It’s been seven years since fashion designer Tom Ford made his directorial debut with “A Single Man,” and although that movie was an impressive showcase for Ford’s visual panache that netted Colin Firth a much-deserved Oscar nomination, it left audiences wondering if he would be able to replicate that success. It may have taken a little longer than expected (after all, he has a fashion empire to run), but Ford confirms his debut was no fluke with a more ambitious and confident follow-up that’s every bit as stylish. Based on Austin Wright’s 1993 novel “Tony and Susan,” “Nocturnal Animals” is a dark and disturbing adult thriller that gets under your skin and stays there, and while it’s not always a pleasant experience, that’s what makes it so effective.

The film opens in truly shocking style with a montage of obese, mostly naked women dancing in a shower of glitter that turns out to be part of an art show curated by Los Angeles gallery owner Susan Morrow (Amy Adams). Susan has everything she could possibly want – a dashing husband (Armie Hammer), a luxurious mansion and a supportive group of wealthy friends – but she’s not happy, trapped in an unfulfilling career and a loveless marriage that’s on the verge of falling apart. One day, Susan receives a package containing a manuscript from her ex-husband Tony Hastings (Jake Gyllenhaal), whom she left 20 years earlier when he was still just a struggling writer, and is surprised to discover that the unpublished novel, titled “Nocturnal Animals,” has been dedicated to her.

The book tells the story of a math professor named Edward (also played by Gyllenhaal) whose family vacation takes a horrifying turn when a gang of rednecks led by the sociopathic Ray (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) runs their car off the road and kidnaps Edward’s wife (Isla Fisher) and daughter (Ellie Bamber). When the women are finally discovered, brutally raped and murdered and disposed of like trash, an emotionally devastated Edward teams up with a local detective (Michael Shannon) to track down the three men involved and deliver justice by any means necessary. As Susan reads the fictional story over the course of a lonely weekend, she reminisces about her relationship with Tony and the unforgiveable betrayal that led to their divorce, haunted by the novel’s thematic undercurrents of resentment and rage that play out like retribution for her own sins.

It’s pretty telling that Ford named the movie after Tony’s fictional book and not the novel on which it’s based (apart from simply being a better title), because the story-within-the-story clearly interests him the most. In fact, if there’s any complaint about the film at all, it’s that the Susan segment feels a little cold (no doubt a reflection of the characters that inhabit it) and lacks the substance and nerve-wracking tension of the other storyline. The only reason it works so well is because of Adams, who’s able to convey a range of emotions without saying or doing much at all. Every performance here is great, including Laura Linney in a brilliant cameo as Susan’s bourgeois mother, but the Edward story is more engaging thanks to a trio of excellent performances from Shannon, Taylor-Johnson and Gyllenhaal, who has the trickiest job playing two very distinct characters. Shannon, however, is the film’s undisputed standout, delivering some of his finest work yet as the darkly funny, no-nonsense cop.

Though the movie looks as beautiful as you’d expect with Ford behind the camera (from the production design, to the costumes, to cinematographer Seamus McGarvey’s dual visual styles), “Nocturnal Animals” signifies a giant leap for him as a storyteller. He won’t get as much credit as he deserves for adapting such a complex novel, but Ford handles the interweaving narratives effortlessly; it’s never jarring, and yet despite taking place in two different worlds, the way in which the film has been constructed makes complete sense and only strengthens its emotional impact. It’s a very tough movie to watch (it’s violent, intense, unbelievably sad and even infuriating at times), but like the crime novel at the center of the story, it demonstrates the power that a great piece of fiction can have on you, even one as polarizing and challenging as this.

Canadian-born director Denis Villeneuve makes movies that block out the world. From the first to the last frame, his films keep you engaged and, more often than not, transfixed. Building on the success of past movies like “Prisoners” and “Sicario,” the director’s latest film, “Arrival,” is arguably the most emotional, thought-provoking and visceral experience he’s crafted yet.

