There is nothing quite like a so-bad-it’s-good film: the magical and hilarious oddity when a movie is so outwardly terrible and lackluster that it cycles back into becoming a fun and hilarious viewing experience. There have been many iconic so-bad-they’re-good movies released over the years, ranging from all-time classics like Manos: The Hands of Fate and The Room to more modern examples like Cats and Morbius. However, one genre that has especially lent itself to this chaotic nature is the adventure film.

Adventure films are largely defined by their vast, unexplored worlds, heroic characters, and overall sense of rambunctious fun and whimsy as their characters defeat the forces of villainy. Like many other genres, the qualifications for what is and isn’t an adventure film have fluctuated with time, resulting in a wide array of films, good and bad, considered among the group. However, these so-bad-they’re-good adventure films have a special way of leaving a lasting impact on the audience. Indeed, the genre works perfectly with the campy, absurd nature of trashy cinema.

10 ‘Mac and Me’ (1988)

Directed by Stewart Raffill

One of the most notable and hilariously misguided ripoff movies of all time, Mac and Me‘s strange and confusing attempts to recapture the magic of Steven Spielberg‘s E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial conjures confusion and mockery. The film follows the unexpected friendship between the wheelchair-using boy Eric (Jade Calegory) and a mysterious alien creature (MAC) on the run from a group of evil NASA agents. With their forces combined, the duo embark on a quest to find Mac’s family and return him home.

While any film attempting to follow in the footsteps of E.T. was going to come up short, the wild changes and even stranger execution have placed Mac and Me in mass infamy for decades. From the strange, somehow even more uncomfortable alien designs to the hilarious clip of Eric falling off a cliff to the strange funding and product placement from McDonald’s. Disturbingly hilarious, Mac and Me is one of the most iconic so-bad-they’re-good movies from the ’80s and has left an undeniable impact on many a child of the era.

.

Watch on Tubi

9 ‘Surf Ninjas’ (1993)

Directed by Neal Israel

During a time when family adventure films were largely defined by kung fu action and surfer bro attitudes, a combination of the two was all but inevitable, and Surf Ninjas fully delivered on its bonkers title and more. The film follows a duo of surfer dude Asian-American brothers who discover that their true heritage lies in a far-off island kingdom as the rightful heirs to the throne. However, the island is currently being ruled by the vicious cyborg warrior, Colonel Chi (Leslie Nielsen), and the brothers are now tasked with using their new magical martial arts powers to take him down.

While nearly all of these cheesy, family-centric kung fu films of the ’90s have their fair share of so-bad-it’s-good qualities, Surf Ninjas goes above and beyond with its wild, unbelievable story. From having Leslie Nielsen play a vicious cyborg dictator to one of the main characters playing the video game adaptation of the film itself, Surf Ninjas truly is a sight to behold. Especially for those looking to rekindle and revisit the vibes and tone of the ’90s, few so-bad-they’re-good options are better than Surf Ninjas.

Buy on Amazon

8 ‘Hercules in New York’ (1970)

Directed by Arthur Allan Seidelman

Before Arnold Schwarzenegger proved his acting chops in films like Conan the Barbarian and The Terminator, he starred in Hercules in New York, a true so-bad-it’s-good classic. The film sees Arnold as the mythical Greek icon Hercules, sent from Mount Olympus to modern-day Manhattan after complaining to Zeus (Ernest Graves) about not letting him explore the vast world of humanity. While in New York, the titanous figure gets into a wide variety of mischief, including becoming a professional wrestler and having a run-in with the local mafia.

Hercules in New York didn’t have many aspirations aside from having the massive, muscular stature of Arnold do all the work, with very little thought put into the rest of the film. The cheap sets, strange story, and painfully hilarious original edit that dubbed over Arnold’s original performance come together to make Hercules in New York a hilarious relic of its era. While far from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s best movie, it’s certainly at the top when it comes to his appearances in so-bad-it’s-good films.

Watch on Tubi

7 ‘Robin Hood’ (2018)

Directed by Otto Bathurst

There have been many different adaptations and renditions of the classic tale of Robin Hood, but the 2018 version starring Taron Egerton and Jamie Foxx stands out for how mind-numbingly confusing it is. The film sees Egerton as the aristocrat Robin of Loxley, who learns that the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham (Ben Mendelsohn) has seized his family estate and forcefully drafted him into the Crusades. While in battle, Robin befriends Little John (Foxx), and the duo enacts a plan to rob the Sheriff and take away his money and power.

Robin Hood is one of the most blatant and obvious attempts to spice up a classic literary tale with over-the-top action and gritty storytelling in a backward attempt to “modernize” an already timeless tale. Ironically, these misguided attempts do the complete opposite, instantly dating Robin Hood and making it a hilarious, dumb dumpster fire. Its overwhelming reliance on clichés and egregiously puzzling use of anachronisms is bold and supremely silly, making it an instant classic of so-bad-they’re-good movies one watches to have a good laugh.

6 ‘Super Mario Bros.’ (1993)

Directed by Annabel Jankel and Rocky Morton

Before the recent animated movie proved the potential of the legendary video game franchise on the big screen, the live-action Super Mario Bros. movie was so terrible it seemingly launched the infamous curse of video game movies for decades. The film follows the titular plumber brothers (Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo) from Brooklyn as they are transported to an alternate universe where humans evolved from reptiles instead of primates. They go head-to-head with the deadly ruler of this world, King Koopa (Dennis Hooper), to save our universe from a complete takeover by the reptiles.

