Top Ten… Worst Films of 2022

It’s a sorry state of affairs when you have a bigger shortlist for your worst films of 2022 than you did for your favourites but whether it’s nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake, woke agenda’s being forced down your throat or the over reliance on big names as opposed to well thought out story-telling, honestly, the Silver Screen has failed to deliver last year.

Love Popcorn's Ten Worst Films of 2022

10. Amsterdam

Amsterdam (2022)

Inspired by a real life political conspiracy, Amsterdam tells the story of three friends who are framed for a murder. In their bid to prove their innocence they accidently stumble upon, and uncover, a crazy plot that threatens the future of America. Whilst I wouldn’t exactly say this was a bad film, it was just a little dull and with a cast that includes Christian Bale, Margot Robbie and John David Washington Amsterdam should really have delivered a whole lot more.

9. Spiderhead

Love Popcorn's Ten Worst Films of 2022 - Spiderhead

Another film that squandered a great cast was Joseph Kosinski’s psychological thriller, Spiderhead, released on Netflix just a few days after his Top Gun: Maverick made waves at the box office. The film sees Chris Hemsworth as a pharmaceutical billionaire testing his experimental drugs on convicts in exchange for shortening their sentences. From aggression to laughter to love, they experience them all against the backdrop of a beautiful island but when one subject begins to question the reality of his emotions he uncovers a disturbing secret.

8. Luckiest Girl Alive

Luckiest Girl Alive (2022)

Luckiest Girl Alive tells the story of Ani Fanelli (Mila Kunis), a sharp-tongued New Yorker who has it all figured out but is hiding a dark secret. When asked to tell her side of the story for a documentary film she is forced to confront a past that threatens to unravel her carefully crafted life. Tonally and stylistically, Mike Barber’s Luckiest Girl Alive gave off strong Gone Girl vibes but was ultimately style over substance.

7. Halloween Ends

Love Popcorn's Ten Worst Films of 2022 - Halloween Ends

2021’s Halloween Kills looked as though it was heading towards a brilliant ending to the Michael Myers saga but then they went down that whole stupid “essence of evil” route and paved the way for the bundle of boredom that was Halloween Ends. Taking place four years after the events of the previous film, Laurie is trying to pick up the pieces of her life but when a new wave of violence and terror sweeps the community she is forced to finally confront the evil that has haunted her for years.

6. Lightyear

Love Popcorn's Ten Worst Films of 2022 - Lightyear

If you would have told me that a Pixar film would find its way into one of my top ten worst films lists, I would never have believed you but, after a somewhat steady decline over the last few movies, here we are. The Toy Story spin-off, presented as the film that launched the Buzz Lightyear toy – Andy’s new favourite – and sees him embark on an intergalactic adventure with ambitious recruits Izzy, Mo and Darby as they encounter an army of robots commanded by the evil emperor, Zurg.

5. Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness

Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness (2022)

The concept of the multiverse was one of the themes of the year, and where some films did it excellently (cue Everything Everywhere All At Once) Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange tried its best but, despite a valiant effort, couldn’t seem to tie together the sprawling mess that is Marvel’s Phase Four and ultimately suffered because of it.

Read full review – here

4. Jurassic World Dominion

Love Popcorn's Ten Worst Films of 2022 - Jurassic World: Dominion

I may be a little biased because Chris Pratt kind of wants to make me pry my eyes out with a hot poker but if we’re honest, the Jurassic World franchise as a whole has failed to capitalise on, or live up to, the legacy of Jurassic Park but this was the worst of them all. The story was weak and uninspired, and the inclusion of the original trio felt desperate and cheap. Admittedly Jurassic World: Dominion was, for the most part, visually appealing, the odd epic shot was not enough to bring this film back from extinction.

3. Pinocchio

Love Popcorn's Ten Worst Films of 2022 - Disney's Pinocchio

Where Guillermo Del Toro’s darker adaptation narrowly missed out on a place in my top ten favourite films of 2022, there was no hesitation that Disney’s woeful reimagining would find itself a place on this list, despite featuring an impressive cast including Tom Hanks and Ewan McGregor. This was a perfect example of reimaging a classic story to fulfil the perceived agenda of modern culture but instead of achieving this through clever storytelling and thought-provoking performances, Disney decided to go down the heavy-handed shove-it-down-your-throat approach.

2. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore

Love Popcorn's Ten Worst Films of 2022 - Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

The Fantastic Beasts franchise has been plagued with controversy and scandal, from JK Rowling’s transphobic comments to the Johnny Depp-Amber Herd saga, but unfortunately the third film in the Harry Potter spin-off series failed to match the drama of its real-life cast. Acting-wise there were some real positives, Jude Law was fantastic as Albus Dumbldore and Mads Mikkelsen stepped into Johnny Depp’s shoes with style but this could not save the seriously shocking story-telling and woeful execution that ultimately led to the franchise itself reportedly being put on hold (source). And to be honest, not only am I not surprised, I’m extremely grateful that I won’t have to sit through another one of these awful films.

Read full review – here

1. Thor: Love And Thunder

Love Popcorn's Ten Worst Films of 2022 - Thor: Love and Thunder

If you have already read my review of Thor: Love and Thunder then you probably won’t be surprised to see it sit in its rightful place on top of the shit pile that is 2022’s worst films. This film was so bad that I got bored halfway through writing my review and just sort of gave up, something I wish Kevin Feige had done at the end of Phase Three. All I can say is that Christian Bale deserved not to have his reputation tarnished with this shit show.

Read my full review – here

So there you have it, my ten worst films of 2022. I know not everyone will agree but this is my list, you can make your own haha. Don’t forget to check out my favourite films from last year too.

3 Comments Add yours

  1. Brittani says:

    As a huge Wanda fan, I’m still very annoyed with how Doctor Strange 2 played out. Making her the full on villain was a mistake. She still could’ve been somewhat of an antagonist without throwing out everything Wandavision accomplished.

    1. Kirsty T says:

      Totally!! We finally got the Scarlet Witch we deserved and then they did her dirty like that! Do you think she’ll be back or do you think that’s the last we’ll see of her?

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