There have been many almost-great films that fell victim to scenes that ruined movies. Whether it's a nonsensical plot reveal, a case of bad acting, or some incredibly questionable effects or CGI, the history of cinema is rife with movies made terrible by a single scene. Many of these film-killing moments are subjective, but others are almost universally accepted as being scenes that turned a good movie bad (or made a bad movie terrible). The worst scenes that ruined movies, however, now live on in infamy as examples of why consistency is so important - and many Reddit users have astutely dissected them to explain why.
It should be noted that there's no singular reason why a scene can ruin a movie. In some cases, the scenes seem to go against what they had been led to believe about the movie. In other cases, such as Iron Man 3 and I am Legend, preconceptions about a movie from the source material caused narrative and character changes made for the big screen to fall flat. However, there are other moments, such as the CGI baby from Twilight or the unexpected return of Emperor Palpatine that pull the viewer out of the story and make the movies nowhere near as great as they could have been.
I am Legend was a fairly respectful adaptation of Richard Matheson's novella until the end. Then, there was one scene that pulled fans of the books out of the story. In the book, Robert Neville learned at the end that the vampires were not all savage monsters, and it was he who was the new monster. He was killing all vampires, including those that were not evil - and he was doing it as they slept. In the movie, he sought the cure and that was the angle the movie took with the climax, which ended up as one of the worst scenes that ruined movies. According to brmiller29092, "The ending of I am legend. It basically shat on all the ideas that made the book memorable in the first place." This particular scene was received so poorly that I am Legend 2 is choosing to ignore it entirely.
The Twilight Saga movies might not be up everyone's alley, and there are several things that some people loved and others just rolled their eyes at. An example is the "dream sequence" in the final movie. This seemed to win over a lot of former detractors but angered others. With that said, there was one moment that almost everyone hated, and it pulled people out of the fourth movie completely as one of the scenes that ruined movies. When Bella delivered Renesmee, the baby in Twilight was created with CGI and looked completely fake. According to joshua182, "I can't believe that actually passed a screen test! Why the hell didn't they just use a real person or baby!"
The Rise of Skywalker has been criticized to no end, but Rorschach2510 only takes issues with one part of the movie. The Redditor recalls the now notorious line from Poe, "Somehow... Palpatine survived," which is supposed to explain to the audience how Emperor Palpatine exists. The user doesn't take issue with Palpatine being in the movie, but the reasoning behind it, and it has become one of Poe Dameron's best quotes in the sequel trilogy for all the wrong reasons. However, though it was one of the scenes that ruined movies for some fans, Ian McDiarmid reprising the role of the iconic villain was one of the most surprising things about the 2019 movie.
Star Trek Into Darkness is an interesting subject when it comes to divisive responses from audiences. Trekkies had a lot of criticisms, both of Into Darkness and the wider J.J. Abrams Star Trek canon. However, both fans and detractors took issue with one of the scenes that ruined movies, which was when Carol unnecessarily gets undressed. Own-Championship7616 puts it best, explaining, "It's so dumb, because in the very next scene, she is wearing the exact same clothes as she was before. Why did she get undressed? It definitely wasn't to change." There seems to be no reason for this moment to exist. But gratuitous scene or not, Star Trek Into Darkness remains one of J.J. Abrams' highest-grossing films.
Gravity is a lean movie at just 91 minutes long, but so much happens in that hour and a half where Ryan Stone is lost in space. The most exciting part of the film comes at the very beginning when a part of the space station is damaged. When Ryan is in danger, Matt Kowalski cuts himself loose to save her. InsomniaticWanderer thinks the sequence ruined the movie, explaining, "His velocity was zero relative to the station. He wouldn't have 'fell' and he wasn't 'pulling her down.'" For a movie grounded in science, this overlooked error made it one of the scenes that ruined movies, especially given that it's the opening sequence.