Based on Ted Chiang’s short story, “Story of Your Life,” “Arrival” is a grounded alien invasion tale that poses the question: If first contact was made, how would we communicate with extraterrestrials? That becomes a terrifying reality when mysterious ships begin to land around the world. It’s an unsettling day full of fear and paranoia, but some believe that the aliens may be a symbol of hope and not terror. To find out the aliens’ motivations, Linguistics professor Louise Banks (Amy Adams) is brought in by the U.S. government to interpret their language and find a way to communicate. At the start of the film, Louise is tired and haunted by visions of her dead daughter, but with the world at stake, she’ll do everything she can to maintain peace between Earth and these beautiful and sparsely designed extraterrestrials, working with mathematician Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) and U.S. Army Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) to form a plan before China declares war on the visitors.

“Arrival” quickly invites audiences in with a strong visual motif, intimate flashes of love and pain, and a surprisingly fresh use of Dinah Washington’s “This Bitter Earth,” a song with an aching beauty suited for this melancholic movie. Like most of Villeneuve’s past work, this drama works on many levels. It’s a thrilling piece of spectacle with the highest stakes imaginable, but it’s also a thought-provoking drama with personal stakes. From a character to structure standpoint, Eric Heisserer’s script is just incredibly well-rounded, concise and insightful. Heisserer presents these perfect, subtle insights into these characters’ internal lives – Donnelly gives a simple but powerfully honest response to Louise at one point in the film – while at the same time making the audience hold their breath out of fear, excitement or sadness.

Amy Adams’ performance helps elicit all those feelings. The actress is having a remarkable year with her notably empathetic performances in “Arrival” and Tom Ford’s “Nocturnal Animals.” Here, she plays a sympathetic, brilliant, courageous, funny, vulnerable and tragic character. Louise is a great protagonist wrestling with world and life-altering questionings. Also, while plenty of science fiction films star novice characters, asking questions purely for the sake of exposition, “Arrival” instead focuses on a character who’s always ahead of the audience. Louise is exciting for that reason alone.

Heisserer forces Louise to face plenty of practical and internal struggles, and how she deals with those conflicts stick with you long after the credits role. The big question of “Arrival” and Louise’s story is unexpected, and it hits you with a wallop of emotion. How Villeneuve and Heisserer answer this question and land the ending is remarkable. At first, it’s a surprising turn, but by the end, it makes complete sense in the body of the story. The payoff doesn’t disappoint.

“Arrival” is a deeply human film. There’s a warmth to how Villeneuve and cinematographer Bradford Young (“A Most Violent Year”) shot it. Even the location, Montana, is inviting and warm. The sky is neverending and bright, and the grass and sun are vibrant. Villeneuve and his DP show a beautiful world with nuanced characters you actually want to see saved in this race-against-the-clock sci-fi thriller about time and the connections we make in the world.

It’s an idea that sounds like a slam dunk on paper: Pit two of the world’s biggest superheroes against one another in a cinematic battle for the ages and force the audience to choose sides. But while we all wait to see how that fight unfolds in “Captain America: Civil War,” moviegoers can get their fix sooner by trudging through the similarly themed “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” a disjointed mess of a movie that is occasionally exhilarating, but mostly disappointing. Though it’s scary to think that Warner Bros. is betting the future of its entire DC Comics film slate on this highly-anticipated clash of superhero icons, the real loser is the audience itself.

The warning signs were there for everyone to see in the movie’s convoluted title, but even diehard comic book fans will be surprised by just how overlong, overstuffed and unfocused the film is for such a seemingly straightforward affair. This is Batman versus Superman, for crying out loud – it doesn’t require any extra dressing, and it certainly didn’t need to be turned into a moody rumination on the responsibilities of power that nearly sucks the fun out of its killer premise. After all, didn’t director Zack Snyder already make that movie?

