When bad is good

It's time to play everyone's favorite game: "Name that cinematic triumph!"\nWhich 1990 classic features a soundtrack nearly entirely created by a Casio synthesizer, goblin costumes made from burlap potato bags and paper mache masks and a steamy love scene in an RV overflowing with popcorn?\nIf you're one of the proud few who were able to immediately yelp, "Troll 2," then congratulations, you have mastered the art of watching bad movies. You have become one of millions around the world who unite to bask in the glory of cinematic detritus that is so bad, it's good.\nAt the time of this article's writing, "Troll 2" is currently listed as the worst movie of all time on imdb.com, the Internet Movie Database. Movie fanatics log onto the Web site and vote for both the best and worst movies ever to grace the silver screen, so to reach #1 on the Database's bottom 100 is truly an achievement whose greatness is as staggering as the abysmal quality of the films themselves.\nBut "Troll 2" isn't alone in the campy flick club. Some other "favorites" that made the bottom 100 list include "Glitter," "Gigli," "Spice World," "Baby Geniuses" and "From Justin to Kelly."\nThe musical that starred "American Idol" season 1 finalists Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini scored a 1.9 out of 10 on the Internet Movie Database, a rating that could easily be classified as "not so hot."\nOne user had this to say in a review posted about the film on the Database's message boards: "A quick note on the musical numbers: you have a mute button. Employ it LIBERALLY. Thank you."\nOr who could forget "Spice World," in which the all-girl British pop band took to the big screen?\nOne Internet Movie Database poster said: "Even the popcorn sucked! If you are as stupid as I to be hooked into a FREE showing of this movie, I would ask for a refund!"\nWhat did users have to say about "Troll 2?"\n"It is a life-changing experience, similar to the Middle Ages' trials by fire," says one reviewer. "The watching itself may be painful, but it is ultimately worth the pain to be able to say, with conviction, 'I survived 'Troll 2,' and I'm still technically alive.'"\nBut America's fascination with terrible movies is nothing new. In fact, many goers of bad movies found like-minded people starring in their very own TV show over 15 years ago, sharing and spreading the love of wretched cinema. \nIn "Mystery Science Theater 3000," cast members and puppet robots selected, as the show's theme song stated, "cheesy movies, the worst we can find" to watch in each episode. The two-hour long program, which aired on HBO, Comedy Central and the Sci-Fi Channel in the '90s and early 2000s, played movies from all eras while the cast sat through them only to subject the films to ridicule. \nA cult hit, "Mystery Science Theater 3000" (also known as "MST3K") added some of the most insufferable titles to the film buff's lexicon with its selections from American cinema's low points.\n"Manos: The Hands of Fate," for example, is a 1966 film that otherwise would have faded into oblivion if not for MST3K. The black-and-white gem features a family and its dog beingw stranded in front of a deserted house which is under the vigil of the hunchbacked and reticent "Torgo," the personal slave of a shadowy, evil cult leader that lures female passerby under his spell and into his lair.\nThe plot, supplemented by hideous acting and random free jazz sequences that would span up to five minutes during fight scenes, make "Manos" one of the most celebrated bad movies.\nAndrew Borntreger, webmaster of badmovies.org, had this to say of the "Manos" viewing experience: "If I was a goldfish and could not blink, this movie would be the death of me."\nThe bad movie craze has showed no sign of slowing down, even after "MST3K" was canceled.\nAlthough this summer's "Snakes on a Plane" scored a magnificent 7.5 on the Internet Movie Database—a score that digs out a gaping chasm between itself and the likes of "From Justin to Kelly"—it was widely known for being a campy, over-the-top horror film. \nThe Samuel L. Jackson-headlined movie made a modest $15 million at the box office, but generated enough web hype on sites like the Database to last a lifetime, not to mention receive an impressive score by the site's users and movie's fans. \nWhether its internet buzz, B-list musical artists taking up acting or simply word of mouth, movies of genuine high quality might be missing out on some potential audience members that might prefer something a little more distasteful.\nSo, have any of the movies we've mentioned sound like they might pique your interest?\nIf so, then you have officially caught the "bad movie bug." It's a pandemic that's already spread to even the IU campus.\n"Troll 2 might possibly be the worst cinematic endeavor ever captured on film," says sophomore Katie Beck. "Not only is the story line incredibly idiotic, the camera work is on par with a middle school class project and the acting is so terrible it almost makes you want to avert your eyes."\nSo what keeps people coming back to these bad movies for more?\n"It's like watching a car wreck," Beck says.