14 Awesome 2015 Movies Everyone Thought Would Suck

4. Magic Mike XXL

Why It Should Have Sucked: A sequel to a movie about a guy stripping may be an easy sell to straight women and gay men everywhere, but aside from its beefcake appeal, what hope was there for its narrative to hold any weight whatsoever, especially considering how self-contained the original felt? As if Alex Pettyfer and Cody Horn not returning wasn't bad enough, Matthew McConaughey, who stole the show in the first movie, also isn't back, and Steven Soderbergh isn't directing, so XXL had quite the mountain to climb once the ab-tastic novelty wore off... Why It Was Awesome: A much lighter movie than the first, XXL may be wildly unnecessary but it's also one of the most gleefully entertaining films of the year, serving up absurdly enjoyable stripping scenes along with plenty of bro-tastic bonding and humour. Plus, the added value of Jada Pinkett Smith, Elizabeth Banks, Donald Glover, Andie MacDowell and Amber Heard helped compensate for the McConaughey personality deficit, and it does enough overall that a third film shouldn't be out of the question in a few years. If you didn't crack a smile during the convenience store scene, you might be dead.