Eighteen months have passed since Superman (Henry Cavill) destroyed half of Metropolis fighting General Zod (Michael Shannon), and while some people have embraced him as a god-like hero, others believe that he’s a dangerous alien who should be held accountable for his actions. Having witnessed the collateral damage first-hand after one of his company’s buildings was destroyed in the battle, Gotham City industrialist Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) – now a seasoned crime-fighter who spends his nights dealing out justice as the vigilante Batman – is terrified of what Superman could do with that kind of power and becomes obsessed with stopping him by any means possible. Meanwhile, billionaire tech genius Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) is building his own weapon to combat the alien threat using a piece of Kryptonite uncovered at the bottom of the Indian Ocean. But when Bruce steals the green rock in an attempt to level the playing field against Superman, Luthor decides to use Batman to do his dirty work for him.

The story isn’t quite as simple as it sounds; there’s so much going on in the first hour alone (including a subplot involving Amy Adams’ Lois Lane and yet another enactment of the Batman origin) that you’d be forgiven for not keeping up. The movie is constantly being pulled in every direction, tirelessly working to function as a sequel to “Man of Steel,” a Batman reboot and a prequel to the forthcoming Justice League team-up film. That it’s even remotely coherent at all is to the credit of Snyder, who has been handed the Herculean task of cramming three movies into one film. The additional storylines and dream sequences are not only unnecessary, but distract from the central conflict, barely glossing over Batman and Superman’s opposing ideologies on the way to their inevitable showdown. It’s a satisfying but brief fight scene that unfortunately feels like the undercard to a much larger battle instead of the main event that the movie’s title promised.

For all of its faults, “Batman v Superman” could have been worse. Though the film is exhaustingly brooding and self-serious, and Cavill is criminally underused as Clark Kent/Superman, the Batman segments are really enjoyable. Affleck is so well-cast as this grittier, more battle-hardened version of the character – someone who’s not above mowing down a bunch of bad guys with a machine gun – that you’ll wish Snyder had just made a solo Batman movie instead. Additionally, while Eisenberg’s manic performance as Lex Luthor will likely divide audiences, he’s the only actor who appears to be having any fun, even if his bold (and slightly irritating) take on the character comes across more like a Batman villain than anything resembling Luthor from the comics. The rest of the cast doesn’t get enough screen time to make much of an impact, although Gal Gadot’s heroic introduction as Wonder Woman is easily one of the film’s high points.

That may be somewhat of a backhanded compliment for a movie called “Batman v Superman,” but it’s the least of its problems, because while there’s a solid superhero film buried within Chris Terrio and David S. Goyer’s clumsy screenplay, this definitely isn’t it. Sure, seeing Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman finally together on the big screen is a goosebumps-raising moment that almost excuses the incohesive series of events that precede it, but Snyder gets so caught up in teasing future installments of DC’s shared universe that he neglects his characters in the process. “Batman v Superman” wants to have its cake and eat it too, and though you can’t fault Snyder’s ambition, if Marvel taught us anything with its measured buildup to “The Avengers,” it’s that the proverbial cake tastes much better when it’s been earned.

If you were to show somebody a painting of a Campbell’s soup can, chances are that they could identify it as the work of Andy Warhol. But show them a piece from Margaret Keane’s equally popular Big Eyes series, however, and although they’d admit their familiarity with the kitschy paintings, they’d be less likely to name the artist, let alone know the strange-but-true story behind them. That’s the subject of Tim Burton’s latest movie, his first live-action feature to not star Johnny Depp in over a decade. But while it’s a bit of a departure for the oddball director, “Big Eyes” is his best film in years, even if that comes off like a backhanded compliment considering some of the garbage (“Alice in Wonderland,” “Dark Shadows”) he’s released.

The year is 1958, a time when it was still fairly unheard of for a woman to leave her husband, but Margaret Ulbrich (Amy Adams) has done just that, escaping the boredom of suburbia with her daughter Jane (Delaney Raye) for a fresh start in San Francisco. It’s there that she meets smooth-talking artist Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz) at a local art fair, and after hitting it off, the two don’t waste any time getting married. Though Walter hasn’t found much success with his uninspired paintings of Parisian street scenes, he notices something special in Margaret’s wide-eyed waifs and rents some space in a nightclub to show off their artwork. When a couple patrons mistakenly credit Walter with painting one of Margaret’s Big Eyes (after all, they both sign their art “Keane”), he doesn’t bother to correct them in order to close the sale. Margaret gets furious when she finds out that Walter has been passing off her work as his own, but he insists that they’re a team, and before she knows it, the lie has grown so big that she’s unable to stop it in fear that the whole Keane empire, and her life’s work, will be tarnished in the process.

