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30 Movies That People Didn’t Think Were Cringey Until They Rewatched Them As Adults, Shared In This Online Community
Kids can get interested in the strangest things that adults wouldn’t even give a second thought to. And they often get obsessed with something very easily, like Disney princesses or other cartoon characters.
It’s amazing how they can watch and rewatch something they like over and over again to the point that they memorize all the lines. But sometimes they don’t even really understand what they are watching or can’t look at it critically, so when they come back to it in their adult years, people get disappointed.
This is actually more common than you would think as more than 20k people joined a thread on Reddit answering the question “What's a movie you loved as a child that you now consider to be cringeworthy?” What would you add to the list and which ones do you agree with? Let us know in the comments!
More info: Reddit
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#2
Percy Jackson movies, you read the books, re watch the movies, and wonder what the hell went so wrong
#3
I was the dumba** kid that thought the last airbender was a good movie. Jesus I was dumb
#5
Commando, i thought it was great as a kid and I watched it again and... it's even f*****g better!!!
#6
Any of the Steven Seagal movies from the late 80s/early 90s. Jr High school me thought he was the biggest bada** ever born. Thinking about that now that feels like the most neckbeard fandom ever.
#9
G-Force. That one Disney movie about the guinea pig spies? I thought that movie was the best as a kid.
I got through about 10 minutes of it when I tried to rewatch it a few months ago. Man, that movie is weird...
#12
Cat In The Hat. Now that I think about it, it technically isn't a kids movie
#13
Not even a kid, the 2002 movie Queen of the Damned. I was in my early 20s and thought it was so sexy and cool. I watch it now and it’s so campy and cringey and God bless Aaliyah but her performance was…eesh lol
#14
Indian in the Cupboard. No idea why but I liked it a lot as a kid. Watched it a few years ago with my nephew and hated it
#15
Blank check. The thought of being rich as a kid made me love the movie when I was younger. Watched it a couple years ago and got some real predator vibes between the kid and the lady FBI agent. Really hard to watch the ending where they kiss.
#18
I feel like i used to watch Garfield a lot, didnt realise it was bad until that Zombieland moment lol.
#19
Any of the first three Spy Kids movies. I remember the second one being one of my favourites and now it’s genuinely painful.
#20
The horrid Dungeons and Dragons movie with Jeremy Irons, Thora Birch, and one of the Wayans brothers. Absolute garbage but I loved it for some reason. I earned some late fees for not returning the VHS on time.
#21
Any of the Mary Kate & Ashley movies.
I’d like to make it clear that I grew up with these movies, loved the Olson twins, and there is a lot of nostalgia that comes with the memories of their movies. I just don’t think as an adult now they would be as great as I thought they were 20 some years ago.
#22
Mario Bros.
I was ten.
CrunChewy McSandybutt 3 years ago
John Leguizamo said he and Bob Hoskins had to go get drinks at the end of the day just to get through it. They knew it was a terrible movie, but a job is a job, I guess.
Christine Rictor 3 years ago
Whattttttt. What is cringey about this movie!? Nothing. Notta. Just pure campy brilliance.
Mary Bricklin 3 years ago
I tried watching that when I was twelve or thirteen. Had to turn it off after twenty minutes because it was so awful. I had a crush on John Leguizamo back them but even he didn't make it worth watching.
Princess Toadstool 3 years ago
Oh yes… don’t forget that the lead characters would often get drunk on set and had a bad relationship with the crew
Erjenn Rejano 3 years ago
I watched it on the Disney channel once. I was speechless at the end, which doesn't happen very often.
Easily Excitable Panda 3 years ago
It breaks my heart that this was one of Raul Julia's last films. You can see how ill he was (cancer). Trying to provide for his family with his last breath.
#24
Catwoman (2003) haunted my childhood. I didn't realise the terrible special effects weren't real so I jumped around my living room trying to imitate her.
