you profusely for making me not think I just wasted two hours of my life.  ::giggle::

[BooBear]

In, Keeping the faith, the idea that Jenna Elfman would ever fall for Ben Stiller over Ed Norton, ruined it for me.  Even in terms of the movie the characters they played put Ed in the lead.

Edited August 17, 2014 by BooBear