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

[Spartan Girl]

Oh splendid idea!

I’d have to nominate the last ten minutes of Avengers Endgame. I’ve already gone into why I hate it on plenty of threads, let’s just leave it at that lol.

[Blergh]

 

OK, this wasn't  a 'great movie' but it was okay.However. ..

 

  Sue (Linda Koslowski) climbing over all those subway patrons  to shout to Mick (Paul Hogan)  him that she loved him in the last part of Crocodile Dundee (1986). Utterly lame and pointless. It just seemed as though once they got Mick to NYC and had him do a bunch of 'Ozzie Fish Outta Water' schtick, they didn't know how to end the movie so they came up with that!  Considering how lame all the sequels were (to say nothing of their own offscreen unhappy ending), IMO it would have been better had he just taken the subway out of the city and they never saw each other again! 

[Ms Blue Jay]

Justin Timberlake's acting in The Social Network and Bad Teacher.

Edited June 15, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[Spartan Girl]

One thing that bugs me about The Color Purple: why the hell didn't Shug just take Celie with her the first time she left for Memphis?!? She knew that Albert was beating her, she KNEW Celie needed help, and yet she just cheerfully says goodbye to her at the station like she couldn’t tell Celie was dying to go with her?! Was she really that obtuse?!Why did it take her finding all of Nettie’s letters years later for her to finally do something to help her?!

[Cobalt Stargazer]

Forget Shug. Albert spent all those years treating Celie like something he found on the bottom of his shoe, and then he arranges for her sister and kids to come to the States after they'd been separated for a couple of decades. It wasn't until she left him, saying goodbye by telling him that until he did right that everything in his life would crumble around him, that he finally got something like a conscience about it. I give Shug some slack, because I don't think she had a choice even if she wanted to take Celie with her when he left. Albert was just a son of a bitch almost right until the end.

[Spartan Girl]

Thinking a lot about the Raimi Spider-Man movies, and there’s one moment from the comics that could have made the first one so much better.

Backstory: After Gwen Stacy dies, MJ comes over to Peter’s house on route to some party to see how Peter is doing. Peter, reeling with grief and guilt, snaps at her to just leave him alone. Hurt, MJ turns to leave, but with a resolute expression, decides to skip the party and be there for him whether he wants her around or not.

We needed a similar scene like that after Uncle Ben’s death. It would totally make sense for her to come after to their house after hearing about Ben and since she was their neighbor and all…and it would have given their relationship in the movie more depth, and also made their later scene at Ben’s grave feel more organic.

Because that scene in the comics was such a definitive moment for MJ’s character. It showed that MJ wasn’t the shallow party girl everyone thought she was, not to mention how deeply she cared for Peter. Having that scene in the movie would have gone a long way to fixing everything wrong with the Raimi version of MJ—let her and Peter bond as friends instead of her just being the solipsistic queen bee that only talks to her nerdy neighbor when none of her popular friends are around (or when she needs a tongue bath).

[proserpina65]

On 6/14/2021 at 10:14 PM, Blergh said:

 

OK, this wasn't  a 'great movie' but it was okay.However. ..

 

  Sue (Linda Koslowski) climbing over all those subway patrons  to shout to Mick (Paul Hogan)  him that she loved him in the last part of Crocodile Dundee (1986). Utterly lame and pointless. It just seemed as though once they got Mick to NYC and had him do a bunch of 'Ozzie Fish Outta Water' schtick, they didn't know how to end the movie so they came up with that!  Considering how lame all the sequels were (to say nothing of their own offscreen unhappy ending), IMO it would have been better had he just taken the subway out of the city and they never saw each other again! 

Awww, I actually love that scene.

[JustHereForFood]

I finally watched Wonder Woman 1984. I liked it a lot and it would probably count among my most favorite superhero movies, but the thing with Steve inhabiting a body of another guy leaves a bad taste in my mouth. How did that pass so many people working on the movie, without anyone realizing that it is a huge problem?

[Spartan Girl]

Loved everything about Spider-Man No Way Home except the ending.

Spoiler

Peter having to give up his entire identity, having to erase MJ and Ned’s memories, and being left alone with nothing?! Screw that! Even if they fix it in the next movie, it sucks! Let the other two Peter’s come back to adopt him!

