Cult movies

"Female Trouble"

"Sudden Fear", if that qualifies.

Eating Raoul....It's funny and original. Also there is a short film by the director (Paul Bartel) called The Secret Cinema, this one is a short film but it should be a cult classic. I have the Criterion edition of Eating Raoul , this includes The Secret Cinema and some other things.

Does "Welcome to the Dollhouse" count?

"Fast, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!" is one of my favorites.

"Heathers"

Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!

Showgirl. Don't you ever underestimate the power of Cristal Connors.

Harold and Maude

Freaks

Suspiria

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Phantom of the Paradise

It's called Showgirls, you stupid fucking cunt at R7.

FEMALE ON THE BEACH NIGHT OF THE COMET

A third vote for "Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!"

If you like French movies, Filles perdues, cheveux gras.

I've heard raves about Attack of the Giant Moussaka.

Mallrats

Clerks

Reservoir Dogs

Big Trouble in Little China

Goonies

The Boy Who Could Fly

Rules of Attraction

200 Cigarettes

Empire Records

Teeth

Halloween & Halloween II

the original Star Wars trilogy

does Hitchcock count? I don't think I know what a cult movie is.

Dogtooth

We are the Mormons: Come discover God's one true church

RHPS.

Apartment zero

Brazil

Re:R20; this is the first post I've ever seen referencing Apartment Zero, saw it three times in one of those, then, wanky art house cinemas in Sydney. Thought it was just fucked up and intriguing all those centuries ago when I was 18.

The Room

Oh and R20 Brazil is a masterpiece. Did you love Nikita and the Fifth Element?

Desperate Living.

Psycho Beach Party.

If you like Dogtooth and Françoise Hardy, then Attenberg.

Hedwig and the Angry Inch

Carnival of Souls

The Crazies

Assault on Precinct 13

The Hills Have Eyes

Texas Chainsaw

That Cold Day in the Park

Suspiria / Deep Red / Bird with the Crystal Plumage

3 Women

Evil Dead II / Army of Darkness (with the director's original ending)

Communion (aka Holy Terror)

does Exorcist II: The Heretic count?

Safe (Todd Haynes)

The Unholy Three -Tod Browning's masterpiece, Lon Chaney in drag as kindly old women scammer/ventriloquist. Also, cigar smoking dwarf in baby carriage. Magic.

Female on the Beach - Jeff Chandler: "How do you like your coffee?" Joan Crawford (deadpan ): "Alone."

Berserk: Diana Dors, trussed into a corset with thick porn makeup and helmet hair 'nuff said. Joan's assessment: "Mathilda you slut!". Bonuses: X-rating in the UK, and Michael Gough.

What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice: Geraldine Page's character is a pretentious, broke, cackling murderess...tries to brain neighbor's dog with a shovel. Nice!

Johnny Handsome: Ellen Barkin growls at Mickey Rourke "lookin' at you gives me some bad thoughts..."

Johnny Guitar (ah yeah!): Mercdes McCambridge's angry, androgynous character hates (really hates) Joan's character Vienna ("She's LYING, that tramp!" "I won't rest until I see you and your filthy kind hanged..."). I could watch that on a loop. Bonus: Peggy Lee moody theme song ("wherever you go, whatever you...I love ya...")

Also, The Warriors.

What makes a movie a "cult" movie?

Parents (1989)

Dementia 13.

American Psycho

Another vote for JOHNNY GUITAR! Love it!

Santa Sangre

They're all old and mostly B+W; I don't think we'll see many more in the future. Because they were often barely-financed drive-in filler with lurid themes. Or movies from the gays with a camp sensibility.

Then there's the bigger budget productions that went horribly awry. I guess that's what we can hope for in the future: turkeys that somehow escaped.

I would define it as a film that wasn't a box office hit, didn't win a bunch of awards, but still developed a following over the years anyway. And that it becomes referenced by fans in some way, either lines, scenes or iconic images. I think it takes at least 20 years after the initial release, with a steady - even if small - popularity, for it to be truly considered a cult film.

~ Napoleon Dynamite ~

"Do those chickens have talons?"

Scott Pilgrim vs The World.

Troll 2.

Forty posts and yet not a single mention of "Mommie Dearest". You bitches are slipping.

The Day The Clown Cried

R16 None of those movies count as cult movies. They are/were all too mainstream.

Freaks

What was the name of that Italian movie where Rupert Everett plays a cemetery caretaker? That was a fucking awesome movie and apparently it's considered to be a cult favorite: it's very dark, funny and gorgeously photographed.

Cemetery Man?

Any John Waters movie, ie Pink Flamingos, Lust in the Dust, Hairspray (the original), Serial Mom.

Rocky Horror

Picture Mommy Dead

What's The Matter with Helen?

Berserk

The Boys in the Band

Cruising

Starship Troopers

Taxi Driver

Night of the Living Dead

Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Halloween, Season of the Witch (the originals)

Any Ed Wood movie

The River's Edge

Donnie Darko

Liquid Sky

Brain Candy, the Kids in the Hall film.

