50 Astonishing Movie Mockbusters

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Cheap, cheesy knock-offs made on bargain-bin budgets

Atlantic Rim (2013)

The Day The Earth Stopped (2008)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: If anything, the title is just a slightly more efficient way of saying the same thing.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: When two aliens arrive on Earth ready to ask the human race to prove that it doesn’t pose a threat to the rest of the galaxy, they do so naked. Cue boobies.

King Of The Lost World (2005)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: Aside from the big ape on the front cover? It’s billed as “the story that inspired King Kong and Jurassic Park ”, which is true in that it is a loose adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World , but false in so many other respects.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: Our plane-crash survivors spend the entire film fending off giant CGI scorpions, giant CGI spiders and giant CGI dragons, because the giant CGI ape doesn’t actually turn up until the final 8 minutes of the film.

Apocalypse Z (2013)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: The film could have been called Armageddon Z, End Of The World Z or Zombies Zombies Zombies Z, and we'd all still know what it was getting at.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: The US President is played by none other than Uwe Boll… who makes no attempt to disguise his thick German accent.

Sunday School Musical (2009)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: Just look at those stage school kids jumping up in the air in delight.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: The film centers around rival ‘gangs’ of religious school choirs competing against each other. Even for High School Musical standards, this is squeaky clean.

Mega Piranha (2010)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: It's a big sea monster with snapping jaws full of sharp teeth. There's not really much more to either film than that.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: In one sequence towards the end of the film, a mega piranha eats a helicopter. That’s not a typo.

When A Killer Calls (2006)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: They have replaced one word in the title and the cover is practically the same. In fact, 'killer' sounds more exciting than 'stranger' so you might be more tempted to choose this film over the other anyway.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: It’s essentially the same movie, but quite a lost nastier. One scene involves the killer torturing his young victims, slashing one of the girl’s breasts before throwing burning liquid on them, and forcing a guy to molest his girlfriend at knifepoint. It’s all pretty horrible stuff.

Princess Of Mars (2009)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: This is obviously a take on John Carter , but was actually released to coincide with Avatar and even name-checks James Cameron's smurfy epic on the front cover.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: Thanks to a vast population of man-eating insects on Mars 216, one scene involves somebody just off camera throwing fake spiders at star Traci Lords.

American Warships (2012)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: It was originally called American Battleships until a lawsuit prompted a last minute change. It's still all about big ships at sea firing guns at aliens though.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: A crack SEAL team board an invisible, 'cloaked' alien ship and crawl along the hull, which essentially amounts to a scene featuring an incredibly bad mime performance.

6 Guns (2010)

Most Blatant Attempt To Confuse People: No scarred face, but the big guns and scowly faces are definitely reminiscent of Josh Brolin's angry anti-hero.

Probably Wouldn't Happen In The Proper Film: the film starts with a brutal rape scene, leaving the rest of the film to play out like a gun-slinging version of I Spit On Your Grave .