21st Century Razzies Trivia Quiz

Answer: "50 Shades of Grey" and "Fantastic Four"

The Razzies are announced right before the Academy Awards, and the Razzies for Worst Picture of 2015 went to "50 Shades of Grey" and "Fantastic Four". It's hard to imagine that films about sex and superheroes could be that bad... but apparently they were. "50 Shades of Grey" is based on the 2011 novel by E.L. James; frighteningly, it is only the first installment of the trilogy about the sexual awakening of a college student by a young business magnate, Christian Grey. "Fantastic Four" has our four super-powered heroes transported to a different dimension but, regrettably, it was not far enough.

Answer: Freddy Got Fingered

The fact that "Freddy Got Fingered" was co-written, directed and starring Tom Green may tell you something. This is a 2001 black comedy about a struggling cartoonist who has failed in Hollywood and returns home to live with his parents and younger brother, Freddy. Gord (Tom Green) is in constant conflict with his father and winds up concocting a terrible lie about his father molesting his brother. Even the title of this movie is distasteful!

Answer: Swept Away

If the (decent) movie "Overboard" got marooned on an island with psychotics, it would become "Swept Away". Even sadder, this is a remake of the beautiful Lina Wertmuller film from 1974. The remake was directed by Guy Ritchie and starred his then-wife Madonna as a spoiled self-centered woman (hmmmm) who winds up ship-wrecked on a beautiful island with her employee (a former soldier).

The roles reverse, he strips her of her vanity (and everything else), and so she falls in love with him (yeah, right!). I mean, this movie beat out "Attack of the Clones" for worst picture; can you imagine?

Answer: Gigli

Oh boy! Yet another picture truly deserving of a Razzie... "Gigli". Remember Bennifer - those sweet(?) old days when Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez were a couple? Well, whatever they did on their own time was their business, but the relationship certainly did not carry over to the big screen. Even the plot is offensive, i.e. kidnapping a psychologically challenged young man to get to his brother who was a federal prosecutor.

When Gigli (Ben) can't hack it, they bring in Ricki (J. Lo) and guess what... they fall in love (surprise!).

Answer: Catwoman

This was a particularly good year for bad films... and the loser is "Catwoman". In this movie, they have even changed Catwoman's alias from Selena Kyle to Patience Phillips (to protect the innocent?). We are presented with a woman who has the speed, reflexes and senses of a cat, but she is shy?! Halle Berry is no Storm ("X-Men" reference) in this one.

She is doggedly (ha!) pursued by a detective who is fascinated with her dual personas. Oh, you want a plot? It is about some corporate conspiracy; however, I think the movie-goers were more interested in Halle Berry in that cat suit.

Answer: Dirty Love

The fact that, of all the choices above, the 'winner', "Dirty Love", is the only film I never heard of must mean something. The beautiful Jenny McCarthy plays the clumsy Rebecca who finds her handsome boyfriend in bed with another woman (they couldn't rent a hotel room?).

They break-up, she breaks down, she looks for love in all the wrong places. Does she ever find love? You can ask the person who saw the film. BTW, the film was directed by McCarthy's then-husband, John Asher; a deadly combination.

Answer: Basic Instinct 2

Why? Why do they take a good film and make a bad sequel? Sharon Stone is back as novelist Catherine Trammel in "Basic Instinct 2" and, once again, she is having trouble with the law. This time a Scotland Yard psychiatrist is called in to evaluate her and, of course, just like Nick Curran (Michael Douglas) before him, is entranced by her.

He is forced into her seductive game... but this time in London, with even more murders, and with underwear ("Basic Instinct" reference)!

Answer: I Know Who Killed Me

Look at these choices! The voting here must have been close. I'll give you a clue - the motion picture rating on this film was 'R' for "grisly violence, including torture and disturbing gory images and for sexuality, nudity and language". But wait; the piece de resistance - it starred Lindsey Lohan (remember her from her court appearances?).

The plot of "I Know Who Killed Me" involved a high school student named Aubrey Fleming who disappears and is found unconscious in the woods two weeks later.

