Chewers' 100 Best Cult Classic Films! - Page 2

40. The Final Programme

1973, dir. Robert Fuest

41.

1971, dir. Robert Fuest

British production designer turned director Robert Fuest is one of the most fascinating filmmakers of the 1970s. His films were darkly comic, nihilistic, & elegant & often sported meticulously bizarre set designs that filled every frame of his films with a uniquely lush & painterly eccentricity. This is the guy Tim Burton could only dream of being.

Fuest's two best films are 1973's The Final Programme, based on Michael Moorcock's psychedelic, end-of-the-world sci-fi novel & the other is the elegantly campy & highly influential 1971 horror classic, The Abominable Dr Phibes.

Both films also feature music by the brilliant, early electro ambient duo Beaver & Krause (with jazz great Gerry Mulligan). These 3 guys produced some of the most beautiful music I'd ever heard & they did for Fuest's imagery what Barry did for Bond: they provided a unique, elegaic majesty, unmatched in it's haunting elegance. Check it:

42.  'Shock Treatment'

the flop pseudo-sequel to 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show'.  I saw it once a long, long time ago on a vhs tape.  I remember kinda liking it but not really getting it...I'm pretty sure I was drunk at the time, so who cares.

Anyways, I know it has an audience.

43.  'Showgirls'

A massive critical and commercial flop upon release, it has become one of those 'so bad it's fun to watch' movies that is good for laughs at drunken parties.

44.  'Dune'

Why are you handing me this flyer as I enter the movie theater?  I need some sort of explanation as to what I'm going to see???

I wish I still had my flyer...oh well.

So yeah.  It was released and landed with a collective 'huh?' from the moviegoing public.  Nobody got it, even those who had read the damned book.  After failing, it quietly resurfaced on cable and people were drawn to it...it may have been incomprehensible but it was cool.  When the extended cut came out (from whence I derive my CHUD name), it only fanned the flames of interest.  Suddenly, the film became a 'lost classic' of sorts, something to geek out about with your friends.

David Lynch is alot of things but he isn't a hack. It may not be a perfect "adaptation" but Dune is a fucking great movie & it's ridiculously bold in it's production design & use of interior monologue.  It's also one of the few films ever made that actually looks like it was filmed on another planet. Aside from people simply not understanding it, I remember how it was sold as "the next Star Wars!" back in the summer of '84. That bitter disappointment & complete rejection of the film by suckered audiences that year was what gave the film such a bad rep.

It's very much "the other Blade Runner" & what it really needs is some updated effects & some slight re-editing to really demonstrate just how fucking great it is.

45. Once Were Warriors (1994)

dir. Lee Tamahori

"Tell Jakey you love'em."

"That's the problem Jake, I do."

You mainlanders might not understand this one but in the Islands it's a big deal. You can literally pick this DVD up at just about any mom and pop store, even some gas stations and if they deal in DVDs or books they'll probably have it back behind the counter. Dusty, but still available. The film is way better than the novel, don't even give it a look. But Once Were Warriors is a pretty rough watch, not for any graphic violence or nudity. It's a bleak, honest picture of family life in all it's dysfunctional glory. As far as I'm concerned fuck Jango Fett and the clone army, Temuera Morrison will always be Jake the Muss. And Cliff Curtis? Well, he's just Uncle Fucking Bully.

47. Blue Velvet (Lynch, 1986)

Here's to your fuck, Frank.

Goddammit, who cares if it's gotten more mainstream attention over the years. It's a fucking godsend of a film.

That is all.

48. Red Rock West  (1992) d. John Dahl

Receiving a limited theatrical run (breaking box-office records at one location) after premiering on HBO, it's now beloved by Noir junkies. Classic Cage.

49.

1987, dir. Percy Adlon

Hilarious & touching, this German art-house indie was a minor word-of-mouth phenom in '87 & still has a loyal cult following. It also contains one of the finest portrayals of female friendship ever committed to film.