 

[Trini]

7 hours ago, JustHereForFood said:

I finally watched Wonder Woman 1984. I liked it a lot and it would probably count among my most favorite superhero movies, but the thing with Steve inhabiting a body of another guy leaves a bad taste in my mouth. How did that pass so many people working on the movie, without anyone realizing that it is a huge problem?

It would have been one thing if neither Steve or Diana realized the he was in another person's body until later, but they both knew from the start, and even talked about it! I too am amazed this plot point got through all the levels of editing.

[RealHousewife]

On 4/5/2017 at 2:57 PM, Ms Blue Jay said:

"Bridesmaids" and the shitting their pants scene, which I hate, hate hate and always have to fast-forward.

Entertainment Weekly just came out with an "Untold story" about the movie where the director cut a scene of Paul Rudd as a psychotic ice dancer or something that goes on a blind date with Kristen Wiig's character.  Seriously you fucking insisted on the pants-shitting scene instead of THAT?  

Agree. I love a feel-good comedy for women, but Bridesmaids wasn't perfect for me because of the bathroom humor. 

Love Story was a very moving film, but some of the writing could have been better. 

[JustHereForFood]

14 hours ago, Trini said:

It would have been one thing if neither Steve or Diana realized the he was in another person's body until later, but they both knew from the start, and even talked about it! I too am amazed this plot point got through all the levels of editing.

And it's not like there wasn't another option. He was brought back by a wish. He could easily have been in a new body.

[magicdog]

On 12/20/2021 at 10:50 AM, JustHereForFood said:

I finally watched Wonder Woman 1984. I liked it a lot and it would probably count among my most favorite superhero movies, but the thing with Steve inhabiting a body of another guy leaves a bad taste in my mouth. How did that pass so many people working on the movie, without anyone realizing that it is a huge problem?

Steve wasn't the only problem with that movie!  It's like no one reviewed the script at any point and said, "Wait, how can this be?".  Very flawed story all the way around.

[JustHereForFood]

3 hours ago, magicdog said:

Steve wasn't the only problem with that movie!  It's like no one reviewed the script at any point and said, "Wait, how can this be?".  Very flawed story all the way around.

Well, it was mine, as I said I liked the movie apart from that. 

Ok, one other problem: when Diana saved Barbara from the disgusting rapist early in the movie, she just left him there, didn't have him arrested or even threatened him to not do it again (fat chance, but I would have liked some reaction other than leaving a rapist on the streets, even in 1984). I cheered later when Barbara kicked him when she got her powers, but wished she would kick him in front of a large truck.

[Kel Varnsen]

On 12/21/2021 at 12:23 PM, JustHereForFood said:

And it's not like there wasn't another option. He was brought back by a wish. He could easily have been in a new body.

There was also the plot point where wishes always came with unintended bad consequences (like a deal with the devil kind of thing). The obvious way to do it would be that the bad consequence of Steve coming back is that Wonder Woman has to live with the fact that they stole someone else's body and life (and deciding if she could deal with that or not). But weirdly that wasn't the bad part of the wish.

[Trini]

On 12/23/2021 at 3:35 PM, Kel Varnsen said:

On 12/21/2021 at 12:23 PM, JustHereForFood said:

And it's not like there wasn't another option. He was brought back by a wish. He could easily have been in a new body.

There was also the plot point where wishes always came with unintended bad consequences (like a deal with the devil kind of thing). The obvious way to do it would be that the bad consequence of Steve coming back is that Wonder Woman has to live with the fact that they stole someone else's body and life (and deciding if she could deal with that or not). But weirdly that wasn't the bad part of the wish.

Man - every time I come across a discussion of this problematic plot, someone has another way to fix it. They had many options, but chose poorly.

 

smallvoice/However I also liked the movie despite its glaring flaws./smallvoice

Edited December 28, 2021 by Trini

[methodwriter85]

I feel like they thought it was okay because of Quantum Leap, but A.) Quantum Leap was from the early 90's, B.) When Sam got down, they mostly avoided Sam having sex with anybody that had an established intimate relationship with the persona Sam was taking on, and C.) Sam wasn't actually IN the body of the person who's life he was taking over for the week.