It’s worth mentioning that the story does have a satisfying conclusion, but while Burton allows Margaret to have her day in court, the bulk of the movie is dedicated to the events leading up to it, as Walter slowly reveals himself to be a megalomaniacal prick who favors fame and fortune over integrity. What’s really interesting about the Keanes’ story, however, is that for all the wrong that Walter did, the Big Eyes paintings never would have been such a success without his salesmanship. Margaret might be the talent behind the paintings, but it was Walter who ultimately turned them into a pop culture phenomenon, and he deserves credit for his part in that, no matter how dishonorable his intentions. In fact, it’s pretty ironic how Margaret, who was independent enough to leave her first husband, knowingly trapped herself in a worse situation by agreeing to Walter’s scheme, and Burton stages the domestic drama as an intriguing examination of the perceived male dominance and female submissiveness of the period.

Amy Adams delivers yet another outstanding performance as Margaret Keane, whose façade of female empowerment is stripped away by Walter’s passive-aggressive bullying, leaving behind an emotionally defeated shell of a woman that Adams plays with such honesty that you feel her heartbreak with every betrayal. Christoph Waltz’s bombastic fraud isn’t afforded the same level of complexity, but he still takes what could have been a one-dimensional character and turns him into somewhat of a tragic figure, so desperate for recognition that it’s sad to watch as he becomes consumed by his own lie. While neither role is necessarily Oscar-caliber material, they benefit from being inhabited by a pair of really great actors who always bring their A game.

Unfortunately, “Big Eyes” doesn’t feel like a Tim Burton movie at all, with the director unable to inject his unique visual style apart from a handful of sequences where Margaret imagines the Big Eyes effect on actual people. It makes you wonder what drew such a creative mind to what’s pretty standard biopic material, because although it’s not the first time he’s dabbled in the genre (“Ed Wood”), even that film had a noticeable Burton-esque quality to it. Kudos to the director for taking a break from his usual sci-fi/fantasy leanings in order to make a more straightforward drama, but while “Big Eyes” features some strong lead performances and a fascinating story, just like Margaret Keane’s paintings, it never amounts to more than a pleasant distraction.

David O. Russell’s “American Hustle” opens with a title card that playfully states: “Some of this actually happened.” But considering that the movie was originally titled “American Bullshit” and is populated with characters who are bullshit specialists, it’s meant to be taken with a fairly large grain of salt. Loosely based on the ABSCAM scandal of the late ’70s and early ’80s, Russell has adapted what was an already outlandish story into a ’70s-styled farce filled with a flying circus of conmen, feds, politicians and casino mobsters. Immensely entertaining, impeccably structured and featuring excellent performances from its entire cast, “American Hustle” is one of the year’s absolute best films and a serious contender for every major award.

When we first meet Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale), he’s seen carefully assembling his elaborate comb over with a combination of a toupee, glue and lots of hairspray. But what the paunchy conman lacks in good looks, he makes up for with confidence and intellect, which is what’s made him so successful at ripping people off. Everything changes when he meets Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams), a former stripper who partners with Irving under the guise of a British businesswoman with royal connections named Lady Edith. Their business practically triples overnight, drawing the attention of ambitious FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper), who catches the pair red-handed and forces them to work undercover for the bureau. Richie wants to make a name for himself by taking down some white-collar criminals, and his first target is Camden mayor Carmine Polito (Jeremy Renner), a family man so desperate to revitalize the New Jersey economy that he’s willing to get his hands a little dirty in the process. It quickly turns into a game of who’s conning who, and yet the one thing that threatens to bring the whole thing crashing down isn’t their mistrust in each other, but Irving’s unpredictable wife, Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence).

