January 2022 saw a lot of good movies and a lot of not-so-good ones. January is notorious for being the month where bad movies get released. There were some highly anticipated films, like Scream and The Tragedy of Macbeth that did live up to expectations, and there were others that ultimately fell flat. This past season, a lot of great movies came out, and movie-goers now expect the same caliber for other movies they see. With movies like Spider-Man: No Way Home and Red Notice coming out just before the new year, the pressure is on for the films of the new year, and the bar is obviously set pretty high.
IMDb‘s movie scores are based on user reviews, so the result is a blend of how well audiences received the film. Whether it’s a sequel, a book adaptation, documentary, or a new stand-alone piece, they can’t all be winners.
10 The Pink Cloud As Audiences And Critics Disagreeing (6.1/10)
The Pink Cloud was released in the U.S. on January 14, 2022. The plot describes what would happen if someone became stuck in an apartment with a one-night stand because there is a giant, toxic pink cloud outside. It is undoubtedly a parallel to the COVID-19 pandemic. It even takes place over years, showing just the two characters trapped together as the audience watches how their lives progress.
IMDb and other websites like Rotten Tomatoes show that the audience score is low, but the critic consensus is very positive. Negative reviews include people calling it distasteful, or overly-dramatic, or just too close to home.
9 Hotel Transylvania: Transformania Is Missing The Sandler Spark Of The Other Films (6.1/10)
The fourth installment of the Hotel Transylvania franchise was released in theaters on Jan 14, 2022. It brings back the lovable family, and in this wacky adventure, they accidentally get blasted by a “Monsterification Ray.” This transforms all the monsters into humans, and the one human character, Johnny, into a monster. They spend the next 87 minutes trying to reverse the ray. This is an animated film aimed at children, so maybe not all the reviews are fair. Most critics complain that it is just a one-note story that lacks jokes and feels wearisome. It is rated the lowest out of all the films in the series.
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In the past, Adam Sandler was a cast member and an executive producer on the film, but after signing a deal with Netflix, he was unable to partake in the creation of this movie with Sony. Maybe there would have been substantial humor if Sandler had stayed on the project.
8 Home Team Focuses On The Wrong Thing (6/10)
Released Jan 28, 2022 on Netflix, Home Team is about the New Orleans Saints’ Bountygate scandal, and Coach Sean Payton’s suspension for his involvement in 2012. Kevin James portrays Payton who, after winning a Super Bowl, is put on mandatory leave and goes back to his hometown and reconnects with his 12 year old son. The Bountygate scandal is when bounties were being paid to players to injure the players of the opposing team. It’s a family friendly film, rated PG, and it features Taylor Lautner, so it may be worth the 95 minute watch.
The majority of reviews agree that it’s not great as a sports film, but it could be fun for the family. The main issue is that it’s a true story that could be told in a different way that would really shed light on the events of the scandal, but Netflix has made it into an attempt to show a father-son relationship with very base-line humor. Most people like Kevin James, and he is very likable in the film, but the feeling is very disingenuous. It’s available to watch on Netflix.
7 Clean Is A Bit of A Mess (5.6/10)
Released on January 28, 2022, Clean is about a garbage man named Clean who has resigned to a quiet life, but soon he is forced to reconcile with his violent past. It stars Adrian Brody, who also worked on writing the story. It’s clear that there are very talented people behind this movie, and the craftsmanship is there, but it lacks the urgency that keeps an audience engaged.
Credit is given where credit is due. Brody is praised for his performance, and many people did enjoy the ending. Many complaints were about the surplus of violence, the pacing, and the overall narrative.
6 The 355 Missed The Mark (5.1/10)
The 355 was released to theaters on Jan 15, 2022, and it is just what everyone expected it to be. It’s a spy movie with fun stunts and cool gadgets, but, unfortunately, that’s all it was. When a top-secret weapon falls into the hands of a drug lord, a CIA agent must team up with three other international agents in order to retrieve the device. It features an incredible cast of women, which had many people excited to see badass women being action stars. While the film was successful in this aspect, the characters were still not very complex, and the actresses’ talents were wasted.