 

[magicdog]

On 12/23/2021 at 6:56 PM, Trini said:

Man - every time I come across a discussion of this problematic plot, someone has another way to fix it. They had many options, but chose poorly.

Agreed.  It's as if they decided to bring Steve back and work around it to make it happen.    

[Spartan Girl]

Dear Evan Hansen was a mess, both the show and the movie, but there could have been a better story in there somewhere. One of the tweaks that could have made it better: having Evan come clean to Zoe in the beginning and have her not Jared (who just sucks) encourage him to keep up the pretense and fake the emails for her parents sake. It would have at least erased the stigma of Evan using the lie to get close to Zoe and made their romance less icky.

But a tweak that could have salvaged the ending of Evan sending out that video of Connor by limiting it to the Murphys, and NOT Jared and Alana. I don’t get why he sent it to them too: Jared didn’t give a shit about Connor, and I wouldn’t have given Alana another opportunity to exploit something private in the name of The Connor Project. 

[Raja]

On 12/20/2021 at 10:50 AM, JustHereForFood said:

I finally watched Wonder Woman 1984. I liked it a lot and it would probably count among my most favorite superhero movies, but the thing with Steve inhabiting a body of another guy leaves a bad taste in my mouth. How did that pass so many people working on the movie, without anyone realizing that it is a huge problem?

This was about 10 years after Stargate Universe which had a similar body takeover set up of their crew stranded in space swapping places  with some airman back home on earth and proceeding to use that airman's body for sex drugs and fighting. The ick factor was all over the Stargate forums asking what were they thinking.

[methodwriter85]

"Don't Worry Darling" should have had more Chris Pine. Also, I would have liked them to use "Don't Worry, Baby" to close out the movie.

[BlueSkies]

The Fan with Robert DeNiro

Very suspenseful and dark film that was great until the final scene.  The ending ruined it for me 

[Ms Blue Jay]

More films I would love more if not for the potty humour: This is 40, The Change Up, Mallrats

On 12/21/2021 at 4:02 AM, RealHousewife said:

Love Story was a very moving film, but some of the writing could have been better. 

I finally saw it this year and was a little shocked by it.  The male protagonist kept calling his fiancee a bitch.  Really weird idea of romance.

[Blergh]

16 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

More films I would love more if not for the potty humour: This is 40, The Change Up, Mallrats

I finally saw it this year and was a little shocked by it.  The male protagonist kept calling his fiancee a bitch.  Really weird idea of romance.

Well, I always thought the iconic closing line of 'love means never having to say you're sorry' was utterly bogus and unreal. I mean  one of the best aspects of love is making up after having been sorry!

And, I said in another thread, Carol Burnett showed more depth in her show's tiny spoof of the movie than Ali McGraw did in the entire actual movie.

[Ms Blue Jay]

5 hours ago, Blergh said:

Well, I always thought the iconic closing line of 'love means never having to say you're sorry' was utterly bogus and unreal. I mean  one of the best aspects of love is making up after having been sorry!

Totally agree with you.

[GreekGeek]

On 10/29/2022 at 4:38 PM, Ms Blue Jay said:

I finally saw it this year and was a little shocked by it.  The male protagonist kept calling his fiancee a bitch.  Really weird idea of romance.

She kind of is, though.  Neither one seems especially fond of the other much of the time. All that sarcasm and one-upmanship trying to convince us it was affectionate banter...nope.

Speaking of Love Story, I thought the ending would have been better if it had stuck with the book's ending: After Jennifer dies, Oliver falls into his father's arms and weeps. Instead he repeats that dubious platitude about never having to say you're sorry and walks away.

[elle]

11 hours ago, Blergh said:

Well, I always thought the iconic closing line of 'love means never having to say you're sorry' was utterly bogus and unreal. I mean  one of the best aspects of love is making up after having been sorry!

And, I said in another thread, Carol Burnett showed more depth in her show's tiny spoof of the movie than Ali McGraw did in the entire actual movie.

Ryan O’Neal/Barbra Streisand in the 1972 movie What’s Up, Doc?

Howard declares his love for Judy and apologizes for what he said earlier.
Judy: "Love means never having to say you're sorry" (bats eyelashes)

Howard: "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

They kiss.

And Carol Burnett’s movie spoofs where some of the best things ever shown!

