10 Most Pointless Scenes in Good Movies

From extremely boring and drawn out scenes, stiff dialogue, bad acting, poor cinematography, classic goofs, and otherwise inexplicably silly moments that give pause to viewers, even the most perfectly crafted films are not immune to questionable choices and scenes. In an age where movie quality is truly a gamble, there are still a number of films that persevere and almost reach this level of immunity.

Though the brilliance of the films listed can absolutely not be ignored, it is still an entertaining exercise to take time to recognize the moments where these masterpieces were briefly overshadowed by relatively pointless scenes. Though small, these moments no doubt add just another layer of charm and humanity to these films, even at their worst moments.

10 The Mannequin

Spider-Man (2002)

​​​​​Sam Raimi’s genre-defining take on Spider-Man helped set the groundwork for the superhero films that came after it. Spider-Man brilliantly captured the comic-aesthetic, the endearing and flawed qualities of Peter Parker, and the film gripped audiences with a surreal performance of the Green Goblin by Willem Dafoe. But all of this became very laughable the moment Spider-Man used a mannequin to swing Mary Jane to safety.

Great Practical Effects Were Overshadowed by Mannequin Spidey

Sam Raimi’s dynamic film style perfectly suited the comic adaptation, and prior to this film, Evil Dead had already made clear Raimi’s appreciation of practical effects. This continued into Spider-Man’s sequel, where puppetry was utilized for Doctor Octopus’s mechanical arms.

Though the fusion of CGI and practical effects was great during the majority of Spider-Man, the film forgoes a stunt double during a web-swinging scene with M.J. The film uses a mannequin to replace Tobey Maguire, which results in a stiff and disappointing scene. In a film where quality effects are abundant, Spider-Man accidentally creates a goofy moment in the film that would have been almost perfect without it.

9 The Car “Commercial”

Barbie (2023)

Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is a thoughtful exploration of femininity and masculinity, as well as how individuality can be something difficult to define in an age of antiquated labels and ideals. Gerwig’s strong messaging and artistry throughout Barbie is what ultimately makes this scene stand out as being artificial and pointless.

It Created Excessive Product Placement in a Film Already About a Product

As Gloria and Sasha help Barbie escape the Mattel Executives, the scene is corrupted by a Chevrolet commercial as the group uses one of their SUVs to escape. As the scene continues, there are unnecessary shots of the car that replicate car commercials exactly, by showing off Chevrolet’s ability to handle all situations.

Though it may be somewhat hypocritical to call this out in a movie entirely about a product, the moment still managed to feel soulless and boring in comparison to Greta Gerwig’s usual substance and attention to detail.

First Reformed (2017)

Directed by Paul Schrader, First Reformed reveals the complex relationship between religion, science, and the future of the Earth with this ongoing struggle. The film follows Pastor Toller as he slowly realizes that the Earth is doomed to climate change, while he grapples with a patron’s death and his widowed pregnant wife.

First Reformed‘s intense investigation into a religious psyche in the face of scientific and human revelations falls just short of perfection in a confrontation between the widowed wife, Mary, and Toller.

The Flying Felt Very Kitschy

The scene depicts Toller comforting Mary by participating in a meditation Mary and her late husband used to do. They then “levitate” as Toller envisions the Earth’s collapse and the damage human consumption has already caused.

This would usually have been an amazing and surreal addition to the film in contrast to its intense use of realism. However, First Reformed plays stock drone footage in the background for almost five minutes. Ultimately, this takes the audience out of the structure of the film negatively and into an artificial and forced look into Toller’s mind.

7 The Farting Scene

The Holdovers (2023)

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Director Alexander Payne explores the disillusioned lives of a professor, student, and cook over winter break at an all-boy’s school. Filled with smart and meaningful examinations of how people hold onto the past and their past selves, The Holdover‘s is a cerebral and surprisingly funny look into the tragedies and successes of the unlikely trio. This almost perfect movie has a small, but exceptionally gross and unimportant moment that didn’t hit the comedic mark for some viewers.

The Gross Moment Had No Greater Purpose​​​

Though comedic to some, Paul Giamatti’s character gets ready for bed and farts. Although this film definitely values realism in all its aspects, this scene felt a little too much, especially since at this point in the film, the audience knows how standoff-ish, socially inept, and occasionally slobby Paul’s character is.

In retrospect, it may have been an attempt to reveal more of his humanity. But for some, the scene stood out as just simply being unfunny and slightly gross in comparison to the artfulness of the rest of the film.

6 The Mother’s Dive

Barbarian (2022)

Created by Zach Creggor, Barbarian weaves real true-crime stories with fantasy as Georgina Campbell discovers the haunted horrors of the Airbnb she stays in. Creggor masterfully implements horrific body horror and suspense, and the full creature is shown at the end of the film. In an attempt to save the character Tess, whom she views as her baby, the Mother leaps to catch Tess’s fall in a manner that some viewers saw as funny.