50. Ladies & Gentlemen: The Fabulous Stains

A staple on Night Flight in the early 80s. I still have my VHS copy of this taped in 1983 (though I've since bought the Rhino DVD). Huge influence on many musicians and  a beginning film for Diane Lane & Laura Dern (and Ray Winstone as well).  Features members of the Sex Pistols, The Clash and Fee Waybill of The Tubes.

I think it only came out in a few theaters. Saw it at the TLA in Philly originally.

Good first post, mate.

51.

2003, dir. Kevin Costner

Coming off of a string of middling failures, Costner was still licking his wounds from The Postman when he took on this relatively low budget movie. The guy was box office poison & Open Range was likely to be one of, if not the last chances the guy was gonna get helming a starring feature. It was all uphill. If you watch the "Making Of...", you'll see Costner as a man driven, begging actress Annette Bening to be in the film while he tries to convince her that he's not crazy. A modest success in the theaters, this now classic western was dismissed pretty readily by most critics as "not bad but entirely forgettable". In it's DVD release, word of mouth began to simmer of a "holy shit bad ass" movie that was lingering at the bottom of video store western racks. Today, everyone who's seen it knows: Open Range fucking rocks & it's one for the ages.

52. Phantom of the Paradise

I love the shot of the Phantom running down the hallway.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bailey 

Will someone explain to me the appeal of The Saddest Music in the World?  I tried, I reallllly tried to like it, but I... just... couldn't.

Saddest Music is actually one of Guy Maddin's more mainstream efforts. I prefer Cowards Bend the Knee. And I LOVE his short The Heart of the World:

53. 

1981. dir. Gerald Potterton

I don't know, man. there's just something about this movie...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Evi 

 

I don't know, man. there's just something about this movie...

It's called "cartoon boobs", and they're not the novelty they used to be.

54: Shaun of the Dead.

On the surface, it's a one-joke premise. And said joke is brilliant enough that the film just might have achieved cult status on that alone. But it's also an endlessly inventive comedy, and a gripping thriller, and a deeply layered pop-culture tribute, and a heartfelt portrait of youth giving way to maturity, and one of the most assured directorial debuts of the last ten years.

56. Big Trouble In Little China (1986) dir. John Carpenter

'Nuff said really, though I'll leave you with this as well....

Yes, that is lipstick.

This list is going to fill up fast.

57.

1968, dir. George Dunning

The one quality I've always first and foremost associated with cult classics is their trippiness. With that said:

58. The Holy Mountian/ El Topo (tied)

Kind of the holy grail for a long time, these were the type of actual mind-bending, mind-blowing batshit masterpieces you always knew existed, but they had been underground for so long you thought there was no way that they would actually live up to the hype. Jorodowski's trippy spiritual fantasies not only live up to it, they transcend it. Disturbing and beautiful at the same time.

59. Enter The Void

Fits the same standard, and as such, seems like a film from a different era, despite all the modern techniques it uses. Pretty much developed a cult while it was still playing in festivals, is well a established one now that will only grow bigger as more people hear about it (I already told two people about it who hadn't, and they came back to me a few days later with the reaction you would imagine).

60. Scarface (1983) d. Brian DePalma

A bomb at the time of its release, and seen as disgustingly violent. It found new life in Hip Hop's acceptance and appreciation. I would say its cult now is a uniquely male thing, though the film has undergone somewhat of a critical reappraisal, too.

61.

1984, dir. Wim Wenders

62.

1987, dir. Wim Wenders

Wenders' transcendent dual masterpieces of the 1980s. Both films were hits in Europe & won big at Cannes, Paris, Texas & Wings Of Desire winning the Palm d'Or & Best Director, respectively. In the states, the films were critical successes & enjoyed brief runs in art-houses but have long since settled into a quiet yet passionate cult status.

The Criterion blu-rays for both films are jaw-dropping.