[andromeda331]

15 hours ago, Blergh said:

Well, I always thought the iconic closing line of 'love means never having to say you're sorry' was utterly bogus and unreal. I mean  one of the best aspects of love is making up after having been sorry!

And, I said in another thread, Carol Burnett showed more depth in her show's tiny spoof of the movie than Ali McGraw did in the entire actual movie.

So did I. It's been repeated endlessly in movies, TV and book but it's crap. Whether your in love or not if your sorry you apologize. And like you wrote some of the best moments in relationship is making up.

[caracas1914]

On 12/21/2021 at 10:02 AM, RealHousewife said:

Love Story was a very moving film, but some of the writing could have been better. 

The problem goes back to the actual novel by Erich Segal whose writing is really, really bad, sophmorically trite.    Segal himself on a talk show actually conceded his book was not great literature to say the least.

The line “Love means never having to say you’re sorry” is taken straight from the novel.  Even though it doesn’t actually make sense ( only peripherally I suppose in that you should sense the emotions/feelings of your loved one without verbalizing)  it came to be  of those iconic sayings of that era. 

This film literally made Ali Mcgraw’s acting career, for that alone it should live in infamy.

[Oosala]

On 10/29/2022 at 1:38 PM, Ms Blue Jay said:

I finally saw [Love Story] this year and was a little shocked by it.  The male protagonist kept calling his fiancee a bitch.  Really weird idea of romance.

I always assumed that was a Harvard/Radcliffe thing.

On 10/30/2022 at 6:20 AM, Blergh said:

Well, I always thought the iconic closing line of 'love means never having to say you're sorry' was utterly bogus and unreal.

Yes.  I saw this movie in the theater when it was a new release.  The guy that took me cried and I was second-hand embarrassed for him.  Anyway, that closing line did get slammed in the press at the time because it is such patent bullsh*t.  I read the book before seeing the movie.  Also, Diane steals that paperback in the movie Drugstore Cowbow!  So much more than you ever wanted to know.

Edited November 19, 2022 by Oosala
Spelling counts.

[Scarlett45]

I hate the ending of Pretty Woman, the climbing up the fire escape with the flowers didn’t do it for me, and didn’t demonstrate to me that Edward wasn’t going to be putting her up in a “really big condo”. (I don’t know why she was so insulted by that mind you.)

I would’ve loved the movie more if Edward told her that she was smart, and he supported her going back to school and was going to arrange for a tutor and for her to get her GED, with Vivian being upset thinking he didn’t love her and she was just a charity case. Then the flowers and the fire escape scene could’ve worked. They only knew each other a week- way too soon for big declarations of love. Or do a “one year later” where he’s picking her up but she’s in a short white dress and they are going to city hall to be married. 

Edited to add- I LOVE Pretty Woman as a MOVIE, especially for the early 90s it was very progressive in demonstrating Vivian as a person, the dangers she faced in sex work, why she would be motivated to do that, but didnt vilify her. It also had Edward stand up and protect her against his wanna-be rapist friend. There was no victim blaming in it, along with the fun makeover montages and chemistry between the leads. It's a great rom com- but that ending yo!

[BlueSkies]

Cool Hand Luke: I cannot get past the scene where Luke gets beaten up to death and doesn't quit....  yet when he's playing poker in the next scene he has absolutely no scars on him 

[Apathy]

Although I liked Elvis way more than I thought I would, I might've loved it if they got someone else to play his manager Col. Parker...and I never thought I'd say that about Tom Hanks!

[methodwriter85]

15 hours ago, Apathy said:

Although I liked Elvis way more than I thought I would, I might've loved it if they got someone else to play his manager Col. Parker...and I never thought I'd say that about Tom Hanks!

They really, really, really needed to take a long hard look and wondered if it made sense for a character that was Dutch who was trying to come off as American born to have a Franco German accent. Maybe that ridiculous accent was accurate but either way it was jarring and I liked the second half of the movie better because you don't hear/see Tom Hanks as much.

