Roger Ebert On Battlefield Earth:

[undeterred]

"Battlefield Earth is like taking a bus trip with someone who has needed a bath for a long time. It's not merely bad; it's unpleasant in a hostile way."



Only movie I've walked out of after less than 15 minutes.

[cyberswede]

1. This is probably my favorite movie review of all time.

Totally worth reading, whether or not you've seen the movie.
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20000512/REVIEWS/5120301/1023

[undeterred]

3. Thanks, its brilliant!

. This one is like the train crash in "The Fugitive." I watched it in mounting gloom, realizing I was witnessing something historic, a film that for decades to come will be the punch line of jokes about bad movies. There is a moment here when the Psychlos' entire planet (home office and all) is blown to smithereens, without the slightest impact on any member of the audience (or, for that matter, the cast). If the film had been destroyed in a similar cataclysm, there might have been a standing ovation.

[a la izquierda]

8. Oh my lord, so brutal...

yet so true.

[Warren DeMontague]

10. The review was the only good thing to come out of that movie.

A classic.

[olddots]

2. why did they make that turkey ?

Tax loss ,tax loss or tax loss ?

[NightWatcher]

4. To honor L Ron Hubbubub if course.

[sarge43]

5. Travolta's vanity project nt

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

6. I was able to sit through about 10 minutes of it on the TV

and would have welcomed even an MSNBC prison show instead.



Here's part of Ebert's review of what to me is one of the very worst movies of all time: The Lonely Lady starring Pia Zadora. Ebert's conclusion was that Zadora wasn't even talented enough to be really, really bad and that the film itself wasn't even distinctive enough in its badness to qualify as the worst film of the year.

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19831006/REVIEWS/310060301/1023

If "The Lonely Lady" had even a shred of style and humor, it could qualify as the worst movie of the year. Unfortunately, it's not that good. It's a dog-eat-dog world out there in Hollywood and it's not enough to be merely awful. You need something to set yourself apart. Pia Zadora tries, and she has pluck, but she's just not bad enough all by herself.

The movie is bad in all the usual ways, and it would be easy enough to simply list them: The overacting, the use of "voice-over" narration to bridge awkward chasms between scenes, the predictable plot. But why don't we take all of those things for granted and move on to the truly unspeakable things in this movie. We could make a list:.......

For anyone who remembers, Zadora was only about 21 years old when she married a multimillionaire who was in his mid 50s who tried to buy her a film career. Her only screen credit had been playing a 10 year old alien girl in Santa Claus Conquers The Martians. Her new husband purchased the rights to a famous book and produced the film Butterfly in which she starred as a completely inexperienced unknown actress alongside Orson Welles and Stacy Keach, all arranged by her wealthy lovestruck husband. She won a Golden Globe Award for her performance in a universally panned film and the rumor was that her Golden Globe was purchased by her millionaire husband. Then she made the incredible turkey of turkeys The Lonely Lady based on the Harold Robbins book of which her husband had also purchased the rights. She seemed like a genuinely nice young woman but she had zero talent.

[AmyDeLune]

18. I remember her response to the negative reviews of her "acting"

She squealed, "People don't want to see me act! They want to see Pia Zadora!!!" as if she were truly famous for anything other than bad acting and marrying a millionaire...

[Stuart G]

7. I posted my favorite review of all time..in the "Good Reads Forum"

Roger Ebert reviewd a trash pile called........The Green Barets...staring John Wayne....1968.
..one year two months after he started his column for the Chicago Sun Times......I recall as a young college grad, reading this review and the zero star rating....and his clear and precise reasons for that rating....take a look at that review...worth the read..

http://www.democraticunderground.com/101659988

[derby378]

9. ChickMagic and I sat through the whole damn thing

And yes, we laughed out loud at the "head gasket" line and the incessant Batman camera angles.

[undeterred]

11. I talked a friend into going to Battlefield Earth

on the argument that if John Travolta is in a film, it has to be good.

Well, I'll never use that argument again about any actor. Usually they make their mistakes early in their careers, however.

[derby378]

12. PULP FICTION brought Travolta's career back from the brink

Battlefield Earth almost killed it all over again. The only saving grace was that you could tell that John was having so much fun with the role, chewing up every bit of scenery he could.

Maybe if Terl was in a dance contest with Uma Thurman, that would have helped. Maybe.

[Paulie]

13. I paid money and saw it in the theater

I thought it was going to be like Wing Commander. WRONG

[A Simple Game]

14. I must be the only person in the world to say that I liked the movie. n/t

[undeterred]

17. So far.

[Kennah]

15. IMDB goofs are rather entertaining

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0185183/trivia?tab=gf

[undeterred]

16. Wow I can't believe anyone paid that much attention!

[Xyzse]

19. I was told that it was really popular in some very well known country

Namely Japan.

I may be wrong, but that was what I was told.

[Separation]

20. Slowly raises hand

I have to admit that as cheesy as this movie is, everytime it comes on I will watch the whole thing. Ive probably seen it 3 or 4 times. Normally it comes on FLIX or Encore at 2am. I dunno why, but I watch it every time. Not a Scientologist, I dont even know much of the story behind it. But for some reason, I cant not change the channel when it comes on.

[In_The_Wind]

21. I totally missed it. But I will do an auto search for it now.

Thanks!

[In_The_Wind]

22. I never had the time to watch ~ Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000

[Throd]

23. It wasn't actually bad enough to be enjoyable. It even failed at being bad.

Travolta owes me two hours.