63. Harold and Maude.

Before hipsters, before goths, before punks even, this tale of a solitary death-obsessed teenager in love hit the bullseye and continues to do so today.

Harold & Maude > The Graduate.

64.  Speed Racer (2008)

Like Land of the Lost, this one is a proto cult classic.   A box office and critical bomb, the movie is slowly but surely getting a reevaluation from people who dismissed it in theaters.   While I'd love for it to cross over and be acknowleged as the classic it is, I'm afraid it will stay a fringe movie and that's okay.   Just wish the Wachowskis didn't have to enter Director Jail for what is a very fun movie.

65.

1983, dir. Tony Scott

Grossing less than $6m off of a $10m budget, Tony Scott's debut was pretty roundly trounced by critics. But over the years, primarily because of it's inclusion of David Bowie & Bauhaus, the film began to garner attention from music fans, quietly earning recognition for it's lush, hyper-stylized goth imagery & infamy for it's graphic sex scene between Catherine Deneuve & Susan Sarandon.

66. Joe Versus the Volcano

After winning Best Original Screenplay for Moonstruck, John Patrick Shanley cashed in his Oscar clout on this unique existential comedy. Most critcs (Ebert excepted) and almost all audiences couldn't see past its intentionally artificial silliness at the time but it has gained deeper resonance with the passing years. Tom Hanks gives on of his last really un-self-conscious perfomances; Meg Ryan is a revelation playing three separate characters; Georges Delerue's score is lush and beautiful. And remember-- don't cheap out on your luggage.

67. Mommie Dearest (1981) d. Frank Perry

"Meet the biggest MOTHER of them all!"

Not many movies become so instantly embraced as high camp that the advertising campaign actually changes its approach to reflect it, but this movie did. Reviled by critics at the time, the audience the movie found was laughing at it as comedy, much like SHOWGIRLS 15 years later. A gay community cult formed, and Faye Dunaway became something of a drag queen favorite. A strange journey for a movie that set out to shine a light on child abuse. (Interestingly, John Waters on the DVD commentary treats the film as serious melodrama  and condemns the two sequences in the film (the infamous "wire hanger" rant and the "Tina! Bring me the axe!" scene) that Waters believes are solely responsible for the film's reputation as a camp)

69.

1995/2004, dir. Richard Linklater

Unlike most of the picks on this list, these films were critical & relative box office successes (combined, they grossed around $20m off of $2m/$5m budgets, respectively). For most fans of the ongoing (?) series, Before Sunrise was a word-of-mouth video store discovery. Over the next few years, the film quickly gained a surprisingly wide-reaching reputation for being, what fans of it call, "the most romantic movie ever made". In 2004, it's 75 minute long sequel, co-written by Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke, was released to critical & fan acclaim, punctuating with well-earned & wizened affirmation, the romantic phenomenon that had been quietly flourishing for nearly a decade.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Art Decade 

69.

1995/2004, dir. Richard Linklater

 

Unlike most of the picks on this list, these films were critical & relative box office successes (combined, they grossed around $20m off of $2m/$5m budgets, respectively). For most fans of the ongoing (?) series, Before Sunrise was a word-of-mouth video store discovery. Over the next few years, the film quickly gained a surprisingly wide-reaching reputation for being, what fans of it call, "the most romantic movie ever made". In 2004, it's 75 minute long sequel, co-written by Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke, was released to critical & fan acclaim, punctuating with well-earned & wizened affirmation, the romantic phenomenon that had been quietly flourishing for nearly a decade.

Nice pick.

70 Scott Pilgrim Vs the World

Sure to be a future cult classic. It wasn't a hit, but everyone I know who has seen it, loved it. Also a chud favorite.

71.  The Assasination of Jesse James by Coward Robert Ford

One day, this will be more widely acknowleged as the masterpiece it is but in the meantime, it's an undeserving cult classic.

72. Repo Man (1984)

73. Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas (1998)

74. Heathers

"Fuck me gently with a chainsaw."

