Movies are essentially snapshots that capture the sensibilities of a given period. The themes tolerable during a specific era don’t necessarily translate to the present, however.
In some instances, movies have such cringeworthy scenes that it’s hard to believe they were even made, much less found a way to evade the censors. Have a look at some once-beloved movies that now make people cringe.
1. Manhattan (1979)
Film lovers often cite Woody Allen as one of the greatest filmmakers ever by many fans. Despite Manhattan‘s accolades, one of the main plotlines, about a twice-divorced 42-year-old man dating a 17-year-old high school student, should have rung alarm bells, even in the 1970s when pushing boundaries became the norm.
2. American Beauty (1999)
In another instance of someone who should have known better than to cross the line, American Beauty followed a married middle-aged father’s infatuation with his high school-aged daughter’s 16-year-old friend. In retrospect, some may find it disheartening to know that it won five Academy Awards.
3. Grease (1978)
The musical comedy has become a pop culture phenomenon among American audiences, with more than a few people able to recite the lyrics to every song. The movie follows a cast of rowdy high school students, but things go way too far. Putzie, a member of the T-Birds, lays on the floor to look up the skirts of female students, and Rizzo, one of the Pink Ladies, gets shamed for being promiscuous. These qualities distract from an ostensibly fun movie.
4. Sixteen Candles (1984)
Watching this John Hughes film as a teenager in the 1980s seemed like a fun but wild exaggeration of teen life. Rewatching it as an adult will make viewers cringe. Caroline, one of the supporting characters in the movie, gets drunk to the point of unconsciousness. Two other characters, Jake and Ted, discuss how easy it would be to take advantage of her in her drunken state. Teen movie or not, it’s still despicable.
5. Pretty Baby (1978)
Where to even begin with this one? Pretty Baby follows a 12-year-old girl who lives in a house of ill repute where she subsequently becomes exploited. And that’s not even the worst part. Brooke Shields, the then 12-year-old lead actress, was exploited by performing in adult scenes that would violate the law today.
6. Cruel Intentions (1999)
A modern American retelling of the 1988 film Dangerous Liaisons (and the 1782 novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses and 1985 play of the same name) with scheming teens instead of adults, delves into the manipulative tactics Sebastian, one of the main characters, employs to seduce unsuspecting girls. If that isn’t bad enough, his stepsister Kathryn offers herself up to him if he achieves his goal. Talk about icky!
7. Revenge of the Nerds (1984)
Tasteless films didn’t start in the 1980s, but the decade produced many of them. Revenge of the Nerds belongs on that list. The most troublesome scene occurs when one of the nerds tricks the girlfriend of a popular guy to have relations with him. She thinks it’s her boyfriend because he’s in costume. It wasn’t funny then, and it’s not funny now.
8. Porky’s (1981)
The Porky‘s franchise reigns when it comes to the inappropriate comedies of the 1980s. A snapshot of the infamous shower scene featured prominently in the film’s promotional posters.
The shower scene occurs when the boys, high school students, use a hole in the locker room wall to peek at the girls while they shower. It goes beyond an immature prank. It’s unlawful voyeurism. Teenagers loved it in the 80s, but today, teen viewers have a different perspective and cringe.
9. Blank Check (1994)
A film about an adolescent boy who comes into an unexpected financial windfall sounds like the premise for a fun movie until the end—when the 12-year-old actor shares a kiss with a 31-year-old actress. Some controversy over the scene arose then, but a greater furor would have occurred if the scene had a female child actor and an adult male actor.
10. Lolita (1997)
Adrian Lyne wasn’t the first director to bring Vladimir Nabokov’s novel to the big screen. Stanley Kubrick’s version came out in 1962. Regardless, nobody could make either movie today. Humbert Humbert, the protagonist of the story, becomes so infatuated with his landlady’s 14-year-old daughter that he marries the mother to get closer to the young girl. The ick factor runs strong in this one, and we’re a little sad Jeremy Irons is forever attached to it.
