So the worst has happened: you’ve split up with your longtime love, and your weekends are now filled with cartons of ice cream and bad reality television. While this behavior isn’t sustainable for an extended period of time, we’ve all found ourselves a bit sad and turning to television for both reassurance and an escape.
Whether you are looking to get that “great” cry or you want to laugh at other people’s pain, these awesomely bad movies help us realize that our horrible reality is, at the very least, better than bad acting, dated wardrobes, or laughable melodrama.
Here are our picks for awesomely bad breakup movies:
Serendipity (2001)
John Cusack & Kate Beckinsale
Sara Smith and Jonathan Trager meet at a Bloomindales counter, and their lives change forever. The two have an instant connection but, because they are both in relationships with other people, they decided to part ways without exchanging numbers. Instead, they both put their numbers out into the universe and hope that fate will bring them together again.
This movie spoofs the typical romantic comedy and, most folks that like movies like The Notebook hate Serendipity, but its awesome badness makes it the perfect movie to watch, scowl at and hopefully rekindle your belief in the magic of love.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)
Kristen Bell, Jason Segel and Russell Brand
IMDB gives us the following synopsis: Devastated Peter takes a Hawaii vacation in order to deal with recent break-up with his TV star girlfriend, Sarah. Little does he know Sarah's traveling to the same resort as her ex ... and she's bringing along her new boyfriend.
Here’s my general rule of thumb: Any movie starring Russell Brand is immediately awesomely bad (or just plain bad), but the idea that we can’t escape our ex’s is a universal reality that makes this movie heartbreaking and funny.
You’ve Got Mail (1998)
Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks
Admittedly, I hesitate to call this movie awesomely bad; it’s one of my favorites, but in 2012 the dial up lingo is a bit dated and this movie has been accused of being a long advertisement for AOL and Starbucks, so I think it fits the bill.
The basic premise is that two bookshop owners (a small independent owner and the a chainstore mogul), end up battling in business while, unbeknownst to them, falling in love with each other on the internet.
Waiting to Exhale (1995)
Whitney Houston, Loretta Devine and Angela Bassett
There are too many drama-packed plotlines to pin down just one but this awesomely bad movie is a man-bashing extravaganza. From torching an ex-husbands car to throwing objects from a balcony, this movie is perfect for anyone person scorned. This movie, based on a novel by Terry McMillan, follows four friends and their respective relationship journeys.
If Lucy Fell (1996)
Sarah Jessica Parker & Eric Schaffer
After becoming increasingly more disillusioned with their respective love lives, two roommates (John and Lucy), make a pact that if their love lives don’t improve, they will jump off of the Brooklyn Bridge together.
Committing suicide because your love life sucks? This is a BAD IDEA in real life, but it’s the perfect premise from which an awesomely bad break up movie grows. This movie has all of your basic romantic comedy conventions, but for me, it doesn’t make the leap from awesomely bad to actually good.
So these are my awesomely bad breakup movie picks, I left out the really great movies (see: Funny Girl) and also the movies that no one can sit through (see: Gigli). Which movies make your awesomely bad movie list?
Patia Braithwaite is a relationship and memoir writer. Check out her relationship blog: www.menmyselfandgod.com
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