After getting roundly roasted by critics and most comic book fans so badly that it led to Ben Affleck’s disappointed face becoming an internet meme, it would seem that “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” would be a lock to win Worst Picture at the Razzies this year, right?
Not in Trump’s America.
Instead, the sarcastic awards ceremony that “honors” the worst films of the year gave its top prize to Dinesh D’Souza’s documentary “Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party.” The film, which was released just after the Republican National Convention last year, aims to “expose” Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party, but was lambasted as “incoherent” by critics and, ultimately, landing a 4 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
“There’s a laziness about ‘Hillary’s America,’ but it’s cinematic, not historical,” wrote The Washington Post’s Alan Zilberman. “D’Souza lets scenes drag, jumping through history in ways that quash any sense of discovery and creating an overall sense of boredom.”
“Hillary’s America” took four Razzies home, also winning Worst Director for D’Souza, Worst Actress for Becky Turner’s performance as Clinton and Worst Actor for D’Souza as himself.
But “Batman v Superman” didn’t go away empty handed, as it also received four awards from the Razzies: Worst Screenplay for Chris Terrio and David S. Goyer, Worst Supporting Actor for Jesse Eisenberg’s bizarre Lex Luthor, Worst Screen Combo for Affleck and Henry Cavill as the titular superheroes, and Worst Remake, Rip-off, or Sequel.
“The point of ‘Batman v Superman’ isn’t fun, and it isn’t thinking, either. It’s obedience,” said The New York Times’ A.O. Scott in a particularly acidic review that contributed to the film’s 27 percent Tomatometer rating.
Scott continued: “The theology is invoked not to elicit meditations on mercy, justice or sacrifice, but to buttress a spectacle of power. And in that way the film serves as a metaphor for its own aspirations. The corporations that produce movies like this one, and the ambitious hacks who sign up to make them, have no evident motive beyond their own aggrandizement. Entertainment is less the goal than the byproduct, and as the commercial reach of superpower franchises grows, their creative exhaustion becomes ever more apparent.”
The one category that broke the “BvS”/”Hillary” duopoly was Worst Supporting Actress, which went to Kristen Wiig for “Zoolander No. 2.”
One award at the Razzies wasn’t negative: The Redeemer Award, which goes to a past Razzie winner or nominee who put out critically-acclaimed work this past year. This year’s winner was Mel Gibson, who was nominated two years ago for his performance in “The Expendables 3” and who has now scored a Best Director and Best Picture nomination at the Oscars with “Hacksaw Ridge.”
Check out the full list of nominees below. Winners are in bold.
WORST PICTURE
Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Dirty Grandpa
Gods of Egypt
Independence Day: Resurgence
Zoolander No. 2
WORST ACTOR
Dinesh D’Souza (as himself), Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party
Ben Affleck, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Gerard Butler, Gods of Egypt & London Has Fallen
Henry Cavill, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Robert De Niro, Dirty Grandpa
Ben Stiller, Zoolander No. 2
WORST ACTRESS
Becky Turner (as Hillary Clinton), Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party
Megan Fox, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows
Tyler Perry, BOO! A Medea Halloween
Julia Roberts, Mother’s Day
Naomi Watts, Divergent Series: Allegiant & Shut-In
Shailene Woodley, Divergent Series: Allegiant
WORST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Jesse Eisenberg, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Johnny Depp, Alice Through the Looking Glass
Will Ferrell, Zoolander No. 2
Jared Leto, Suicide Squad
Owen Wilson, Zoolander No. 2
WORST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Kristen Wiig, Zoolander No. 2
Julianne Hough, Dirty Grandpa
Kate Hudson, Mother’s Day
Aubrey Plaza, Dirty Grandpa
Jane Seymour, Fifty Shades of Black
Sela Ward, Independence Day: Resurgence
WORST SCREEN COMBO
Ben Affleck & His BFF (Baddest Foe Forever) Henry Cavill, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Any 2 Egyptian Gods or Mortals, Gods of Egypt
Johnny Depp & His Vomitously Vibrant Costume, Alice Through the Looking Glass
The Entire Cast of Once Respected Actors, Collateral Beauty
Tyler Perry & That Same Old Worn Out Wig, BOO! A Medea Halloween
Ben Stiller and His BFF (Barely Funny Friend) Owen Wilson, Zoolander No. 2
WORST DIRECTOR
Dinesh D’Souza and Bruce Schooley, Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party
Roland Emmerich, Independence Day: Resurgence
Tyler Perry, BOO! A Medea Halloween
Alex Proyas, Gods of Egypt
Zack Snyder, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Ben Stiller, Zoolander No. 2
WORST REMAKE, RIP-OFF OR SEQUEL
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice: Dawn of Justice
Alice Through the Looking Glass
Fifty Shades of Black
Independence Day: Resurgence
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows
Zoolander No. 2
WORST SCREENPLAY
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Dirty Grandpa
Gods of Egypt
Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party
Independence Day: Resurgence
Suicide Squad