That’s a lot of story to wrap your head around, especially in an exposition-heavy first act, but the acting is so great across the board that it never feels overwhelming in any way. Though Christian Bale was given a much meatier role in his first collaboration with Russell (“The Fighter”), the actor plays the straight man here to good effect, and his grounded performance is key to all the craziness that takes place around him. Irving is clearly the smartest guy in the room, but he’s given such little freedom to work his magic that you can almost see the anxiety building up inside him as the con becomes too big, too fast. Bale has never been one to shy away from completely throwing himself into a part, and in addition to gaining 40 pounds to play Irving, he also reportedly herniated two discs due to the slouched posture that he adopted during production.

The other cast members aren’t quite as committed physically, but they’re just as good. Amy Adams oozes sexiness as Irving’s cunning partner in crime, playing a character completely different than what we’re used to seeing from the actress, and Bradley Cooper is hilarious as the short-tempered, motor-mouthed federal agent who becomes obsessed with his latest case. But it’s Jennifer Lawrence who steals the show once again in what is arguably the flashiest role of the bunch. Watching the Oscar winner lip-synch to “Live and Let Die” as she angry cleans her house is worth the price of admission alone. Jeremy Renner also turns in a solid performance with his limited screen time, although he’s not nearly as memorable as the main quartet, and the same goes for Louis C.K.’s passive FBI supervisor, who doesn’t quite stack up to the other talent, but earns some good laughs regardless.

In fact, the movie as a whole is a lot funnier than you might expect, and that’s due not only to Cooper and Lawrence’s larger-than-life performances, but the darkly comic script by Russell and Eric Singer. Though some might argue that the movie is a tad long, the characters are so richly developed and crackling with personality that I would gladly spend another hour in their messed-up world. Russell has always been a quality filmmaker, but he’s quickly becoming a force to be reckoned with – especially with this stable of actors at his disposal – because “American Hustle” is right up there alongside “The Fighter” and “Silver Linings Playbook” as a superb piece of American cinema.

Marvel and DC Comics may be viewed as equals in the publishing arena, but the latter is hopelessly losing the battle when it comes to their respective film divisions. While Marvel has released one hit after the next (culminating in last year’s mega hit “The Avengers”), DC has failed to launch a single successful franchise other than Christopher Nolan‘s Dark Knight trilogy. 2006’s “Superman Returns” was a big disappointment, 2011’s “Green Lantern” was even worse, and Joss Whedon’s long-mooted Wonder Woman project was ultimately axed, leading him to direct the aforementioned “Avengers” for the competition.

But in trying to reboot their Superman franchise, parent company Warner Bros. did something very smart – they enlisted the aid of Nolan and Batman co-writer David S. Goyer to usher in a new era of Kyrpton’s favorite son. And if “Man of Steel” is any indication, that was a great move on the part of the studio, not only because they’ve finally managed to do Superman right, but because it shows that they’re thinking about the bigger picture, both for their flagship character and the DC movie universe as a whole.

“Man of Steel” is a giant-sized film with so much on its plate that it takes nearly 30 minutes before Clark Kent/Kal-El (Henry Cavill) even makes his first appearance. The movie opens with a prologue set on Krypton amid a military coup by General Zod (Michael Shannon) in a last-ditch attempt to save their dying planet. But scientist Jor-El (Russell Crowe) doesn’t agree with Zod taking such desperate measures, and instead launches his newborn son Kal-El (the first natural born Kryptonian in centuries) to Earth in the hope that he can save that planet from making the same mistakes. In the end, Zod and his cronies are captured and sentenced to the Phantom Zone, while Krypton is destroyed.

Fast-forward about 30 years and Clark is now a grown man who wanders the planet working odd jobs, never staying in one place too long so as to not draw attention. But when the government uncovers an alien spacecraft in the Arctic, Clark’s secret is uncovered by Daily Planet journalist Lois Lane (Amy Adams) after saving her at the crash site using his superhuman powers. As Lois begins digging into the mysterious stranger’s past, Clark learns more about his alien race and the man that his father was confident he would become. No sooner does he accept his role as Earth’s protector than Zod arrives on the planet (having escaped the Phantom Zone years before) with plans to begin terraforming it into a new Krypton.

