Top 10 “Rotten” Films of 2016

This is my favorite end-of-the-year movie list tradition. At the end of every year, I look at all of the “rotten” films on Rotten Tomatoes, and highlight ones I actually liked. Most of these aren’t close to being great films, but I enjoyed my time with them all the same. Be sure to list your favorite “rotten” films as well! (Note: I’m using the Rotten Tomatoes scores each film had on December 31, 2016.)

10. Blair Witch

Rotten Tomatoes score: 35%

While nowhere near as good as the original, this modern take on the Blair Witch lore was a worthy follow up. And if the filmmakers’ claims are true that are of the effects in the film were practical (i.e., no special effects), then that makes me appreciate it even more.

9. The Accountant

Rotten Tomatoes score: 51%

I’m a sucker for Gavin O’Connor’s films. So much so that two of his movies are listed here. The Accountant didn’t quite feel like an O’Connor film (no heart, no emotion), and sure, it is at-times painfully predictable, but hell, I enjoyed enough of it. Also, the film is further evidence that Joe Bernthal makes everything better.

8. Triple 9

Rotten Tomatoes score: 53%

Director John Hillcoat has made better films, but this balls-to-the-wall, cops-turned-robbers crime thriller was brutal and exciting. It didn’t pull any punches, and Kate Winslet’s caricatured Russian mob wife was crazy entertaining, even if that wasn’t the intention.

7. Jason Bourne

Rotten Tomatoes score: 56%

Jason Bourne deserves placement here for the Vegas chase scene alone. It takes so much damn work to get even the simplest of shots off for any movie, period. How they filmed a car wreaking havoc on the Strip (without the use of heavy SFX) is baffling.

6. The Purge: Election Year

Rotten Tomatoes score: 54%

Election Year is the best Purge film yet. I still think the overall concept is an interesting one, and worthy of discussion (while, of course, being only-in-the-movies ridiculous). Plus, I’ll never tire of watching Frank Grillo do his Frank Grillo thing. Wonder if they’ll keep going with this.

5. Jane Got a Gun

Rotten Tomatoes score: 40%

Jane Got a Gun had one of the most publicly tumultuous productions of recent memory. Lynne Ramsay, the original director, quit on the first day of shooting, actors dropped out, a new director (Gavin O’Connor) was brought on, etc. I’m amazed the movie got made, let alone turned out well. At 98 minutes, the film is noticeably thin, but its final act is tense and engaging.

4. War Dogs

Rotten Tomatoes score: 59%

You know, for a late summer movie, I thought War Dogs was fine. Yeah, much better movies have been made about similar subject matter, but I laughed when I was supposed to laugh, and jumped where I was supposed to jump. I also appreciated that Jonah Hill made some interesting choices here (far beyond his parodied laugh).

3. Rules Don’t Apply

Rotten Tomatoes score: 55%

I’m still surprised Warren Beatty’s long-gestating Howard Hughes film wasn’t better received. It’s far from great, but certainly better than good. If nothing else, the film looks amazing, and Beatty gives a great performance as Hughes.

2. Dog Eat Dog

Rotten Tomatoes score: 43%

I was lucky enough to see Dog Eat Dog at its Los Angeles premiere in October. Writer/director Paul Schrader introduced the film, concluding with the following (paraphrased) remark. “Some may say I’ve been involved with some of the most revered films of all time. Films that will continue to be written about and discussed. Dog Eat Dog is not one of them.”

It ain’t a classic, but it’s exactly what it aims to be, which is completely bat shit crazy from first frame to last.

1. Knight of Cups

Rotten Tomatoes score: 46%

Terrence Malick is one of film’s most polarizing auteurs. While some of his work has crossed over into more mass appeal (Badlands, The Thin Red Line, The Tree of Life), his recent work has highlighted Malick’s obscure, reflective view of the world. The three times I’ve watched Knight of Cups, I’ve witnessed a character study of a profoundly depressed, hopelessly lost man. Women come and go, so do family members. A lavish lifestyle is entertained, but ultimately found hollow. How do you find meaning and purpose if you can’t break the cycle of your own faults? It’s a difficult thing, rebirth. But damn if I didn’t have a transcendental experience watching Christian Bale’s character attempt to find it in this film.

2016 in Review

Top 10 Films of 2016

Top 15 Female Performances of 2016
Top 15 Male Performances of 2016