Movies That Won A Golden Raspberry Award You Should Watch Anyway

The Golden Raspberry Awards are the antithesis of the Oscars. Instead of celebrating excellence in the film industry, every year "The Razzies" honor the worst. It's the award ceremony no nominee in the film industry wants to attend, let alone win.

Co-founded in 1981 by John J.B. Wilson and Mo Murphy, the Razzies have become an important date on the Hollywood calendar. Held the day after the Oscars, the nominees and winners don't go unnoticed.

However, that doesn't mean Razzie-winning films should be completely avoided. Whether they're in the it's-so-bad-it's-good category or simply misunderstood, here are Razzie winners worth watching.

Awarded for: Worst Picture, Worst Actor (Sylvester Stallone), Worst Screenplay, Worst Original Song.

Muscled, bandana-wearing-badass John Rambo returns three years after his debut in 1982's First Blood. After using his repertoire of deadly combat skills to battle the violent police force of Hope, a small town in Washington, Rambo's return sees him leave the U.S. This time, he's assigned a mission to uncover the existence of prisoners of war in Vietnam.

Like its predecessor, First Blood Part II is crammed with all of the hallmarks that make a Stallone movie enjoyable. Questionable acting and shoddy editing only enhance the enjoyment of Part II's adrenaline-pumped action sequences. Add a healthy dose of suspended disbelief and backs-against-the-wall desperation for the hero, and it's impossible to not root for Rambo. After all, the action genre epitomizes escapism, and what epitomizes escapism more than exploding arrows?

Awarded for: Worst Screenplay, Worst Supporting Actor (Jesse Eisenberg), Worst Screen Combo (Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill), Worst Prequel, Remake, Ripoff, or Sequel.

After an indifferent start with 2013's Man of Steel, Warner Bros.' DC Comics movie slate looked set to excel in the capable hands of the titular superhero heavyweights. That wasn't the case. Zack Snyder's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice loses focus by cramming too much into an already bloated two-and-a-half-hour runtime. What could've been a battle to match Marvel's Captain America: Civil War suffers from a chaotic story line, little cohesion, and questionable plot devices.

While its Rotten Tomatoes score of 27% received a lot of press coverage, its worldwide box office (due to the film's hefty $300 million budget) of $873.8 million is overlooked. The audience rating of just-barely-"Fresh" 63% highlights a bit of a divide between critic opinion and audience enjoyment. Despite many imperfections, Dawn of Justice is still fun. Ben Affleck impresses as Batman (the character peaks with a breathtaking, well-choreographed rescue mission), and Gal Gadot makes a charming debut as Wonder Woman.

Awarded for: Worst Supporting Actor (Ahmed Best, Hayden Christensen), Worst Screenplay.

The positives of George Lucas' Star Wars prequels are obscured by years of vitriol. Worldwide popularity, combined with a wait of almost 16 years following 1983's Return of the Jedi, made expectations impossibly high. The Phantom Menace received most criticism, though Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith were hardly celebrated. Between them, the films earned 15 Razzie nominations.

There were many criticisms aimed at the prequels, including: eroding the mystery of The Force; emphasizing intergalactic politics over action; questionable CGI; the very existence of Jar Jar Binks; and the love story between Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) andPadmé Amidala (Natalie Portman). Now that the cosmic dust has settled, there are elements that deserve praise.

Anakin's transition from promising Jedi to uber-villain Darth Vader adds complexity to one of cinema's most compelling characters. The pre-Vader timeline also delivers two intriguing villains in Count Dooku (Christopher Lee) and Emperor Sheev Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid). Dooku's conflict with Obi-Wan and Yoda climaxes with one of Star Wars' best lightsaber battles. And Palpatine's manipulation of the Galactic Senate, to aid the rise of the Galactic Empire, is evil at its most calculating. Plus, without the prequels, there'd be no Ewan McGregor as a young Obi-Wan.

Awarded for: Worst Actress (Daryl Hannah).

Though a number of Razzie winners have received Oscar nominations, Michael Douglas' triumph in the Best Actor category makes Wall Street the only winner. Depicting the merciless quest for financial gain, Oliver Stone's hit is regarded as one of the most influential films of the '80s.

Wall Street follows Bud Fox (Charlie Sheen), a budding stockbroker who is taken under the wing of high-roller Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas). Typified by Gekko's iconic "greed is good" speech, Stone deftly portrays the moral conflict and potential pitfalls of relentlessly striving for success. Bud's down-to-Earth father, Carl Fox (Martin Sheen), is the voice of reason, providing a candid commentary on the downside of the American Dream.

Despite acclaimed performances by most of the cast, Stone went on record in James Riordan's book, Stone: Biography of Oliver Stone, stating he was aware that Daryl Hannah was a bad choice for Bud's love interest, Darien Taylor. The Razzies agreed.

Awarded for: Worst Actress (Heather Donahue).

As three student filmmakers investigate the legend of the Blair Witch in an isolated forest, a horrifying realization occurs—the legend is real. Earning an incredible $248.6 million against a budget of $60,000, The Blair Witch Project was a game changer. In particular, it popularized the "found-footage" genre that is still popular today. Perfectly fitted to horror, the raw filming style influenced the likes of Cloverfield, Rec and Paranormal Activity. Worst Actress winner Heather Donahue has extra reason to feel a little frustrated—she was the one operating the camera.