Even though some think this Indiana Jones movie is underrated, the Spielberg film has several problems. A fan theory explains the heavily criticized "nuke the fridge" scene, which explains that since Indy drank from the Holy Grail in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, he's technically invincible. Unfortunately, there isn't any fan theory that covers the unforgivable scene that Ax-ho-le mentions. "The Tarzan scene in Indy and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." The user is referring to Mutt swinging through the jungle with monkeys, a sequence that feels way too surreal and unnatural, one of the clear scenes that ruined movies.
Captain America: Civil War features just as many superheroes as the Avengers movies. But Steve Rogers is at the center of the narrative, and he found a sort of love interest. Sea-Horror-814 thinks that's the worst part of the otherwise great movie. The Redditor explains, "The kiss between Sharon Carter and Captain America in Civil War. Why did they kiss in the first place and why was it never addressed again?" While Steve ending up with Peggy Carter in Avengers: Endgame was the best ending possible, it's dampened a little by the fact that he also made out with her great-niece a couple of films earlier.
For the most part, Ocean's Twelve is an entertaining heist flick, and while it isn't quite as good as its predecessor, it's still an overlooked sequel. Instead of taking place in Las Vegas, the sequel is set in several different European spots, which made for a refreshing change of pace. And though SalukiKnightX thinks the film is great, they think the scene where Tess (Julia Roberts) pretends to be the actual Julia Roberts ruined the whole movie. There Redditor claims, "Probably the most awkward and uncomfortable I felt for all on board." The bizarre scene was a huge tonal shift for the movie, and the twists and turns in the film were so smart up to that point.
The Dark Knight Rises has plot holes, but those small problems aren't such a huge issue in the grand scheme of things. However, Mtriv thinks there's one example of scenes that ruined movies, which was Talia Al Ghul's (Marion Cotillard) death scene. After the truck Talia is escaping in crashes, she survives long enough to speak with Bruce one last time, and then her eyes close and her head jolts forward. It's one of the most unbelievable deaths in such an important big-budget movie. The Redditor notes, "This one drives me crazy because Marion is a very talented actress and you've got Nolan behind the camera. Did they only do one take?"
Very few romantic comedies can find fans in viewers who don't ordinarily like the genre, but Crazy Stupid Love does exactly that. The multi-stranded narrative, the laugh-out-loud odd-couple relationship between Ryan Gosling and Steve Carrell, and the can't-look-away midpoint twist make the 2011 movie one of the most entertaining of its genre. However, while Slotherz liked the movie, the Redditor notes, "Crazy Stupid Love was actually a hilarious and endearing movie until the end speeches scene." The final scene sees a 17-year-old babysitter give nude images of herself to a 13-year-old boy, and that hasn't aged well.
Iron Man 3 was the first movie in the MCU to take some major risks. The Mandarin is one of the most celebrated comic book villains ever, but it was impossible to really adapt him without racial stereotypes. However, Ben Kingsley's performance in Iron Man 3 was satisfying up until the twist when it's revealed that The Mandarin is an imposter. The response to the brave Iron Man 3 twist split MCU fans down the middle, and Themoonatomic87 thinks it was enough to ruin the movie, explaining, "It went downhill immediately after that." However, the real Mandarin appeared in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and Trevor has become one of the best comic relief characters in the franchise.
TJNuge doesn't have a problem with anything that's shown in The Wolf of Wall Street, and they're unfazed by Jordan's shenanigans that blur the line between satire and glamorizing bad behavior. Instead, the Redditor takes issue with a piece of music in the film, saying it made it one of the scenes that ruined movies. "It's a great film. And I know Scorsese loves pop music montages, but that scene needs to be taken out of the film. It totally kills the movie." The song is briefly played in a montage when Jordan buys a yacht and sails the sea. But while Scorsese's movies are usually filled with '60s rock, the use of Foo Fighter's "Everlong" makes sense, as it would have been popular at the time when the events were taking place.