This is exactly the kind of reboot that the franchise desperately needed, and though Nolan and Goyer will probably receive a lot of the credit, director Zack Snyder is just as responsible for its success. One of the biggest problems with Superman as a character is that his perfection and omnipotence makes him rather dull. Snyder and Co. can’t really change that, but they at least manage to make him feel more relatable by depicting him as a bit of an outcast. This works best in the flashbacks, which smartly doles out details from Clark’s childhood over the course of the film, resulting in a more well-rounded character. It also helps that the man donning the famous suit and cape imbues Clark with a certain warmth and humanity, and the fact that he shares an eerie likeness to Christopher Reeve at times doesn’t hurt either.

Henry Cavill hasn’t had much luck in his first few outings as a leading man, but he proves himself more than capable of carrying the Superman torch with his subtle yet effective performance here. Russell Crowe and Kevin Costner (playing Jonathan Kent) also shine as Clark’s two father figures – particularly Crowe’s Jor-El, who gets a lot more to do than in Richard Donner’s 1978 version. Michael Shannon, meanwhile, has some great moments as the villain Zod, but it’s not nearly as iconic as Terence Stamp’s portrayal, mostly because he just doesn’t seem as dangerous as he should. But perhaps the biggest disappointment in the cast is Amy Adams, who never gets the chance to fully flesh out the Lois character, although she’s clearly perfect for the role.

The best thing about “Man of Steel,” however, is the action. The fight scenes are lightning fast and brutal, really playing up the superhuman angle of the Kryptonians in a way that’s never been done before. Though there are only a handful of action sequences in the movie, all but one of them is outstanding, especially the fight between Superman and two of Zod’s soldiers in the streets of Smallville, which, despite some disgustingly blatant product placement, delivers everything that you’d expect from a modern day Superman film. The big finale is a little too generic and blockbustery for its own good, but by that point, “Man of Steel” had already won me over. It’s not quite as groundbreaking as what Nolan achieved with “Batman Begins,” but considering Warner’s recent track record with DC Comics characters, it’s a massive and incredibly enjoyable step in the right direction.

Everyone has taken that soul-sucking job in order to pay the bills. And while we proles may tease them for living the glamorous life, actors probably take that job more often than anyone, since they never know when the next job is going to come. (Case in point: Michael Madsen told us that he categorizes the movies he’s made as “good,” “bad,” and “unwatchable.”) Putting this theory to the test, we scoured the filmographies of this year’s nominees in the acting categories, looking for movie titles that screamed ‘bad idea.,’ and we were not disappointed with what we found. Jesse Eisenberg, for example, did a TV movie called “Lightning: Fire from the Sky,” which will be the main feature at our next Bad Movie night. Here are ten other films that this year’s candidates would probably prefer remained unseen.

Colin Firth (Best Actor, “The King’s Speech”)

Movie: Femme Fatale (1991)
IMDb rating: 4.6
The plot: An English artist-turned park ranger falls for and marries a stranger, only for her to disappear days later. As he learns more about his wife, he gets deeper and deeper into the Los Angeles underworld looking for clues that will lead him to her.
Firth’s character: Joe Prince, the aforementioned artist/ranger.
How bad is it?: You may not see the ending coming, but that is about the only thing this movie has going for it. Armed with one of the most awkward love scenes we’ve seen in ages, this movie does not gel on any level, using mental illness as a means of providing psychological depth, not to mention Acting!, with that last word ideally spoken like Jon Lovitz. Firth is actually passable here, given the material, and Danny Trejo pops up as a tattoo artist. But you can bet that when someone assembles a clip show of Firth’s finest moments, this movie will not make the cut.

