2011 in Review, Worst Films

Today I continue my look back at 2011 with a look at the worst films of the year. Usually, the list of the worst films is a tack on to the end of my picks for the best films of the year. But this year was different. Each year, as I look to do my year-end lists, I start two columns. On the left, I put the year's best films, on the right, I list those contending for the worst. Usually the left column fills up fastest, but this year I realized that I was out of space on the right before I'd even gotten to double digits on the left.

Welcome to 2011. So, in honor of this year's crop of forgettable films, I've decided to give the bottom group their own post and have expanded the list to 15 entries — matching the number on the top end.

Happy watching... or better yet, not.

15. The Change-Up — This is just an awful comedic misfire. I like Ryan Reynolds. I like Jason Bateman. I think both can be very funny. I had high hopes for this film, but it just didn't work. At all. It was almost a painful experience. Both of them deserved better.

14. The Dilemma — Ah, poor Ron Howard. On paper, it's hard to see what drew the director to this misguided romantic comedy. Vince Vaughn can be funny, so can Kevin James, but there is little about this film that worked. The most memorable thing about it is the fact that the trailers drew criticism from left-wing political groups for a gay slur. The whole thing was offensive, but probably not for the reasons that those groups critiqued the film.

13. Red Riding Hood — Why would we want to make a live-action version of Little Red Riding Hood? Who knows. But turning that fairy tale into a low-rent version of "Twilight" made it 1,000 times worse. Amanda Seyfried looks lost, Gary Oldman marches around like he's about to fire his agent, which he might want to think about. This movie is a fail.

12. The Mechanic — By now we should come to expect nothing but the worst from Jason Statham. This year he did actually deliver one or two passable films, but this wasn't one of them. This movie was awful, violent, and pointless. The trifecta!

11. Priest — Ugh, the worst of the summer blockbusters. The most offensive part of this film wasn't the religious themes but the fact it seemed to be trying to establish a film franchise. Paul Bettany actually seemed to fit in this film, which might mean he's on his way to Nicholas Cage territory.

10. Three Musketeers — Just a terrible idea for a re-make. The film bore no resemblance to previous tellings of the story and mixed in high level martial arts and action sequences that seemed totally disconnected from the story. But, then again, there really was no story, so I guess it fit...

9. Apollo 18 — This is a spin on the "Paranormal Activity" franchise and it was an awful spin. No point. No scares. No performances that were even remotely passable. And, for a movie that was less than 90 minutes, it seemed to last forever.

8. Something Borrowed — This was a romantic comedy based on a novel that I felt had one of the more offensive stories of the year. I HATED this movie, probably to a greater degree than it deserved. It is about a woman (Ginnifer Goodwin) who turns 30, has a life crisis, and has an affair with her best friend's fiance. Just a repugnant plot and wholly unlikeable characters.

7. The Roomate — This movie featured an actor from nearly every show on the CW, and there was a reason for that. Thankfully few saw the movie since it opened on Super Bowl weekend, but it was terrible.

6. Conan The Barbarian — This was probably not a film that needed to be re-made. But if it was going to be re-made, it didn't need to be in 3D and feature the most serious and grim version of the story. It was a chore to get through this overly pompus and graphic action piece.

5. Season of the Witch — Ah, the first of two entries in 2011 from Nicholas Cage. It's a pity he doesn't make more films. Wait, scratch that thought. The big takeaway for me from this film — which I gave 0 stars way back in January 2011 — was that the Black Plague was caused by witches. Who knew!

4. Hall Pass — Just a really, really foul comedy from the Farrelly Brothers. I am not sure what they were going for here. Those offended that Jason Sudekis played Jesus on "Saturday Night Live" should be more offended that he got paid to play this part. This movie was gross, and also earned 0 stars when it bowed in February.

3. Jack and Jill — Adam Sandler sunk to new lows with this film, where he played a version of himself and his own twin sister. The fact that this wasn't the worst film of the year — because man did I hate this movie — is a testament to how bad a year it was for films. This film also received 0 stars when it debuted in November.

2. Shark Night — This movie was not only gross, it was poorly acted, and poorly constructed. It was like a "Deliverance" of shark movies, and I don't say that to be flattering. This movie should have gotten an R. The fact it was PG-13 is a sad testament to what our ratings board considers appropriate for younger viewers. I love the genre, but I was appalled by this film. It also got 0 stars when it debuted in September — the same week as "Apollo 18" ironically.

1. Drive Angry — It wouldn't feel like a complete list without a Nicholas Cage movie bringing up the rear. This was the second, and worst, of his films on the list. This film was graphically violent, morally bankrupt, poorly acted, and profane enough that it should have earned an NC-17. The lengthy and graphic sex scene that was part of an orgy of violence alone should have been enough for this film to get slapped with the most restrictive rating. This got 0 stars when it was released and was the worst, most offensive film I saw in 2011. And let me tell you, that is really saying something.