adamsappel
Member
Great choice! Did not expect that ending, either.
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Movies that you thought were lighthearted but were actually really dark
- Thread starter zeemumu
- Start date
Great choice! Did not expect that ending, either.
Lol a lot of Newberry Award books are sad.
I love that book.
Liar Liar for; On one level it's pretty goofy, but I watched it for the first time in years since I was little and it was really messed up
Max and Mary; expected a light hearted stop motion film. Man was I wrong so sad and depressing.
Also The Last Unicorn
Tertullian
Member
Awww, it's that imaginative children's power fantasy we used to read when I was-
HOLY SHIT why are they all so fucking depressed!?
Adam_Vania
Banned
Babe: Pig in the City is one of the most insane and beautiful and twisted films ever. Directed by George Miller, it may as well be the talking animal version of Mad Max. Note sure which is crazier, the scene where the cancer kids are watching the hospital clown being burned alive, or the scene where they almost drown that poor dog irl.
yanipheonu
Member
I still don't understand what the tone of Pineapple Express was supposed to be. I think it was going for dark comedy, but it just didn't gel with me at all.
IggyChooChoo
Member
Same for me. I was told it was a Hitchcockian thriller. I went to a midnight showing *alone*, expecting some suspense. I was not expecting torture porn at all. That movie got me bad.
Another one that comes to mind is a film called The Big Silence.
So there are a few of us
The hero and the town get gunned down at the very end ruthlessly by the bad guys
So there are a few of us
Getting paid a bunch of money to make terrible movies is not a criminal offense last I checked.
DiipuSurotu
Banned
What Dreams May Come
What Dreams May Come
I hate how this film adheres to an in-universe logic that suicidal people are sent immediately to hell because "that's just the way it is!".
Fuck off, Cuba Gooding JR.
Morrigan Stark
Arrogant Smirk
The Fly (80's version)
Just saw it recently. To clarify, I wasn't expecting "light-hearted" exactly. I knew it was horror-tinged sci-fi, but this being the 80's, I figured the "horror" part would be a bit goofy, and that the effects would look dated and thus the overall tone wouldn't be that creepy and threatening. I didn't expect any extreme violence either. I knew it was darker than the light-hearted 50's version, but I wasn't expecting it to be particularly disturbing or violent. I even thought it'd probably be comical like the old Evil Dead movies.
I was very, very wrong on all of the above. xD Amazing movie btw. Those effects still look spectacular today, and the fly-Brundle creature is just an amazing spectacle of a grotesque, nasty, revolting, yet so very pitiable mess.
Just saw it recently. To clarify, I wasn't expecting "light-hearted" exactly. I knew it was horror-tinged sci-fi, but this being the 80's, I figured the "horror" part would be a bit goofy, and that the effects would look dated and thus the overall tone wouldn't be that creepy and threatening. I didn't expect any extreme violence either. I knew it was darker than the light-hearted 50's version, but I wasn't expecting it to be particularly disturbing or violent. I even thought it'd probably be comical like the old Evil Dead movies.
I was very, very wrong on all of the above. xD Amazing movie btw. Those effects still look spectacular today, and the fly-Brundle creature is just an amazing spectacle of a grotesque, nasty, revolting, yet so very pitiable mess.
Master Of Illusion
Member
I think we could end this thread right here.
Oh, I had forgotten about that movie! I loved it as a kid.
I... don't actually remember what was dark about it. It must've gone over my head because I was so young when I watched it. Either that, or I intentionally forgot about the bad parts lol.
Observe and Report. That movie was waaaaaay darker than what I expected. I thought it was going to be a stoner comedy with a security guard theme. You know, a fun romp? Didn't know it would be about psychopaths.
I think it's a great flick. I love the dark tone. I also feel like my short time in unarmed security enhances the film lol.
I think it's a great flick. I love the dark tone. I also feel like my short time in unarmed security enhances the film lol.
DiipuSurotu
Banned
It's not an "objective" hell though, it's a hell that's self-imposed due to how the person felt just before she committed suicide.
It's not just the theme or the treatment of the children. The boat ride scene (we're talking about the Gene Wilder version here) has a decapitation and other assorted horrors.
This was a G-rated film and presented to children.
I don't think Click earned its extreme tonal shift at all, to be honest. It definitely fits the thread, though.
Shaun of the Dead was a lot more gruesome and somber than I expected, but that's sort of Edgar Wright's specialty. Didn't know at the time.
edit: Oh shit, Moral Orel. Yeah, that might be the best example. The hunting trip.....
Shaun of the Dead was a lot more gruesome and somber than I expected, but that's sort of Edgar Wright's specialty. Didn't know at the time.
edit: Oh shit, Moral Orel. Yeah, that might be the best example. The hunting trip.....
Love that show and hell yeah it got dark.
Also introduced me to The Mountain Goats.
Another favorite. If I ever try to write a kids movie screenplay, this is going to be my model.
Blitzrules240
Banned
Yeah, I thought it would be a raunchy animated sitcom but holy shit, does Bojack Horseman go places. Still my favorite Netflix original.Not really a movie, but damn:
Yup, few of those scenes really got me choked up.