Jeremy Renner (Best Supporting Actor, “The Town”)

Movie: National Lampoon’s Senior Trip (1995)
IMDb rating: 4.9
The plot: A group of delinquent kids takes a bus trip to Washington D.C. to tell the President first-hand what is wrong with the education system, something a couple of corrupt politicians intend to exploit.
Renner’s character: Mark “Dags” D’agostino, a slacker stoner. With pierced ears.
How bad is it?: Put it this way: the first actor listed in the credits is Matt “Max Headroom” Frewer, and the movie’s few laughs come from Tommy Chong as the drug-addled bus driver. On the “National Lampoon” movie scale, this one lands somewhere in between “Class Reunion” and “Van Wilder 2: The Rise of Taj.”

James Franco (Best Actor, “127 Hours”)

Movie: Whatever It Takes (2000)
IMDb rating: 5.2
The plot: Geek wants unattainable babe, jock wants geek’s unattainable neighbor friend next door. Geek and jock strike deal to help each other out, even though it’s clear that neither couple belongs together.
Franco’s character: Chris Campbell, the jock, natch.
How bad is it?: It’s not bad so much as it’s dull. It’s bad too, but mostly dull. Jodi Lyn O’Keefe is a lovely physical specimen, but she has the screen presence of a black hole, while Franco is stuck doing a character similar to Andrew Keegan’s Joey from “10 Things I Hate About You,” which came out the previous year. No one here has much personality, not even the geek’s even geekier friends (played by “Breaking Bad’s” Aaron Paul and Tom Hanks’ son Colin). There is a reason this movie only made about half of its $15 million budget back at the box office.

Nicole Kidman (Best Actress, “Rabbit Hole”)

Movie: BMX Bandits (1983)
IMDb rating: 4.8
The plot: Three teenagers looking to make some quick money unwittingly steal walkie talkies from a crime lord who needs the walkies for a Big Score.
Kidman’s character: Judy, the plucky girl who loves happy endings. And BMX bikes.
How bad is it?: The first half is actually pretty decent. The kids’ dialogue is snappy and the three leads – one of whom, no joke, is named Angelo D’Angelo – are all quite likable. The second half, however, is just ridiculous, as the kids are chased by two Keystone cop-type goons. The director does some interesting POV shots, but he scores every bike jump with a synthesized swoosh. Also, Kidman’s bike double is clearly a dude.

John Hawkes (Best Supporting Actor, “Winter’s Bone”)

Movie: Future-Kill (1985)
IMDb rating: 3.5
The plot: A group of frat boys go into New York City to pull a prank, only to by hunted by a homicidal mutant.
Hawkes’ character: The Light Man, though we have no idea where this name comes from since has neither lights nor cigarettes. He’s just a kid dancing at a fraternity party. But what is that robe thing he’s wearing?
How bad is it?: Sweet Jesus, is this movie bad. The tone is all over the place, the story steals from roughly half a dozen other movies, and the title makes no sense, as there is nothing futuristic about it. As many people have pointed out, the best thing about this movie is the poster that H.R. Giger designed for it, though even that poster makes no sense in context with the movie.

Michelle Williams (Best Actress, “Blue Valentine”)

Movie: Timemaster (1995)
IMDb rasting: 3.8
The plot: A time traveling boy must stop an alien race from manipulating humans into blowing up their own planet.
Williams’ character: Anna. And that’s all we know.
How bad is it?: As you can tell, we weren’t able to actually get our hands on this one (the movie’s all over the torrent sites, but those things make our computers itchy), and while that would normally be grounds for exclusion from a piece like this, the trailer is just too ridiculous to pass up. Looking like some strange, cheap hybrid of “The Quick & the Dead” and Barry Sonnenfeld’s “Wild, Wild West,” “Timemaster” blends post-apocalyptic goons with sci-fi gadgetry and, for some reason, backflipping skiers. And apparently the plot has something to do with virtual reality, which was B-movie law in 1995. And the only thing that makes this trailer more awesome is watching it en Espanol. Thank you, God.

