I spotted the ladies on this list when they were child actresses, and I was sure they would be wonderful adult actresses. Most have already proved me right: some are still making the journey.

There is a modern trend to centre comedies around deeply unpleasant characters. I don't get it - I don't find unpleasantness funny, and I don't like to spend time in the company of unpleasant characters during a so-called comedy. These films - in no particular order - stood no chance, because the central character turned me off from the start.

I have tried to leave out films where a central character simply isn't funny (nearly every Jack Black film, for instance).

John Cusack, Chevy Chase, Clark Duke, Craig Robinson, Rob Corddry, Brook Bennett, Aliu Oyofo, and Jake Rose in Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)

I have nothing against bad language. I am a keen exponent of same in appropriate circumstances. But I deplore its use in films where it serves no discernible useful purpose, And, unfortunately, there is a trend towards plonking a single F-bomb into a film "Just because we can." By so doing, the film makers add nothing, but alienate part of the audience, being idiotic and offensive at the same. 

How effing stupid.

This list features films with one, maybe two, F-bombs which add nothing to the film except causing offence.  This is not to say that the films are kids' films - they're not - but they are mostly targetted towards an audience on the young side and/or with an expectation of family viewing (albeit not young children)

This list is not for directors of the Ed Wood variety - I'm not concerned with directors whose negligible competence is outpaced by their enthusiasm.  Rather, it is for directors who are undoubtedly very able, but who leave me completely mystified as to their appeal even though I may - and I emphasise "may" - have enjoyed parts of their body of work.  Their films have comments from people who praise them to the heights while I am left thinking "Emperor's New Clothes."  I simply don't get them.

Darren Aronofsky at an event for Golden Globe Awards (2009)

Jonathan Pryce and Steve Coogan in The Penguin Lessons (2024)

Wyatt Russell, David Harbour, Olga Kurylenko, Sebastian Stan, Hannah John-Kamen, and Florence Pugh in Thunderbolts* (2025)

Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal in The Accountant 2 (2025)

Laurence Fishburne and Rami Malek in The Amateur (2025)

Jenna Ortega in Death of a Unicorn (2025)

Jack Black, Jason Momoa, Emma Myers, Danielle Brooks, and Sebastian Hansen in A Minecraft Movie (2025)

Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot in Snow White (2025)

Colin Firth, Renée Zellweger, Hugh Grant, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Leo Woodall in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (2025)

Woody Harrelson, Simu Liu, and Finn Cole in Last Breath (2025)

Pierce Brosnan, Cate Blanchett, Tom Burke, Naomie Harris, Michael Fassbender, Regé-Jean Page, and Marisa Abela in Black Bag (2025)

Toni Collette, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Pattinson, Steven Yeun, and Naomi Ackie in Mickey 17 (2025)

Kimberly Bailey, Billy Boyd, Pearce Bunting, Luenell, Cam Clarke, Pete Davidson, Isla Fisher, Ricky Gervais, Skip Stellrecht, Peter Hastings, Scott Menville, Laraine Newman, Cheri Oteri, Stephen Root, Georgia Simon, Warren Sroka, Maggie Wheeler, Yung Gravy, Sonny Onorati, Rahnuma Panthaky, Kelly Stables, Max Koch, Lucas Hopkins Calderon, John Bentley, Tom Howe, Kevin McCann, Kate Micucci, Karen Foster, Brian Hopkins, Dav Pilkey, Lil Rel Howery, Nate Wragg, Percy Rustomji, Melissa Villaseñor, Jana Schmieding, and Poppy Liu in Dog Man (2025)

Harrison Ford, Giancarlo Esposito, Anthony Mackie, Shira Haas, and Danny Ramirez in Captain America: Brave New World (2025)

Mark Hamill, Pedro Pascal, Lupita Nyong'o, Piotr Michael, and Kit Connor in The Wild Robot (2024)

Timothée Chalamet in A Complete Unknown (2024)

Jack Quaid and Sophie Thatcher in Companion (2025)

neil-476

Ratings3K

Lists10

Reviews3.1K

The Penguin Lessons

Very good

Thunderbolts*

Heartfelt

Until Dawn

Empty-headed nonsense

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