1. The way they break the news in the beginning got the sadness out of the way for me. The rest of the movie was not as sad as I expected because I knew how it ended.
2. I have no fucking idea why but Ghibli movies make me so sad at the end.
TAJ
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
I went with my sister and she was cursing under her breath as the credits rolled.
There was no silence after we left though. We were both eager to detail why we hated it.
Violence Jack
Member
While not lighthearted at all, Split had that scene with the lead girl having flashbacks to
That broke my heart and couldn't focus on the rest of the film.
As for more lighthearted films, Life Is Beautiful took a soul-crushing turn from what I thought was just a normal Italian Comedy.
And All Dogs Go To Heaven is hard for me to watch once I learned that the 10 year old little girl who voiced Anne Marie was murdered by her abusive father after the film completed. But even still, the film deals a lot more with themes of death, heaven, and hell than it would lead you to believe.
her uncle molesting her as a young child, then having to live with said uncle after her dad passes away.
As for more lighthearted films, Life Is Beautiful took a soul-crushing turn from what I thought was just a normal Italian Comedy.
And All Dogs Go To Heaven is hard for me to watch once I learned that the 10 year old little girl who voiced Anne Marie was murdered by her abusive father after the film completed. But even still, the film deals a lot more with themes of death, heaven, and hell than it would lead you to believe.
stephendedalus
Member
I'm a bit suspicious when someone didn't expect Watership Down as being dark, as both the plot synopsis and quote at the top of the theatrical poster have a clear indication of its heaviness. But..animated rabbits
I think we could end this thread right here.
Professor Beef
Banned
"Man of the Year" with Robin Williams. Every piece of marketing had that movie portrayed as a fun comedy about a comedian who wins the presidency, but in actuality it's some sort of weird pseudo-political thriller.
HP_Wuvcraft
Banned
Also, the wizards are totally anti-semitic.
DontBeThatGuy
Member
Life (Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence)
Innocent and imprisoned for almost their entire adult lives, which no doubt happened often back then, still does.
Innocent and imprisoned for almost their entire adult lives, which no doubt happened often back then, still does.
Batman Vs Superman.
Just kidding. The first one that comes to mind is Frank and Lola:
When i saw the poster i thought it was a romantic comedy staring Michael Shannon? i have to see that!!!, and well no. It's a really dark tale about betrayals in relationships. It gets a little bananas during the middle, but at its core it is a movie about betrayal in relationships from both sides, which i believe should be depicted more in movies
Another, Cars 2.
For being a kiddies movie it gets really intense with the action and the message about friendship. Killing cars, torturing and shit. I really really liked it. So much that i bought the Blu-Ray.
Just kidding. The first one that comes to mind is Frank and Lola:
When i saw the poster i thought it was a romantic comedy staring Michael Shannon? i have to see that!!!, and well no. It's a really dark tale about betrayals in relationships. It gets a little bananas during the middle, but at its core it is a movie about betrayal in relationships from both sides, which i believe should be depicted more in movies
Another, Cars 2.
For being a kiddies movie it gets really intense with the action and the message about friendship. Killing cars, torturing and shit. I really really liked it. So much that i bought the Blu-Ray.
OldGangWarily
Member
Kimi No Na Wa / Your Name was the most recent one where I felt this. I thought it was going to be some lighthearted anime about body switching and then it takes a turn in the middle that I was not expecting.
Machine
Member
Deadpool? Just guessing since you didn't share the title.
This right here is my vote. Movie started getting all these awards and it's got Clint Eastwood? I'm in. Totally don't need to read anything up on it. Lets got see a fun sports movie...
...
.... fuck this movie. It got it's point across. I want to kill myself now.
The One and Done
Member
The Truman Show. Fuck
The Artisan
Member
some disney movie about a toaster
shawnbuddy
Member
It's interesting how so many of these have been Jim Carrey movies. Ever since Fire Marshall Bill his main thing has been darkness, but Ace Ventura cemented him so strongly as a rubber-faced, goofy cartoon character that people are surprised to see that other side. And I guess he does just enough relatively innocent work that you never know if you're getting a belly laugh or a mindfuck.
Net_Wrecker
Member
I can't believe I forgot Miracle Mile, great pick. It goes from cheesy 80s romance (complete with soft sunset lighting) to one of the most eerie nuke movies I've ever seen. Best dreamy ghost town LA atmosphere alongside Michael Mann's Collateral, but nobody ever talks about this one.
ProtomanNeo
Member
Happiness
joeyjoejoeshabadoo
Member
The first time I saw The Last American Virgin I wanted to punch a wall.
Starts off as a really light 80's teen sexploitation comedy ala Porky's then gets real really fast. That ending is also super frustrating.
https://youtu.be/zmsly1UOeMk
Starts off as a really light 80's teen sexploitation comedy ala Porky's then gets real really fast. That ending is also super frustrating.
https://youtu.be/zmsly1UOeMk
DontBeThatGuy
Member
This is what did it for me. Great flick.