Mark Ruffalo (Best Supporting Actor, “The Kids Are All Right”)

Movie: Mirror, Mirror II: Raven Dance (1994)
IMDb rating: 3.9
The plot: A girl and her mentally challenged brother live in an orphanage, and the girl discovers that a mysterious mirror is capable of granting wishes, but at a price (dunt dunt duuuuuunh).
Ruffalo’s character: Christian, a benevolent boy in a puffy shirt who may or may not be a physical manifestation of the mirror itself.
How bad is it?: As horror movies go, this is as scare-free as they come, and the subtitle “Raven Dance” doesn’t really apply, except for the fact that a raven occasionally comes out of the mirror, and the lead actress occasionally dances. Ruffalo doesn’t fare too badly as the mysterious Christian, but the movie around him makes no sense. Ruffalo would return for a third “Mirror Mirror”…as a different character, which must be a recurring theme for this series since William Sanderson (“True Blood”) did the same thing in the first two installments.

Jeff Bridges (Best Actor, “True Grit”)

Movie: The Yin and Yang of Mr. Go (1970)
IMDb rating: 3.9
The plot: James Mason is Y.Y. Go, a half-Mexican, half-Chinese (ha ha ha ha!) power broker who blackmails an American ballistics expert into giving up blueprints for a cutting-edge weapon, but has a sudden change of heart.
Bridges’ character: Nero Finnegan, an aspiring writer and draft dodger who is lured into doing seedy work for Go for some quick cash.
How bad is it?: Did we mention that the movie was narrated by Buddha? Man oh man, is this gonzo. Written and directed by Burgess Meredith (yep, the Penguin himself), the movie actually delves into some pretty taboo stuff for the time (Bridges seduces the ballistics expert, and his girlfriend is molested by a female cop), but at the same time, it is completely scattershot. Bridges complains that his girlfriend is late, even though he has three hookers in his apartment. The government’s plan to get close to Finnegan is to have an agent pose as a publisher who’s interested in his work, as if that isn’t at all suspicious. The is one loony movie, but on the plus side, there are several shots of Irene Tsu’s perky breasts, so it has that going for it. That, and its fabulous “Age of Aquarius”-type theme song.

Helena Bonham Carter (Best Supporting Actress, “The King’s Speech”

Movie: Francesco (1989)
IMDb rating: 6.0
The plot: A group of Franciscans attempt to document the life of St. Francis of Assisi, a wealthy playboy who became a saint.
Carter’s character: Chiana, the young lass who tries to understand his need to live the life of a possessionless pauper.
How bad is it?: Well, Rourke doesn’t have an English accent, and his hair looks like he just shot an episode of “Miami Vice” (we’re pretty sure we saw a tattoo as well, and an earring), but Carter does her part to lend an air of legitimacy to it all, even if it’s rather ponderous. And while her appearance is probably historically accurate, you have to think that Carter winces in horror whenever she sees pictures of herself from this movie. Especially those manbrows. And check out that synthtastic score by Vangelis!

Amy Adams (Best Supporting Actress, “The Fighter”)

Movie: Psycho Beach Party (2000)
IMDb rating: 6.0
The plot: A ’60s surf movie parody where an atypical teenage girl wants to learn how to surf while a serial killer lurks among them.
Adams’ character: Marvel Ann, a shallow harpy looking for an MRS degree and will use all of her feminine wiles to get it.
How bad is it?: We picked this one solely for its title, expecting it to be all camp but no wit. And dog our cats, but this one turned out to be pretty awesome. Seriously, we’re not sure how this one did not appear on our radar earlier, considering it has a regular from “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (Nicholas Brendon), Los Straitjackets as the band during the luau scene, and Thomas Gibson (!) playing a beatnik rhyming version of The Dude. And if that weren’t enough, Lauren Ambrose plays not one, not two, but three characters, and they’re all great. (We can’t tell you how excited we are that she’s in the upcoming season of “Torchwood.”) Ah, but right, this piece is supposed to be about Adams. She gets to show off her dance moves, and her hourglass figure; what’s not to love? She’s made much worse movies than this, that’s for sure. Take “Leap Year,” for example.