Good Things in Bad Films (Pt 1)

Sometimes I think that you just need to watch a bad film with a good thing in it. We can't always watch oscar nominations or big dramatic biopics, sometimes we just want easy watching. These are some good things in some pretty bad films.

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If we ignore the obvious messed up idea of this story and the fact that it is in fact based off twilight fanfiction which in itself just completely changes what this book and film are meant for then I think that it is safe to say these films, yes all 3 were not the best. They are a clear example of a debut novel becoming popular overnight with mums and housewives everywhere, leading to a film franchise ultimately getting made. Like from the moment the world saw how popular these became a film was the next thing lined up. We see it all the time; Harry Potter, Divergent and Hunger Games are prime examples of overnight success books and the film rights are not far behind. But unlike some very successful and well-filmed series *cough cough* Harry Potter this series fell down the route of sadder adaptations *cough cough* divergent.

I will admit I did not read the books, I tried to but they were just so badly pieced together that I psychically couldn't bring myself to do so if I'm honest from what I've heard the films run pretty parallel to them, except of course less sex in order for them to be made at all and viewed outside of a dodgy pirate website. I will, however, say that there is one thing or maybe two that I can proudly type here today which is not so bad about these films, and of course, that's the whole point of this series, pinpointing out okay-ish things that happen to sadly fall from very bad films.

The good thing about this bad film: The soundtrack.

(Believe me when I say I tried to find a funny 50 Shades GIF but unsurprisingly all weren't very PG.)

I am a sucker for a good soundtrack throughout a film, I will put Hans Zimmer on shuffle without hesitation if my brain is foggy or I really need to nap, so I love it when the scores are just as beautiful as what is happening on screen. Equally, I love when the production team realise that there is just the perfect 'chart' song to film and enhance the scene to perfection. I have never seen a feature film with no music or score but I would imagine it dramatically brings the overall theme of it down to something which would be a drain to sit through. Of course, there are scenes which have become iconic due to the music played at a certain moment or throughout a certain scene, and yes I'm of course talking about the Lizzo verse in Someone great. (See below for reference or if you have no idea what I'm talking about then just go watch the dam movie.)

The soundtrack for the 50 Shades films is what I describe as the music which works perfectly with the trailer. The slowed-down Beyoncé and The Weekend with a little Ellie Goulding thrown in have quite possibly created the most 'come to bed, sexy' playlist I've heard in a while and as of course if ever there was a film to have a come to bed eyes playlist then this would be the one.

It wouldn't be okay to forget to give an honourable mention to the small glimpses of humour that pop out once in a while. I'm not sure but that does sound a little like improv and sometimes that they produce some of the best lines, I think if there was a little more of a relaxed tone that these lines created then maybe these films wouldn't have been taken so seriously bad.

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I remember that I watched Oceans 10 & 11 when I was around 16, and I didn't really appreciate that they are very well put together and thought out films. I sometimes find it hard to stick to a 'mystery' reveal all style of the film as I just want to get to the end and know what was happening, but when the big reveal does come I love that I'm now clued in at the end. So watching them again when I was older and really understood them then I saw what the hype was about. So needly to say I was of course very excited about an all-female Oceans 8, I had enjoyed the remake of Ghostbusters and even though I knew this wasn't a straight forward comedy as such I was intrigued to how they would make this different yet follow similar lines to the previous films. I went to watch this in the cinema when it was first released and I didn't walk out annoyed at spending the money I just didn't really see the point of me having just been to watch it, there wasn't really that much going on it was huge cast with massive names, but the entire film was just talking and explaining and talking and explaining, I feel that it missed just one or two things which could have made it work so well. It was a shame as it was so close to being great.

The good thing about this bad film: The cast.

The trailer was released with the name after name shot across the screen and everyone couldn't believe how many people had been cast. And there is no denying that even if or two or the actors in this lineup aren't your cups of tea there is bound to be at least 1 who you like and when you put them all together like this you tend to look past the ones you're not too keen on. But this cast deserved more then what they got. They deserved more than bad stereotypes and bad writing which made them all seem as though even though genius' in their fields somehow they weren't just smart enough. And the little introduction to Debbie Ocean and her side of the family we go just left more questions than answers. I think a huge part of this reboot being the most successful Oceans film to date is hugely down to the cast, seeing these all lined up together I don't you could have thought this would have been anything but great.

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My teenage self was over the moon to be getting another Bridget Jones instalment and I couldn't wait to realise now being 23 that I am in fact her. (The much more along and single version.) And of course, my Greys Anatomy binge-watching brain was also over the moon for the appearance of Patrick Dempsey. But I wasn't really over the moon with the outcome. I had loved the first 2 films when they were realised, they were funny and down to earth and to this day I can put them on and they will always make me laugh. But this instalment has been watched and as happy as I am for Bridget I'm happy to leave her in mind head at least with colin baby free. I feel a little as though this was a film for film's sake, which I know is sometimes the way popular franchises go but I just think it was good the way it was, and find without what was meant to be a round off just adding another random instalment onto the end.

The good thing about this bad film: They stuck to what they know( and Patrick Dempsey).

I know that me saying I didn't really like the film and then saying the good things about it is that they stuck to what they know can sound quite contradictory but in a way it's true. They did what they did best, they kept it romantic and charming and witty all the way through, I just think it wasn't needed. The 2 films on their own stand the test of time and they're funny and they work without a 10 year later flash-forward dilemma between 2 men. You could take any of the jokes or actions that happened in this film and they would continue to work in either of the first two and that is what I like about this film, they didn't try to change anything or make it into something that it wasn't everyone knew what they signed up for with this, I just don't think it was needed. And as an overall film, it definitely ranks a clear third and last place out of them all.