#25
The Phantom…Billy Zane! Totally cheesy when I rewatched it but LOVED it as a kid
#27
Idk if anyone's said it yet but Agent Cody Banks is pretty cringe. Used to love them as a kid but looking at them now its not the same as before.
#28
Mac and Me
5 year old me used to make my parents rent it all the time. It’s now used as a joke movie for bad Sci-Fi
#29
The Covenant. It was a relatively early Sebastian Stan movie that I was obsessed with in middle school. I rewatched it a few years ago and it is easily one of the worst acted movies I've watched. Definitely the worst I've seen in a good decade. I really thought those guys were so cool. I just cringe thinking about how often I watched it and convinced myself that it was even halfway good just because there were hot guys.
#30
Critters. It was fun and cheesy though.
What do you think ?
Toasty 3 years ago
Robin Hood: Prince of thieves. It was my favorite. Watching today many of the performances seem wooden, however, I will die by the statement that Alan Rickman plays the greatest version of the Sheriff of Nottingham ever. That guy had the Midas touch with any role he played.
Sleazy Weaver 3 years ago
I had, still have, a weird obsession with Ferngully... Man, it's got a good message but it's a pretty cringy movie. To be fair, I want to be an animator & it showcases different methods of animation so I can just say I'm watching it for studying purposes... but in reality I just love Ferngully.
Momma Jess 3 years ago
Yo, the name is Batty, the logic is erratic, potatoes in a jacket, toys in the attic!
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Chillace 3 years ago
im ashamed too admit that i liked the eragon movie(before i read it), the master of disguise, and spy kids
CrunChewy McSandybutt 3 years ago
Anyone remember "Young Einstein" starring Yahoo Serious? LOL!
Fred L. 3 years ago
It is a genious movie. Weird beyond anything and historically incorrect but awesome.
Load More Replies...
Zedrapazia 3 years ago
Titan A.E. To be honest, it's, together with Treasure Planet, still my favorite sci-fi movie, but as I found out recently, it did terrible in the box office and a lot of people didn't like it.
Fluffy Griffin 3 years ago
Those aren't cringe movies, they were just movies that took longer to be loved. 😊
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Shelby P 3 years ago
While I still love the movie, The Neverending Story has some pretty cringy moments. Especially when the luck dragon gets his back scratched...
sturmwesen 3 years ago
This is a movie I am afraid to watch again because I don't want to ruin the memory.
Load More Replies...
Two_rolling_black_eyes 3 years ago (edited)
Most of these movies are cringy because they did a great job of doing what they were filmed for - entertain young children only. Fart jokes are only funny so long. Kid movies that hold up well have something for all ages as well. Goonies was a great movie as a kid and I still like it because it has themes and characters I didn't understand until I grew up.
Charlotte A. 3 years ago
I loved "Legend" with Mia Sara and Tim Curry. Last time I watched it I felt like it was weirdly showcasing Tom Cruise's naked legs all the time and that felt quite cringe-y. And while I admire Tim Curry's bad boys that devil of his was a bit wimpy... :)
Nikki Sevven 3 years ago
"Fire, fire, burning higher, making music like a choir."
Load More Replies...
𝓴𝓪𝔀𝓪𝓲𝓲_𝓐𝓾𝓭𝓻𝓮𝔂 3 years ago
For me, it was Barbie Princess Charm School. I refuse to watch that again because I know I´ll still like it lmfao
Biljana Malesevic 3 years ago
Flash Gordon. I watched it as a child in movie theater and thought it was masterpiece. But now when I watch it it's just embarrassing. Obvious villain with "villain" signature look, muscular hunk of hero, damsel in distress (who is nothing but pretty burden), evil queen who falls for our hunk hero and so so much cringey stuff...
GFSTaylor 3 years ago
All those things are perfectly true, but it's meant to be like that. Everyone in the movie is revelling in it and it's enjoyable just as it is.
