Top 10 Film Brands that Flopped in 2022

Belief, identity, and the peril of unchecked power propel a secret agent to the brink in the thrilling action-horror Blacklight directed by Mark Williams. Living and fighting in the shadows, Travis Block, a government freelance 'fixer,' is a dangerous man with a mission to extract operatives from deep-cover situations. When Block uncovers a covert program called Operation Unity attacking ordinary citizens for reasons known only to Block's boss, FBI Director Robinson, he enlists the help of a journalist. However, his past and present collide as his daughter and granddaughter become threatened.

Now, Block must rescue his loved ones and expose the truth to redeem himself. Liam Neeson stars in Blacklight as a government operative with a dark past. What sets this apart from Neeson's previous works like Taken is the character's conflict with the FBI, the agency he served, now targeting U.S. citizens. Despite that, Neeson's character indeed possesses specific skill sets in this film. Nevertheless, critics have described it as another forgettable thriller.

Metacritic Score: 20

With a raucous runtime of 70 minutes, Mother Schmuckers follows two brothers living with their mother who loses their dog. It's the French version of Dude, Where's My Car? but all the jokes are over-the-top, attempting to alienate the audience. Dude, where's my edgelord? The trailer opens with a scene of the two brothers cooking and ends with someone farting in another's face, so at least the film never tries to hide what it is.

Written and directed by the Guit brothers, Lenny and Harpo, this tasteless film introduces the horrific adventures of Issachar and Zabulon (Maxi Delmelle and Harpo Guit), grown-up brothers living in Brussels with their permanently demented mother, Cachemire (Claire Bodson). 'Mother Schmuckers' makes 70 minutes feel like many hours. Despite claiming inspiration from Italian comedies and the Farrelly brothers, the filmmakers seem unable to construct a genuinely humorous or cohesive narrative.

Metacritic Score: 28

“Asking for It” marks the directorial debut of writer/director Eamon O'Rourke. The film follows waitress Joey (Kiersey Clemons) in a small town as she befriends Regina (Alexandra Shipp), a frequent diner at the restaurant where she works. Regina introduces Joey to her group of vigilant women called the Cherry Bombers, including Beatrice (Vanessa Hudgens) and their wise advisors Sal (Radha Mitchell) and Fala (Casey Camp-Horinek).

These women bond through traumatic experiences under the hands of the oppressive regime and turn their personal vendetta into a broader mission to make the perpetrators of injustice suffer. Any sense of why these people gather together in “Asking for It” glides by in a peculiar way, one of the many factors contributing to most characters feeling underdeveloped.

“Asking for It” becomes so heavy-handed and clumsy that it forgets about dialogue, with characters not conversing much. This horror film depicts a waitress sexually assaulted and encountering a group of vigilant women who together take down corrupt men in power. Critics argue that the film lacks depth and is a revenge film by the numbers. Jeannette Catsoulis of the New York Times notes that Asking For It is 'as subtle as a dumbbell and as nuanced as a frisbee.'

Metacritic Score: 27

Get ready for a wild journey in The King's Daughter. Pierce Brosnan plays King Louis XIV, on a quest for immortality, so he captures a mermaid. He plans to steal its life force but it ends up becoming a companion to his daughter. This film started production in Versailles, France, in 2014, originally titled The Moon and The Sun. It was slated for release in April 2015, but its release was canceled. The film was later renamed The King's Daughter and released in 2022. The journey to get this title is much more intriguing than the film itself.

'The King's Daughter' began as a promising project since the novel it's based on, Vonda McIntyre's The Moon and The Sun, was published in 1997 (winning a Nebula Award, thanks to a lesser-known book called Game of Thrones). It's not hard to understand why this story has such allure. The special effects aren't particularly innovative and/or captivating, and in some cases, look quite amateurish. Wherever the money was spent, it doesn't show on the screen.

Metacritic Score: 31

The dark comedy film Big Gold Brick by Brian Petsos follows Samuel Liston (Emory Cohen), who is enlisted to write a biography about Floyd Devereaux (Andy Garcia). However, the mission becomes challenging when chaos ensues. Critics have described the film as trying too hard to be dark and quirky, resulting in it becoming dull. While it's unclear if anyone could pull off this film, he did showcase an interesting hairstyle at the book tour presentation about Samuel's future.

Screenwriter and director, Brian Petsos of Big Gold Brick misses the timing or execution in his shorts; the film was a charming departure for the quirks of Oscar Isaac. The rising star plays a shady boss, hidden behind smudged thick glasses, a fierce cat, and a rebellious facial hair set. This and other eccentricities continue to evoke half-remembered vibes from independent crime stories and sketchy performances of the late '90s and early 2000s.

