As the year closes, we’re going to start seeing a lot of the year end best of and worst of lists. The Orlando Opinion is no different. This morning, we’re going to work our way from the bottom to the top over the next couple of days.
This year the theme appeared to be wasted potential. Talented actors stuck in bad roles that resulted in poor movies.
Here are your worst movies of 2019:
Jexi: The story of what would happen if the artificial intelligence on your phone went evil, was a no brainer for this list. This Adam Devine vehicle gives you an awful protagonist, a story that makes no sense, and a run down of unfunny jokes. It also takes the very funny Rose Byrne and reduces her to a heavily modulated voice on a phone that barely allows you to tell that it’s her.
Playing with Fire: This John Cena family comedy takes a cast we know is funny (Keegan Michael Key, Judy Greer, John Leguizamo) and gives us a feature length payload of cornball nonsense. The hardcore professional, in this case a firefigther, changed by kids invading his life has been done so many times but I can’t remember when it was ever done this poorly.
Cats: The previews were hideous and the buzz you likely heard over your Christmas holiday is all true. It’s awful. It takes a wonderful cast and drenches them in some of the most bizarre special effects you’ve ever seen. Not even Jennifer Hudson, Judi Dench, and Taylor Swift performing their hearts out can save this one.
Anna: You might not remember this super spy action flick from the early summer. You’re one of the lucky ones. This plot runs around in circles while giving us a wooden lead and sticking Helen Mirren with a bad Russian accent.
The Kitchen: I still don’t know why Melissa McCarthy, Tiffany Haddish, and Elisabeth Moss would hit “pause” on their Oscar, Emmy, and commercially successful work to do “The Kitchen” but here we are. This mob wives take over movie had potential but the writers must have ran out of stuff to give us. These characters lose all common sense 40 minutes into the film and it suffers badly the rest of the way.