Load More Replies...
M O'Connell 3 years ago
I remember really liking "The Brave Little Toaster" when I was a child, but I have a feeling that if I rewatched it I would probably hate it.
Kamila Podolak 3 years ago
That was in my top3 when I was somewhere under 5. Not many to choose from though. I have it on my drive but afraid to watch, so I get you ;)
Load More Replies... Lorraine R 3 years ago (edited)
I saw "The Conqueror" with John Wayne as a very young child and thought it was the most bestest movie ever made. Of course, the critics just shredded it and its daddy Howard Hughes pulled it from the market immediately. Universal bought it from his estate in 1979 and it's had one showing (that I know of) on TV. It would be a laugh fest if you didn't know how many of the cast and crew apparently got cancer from the location filming downwind of early nuclear test sites. You can get it on DVD.
Fred L. 3 years ago
If you want a yellowface Genghis Khan movie the one from 1965 is much better.
Load More Replies...
Wayne Dorman 3 years ago
One film that I adored as a kid (and I'm almost ashamed to admit it now) was a film called Mystery Men, it was about some "Z list" superheroes - found it hilarious as a kid.... watched it again recently now I'm in my mid 30s - worst film I've ever seen. Childhood ruined!
Freya the Wanderer 3 years ago
My loved-as-a-kid-cringe-at-as-an-adult movie is "The Black Hole." I thought it was the coolest movie excepting only the Star Wars movies (originally trilogy) when I was little. Then I didn't see it for many years. OK, now I'm a grown-ass woman, see it listed on TV, decide to watch it - can't believe I sat through that crap to the end!
Jogger Gig 3 years ago
Love the nostalgia and it is tongue in cheek but there's something sad at thinking your younger self was less than you are now because they were able to see beyond the cheese to something great in a movie.
Joanna Mondragon 3 years ago
That awful Donkey Kong movie The Legend of the Crystal Coconut. We must have bright it home from Blockbuster at least a dozen times. But my kids loved it.
Stormapotamus 3 years ago
Psh, most of these movies are freaking awesome, whoever made this list has no taste.
Konnor Polasek 3 years ago
Shallow Hal it was cringe worthy and kind of awful as a kid and even more so now but i LOVED it and Lake Placid as a kid but im pretty sure 50% of the reason i liked them is because my parents and brothers didn't like that i liked them
Tracy Costa 3 years ago
The Pirate Movie with Christopher Atkins. No one remembers it. It's a parody of The Pirates of Penzance. So bad. I still know every word of it.
Nikki Sevven 3 years ago
I remember it! It was intentionally campy fun, though.
Load More Replies...
Paradise 3 years ago
I have succeasfully stayed clear of almost all of these as I knew then they were dumb. I don't really watch movies because most are idiotic. The 2-3 I half watched at hom le (except Indian in the Cupboard, theater) I don't even recall the movie. But 16 Candles is a classic.
kjorn 3 years ago
Father of the bride for me. love it when i was younger. but since i'm a father now, have a house and responsibilities i can't stand the girl! poor little girl who's father just give her a trip to rome, pays he studies and now she told her family she'll get married and the father have to pay thousand and thousand and thousand $$$. and she wonder why he gets crazy?
Amelia Ivy 3 years ago
Omg growing up my cousin and I would watch the buttercream gang like over and over and over again..I bought it for her a few Christmas ago and we both looked at each other and said "wtf?! I didn't get it did you?"
Easily Excitable Panda 3 years ago (edited)
Anyone who wants serious, bone-breakingly cringe should see "Doc Savage: Man of Bronze." I saw it twice as a kid. Couldn't get through it when I tried to watch it a couple of years ago.
Charlotte A. 3 years ago
The books about Doc Savage are pretty cringe too...
Load More Replies...
Vicky Z 3 years ago
Princess diary anyone? I used to love it but now I find it so predictable and stereotypical......
sturmwesen 3 years ago
nahhh to girly. I never got the fascination with royals.