The reviews might be so abysmal because the movie could’ve been so great, but it just wasn’t. Critics agree that it had a mediocre plot, and was overall forgettable and, actually, a bit dull.
5 The King’s Daughter Is All Wet (5.1/10)
The King’s Daughter was released to theaters on Jan 21, 2022. It features great acting by it’s two leads, Pierce Brosnan and Kaya Scodelario. It tells the story of King Louis XIV on his quest to become immortal by stealing a mermaid‘s life force, but things get complicated when his daughter, Marie-Josephe, who happens to be illegitimate, discovers the creature and threatens to foil his scheme. There’s a lot to take in there, but audiences will have to absorb the information rather quickly as it is only an hour and a half.
Critic’s main issue with the film is that it’s a muddled and cliché mess that leads up to un anti-climactic and predictable conclusion. On the plus side, Pierce Brosnan does not sing.
4 Shattered Is Too Predictable (5.0/10)
Shattered is about lonely millionaire, Chris, who meets a girl, Sky, but as the passion grows between them, Sky’s intentions turn sinister when her roommate turns up dead, and Chris’s family is in danger. It stars Shameless star Cameron Monaghan, and even features John Malkovich.
It sounds thrilling, but it ends up just being a cheesy attempt at neo-noir for 92 minutes. Reviews say that it was made pretty well, but it’s predictable and trashy and seems to rely on stereotypes of a female psychopath. It was further described as having incredibly lame dialogue, lacking bravado. Even Malkovich’s campy performance was unable to salvage the film.
3 The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild Left Audiences Cold (4.6/10)
The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild was released exclusively to Disney+ on Jan 28, 2022. It is labeled as part of the Ice Age series, but the only similarities are a few characters. It has new animators, new voice actors, and no Scrat. This means no Ray Romano, no John Leguizamo, no Keke Palmer, no Josh Peck, no Queen Latifa, and NO SCRAT. The movie is about the possum twins, Crash and Eddie, who want to have a life without their sister, Ellie. They meet up with Buck again, but soon find themselves in trouble when they have to face the dinosaurs of the Lost World.
Many critics described the film as mundane, and a desperate attempt on Disney’s behalf to continue the Ice Age franchise. It is simply unappealing and unnecessary. It is rated very poorly on IMDb, but it actually has even lower ratings on every other movie website.
2 The Tiger Rising Didn’t Get Off The Ground (4.5/10)
Released on January 21, 2022, The Tiger Rising is based on the bestselling children’s book by Kate DiCamillo. It’s about a 12 year old boy who discovers a tiger in a cage in the woods by his house. It’s a spiritual journey about the boy dealing with the grief of his recently deceased mother. It stars Queen Latifah, Katherine McPhee, and Dennis Quaid, as well as a beautiful CGI tiger. According to reviews, that big cat is really the only positive about the movie.
Critics were very harsh on this movie. Some said it was comparable to Bridge to Terabithia, others gave it less than one star. The general consensus is that it’s full of cliches and ultimately gets in its own way and is unable to create a convincing story.
1 Warhunt Is A War Crime (4.2/10)
A U.S. Army plane crashes while flying over Germany in 1945, and the rescue team is met with dead soldiers and a supernatural force that presents itself as a swarm of crows. That is the plot of Warhunt, which was released January 21, 2022 and starred Mickey Rourke and Twilight star Jackson Rathbone. This is the worst movie that came out in January 2022 according to IMDb, and many critics would agree.
The film has been called anemic, murky, full of shortcomings, vapid, drawn-out, and an underwhelming bore. It’s unclear if it set out to be a monster movie, but that is what it became. Rathbone makes a gorgeous hero, and it features Mickey Rourke in an eyepatch, so while it will probably make you laugh more than scare you, it might be worth the watch.