So, before we even get started on this installment in the Star Trek universe, firstly we need to establish: A) it’s 1989, the tech just ain’t as good as these days, and B) Oh wait, Star Wars was produced earlier than this and still managed to be decent for its time, C) Okay never mind, continue with awarding the Golden Raspberry.
The producer himself even remarked that he thought the film “nearly killed the franchise.” But reviews on Rotten Tomatoes show variety – Trek fans weren’t too happy with it, critics were indifferent, and some even enjoyed it, but on the whole, it seems there should’ve been a little more time dedicated to developing the story. It makes sense, considering the plotline involved Spock betraying Kirk.
1991: Hudson Hawk
Everyone’s favorite action hero, Bruce Willis showed us, exactly why he’s an action hero and not a comedy star. Even though later on, in films like Cop Out, it seems he eventually found the world’s funny bone. Anyway, back to the steaming mess that was Hudson Hawk, sure, the premise seems entertaining: former jailbird is released from prison, just wants a good cappuccino before – oops, let’s do a few heists!
The “comedy” ensues from that point on. Yeah, go figure. In a somewhat ironic twist, the film was released just after Die Hard 2, so fans expected an action blockbuster. Boy, they must have felt they were in the wrong cinema when Hudson Hawk started! With a sizeable budget of $65 million US, the film bombed, taking only $17 million at the box office. No one was yippee ki-yay-ing, that’s for sure!
1990: Ghosts Can't Do It
We thought Bolero was bad, but it seems that John Derek just can’t stay away from producing bad films. Again, another film about sex from an equally perturbed place. IMDb’s synopsis says it all: “Elderly Scott kills himself after a heart attack wrecks his body, but then comes back as a ghost and convinces his loving young hot wife Kate to pick and kill a young man in order for Scott to possess his body and be with her again.” If that isn’t enough to turn your stomach, then you’re on your own!
So, an old pervert is with a hot young bird who apparently loves him, he kills himself because you know, he can’t “do it” anymore and can’t “enjoy” his young wife. One second, a bit of projectile vomiting coming up. Do we have to continue? This film is cringing enough.
1988: Cocktail
Ah, a young Tom Cruise. Nowadays he’s a hot-shot action movie star, but the actor of Top Gun fame was riding the celebrity train in the 80s. Cocktail was one of the many films the budding young actor released during that period. Featuring the song “Kokomo”, the film focuses on the life of a college student who works as a bartender to pay for his education. He works and works and then – oh wait, that’s it.
Lola Borg of Empire remarks “Cruise oozes as much charm as in Top Gun and The Colour of Money, but the mix of bar-acrobatics and Caribbean love isn't anywhere near strong enough to get you drunk.” Cruise himself admitted a few years later it wasn’t exactly the highlight of his career. 5% on Rotten Tomatoes. Next.
1987: Leonard Part 6
Parody films only really work if they’re done well. As for Leonard Part 6? Well, the verdict was not so good. Awarded the Golden Raspberry in 1987, the American spy parody film starred and was produced by the now-infamous Bill Cosby.
Funnily enough, Cosby himself denounced the film; just weeks before its release, he came out and basically said he wasn’t proud of it. Apparently, the reputation he had given it certainly lived up to the expectations of audiences and critics alike: the expectation that it was going to be terrible. Winning three Razzies, including Worst Picture, it’s considered one of the worst films ever made.