Metacritic Score: 30

'Redeeming Love' is based on Francine Rivers' bestselling novel, set during the California Gold Rush, drawing inspiration from the biblical story of Hosea, a prophet who married Gomer, an unfaithful woman. Weekly publishers say about the book, “Writers like Rivers are why people buy Christian novels,” and for some, that's a recommendation, and for others, a warning.

The novel has many passionate fans who will want the film to be exactly as they imagined on the pages, and that's what they'll find. It's executed sincerely, with notably engaging actors delivering sincere performances in beautiful settings, in a story fitting comfortably and peacefully into a world concerned with specific religious beliefs. For those without a shared perspective or storytelling traditions that offer insights into the challenges leading to a profound connection with God, the film Redeeming Love will fall short.

Metacritic Score: 32

Stephen King's novel inspired the latest version of “Firestarter,” published in 1980 during the horror maestro's career peak, where the author seemed fascinated by children with inexplicable powers. Peacock recreates Stephen King's novel about a couple and their daughter Charlie on the run from the government because the girl has the ability to create and control fire. This version of 'Firestarter' feels more like a contractual obligation than an exploration of art or creative elements beyond its time.

This 'Firestarter' opens with Charlie at school, not on the run as in the original. This rendition of 'Firestarter' seems cheaper than the 1984 version, lacking any craftsmanship or memorable decisions beyond the 80s scores of the Carpenter trio, John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter, and Daniel Davies. The lofty score is only deserving for a film that knows how to use its setting more effectively and has tighter visual language. Everything here is close-up, mundane in dialogue scenes written bluntly, and the action even worse.

Metacritic Score: 32

The original Texas Chainsaw Massacre film by Netflix is honored as one of the worst in the series, which speaks volumes since most Leatherface films aren't that great. The latest Texas Chainsaw installment takes viewers to a small Texas town where a group of trendy millennials plans to turn it into an exciting and fashionable place to visit. Yes, it's a movie about gentrification. Fortunately, Leatherface shows up to saw things differently.

It's peculiar that the main character in Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a deranged killer wielding a power tool committing serial murders right before our eyes. Set 50 years after the original 1974 version, Netflix's film, directed by David Blue Garcia, serves as a direct sequel, bypassing everything from Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 and beyond with a bold move, putting filmmakers in a position to deliver something better than all eight previous installments.

Metacritic Score: 34

'The Bubble' by Judd Apatow, filmed at Shepperton Studios, satirizes the entire celebrity event with a light-hearted attitude. Structured into loosely connected episodes (where all subplots can be removed without affecting the whole), the cast and crew gather in the UK to film the sixth installment of the 'Cliff Beasts' series, a worldwide phenomenon about a group of scientists and researchers confronting flying dinosaurs escaping from the polar ice caps or something similar.

An all-star cast, a renowned director, an outstanding comedy writer. 'The Bubble' has all the elements of a classic comedy, but it's truly dreadful. Judd Apatow's Netflix film continues the film's setting during the pandemic, as the group attempts to make an action movie about dinosaur killing. Perhaps the poor reception is because people don't want to be reminded of the pandemic we're currently living in, amidst the antics of spoiled celebrities, and many in the industry joking about making a film, as it certainly hits all the beats like Apatow's other films along with a slew of TikTok references. Unfortunately, this film takes a steep nosedive.

Metacritic Score: 34

Teddy (Kevin Hart), the protagonist of Netflix's 'The Man From Toronto,' is a foolish, hyperactive, and incompetent character. Anyone who can spend more than ten minutes with him deserves a medal for patience. Director Patrick Hughes assembles so many different films to the point where it becomes the most detestable movie in cinematic collage. The signs include a popular horror film mixed with dark comic book elements, a character as a foolish loser trying to prove himself inadequate, and a somewhat trivial project about independent comedy actors, misidentifying the mistakes.

Following Roger Ebert's principles of foolish conspiracy theory, The Man From Toronto gets stuck with Teddy as he controls the film's circuit in his own way in the story of an assassin. For reasons the FBI is also putting pressure on, Teddy has to put himself in harm's way. Meanwhile, the FBI keeps Lori busy by letting her enjoy shopping freedom and spa visits by a handsome agent whom she believes is acting on Teddy's behalf. None of this is believable because of the script by Robbie Fox and Chris Bremner, where Teddy always says and does things that no one in his position could do.

Metacritic Score: 34