* BileFascination: It made a huge amount in rental fees ($7 million, compared to $14 million when it was in theaters) when it first hit VHS, from people curious to see if it lived up (or down) to its reputation. It's considered a CultClassic for this reason.
* CriticalBacklash: The multitude of stories about the film's legendarily TroubledProduction lowered critics' and audience's expectations for the released film, and indeed the box office[[note]]It won its opening weekend, but just barely, over its closest rival—''Film/TheGate''[[/note]] and reviews reflect that. But people who've watched it in the years since say it's actually not bad.[[note]]Creator/GaryLarson, who had at one point depicted shelves full of the film on a "video stores in hell" ''Far Side'' panel, public expressed his regret for doing so years later.[[/note]]
* HilariousInHindsight: "If you admit that you can play the accordion/No one'll hire you in a rock 'n' roll band". Filmed the same year that Music/TheyMightBeGiants released their debut album.
* JerksAreWorseThanVillains: Willa and [[Creator/CarolKane Carol]] are hated more then the corrupt [=CIA=] IneffectualSympatheticVillain Jim Harrison for them dumping Lyle and Chuck for the sole reason of them being losers in life and hating their music, with Carol even [[KickTheDog cruelly, remorselessly and spitefully lashing out to Chuck "your life is a joke]]," [[BitchInSheepsClothing angrily revealing to have feigned her support for him and his musical pursuits the whole time up to that point.]]
* MemeticMutation:
** ''Ishtar'' became the go-to example of a terrible movie. Like Creator/RogerEbert said about ''Film/BattlefieldEarth'', it was (deservedly or not) "the punchline of jokes about bad movies" for years afterwards. One ''[[ComicStrip/TheFarSide Far Side]]'' cartoon depicted "Hell's video store" stocked only with copies of ''Ishtar'', because of its reputation. (Once Gary Larson actually watched it, he apologised. Then again, a video store that sells only one movie ''would'' be pretty unpleasant.)
** After WebVideo/RedLetterMedia played it [[RunningGag multiple times]] throughout an episode of ''WebVideo/BestOfTheWorst'', the trailer for the film became a meme for the site's fans. Specifically, the line "These men are '''pawns!'''" near the start of the trailer.
* VindicatedByHistory: Once referred to solely in association with box office flops. Now a CultClassic that even became the subject of a documentary.
* TheWoobie: Both Chuck and Lyle, they are passionate of pursuing a career in music, but are both HollywoodToneDeaf, they are hated by their first loves who would leave them for being losers that they absolutely do not want to associate with and they both ended in a life-threatening situation in in attempt to find they breakthrough when they are hunted by government agents and stranded in the middle of the desert in the Middle East with seemingly nobody, but only amongst themselves to care for their plight.

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