When she wakes up she thinks she is Dakota Moss, a character Aubrey created for an English assignment. Actually, that sounds like it could have been interesting.

Answer: The Love Guru

Shame on you Mike Myers! Let me give you the plot of "The Love Guru" and I think you may understand its choice for 'the worst film of the year' (and it was up against Paris Hilton's "The Hottie and the Nottie"). Maurice (Myers) is an American who was raised in Havemahkeeta, India by gurus.

He returns to the United States as Guru Pitka to try his hand at becoming the next Deepak Chopra (who happens to also appear in this film). He is hired by the Toronto Mapleleafs to help their star hockey player win back his wife. (If you have the time, check out IMDB for the cast of this movie.)

Answer: The Last Airbender

A bald kid with a big arrow on his head is "The Last Airbender". I could tell you the stars in this film but, with the exception of Dev Patel ("Slumdog Millionaire"), it probably wouldn't mean much to you. I could say the same for the plot, but here it is anyway.

The world is divided into four kingdoms, i.e. Earth, Water, Air and Fire (not the singing group), but only the Avatar is capable of mastering all four elements. When Avatar Aang disappears, the Fire Nation attacks the Air Nomads to achieve world domination. 100 years later, Fire Lord Ozai is in charge when siblings from the Southern Water Tribe rescue a boy trapped under the ice.

Hey, wake up!

Answer: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Hey, I didn't even like the first "Transformers", so I was not surprised when "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" won the 'uncoveted' Razzie in 2010. The film continues to feature actors Shia LeBeouf as Sam Witwicky and Megan Fox as Mikaela Banes. This time Sam leaves the Autobots to go to college, but the Decepticons manage to drag him back into the Transformers' war. "Just when I thought I was out... they pull me back in ("Godfather III" reference).

It includes glyphs and Bumblebee and Optimus Prime, oh my!

Answer: Jack and Jill

Two words: Adam Sandler; even worse: Adam Sandler as a woman. Remember when he used to be funny? The plot of "Jack and Jill", much like the movie, is very simple. Jack Sadenstein (Sandler) is a successful advertising executive in Los Angeles with a wife and kids. Every year his identical twin sister Jill (already an idiotic premise) visits for Thanksgiving.

The major problem is that, this year, after the holiday she refuses to leave. Jill is a character so horrible and annoying, we ALL wish she would leave! Ugh!

Answer: The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2

I must be truthful here - I was one of the few who did not care about Bella Swan or Edward vs Jacob in the first film, and now they're all back for "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2". In this 'supposed' final Twilight saga (one can only hope), Bella is learning how to use her new vampire abilities, and happy to be with her daughter, Renesmee.

Then there is the Volturi and "turning" Renesmee, and the inevitable fight between the Cullens and the Volturi. If you care about any of this stuff, this film may be for you.

Answer: Movie 43

Here is another crop of flops for 2013. Although "Grown Ups 2" had a total of eight Razzie nominations, the winner that year for Worst Movie was (cue music) "Movie 43". You are not going to believe this one! It seems Charlie Wessler (Dennis Quaid) is a washed-up producer who tries to pitch a comedy script to a film executive. Apparently, his first story is so bad, he has to pitch the rest at gunpoint. I think there may be a neck fetish here since one story tells of a woman dating a man with testicles growing from his neck; yet another has a woman letting her boyfriend "poop" on her neck to demonstrate her love. You want more? I didn't think so!

Answer: Saving Christmas

Another "Transformers" movie was up but lost to "Saving Christmas". This movie was a family affair, led by Kirk Cameron (but without the sensible sister Candice Cameron-Bure who played D.J. Tanner from "Full House"). Kirk is better known for his portrayal of the oldest son Mike Seaver on "Growing Pains". Now back to the movie...

The plot starts with Kirk's sister's Christmas party, and Kirk's attempt to straighten out his brother-in-law, Christian (yeah), who is sadly lacking the Christmas spirit. Kirk shows him that Christ is where He has always been; i.e. "at the center of our Christmas celebrations and traditions".