11. Kids (1995)
This movie, considered edgy and controversial in 1995, will drop jaws today and appall viewers. The plot’s a provocative one that follows the hedonistic exploits in one day of the life of Telly, a 16-year-old boy with HIV who’s unaware of his status. At least, the viewers hope he doesn’t know. It’s a disturbing film to watch, especially seeing how he preys on younger girls, and by younger, that means 12 and 13. It’s not a pretty picture.
12. Birth (2004)
With a bizarre story about a 10-year-old child who becomes convinced that he’s the reincarnation of a woman’s late husband, it’s almost inevitable that controversial moments will occur. Thankfully, the uncomfortable shared bathtub scene was filmed by each actor separately, but the kiss between Nicole Kidman and then-child actor Cameron Bright, unfortunately, did happen.
13. American Pie (1999)
The escapades practically write themselves in yet another film about hormonal teens. But some things are off-limits, even for comic effect. In the case of American Pie, it’s a couple of boys setting up a webcam in a girl’s bedroom so they can watch her undress. The link to the webcam, sent to their entire high school, violates her privacy even more, and though it’s played for laughs, the sad reality that this has likely happened to real high school girls makes it difficult to chuckle at today.
14. Zapped! (1982)
A turkey of a movie like Zapped! could only be made in the 1980s. Scott Baio plays Barney, a high schooler who suddenly develops telekinetic powers. He uses his newfound gift to humiliate other students by stripping them of their clothes in public. The whole idea of the film screams classless and crass.
15. Overboard (1987)
The trope of a rich person getting their comeuppance from a working-class hero gets a creepy spin in Overboard. A rich woman mistreats a carpenter who works for her, refusing to pay for a job well done. She has an accident that causes her to have amnesia, and to get back at her, the widowed carpenter convinces her that she’s his wife and the mother of his four out-of-control sons. Tricking a woman into a fake marriage isn’t cool, though we’ll give some credit that the movie didn’t cross that line.
16. The Breakfast Club (1985)
For all of the Brat Pack mystique this movie had at the time, it also had more than its share of misogyny. In the most blatant example, Bender hides from a teacher by going under a table and uses that moment to look up Claire’s skirt. Talk about unjustifiably deplorable behavior that probably wouldn’t elicit the same reaction when put in front of a modern audience.
17. Never Been Kissed (1999)
With frequent news stories of inappropriate relationships between educators and their students, Never Been Kissed hasn’t aged well at all. Josie is a 25-year-old woman posing as a high school student for a story for the newspaper she writes for. If that isn’t sketchy enough, she and her English teacher develop romantic feelings for each other. Even though Josie is an adult, it still feels wrong because the teacher thinks she’s a student.
18. Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011)
A 17-year-old babysitter gives her 13-year-old charge not safe for work photos of herself as an eighth-grade graduation present. We can’t start reciting all the laws this would violate in real life fast enough.
19. Goldfinger (1964)
James Bond films, especially the earlier releases, aren’t known for their political correctness or themes of female empowerment. The women in the 007 films often have titillating names, but very few come across as blatantly misogynist as Ms. Galore’s first name. We’ll leave it at that.
20. Blame It on Rio (1984)
In the 1980s, Michael Caine appeared in every movie under the sun, or at least it seemed that way. Unfortunately, he chose to appear in this exploitative trainwreck. Caine plays a middle-aged man who’s having a clandestine, extramarital relationship with his best friend’s 17-year-old daughter. And this is apparently romantic comedy material?
21. Crash (1996)
David Cronenberg‘s films have a reputation for pushing the envelope, and Crash is no exception. It graphically depicts people who get an aphrodisiacal thrill from car crashes, especially if they’re involved. The subject matter is so bizarre it’s hard to imagine a film like this getting made with today’s sensibilities.
22. Big (1988)
Admittedly, this film charmed viewers because many kids wish to become adults. When that wish comes true for 12-year-old Josh, audiences fall in love with his childlike innocence in a grown man’s body. It gets sticky when he gets romantically involved with Susan, a grown woman who doesn’t realize Josh is also not an adult. It’s not her fault, but it’s still uncomfortable to watch when you remember Josh isn’t even a teenager. And even then, there’d be a few years before it’s still not creepy.
