I’m curious, after reading an article about this topic on the 'net; what are the cringiest moments you all have ever seen on film? I’m talking moments that make you squirm, make you uncomfortable, make you wish you were anywhere but watching this unfold on screen. They can be humorous, they can be absolutely horrendous, they can be from good OR bad movies…
I’ll start. I haven’t seen the whole film, but there is one scene in the movie Irreversible that I have seen, and desperately wish I hadn’t; that being the rape scene. As a woman, it is so hard to watch something like that, and the fact that the director shot that scene at a low angle, shot it in one continuous take, and also permeated the soundtrack with extremely low frequency hums at a level designed to make your body react with tension all combine to make that movie a movie I will never watch in its entirety.
In a somewhat opposite vein, there was just the stupidity that was Poe Dameron’s line in The Rise of Skywalker: “Somehow, Palpatine returned.” WHAT were the scriptwriters THINKING? Ugh, I hate even THINKING about how stupid this line is; it drives me nuts. Although, Star Wars is notorious for some stupid script decisions; the whole “I don’t like sand” speech from Attack of the Clones, plus the cringey kiss between Rose and Finn in (I think) Rise of Skywalker are just the few I can think of off the top of my head, but there are others.
So how about it? What comes to mind for you as a big ol’ cringefest moment in cinema?
In the movie Escape Me Never, starring Ida Lupino and Errol Flynn, after Flynn’s neglect has led to the DEATH OF HER CHILD, he tells her, ‘You deserve a better man.’ To which she replies, ‘I don’t want a better man, I want you.’
There’s a mind-blowingly combination racism-and-misogyny scene in Where’s Poppa? which made me leave the theater after I was already feeling plenty of cringe from earlier scenes. I’d rather not describe it, though.
The much-discussed “‘seduction’ on the stairs” scene in Gone With The Wind is plenty cringe. Of course, so is Scarlett herself pretty much all the time.
There are many, many movies where it’s pretty much cringe all the way down.
I feel like Lars von Trier deserves a mention, but I’m not going to be the one to expound on that apostate with a severe case of lack of integrity and principle.
At least GG Allin kept his “art” pure! So I can’t call LvT the “GG Allin of moviemakers.”
Here’s a tame one: when Taxi Driver’s Bickle takes Cybil Shepherd out to see a “movie”…dude, that was weird…cancel that, ya freak!
/* Oh, speaking of Cybil Shepherd…The Last Picture Show…I can’t remember too well but it involved a diving board and I think Randy Quaid’s character was involved. It was pretty uncomfortable.
Made worse in hindsight considering Macsonofbitch’s treatment of his companion, Polly Platt. */
I can handle a lot of gore in a film, or at least more than most people I know. I’m not into all-out splatter films, but your normal everyday decapitations I’m totally cool with. The thing that gets me though is people cutting their own wrists. And I don’t have any personal experience to explain this; I don’t know anyone who’s done it but it still causes me great discomfort and I need to just check right the heck out of the movie.
Given that background, many years ago for some strange reason three movies I watched within a week on Netflix had such a scene. The movies were all completely unrelated to each other, and the scenes were not expected given the trailer and marketing. It was just random dumb luck.
But now we have the punchline: at the end of the week, Netflix recommended Wristcutters: A Love Story as something I might be interested in. NOPE!
Luke explaining to Leia that she’s his sister will always be the cringiest moment of any Star Wars film. We’re just used to it. This is the lady who kissed him passionately one movie before.
I’ve heard that Lucas originally intended for Luke and Leia to end up together so they weren’t written as brother and sister in the first two films, but then they changed it up.
Lucas was a visionary director, but some of the things I’ve learned about the overall production of the Star Wars films just makes me think they ended up being good in spite of rather than because of Lucas.
Aside from various rape scenes in too many films, which will always top this list for me (the Darth Vader mask moonbounce rape in Revenge of the Nerds is my vote for most cringeworthy), I have to to say the alien computer hacking in Independence Day gets my vote.
Ironcially, I haven’t wasted any time (heh) on Doctor Who for a while but I was sent this clip which confirmed I’d made the right decision because this has to be about the most cringe thing that I’ve ever seen ever committed to film in all of history.
It’s a movie. It’s called Suspension of Disbelief. I have no problem with the scene. Given the Aliens killed half of humanity before that, the scene was a comedic birdie right back at them. I like the scene. The two actors and scenario carry it. My thoughts.
The entirety of Barbie (2023), most of There Will Be Blood (2007), all of Hidden Figures (2016), the shooting scene in Letters from Iwo Jima (2006), and the punch that knocked out Indiana Jones in Dial of Destiny (2023).
This is way beyond suspension of disbelief. I can watch an alien explore all of time and space from inside a British police box just fine.
Uploading a virus to the mothership is bad writing and could be argued to literally be Deux ex machina, the cheapest sort of get-out-of-plot card there is.
It’s a taste thing naturally. Love or dislike what you will. Independence Day (1996) is #85 on my Best Ever List. I consider it a popcorn masterpiece. Producer Dean Devlin and Director Roland Emmerich played with the taste line throughout their careers. Same with Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and Joel Silver. Escapism in its slickness may be abrasive to some. Again personal preference.