Just pulled up 1980's footage and unless Colonel Parker completely changed his speaking voice after the 1970's that Franco-German crap wasn't even accurate:

Seriously, why the hell didn't anyone say anything? It would be fine if everyone was kind of heightened and campy but Tom Hanks was the only one doing that. Everyone else in the movie was playing it relatively straight. Add in the fact that Tom Hanks was doing absolutely atrocious accent work (Is it German? Is it French?) and it turns out the person in question didn't even talk with a European accent at all!

Watching this I kept thinking Richard Jenkins  would have been a better fit. He doesn't have Hanks's star power, but let's be honest- was anyone really watching Elvis for Tom Hanks? It probably would have been a better movie if they had decided to go with a character actor for Colonel Parker instead of a major star. Hanks Bridge of Spies co-star Mark Rylance probably could have also worked.

Edited December 28, 2022 by methodwriter85

[Bastet]

50 minutes ago, methodwriter85 said:

Maybe that ridiculous accent was accurate

Like you, I pulled up footage to check (because I wondered if someone pretending not to be an immigrant would have possibly sounded like that yet sold the lie), and, no, it wasn't. This was back at the time of the trailer, and I still haven't watched the film.  I will on TV some day (I love Elvis's music, but I'm not particularly interested in him as a person), but that really baffles me.  Either let Tom Hanks sound like Tom Hanks or cast someone else, but Tom Hanks trying to not be Tom Hanks by way of an accent not found in nature, let alone in the character he's playing is just bizarre.

[methodwriter85]

20 hours ago, Bastet said:

Either let Tom Hanks sound like Tom Hanks or cast someone else, but Tom Hanks trying to not be Tom Hanks by way of an accent not found in nature, let alone in the character he's playing is just bizarre.

It was bizarre. I get that we're talking Baz Luhrman, but given that every other character acted more or less like a real human being, Colonel Parker being a caricature with a bizarre attempt at a French/German accent was odd. Especially given that the guy was Dutch, and he spoke with an American accent! Absolutely mind-boggling choice and if they thought Tom Hanks was the comic relief, they were sorely mistaken.

[Spartan Girl]

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was great, but I feel like 30 minutes could be been shaved off. Namor being another “villain with good points even though he was actually horrible” didn’t work for me because it felt like Kilmonger all over again, and I hate how that brief bonding with Shuri sent the shippers into a tizzy even though he winds up 

Spoiler

Killing her mother. God, I’m so sick of the Reylo shippers pairing up enemies together. It was pretty damn clear that even though Shuri spared Namor’s life, she wasn’t even remotely romantically interested in him anymore—if she ever been at all.

Also, I wish Okoye had gotten back into the Dora Milaje in the end.

[methodwriter85]

This also goes in the "Casting and Recasting" thread, but I really have to say- I think Selma Hayek was absolutely terrible casting for Magic Mike 3. It's not that she's a bad actress or anything, but Salma consistently and permanently oozes sensual charisma in pretty much any role that she does, no matter what she's playing. I don't think that works for her character in Magic Mike- there needs to be this transformation of a stuffy woman who gets invigorated by her dance with Magic Mike but because of the way Salma is, there's just no transformation.

[MadyGirl1987]

I was just thinking how 2019's Pet Sematary remake could have been better. If they hadn't spoiled in the trailers and marketing that the daughter dies instead of the son, like in the book and original film. They even do a fake-out where it looks like the son is going to be killed. Imagine it; you're watching it, presumably knowing the boy dies in the book and original movie. They have the fake-out and you're taking by surprise. Then comes the reveal that it's the girl who dies. What a shocking moment that could have been!

For what it's worth, I also feel the same about the Hulk being in Thor: Ragnarok. It would have been amazing to be sitting there in the theater and all of a sudden the Hulk comes out! Although that one is more understandable to me due to how much behind the scenes work goes into the Hulk, and how it would have probably been difficult to keep under wraps.

[Fool to cry]

On the one hand people would enjoy the movie more if you removed this "WTF?!" ending, on the other hand would we even remember Remember Me without it? 

 

 

[Spartan Girl]

Did the 1978 Death on the Nile really have to have fake flashbacks of every single suspect committing the murder? It got old real fast and dragged the movie down.