The Scene Created a Lighthearted Tone in a Scary Situation

Though Barbarian has comedic moments, this scene’s cinematography as the Mother dives completely altered the tone of the ending. The Mother’s death could have been portrayed in a much more serious way, or simply from a different angle to make the CGI less apparent.

As the “creature’s” motive of being a mother was also fully realized at this point, a more fitting and somber ending to her abuse could have been given to her, rather than an experimental shot that proved to be silly to some audiences.

5 Arthur’s Trick

Inception (2010)

Christopher Nolan’s masterpiece, Inception, dutifully perplexed and intrigued audiences with its clever production design, cinematography, and of course, its non-linear plot structure. Sadly, even such a detailed-oriented could not escape an overused cliché that took a lot of viewers out of the severity of the moment.

The Kiss Was Cheesy and There Was No Buildup

Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s and Elliot Page’s characters are undercover in a dream. As the people within it recognize the strangeness, they begin to look for the dreamers. During this tense moment, the character Arthur tells Ariadne to kiss her while she is under the guise that they are doing this for the mission. When the kiss fails, Arthur omits a terribly stereotypical “it was worth a shot.”

Though this was likely an attempt at comedic levity, the cliché moment in such a unique film has the ability to completely pull the viewer out of the tension briefly. Moreover, there was hardly any buildup in the relationship between them prior to this moment, resulting in a somewhat forced romantic trope, as the characters just work together.

4 Legolas Surfing

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

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Peter Jackson’s beautiful adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien’s literary masterpieces are extremely loyal to the original books, and Jackson took great care in honoring the original text as well. That is why this one scene takes away from the film, as it seems that funny action sequences were prioritized over the importance of the fight. This doesn’t make the moment any less entertaining, it just makes the scene stand out as being objectively pointless.

It Was a Goofy Choice in a Fight Scene

Legolas finds himself surfing down the stairs on a shield during the battle of Helm’s Deep. Of course, this is a fantasy movie and the moment’s popularity resulted in the surfing scene being loved by some viewers. The scene still adds nothing more than visual shock and entertainment value.

3 Harvey Dent Does Not Recognize Joker

The Dark Knight (2008)

Again, Christopher Nolan masterfully directs this film by creating intense moments of both action and drama. One of these moments is when Harvey Dent finally meets the infamous Joker, played by Heath Ledger. Though this scene is technically pivotal, the small goof in the middle of it was so noticeable to audiences that it became infamous as well.

Dent’s Shock Felt Delayed and Out of Place

The moment where Harvey Dent finally confronts the Joker was supposed to be an extremely tense moment in the film, as the lives of all the characters begin to finally overlap. However, Dent fails to recognize that something is off about his nurse for an uncomfortably long moment.

Though this can be excused by saying Harvey Dent was delirious and healing in the moment, this didn’t stop audiences from immediately noticing the delayed reaction from Dent towards this heavily-made-up clown in a nurses’ uniform. Consequently, this undermined the major purpose of the scene, turning it into a small, but incredibly distracting “fluke” in such a perfect movie.

2 The Fake Baby

American Sniper (2014)

By the acclaimed Clint Eastwood, American Sniper delves into the horrors of war by following the deadliest marksman in military history, Chris Kyle. Though the film was Oscar-nominated, one of the biggest takeaways from American Sniper was the fake doll used in one of the scenes.

The Baby Was Distracting and It Dampened the Moment

The scene depicts the emotional distance between Kyle and his wife Taya as he is preoccupied with thoughts of his time serving in the Iraq War. Taya decides to bring up what is going on between them while giving Kyle his son to hold and put to sleep. The baby in the scene was so obviously fake that any substance in the scene had quickly disappeared.

The goof is even more apparent as there was no attempt to cover the baby in a blanket, and at one moment, Bradley Cooper had to move the doll’s arm to make it look realistic. With all of this combined, it ultimately left the scene being so jarring that the film would’ve been far better off without the baby even being visible at that moment.

1 The Broken Glass Scene

The Breakfast Club (1985)

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John Hughes’s classic movie, The Breakfast Club, is a nearly perfect movie revealing the dynamics and idiosyncrasies of an endearing group of high schoolers. The film manages to create characters from all different social groups, revealing their similarities and shared connections. Naturally, Hughes includes a scene where the group gets high. However, this scene backfires due to The Athlete’s reaction to the drug.

The Scene Was Illogical and Distracting Overall

Though the teens all have very normal and entertaining reactions to the weed, Andrew has a burst of hyperactivity and dances and flips around the room. This is all in line with a John Hughes movie, but even he regrets the scene as it breaks the viewers out of the realism. The fate of this scene is secured when Andrew suddenly screams at a pretty standard volume and makes the glass door completely shatter.

Though the initial scene helped with the atmosphere of the film, The Athlete’s sudden outburst tanked the reality of the scene.