So bad it's good

Hear me out -- I can’t be the only person who enjoys a good bad movie. Call it whatever you want: a distraction, comedic relief or some kind of self-loathing punishment -- bad is not the antonym of entertaining. Now, this comes in a variety of forms, from the nostalgia-inducing teen dramedies that you swore were cinematic gold when you first saw them, to the mind-numbing delights that provide nothing more than comedic escapism. And we obviously can’t let reality TV sit this one out.

If you liked Catfish, watch Ghosted

In a league of its own, the documentary turned hit MTV reality TV show, Catfish, really set the tone for the network’s future and its shows to come. Cue MTV’s Ghosted: Love Gone Missing. An investigative docu-series of sorts, Ghosted follows two co-hosts -- musician Travis Mills and former Bachelorette Rachael Lindsay -- as the two respond to desperate pleas for help to find their ‘ghosts.’ Now, if you’re not familiar with the term ghosting, it essentially describes the phenomenon in which one party in a relationship disappears from the other’s life with no explanation, usually paired with a block on all social media platforms. Before I go any further, I do have to say, the premise of this show is absolutely problematic. If I cut ties with a person I certainly do not want to be forced to reunite with them on national TV; so, each and every fiber of my being hopes at least some of this er… boundary-pushing series... is scripted. But, if you’re like me and throw all sense of morality out the window when it comes to good (bad?) TV, this show is probably for you.

If you liked Twilight, watch Twilight

Okay, I don’t mean to be funny (maybe I do), but if you watched and enjoyed Twilight as a teenager please kindly revisit. Not only will it give you nostalgic feels in a time when you probably need it most, but it will also be hysterically entertaining. We all remember Edward’s grand *sparkling* skin reveal, but do you REALLY remember? If you’re somehow willed into watching the four sequels that follow the original, I promise the films’ sense of logic only continues to unravel as you get further and further into the series. Proceed as you see fit.

If you liked Obsessed, watch Fatal Affair

A star-studded classic of a bad movie, Obsessed is the movie you owned on DVD for no apparent reason other than to watch Beyoncé, I mean Sharon, raise all hell when her very faithful husband, Derek (Idris Elba), is manipulated by a mysterious blonde woman at the office. 2020 film Fatal Affair features just as many well-decorated actors and actresses, with a cast led by Nia Long and Omar Epps. I don’t want to spoil too much, but it's not not the same movie.

If you liked The Ugly Truth, watch any Noah Centineo film ever

What is The Ugly Truth if not a boy-platonically-meets-girl-boy-makes-girl-’hot’-boy-falls-in-love-with-girl type of film. There is a never-ending supply of movies to find this, or an eerily similar, trope in -- think The Proposal, The Makeover, He’s Just Not That Into You, Just Go With It… shall I go on? Now fast forward to the year 2021. Noah Centineo has made his mark on the romantic comedy genre with his role in To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. But, what was he in before the series took off? Well, you have Swiped, a movie about a high school student who develops an app that lets women request his services as a stand-in, ‘fake’ date. Oh wait, that's The Perfect Date. Swiped is about a college student... who comes up with an idea for an app… -- are we sure these aren’t the same movie? Jokes aside, these movies are different, in the sense that one suffers from an irredeemable level of sexism (Swiped) and the other one… doesn’t? Again, proceed with caution.

I take absolutely no responsibility for the inherent waste of time that some of these recommendations might cause you -- but I take FULL responsibility if any of these titles become a new guilty pleasure fav.