75.  Vampire's Kiss (1988)

"ALVA!  ALVA! ALVA!............"

Nic Cage in one of his all-time best Nouveau Shamanic (aka MEGA ACTING!) performances.

76.

1986, dir. Alex Cox

Unknown Brit actor Gary Oldman makes his feature film debut as Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious. Is instantly iconic.

Quote:

Originally Posted by felix 

68. Dark City (1998)

 

Great atmosphere and visuals. The Trailer really blew my mind when i first saw it. The opening Kiefer Sutherland narration in the first few minutes spoiles a bit of the film (Though i know they've fixed it in the Director's Cut).

 

I finally got around to watching this just this last week. I'm ashamed at myself for taking so long. It's incredible. Probably jumped into my top 20 favorite movies after just one viewing.

Yeah, no matter how many mediocre/bad flicks Alex Proyas turns out (I Robot, Knowing), he'll always have the one-two punch of The Crow and Dark City back in the 90s.  Let's hope Paradise Lost will be a return to form.

77. Groundhog Day

Bill Murray is respected for his dramatic work now, but in 1993 he was still perceived as a funnyman first. He'd gone 100% serious in the flawed but fascinating The Razor's Edge but it's oddly appropriate that this masterpiece, which appears wiser and more profound (and funny!) with every passing year, arose only once he stopped trying so hard.

78. The Killer

79. Hard-Boiled

Already a director with a well earned reputation, John Woo truly became a cult icon with these two blistering films that define the "heroic bloodshed" genre. Violent, Over-the-top, and pulsing with verve and energy, both films practically rewrote how action was done in the 90's, and Chow Yun-Fat became the blueprint for future action badasses.

81.

The poster alone used to haunt my dreams. A horror classic that barely anyone who isn't a horror fan has seen.

82. The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T

Nobody ever knew what to make of the world's first and only original Dr. Seuss musical until it started popping up on late-night creature-feature shows thanks to its monster-movie-sounding title. But any kid (at heart) who ever resented having to take piano lessons knew exactly where this picture was coming from.

Okay, I'm gonna need a ruling on this next one. It didn't find an audience until the late 70s-early 80s. One famous author wrote a scathing review, accusing it of, "foolishness, cliché, platitude, and muddlement about mechanical progress and progress in general." In the past 20 years, it's largely come to be accepted as a towering masterpiece.

83.

I have no problem with its inclusion but just like Citizen Kane, it's not really "cult" any more.

Fair enough.

83.

1980, dir. Richard Rush

Quote:

Originally Posted by Art Decade 

Okay, I'm gonna need a ruling on this next one. It didn't find an audience until the late 70s-early 80s. One famous author wrote a scathing review, accusing it of, "foolishness, cliché, platitude, and muddlement about mechanical progress and progress in general." In the past 20 years, it's largely come to be accepted as a towering masterpiece.

I'd say it's been considered a masterpiece for at least 40 years.

ETA: Yeah, The Stunt Man-- now you're talking.

84. "Swingers" (1996), Directed by Doug Liman

"You know what you are? You're like a big bear with claws and with fangs[...]And you got these fucking claws and these fangs, man! And you're looking at your claws and you're looking at your fangs. And you're thinking to yourself, you don't know what to do, man. "I don't know how to kill the bunny." With *this* you don't know how to kill the bunny, do you know what I mean?"

My favourite movie about breaking up and having friends help you get over it. Filled with hilarious and painfully awkward or sad moments. The agonizing answering machine messages. The best and most natural scene of guys playing a video game (and swearing at each other over it) ever in a movie. The bear speech. Every piece of advice from Vince Vaughn doing his manic bravado schtick. Every scene of Jon Favreau failing to be smooth in the most simultaneously funny and pathetic way possible. Ron Livingston's speech about the necessity of looking on the bright side of life by thinking about what you have instead of what you want. Witty, sweet, honest, moving, and true-to-life.