Poorly acted or not, directors Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez orchestrate bone-chilling scares on a miniscule budget, thanks to endless creativity. With no money for fancy effects, simple objects and sounds are transformed into a foreboding sense of dread. 

Awarded for: Worst Written Film Grossing Over $100 Million.

Jan de Bont's disaster film follows storm chasers Bill "The Extreme" Harding (Bill Paxton) and Dr. Jo Harding (Helen Hunt) on a dangerous, high-pressured mission to gather data from the fiercest tornado to hit America in decades. There's more than one twist to the story though. Bill reunited with Jo to get her to sign divorce papers so he can marry his new partner, who third-wheels the mission.

Characterization is far from nuanced, but it's forgiven due to Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt being effortlessly likable. The plot is predictable and poorly written, but that doesn't make the film less enjoyable. Twister doesn't take itself too seriously or pretend to be anything it isn't. Above all else, a mixture of exhilarating and sometimes hilarious special effects (keep your eyes peeled for now-infamous cow flying helplessly through the sky) make this one a fun divergence on a rainy day.

Awarded for: Worst Actor (Bruce Willis).

When it comes to a Michael Bay movie, you know you're gonna get an abundance of larger-than-life CGI and explosion after explosion at the expense of story or character development. Armageddon is no different, as its premise suggests. NASA assigns a group of ready-made heroes the deadly mission of preventing an asteroid the size of Texas from colliding with Earth.

Bay's apocalyptic exuberance isn't for everyone, but viewers in the more is more camp will love it, even if silly dialogue, questionable decisions, and an asteroid-sized amount of cheese make this a guilty pleasure at best. It's an unashamed blockbuster that stretches every penny of its $140 million budget on end-of-world thrills and, of course, original songs by Aerosmith (because, why not?).

Awarded for: Worst Screenplay, Worst Actor (Tom Green), Worst Director (Tom Green), Worst Screen Couple, Worst Picture.

As the title suggests, Freddy Got Fingered is peculiar. Even accounting for Tom Green's exhibitionism and oddball humor, this exploitative dark comedy pushes the limits of cheap laughs to the max through the insanity of wannabee Hollywood cartoonist Gordon "Gord" Brody (Tom Green). It was slammed upon release and considered one of the worst films of all time. So why does it make the list?

Freddy is a film unlike any other. It's vulgar, depraved, offensive, yet sometimes hilarious and utterly unforgettable. From wearing the bloodied skin of a deceased deer, biting an umbilical cord, and, erm, pleasuring an elephant, this is a film that will stay with you, for better or worse. It's become viewed more favourably in recent years, earning a cult following. If nothing else, Green deserves a pat on the back for encouraging Regency Enterprises to part with $14 million to produce a film so bizarre.

Awarded for: Worst Picture, Worst Actress (Halle Berry), Worst Director, Worst Screenplay.

Halle Berry is one of the few Razzie winners to appear in person at the ceremony. Clearly, the Oscar-winning actress had the humility to see the funny side. Make no mistake, almost everything about this DC adaptation is flawed. Seriously flawed.

Catwoman's main villain is a cosmetics company, Hedare Beauty. Forget Marvel's evil cosmic overlord Thanos or the Justice League's Steppenwolf, Patience Phillips' (Halle Berry) biggest battle is to prevent Hedare from releasing an anti-aging cream that contains serious side-effects. 

Then there's the constant repetition of the "origin story." Catwoman's origin is bizarre and unintentionally hilarious. Following a deadly accident, she is resuscitated by an Egyptian Mau, a cat which endows her with superpowers that serve no world-saving purpose. Demonstrations of her feline abilities include elegantly balancing on sofas, basketball skills to make Michael Jordan look like a novice, and a scent for catnip.

Awarded for: Worst Actor (Ben Affleck)

The year 2003 wasn't Ben Affleck's finest. He received three Worst Actor nominations for his roles in Paycheck, Gigli, and Daredevil. Ouch. Out of the three though, Paycheck is by far the best, with credit going to Philip K. Dick's thrilling source material. Blending action and sci-fi, Affleck plays Michael Jennings, a computer genius who is hired by clients to reverse engineer, and improve, competing technology.

To protect his trade secrets, he routinely has his memory wiped after working on a project. He agrees to work for three years on a particularly challenging and top-secret deal that'll enable him to retire with millions in the bank. Upon completion, he collects his reward. However, instead of a paycheck, Jennings finds a list of random objects that form a complex and life-threatening puzzle he must solve, with no idea why or how. Think second-rate Memento with sprinklings of second-rate Jason Bourne and you're on the right track.

Awarded for: Worst Supporting Actress (Sofia Coppola), Worst New Star (Sofia Coppola)

Last but by no means least, the final installment of one of the most critically acclaimed trilogies of all time. It's hard to believe a film that received seven Oscar nominations could also find itself with two Razzie wins, but there was one particular issue the ceremony targeted—the casting of Sofia Coppola as Mary Corleone. The level of ridicule aimed at the performance of the director's daughter effectively ended her acting career; she would later follow in her father's footsteps and turn her attention to directing (very successfully we might add).

Although admittedly the weakest in the Godfather series, Part III is an exceptional movie that is harshly criticized thanks to its adored cinematic siblings. Set decades after its predecessor, Mary's father, the iconic mob boss Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) is older, jaded, consumed by guilt. Fed up with his violent way of life, Michael looks to move the family away from its criminal ties. What follows is the usual close to three hours of slow-burn plotting, backstabbing, and gang violence.