All John Waters films

All the Val Lewton films for RKO: Cat People, Curse of the Cat People, I Walked with a Zombie, The Seventh Victim, etc.

Suspiria and all Dario Argento films

[quote]Any John Waters movie, ie Pink Flamingos, Lust in the Dust, Hairspray (the original), Serial Mom.

"Lust In the Dust" is not a John Waters film. It stars Divine but was directed by Paul Bartel, better known for the cult film "Eating Raoul."

I hate when you search cult movies on Amazon, Star Wars is number one. I just feel that cult movies should not include anything that makes billions of dollars. There is a creepy funny campy horror movie from the 70's called The Sentinel. I think that if falls into the cult category.

Taking Off

Rabid Dogs

Keoma

Don't Torture A Duckling

Demons

Times Square

Repo Man

Who Killed Teddy Bear?

Battle Royale

Night of the Comet

Maximum Overdrive with Emilio Estevez

R50: I stand corrected! I thought Divine pretty much only worked with John Waters.

The original Star Wars trilogy is not "cult" R16. Everyone saw them, everyone still won't shut up the fuck up about them, and the first movie alone grossed more than every other movie mentioned on this thread combined.

I'm so sick of Star Wars fans revelling in the most mainstream of entertainment but expecting some sort of outsider credibility.

Yessss, R10. That's an underrated classic just waiting to be revisited.

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension

Something for Everyone with Angela Lansbury and Michael York. Not yet out on DVD

[quote] Don't Torture A Duckling

J'adore this film! Florinda Bolkan's death scene is one of the most horrifying and beautiful scenes ever filmed. And the guy who played the priest was so fucking handsome (I've read somewhere that he died very young from some disease). There's also the always wonderful Miss Irene Papas playing the priest's mother.

Parents

Fido

Bad Boy Bubby - Australian film that I can't rave about enough. It's twisted, hilarious, disturbing and features some truly innovative production. After I saw it the first time, I was glad I went into it not knowing anything about it, so II recommend to just Netflix it without reading anything about it.

I think because "Mommie Dearest" purposely tried to be a cult film, it can't be. Same problem with "The Big Lebowski." You can't manufacture a cult film. The cult has to naturally develop on its own. Otherwise it's not a true cult film.

The Late Show (1977)

Used Cars (1980)

Big Trouble in Little China (1986)

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai (1984)

House Of Games (1987)

Freeway (1996)

Another vote for Buckeroo Bonzai.

Serenity

Does Dr. Horrible count?

Liquid Sky

Eraserhead

Madame X: An Absolute Ruler

A little known 80s movie called "Scream for Help". Along the lines of "The Stepfather" but creepier

Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls

Vibes

Koyaanisqatsi

Powaqqatsi

LOVE House of Games!

Point Break

American Sniper!

Wavelength (1983) about the finding of two alien corpses. Except one's alive. Starring Cherrie Currie as a hot psychic and Robert Carradine as some guy. Shot in a former secret CIA industrial film compound in the Hollywood Hills, bought last month as a new pad by Jared Leto

I can't believe it took until R46 for someone on datalounge to mention the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Battlefield Earth. A cult movie in that it was a movie made by a cult.

Surf nazis must die

Repo Man

Videodrome

Dead ringers

I guess it's not officially cult but I recently watched Fingers (1978) from Netflix (DVD only) starring Harvey Keitel as an aspiring concert pianist who is a mob collection man by day. Weird weird movie as only 70s movies can be. Mia Farrow's sister is in it as the love interest - a spaced out sculptress/call girl.

In addition the the many great films already mentioned, I'll add:

The Wicker Man

No love for Alexis Arquette classic "Killer Drag Queens on Dope" here?

Clerks - 1994

Does Drop Dead Gorgeous count?

Choose Me.

Has Valley of the Dolls been mentioned yet?

My Own Private Idaho.

Big Lebowksi is a cult film, just perhaps not within your peer group, R61.

I love Sextette

Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones

Sleepaway Camp II

Dead Ringer

The Honeymoon Killers (1970) Unmissable IMHO and it does have a Criterion Release as do 2 other cult films I recommend both directed by Sam Fuller: The Naked Kiss(1964) which influenced David Lynch's Blue Velvet and Shock Corridor (1963). Also by Fuller White Dog (1980) a controversial film based on an actual story of a dog that was trained to attack black people. it got a limited theatrical release and when NBC was going to televise it the NAACP was not happy and I believe NBC did not ultimately broadcast it.

I had a GREAT book as a kid called "Cult Movies" and learned a lot from it. Of course, it's from 1981, so it doesn't have anything more recent than that. But Wikipedia has the complete list of films from it on this page.

The Stunt Man (1980)

Thundercrack!

That’s so funny, r89. I just watched that on HBO Max last night. It’s so much weirder than I remember it being. It doesn’t really make a lick of sense, scene to scene, but it holds you. And Peter O'Toole!

The Tin Drum (1979)