Load More Replies... 
RoseTheMad 3 years ago
For me, it's got to be the Tim Burton's Charlie And The Chocolate Factory... its so cringe to watch back as an adult for some reason...
sturmwesen 3 years ago
uhm we watch it nearly every year. I would not call it a favourite but it's ok.
Load More Replies... 
Toasty 3 years ago
Robin Hood: Prince of thieves. It was my favorite. Watching today many of the performances seem wooden, however, I will die by the statement that Alan Rickman plays the greatest version of the Sheriff of Nottingham ever. That guy had the Midas touch with any role he played.
Sleazy Weaver 3 years ago
I had, still have, a weird obsession with Ferngully... Man, it's got a good message but it's a pretty cringy movie. To be fair, I want to be an animator & it showcases different methods of animation so I can just say I'm watching it for studying purposes... but in reality I just love Ferngully.
Momma Jess 3 years ago
Yo, the name is Batty, the logic is erratic, potatoes in a jacket, toys in the attic!
Load More Replies... Chillace 3 years ago
im ashamed too admit that i liked the eragon movie(before i read it), the master of disguise, and spy kids
CrunChewy McSandybutt 3 years ago
Anyone remember "Young Einstein" starring Yahoo Serious? LOL!
Fred L. 3 years ago
It is a genious movie. Weird beyond anything and historically incorrect but awesome.
Load More Replies... Zedrapazia 3 years ago
Titan A.E. To be honest, it's, together with Treasure Planet, still my favorite sci-fi movie, but as I found out recently, it did terrible in the box office and a lot of people didn't like it.
Fluffy Griffin 3 years ago
Those aren't cringe movies, they were just movies that took longer to be loved. 😊
Load More Replies... Shelby P 3 years ago
While I still love the movie, The Neverending Story has some pretty cringy moments. Especially when the luck dragon gets his back scratched...
sturmwesen 3 years ago
This is a movie I am afraid to watch again because I don't want to ruin the memory.
Load More Replies... Two_rolling_black_eyes 3 years ago (edited)
Most of these movies are cringy because they did a great job of doing what they were filmed for - entertain young children only. Fart jokes are only funny so long. Kid movies that hold up well have something for all ages as well. Goonies was a great movie as a kid and I still like it because it has themes and characters I didn't understand until I grew up.
Charlotte A. 3 years ago
I loved "Legend" with Mia Sara and Tim Curry. Last time I watched it I felt like it was weirdly showcasing Tom Cruise's naked legs all the time and that felt quite cringe-y. And while I admire Tim Curry's bad boys that devil of his was a bit wimpy... :)
Nikki Sevven 3 years ago
"Fire, fire, burning higher, making music like a choir."
Load More Replies... 𝓴𝓪𝔀𝓪𝓲𝓲_𝓐𝓾𝓭𝓻𝓮𝔂 3 years ago
For me, it was Barbie Princess Charm School. I refuse to watch that again because I know I´ll still like it lmfao
Biljana Malesevic 3 years ago
Flash Gordon. I watched it as a child in movie theater and thought it was masterpiece. But now when I watch it it's just embarrassing. Obvious villain with "villain" signature look, muscular hunk of hero, damsel in distress (who is nothing but pretty burden), evil queen who falls for our hunk hero and so so much cringey stuff...
GFSTaylor 3 years ago
All those things are perfectly true, but it's meant to be like that. Everyone in the movie is revelling in it and it's enjoyable just as it is.
Load More Replies... M O'Connell 3 years ago
I remember really liking "The Brave Little Toaster" when I was a child, but I have a feeling that if I rewatched it I would probably hate it.