[Schweedie]

I was rewatching Ready Or Not, and I keep thinking that maybe they didn't need to have that intro scene right at the start. Because that way we basically know what's going to happen when it's time for Grace to draw her card, and it might've been more effective if we didn't know for sure. We could guess, but we wouldn't have *seen* it. The intro scene is definitely still needed, I think, but I feel like maybe they could've moved it and put it as a flashback - maybe have Daniel look at that closet when he hid Alex and flash back to 30 years ago after the "Run, run run!" song ends, before they head out to find Grace.

[JustHereForFood]

I realized how much I dislike angry mob scenes. I have recently seen an Ukrainian animated movie Mavka: The Forest Song (a good movie BTW:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdzFcSQp-x0) and it had a scene basically similar to the one in Beauty and the Beast, just with reversed genders -  villagers get very easily manipulated into attacking someone over their magical abilities, complete with torches and pitchforks, prompted by a complete stranger and ignoring someone trying to stop them despite knowing them their whole life. Yes, I get it, superstitiuos villagers in unspecified historical period were understandably afraid of the supernatural, but for once I would like to see them at least take enough time to breathe, formulate a plan and listen to everyone who can provide more information and perhaps talk them out of the crazy idea or, I don't know, contact some authority outside of the small village who could help them? I mean, in case if they actually were attacked, it might be impressive to see them form a defense in such short time, but if it's for a preemptive attack based on little evidence, it's quite scary.

But of course, once any one of the characters learns the truth, that there actually wasn't any danger and they've been manipulated, everyone stops immediately because suddenly everyone listens to reason and all is well again. 

 

[Wiendish Fitch]

Controversial UO: I don't like Edward Scissorhands. I'm sorry, but the ending destroys it for me. I can forgive a flawed ending, but this one is just too egregious to me. Still, this movie is a beloved classic, so I own that this is a "me" problem, but I just wish the movie had ended this way...

Spoiler

Instead of Kim inexplicably never visiting poor Edward in his dreary mansion (despite throwing her life away staying in her shitty small town), why not establish that Old!Kim goes for walks late at night (foreshadow this as "Grandma's getting eccentric in her old age" or something), only to reveal that it's her visiting Edward from time to time? And after she'd done telling her story, her granddaughter can say, "Wait, Grandma.... is that why you go for walks so late at night?!" Kim can smile knowingly, we cut to her going to the mansion's courtyard, seeing Edward making the ice sculpture of her younger self, then they exchange a bittersweet smile, fade to credits.

 I dunno, just a thought.

Note: Forgive me if I've stated this in the past, I didn't have time to check the past posts. 

Edited October 21 by Wiendish Fitch

[Spartan Girl]

3 hours ago, Wiendish Fitch said:

Controversial UO: I don't like Edward Scissorhands. I'm sorry, but the ending destroys it for me. I can forgive a flawed ending, but this one is just too egregious to me. Still, this movie is a beloved classic, so I own that this is a "me" problem, but I just wish the movie had ended this way...

  Hide contents

Instead of Kim inexplicably never visiting poor Edward in his dreary mansion (despite throwing her life away staying in her shitty small town), why not establish that Old!Kim goes for walks late at night (foreshadow this as "Grandma's getting eccentric in her old age" or something), only to reveal that it's her visiting Edward from time to time? And after she'd done telling her story, her granddaughter can say, "Wait, Grandma.... is that why you go for walks so late at night?!" Kim can smile knowingly, we cut to her going to the mansion's courtyard, seeing Edward making the ice sculpture of her younger self, then they exchange a bittersweet smile, fade to credits.

 I dunno, just a thought.

Note: Forgive me if I've stated this in the past, I didn't have time to check the past posts. 

It’s not a “you” problem, that ending would have been way better!

[methodwriter85]

I would have kept the Carrie montage ending to Beetlejuice 2, but I would have added Astrid rushing over to comfort her mother, as like an inverse of the Sue Snell and her mom scene. 

[MissAlmond]

On 10/1/2023 at 8:46 AM, Spartan Girl said:

Did the 1978 Death on the Nile really have to have fake flashbacks of every single suspect committing the murder? It got old real fast and dragged the movie down.

I love, love, love 1978 Death on the Nile, but ITA with this. The only fake flashback needed was Salome Otterbourne’s drunken attempt to locate the gun. Stayed in character 

Spoiler

and demonstrated in no way would she have been in condition to commit the crime.

 

Edited November 8 by MissAlmond