While it can always be a disappointment to see a film adaptation completely butcher the source material, the lengths to which Super Mario Bros. misunderstands the games are comical. From strange and disturbing versions of cartoony creatures and characters to garbled and chaotic performances from Hoskins and Hopper, the film is strangely disturbing and outright laughable. At the very least, Super Mario Bros. is anything but boring. It has its defenders, largely because it is enjoyable, largely because of how terrible it is.

Buy on Amazon

5 ‘Doogal’ (2006)

Directed by Frank Passingham, Dave Borthwick, and Jean Duval

A strange, U.S. localized version of an innocuous animated film from the United Kingdom, the simple change of a new voice cast and script over the same animation transforms Doogal into a so-bad-it’s-good goldmine. The film sees the lovable canine Doogal (Daniel Tay), who must set off with a band of quirky characters to stop a vicious wizard and save the world from his reign after their owner is trapped inside an icy prison. The plot closely parallels the original film, with the only major difference being the new Hollywood A-List voice cast and a new screenplay by Butch Hartman.

The new vocal performances and riffing, provided by the likes of Jimmy Fallon, Jon Stewart, William H. Macy, and Chevy Chase, transform this simple family adventure film into a cavalcade of pop culture references and in-jokes. It’s baffling just how little remains of the original film’s charm and nature, completely replaced by some of the laziest and hilariously terrible jokes and references possible. Ironically, Doogal‘s complete ineptitude has made it more memorable, not as an actual film, but as an animated guilty pleasure. Indeed, the only reason it’s not among the worst animated movies of the 2000s is because of its unintentional hilarity.

Rent on Amazon

4 ‘Howard the Duck’ (1986)

Directed by Willard Huyck

One of the first adaptations that Marvel would much rather want audiences to completely forget, Howard the Duck sees the titular walking, talking duck (Chip Zien) transported from his home, a duck-centric planet, to Earth. Completely out of his element and quickly becoming a laughingstock among the populace of Earth, Howard attempts to team up with a group of kids to help him return home. However, a group of greedy scientists are on the hunt for Howard, hoping to use him for deadly experiments.

At first glance, Howard the Duck appears to be in the vein of other wholesome science fiction movies of the 80s. However, its raunchy and chaotic execution has resulted in mass infamy for the character’s legacy. From on-screen duck nudity to an interspecies relationship between Howard and a young Lea Thompson, the film simply doesn’t have limits to the unexpectedly vile content that it provides. Despite being a massive critical disaster when it was released, Howard the Duck eventually found its audience as a so-bad-it’s-good classic. Indeed, and quite surprisingly, Howard the Duck has influenced modern Marvel movies.

Rent on Amazon

3 ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ (2000)

Directed by Courtney Solomon

Before Chris Pine and his crew proved the potential of Dungeons & Dragons on the big screen, the previous attempt at bringing the massive role-playing game to life resulted in a hilariously misguided disaster. The film takes place in the land of Izmer, a divided world full of elite mages ruling over the powerless commoners with their mastery of magic. However, when Empress Savina (Thora Birch) vows to bring true equality and prosperity among all people, the evil mage Profion (Jeremy Irons) plans to put a stop to her plans and seize the kingdom.

It’s easy to look at this film and realize that, in the year 2000, CGI technology simply wasn’t ready for the type of vast, ever-expanding world of Dungeons & Dragons. Nearly 25 years later, the visuals in Dungeons & Dragons are some of the strangest, uninspired, and outright terrible-looking of the era, especially when compared to other contemporary adventure movies like The Mummy. What truly transforms Dungeons & Dragons into a so-bad-it’s-good experience is Jeremy Irons’ comically over-the-top villain performance, who steals the show with his scenery-chewing hilarity.

Rent on Amazon

2 ‘In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale’ (2007)

Directed by Uwe Boll

One of many egregiously terrible films by infamous German director Uwe Boll, In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale is adapted from the action RPG of the same name but shares very little in common with it. The film follows Farmer (Jason Statham), an average commoner thrust into an action quest to rescue his kidnapped wife and avenge the death of his son. However, the deadly wizard Gallian (Ray Liotta), who killed Farmer’s son, won’t rest until he’s taken over the world.

One can only imagine the inherent comedy that a Lord of the Rings ripoff film featuring Jason Statham and Ray Liotta can provide, yet In the Name of the King somehow manages to even exceed these ridiculous expectations. For what is easily the biggest budget of any Boll film at $60 million, the director rarely makes use of it and still falters on his classic, trashy approach to blockbuster cinema. While it certainly tries its hardest to be the next Lord of the Rings, In the Name of the King accomplishes nothing but being a long, drawn-out joke.

Rent on Amazon

1 ‘Cry Wilderness’ (1987)

Directed by Jay Schlossberg-Cohen

One of the most infamous and hilariously bad adventure movies of the 80s, Cry Wilderness takes the concept of Bigfoot and tells a hilariously awful family story from it. The film follows the blossoming friendship between young boy Paul (Eric Foster) and a massive, Bigfoot-like creature that he befriends at a national park. However, Paul’s father is a park ranger and is in the midst of attempting to capture an escaped tiger that is on the loose. During all the chaos, Paul does what he can to keep Bigfoot a secret from his father.

There is a lot of inherent, unintentional comedy that makes Cry Wilderness such an amazing so-bad-it’s-good classic, as well as one of the overall worst movies that the 80s has to offer. Its confusing story, painfully below-average visual effects, and tilted performances come together to make an experience that is preposterous but undeniably entertaining. The film made a notable resurgence thanks to its iconic appearance on Mystery Science Theater 3000 and has since become one of the most iconic so-bad-it’s-good adventure films out there.

Watch on Tubi

NEXT: The Funniest “So Bad, It’s Good” Action Movies, Ranked