Kamila Podolak 3 years ago
That was in my top3 when I was somewhere under 5. Not many to choose from though. I have it on my drive but afraid to watch, so I get you ;)
Load More Replies... Lorraine R 3 years ago (edited)
I saw "The Conqueror" with John Wayne as a very young child and thought it was the most bestest movie ever made. Of course, the critics just shredded it and its daddy Howard Hughes pulled it from the market immediately. Universal bought it from his estate in 1979 and it's had one showing (that I know of) on TV. It would be a laugh fest if you didn't know how many of the cast and crew apparently got cancer from the location filming downwind of early nuclear test sites. You can get it on DVD.
Fred L. 3 years ago
If you want a yellowface Genghis Khan movie the one from 1965 is much better.
Load More Replies... Wayne Dorman 3 years ago
One film that I adored as a kid (and I'm almost ashamed to admit it now) was a film called Mystery Men, it was about some "Z list" superheroes - found it hilarious as a kid.... watched it again recently now I'm in my mid 30s - worst film I've ever seen. Childhood ruined!
Freya the Wanderer 3 years ago
My loved-as-a-kid-cringe-at-as-an-adult movie is "The Black Hole." I thought it was the coolest movie excepting only the Star Wars movies (originally trilogy) when I was little. Then I didn't see it for many years. OK, now I'm a grown-ass woman, see it listed on TV, decide to watch it - can't believe I sat through that crap to the end!
Jogger Gig 3 years ago
Love the nostalgia and it is tongue in cheek but there's something sad at thinking your younger self was less than you are now because they were able to see beyond the cheese to something great in a movie.
Joanna Mondragon 3 years ago
That awful Donkey Kong movie The Legend of the Crystal Coconut. We must have bright it home from Blockbuster at least a dozen times. But my kids loved it.
Stormapotamus 3 years ago
Psh, most of these movies are freaking awesome, whoever made this list has no taste.
Konnor Polasek 3 years ago
Shallow Hal it was cringe worthy and kind of awful as a kid and even more so now but i LOVED it and Lake Placid as a kid but im pretty sure 50% of the reason i liked them is because my parents and brothers didn't like that i liked them
Tracy Costa 3 years ago
The Pirate Movie with Christopher Atkins. No one remembers it. It's a parody of The Pirates of Penzance. So bad. I still know every word of it.
Nikki Sevven 3 years ago
I remember it! It was intentionally campy fun, though.
Load More Replies... Paradise 3 years ago
I have succeasfully stayed clear of almost all of these as I knew then they were dumb. I don't really watch movies because most are idiotic. The 2-3 I half watched at hom le (except Indian in the Cupboard, theater) I don't even recall the movie. But 16 Candles is a classic.
kjorn 3 years ago
Father of the bride for me. love it when i was younger. but since i'm a father now, have a house and responsibilities i can't stand the girl! poor little girl who's father just give her a trip to rome, pays he studies and now she told her family she'll get married and the father have to pay thousand and thousand and thousand $$$. and she wonder why he gets crazy?
Amelia Ivy 3 years ago
Omg growing up my cousin and I would watch the buttercream gang like over and over and over again..I bought it for her a few Christmas ago and we both looked at each other and said "wtf?! I didn't get it did you?"
Easily Excitable Panda 3 years ago (edited)
Anyone who wants serious, bone-breakingly cringe should see "Doc Savage: Man of Bronze." I saw it twice as a kid. Couldn't get through it when I tried to watch it a couple of years ago.
Charlotte A. 3 years ago
The books about Doc Savage are pretty cringe too...
Load More Replies... Vicky Z 3 years ago
Princess diary anyone? I used to love it but now I find it so predictable and stereotypical......
sturmwesen 3 years ago
nahhh to girly. I never got the fascination with royals.
Load More Replies... RoseTheMad 3 years ago
For me, it's got to be the Tim Burton's Charlie And The Chocolate Factory... its so cringe to watch back as an adult for some reason...
sturmwesen 3 years ago
uhm we watch it nearly every year. I would not call it a favourite but it's ok.
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