What films do you think are becoming cult classics?

Karl Hungus

Now I'm not talking about any new films that have a 'cult classic in the making' hype about it, I'm talking about films that are a few years old at least, that were poorly received by critics and audiences, bombed at the box office, but are now slowly being appreciated or recognized for the films they are, or are building a following.

For me, it's Ravenous.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JO98NMMgp0Y

Ravenous has remained on my list of under-appreciated films since I had first seen it, and when I see a thread for Horror movie recommendations, I rarely pass up the change to giving it a push. It happens to be one of my favourite horror films of all time, an extremely dark humoured tale of cannibalism starring Guy Pearce and Robert Carlyle (who's character is very loosely based on that of Alfred Packer), it has one of my favourite soundtracks, by Michael Nyman and Damon Albarn, as well as featuring the single greatest line of dialogue in Jeremy Davies's career.

"He was licking me!"

When it was first released in 1999, Ravenous was almost universally panned by critics, it was an absolute bomb at the box office, and made back sweet **** all of it's budget. Critically and commercially, it was a failure. But it was, in my opinion, an absolutely terrific film that was completely different from anything else at the time. The frontier setting and slightly more obscure mythology than your average zombies/werewolves/vampires mythology meant there just really wasn't a horror film like it.

Now I think that it's slowly becoming appreciated for what it is. Over the years, I notice more and more that Ravenous is being mentioned whenever a thread about under-rated films pops up here, or plenty of times it'll get mentioned in a best/favourite soundtracks thread, and I see more people than just myself and Tusky recommending it. It also seems much more widely liked than the opinions of the critics might have you believe, because while it has a pretty sour rating of 42% on Rotten Tomatoes, user scores have it rated at pretty damned good 77%. Certainly I think it's working it's way into being a genuine cult classic.

And come on, that soundtrack. Astounding.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yy5xlq5lKKE

Thoughts? What films do you think are becoming cult classics?

Sleazus

I think horror is a genre quite partial to this, because it's fun to slate them on release (The Shining only received mixed notices on release). I like The Mist as a cult hit - it has a big name director, a director's cut and optional arthouseness (the aforementioned black-and-white director's cut). And maybe, and this is just cause I saw it this week, The Ruins, because it's fairly good at what it does despite a ridiculous premise.

Outside of that, I think all of Speilberg's work this millennium (bar maybe the already-loved Minority Report). I'm talking AI (I think the worm is already turning), War of the Worlds and Munich (which is arguably already a cult film). Maybe even Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Maybe we'll look back on these as he 'wilderness' years.

The Big Lebowski?

This film seems to get better every time I watch it and I don't think it did particularly well on first release. I think it's one of the funniest films I've seen and has plenty of great moments,

"What the f**k is this!?", asks the confused thug, holding up a bowling ball.
"Well, obviously, you're not a golfer.", The Dude calmly responds.

Hopefully, I'm not alone in this appraisal

foxyboxer

I was in London a few months ago watching a Spurs match.
There was the typical foul-mouthed posse of Londoner's screaming obscenities at the TV.

After one of them raged at the TV, someone from the group behind us (with no interest in the game) shouted "LOUD NOISES!!!!!!!!!"

If a quote from Anchorman can reduce us to fits of laughter like that then it is most certainly a cult classic.

Dont be at yourself

Pitch Black and Chopper would be two that immediately spring to mind for me.

Basq

I think '28 Days Later' gave the horror genre (or more specifically, the "zombie genre") a kick in the arse... and will definitely be considered a cult classic in years to come!

gandalf

Deleted User wrote: »

The Big Lebowski?

This film seems to get better every time I watch it and I don't think it did particularly well on first release. I think it's one of the funniest films I've seen and has plenty of great moments,

"What the f**k is this!?", asks the confused thug, holding up a bowling ball.
"Well, obviously, you're not a golfer.", The Dude calmly responds.

Hopefully, I'm not alone in this appraisal

I'd consider this as already firmly established as a cult classic. Its a film that has to been seen more than once to really appreciate it.

Theres a Jeff Bridges season on at the IFI right now and it finishes with this film on the 28th. I've already got my tickets booked.

magma69

In Bruges has an extremely dedicated following in America.

Re: The Big Lebowski. That film is well past becoming a cult classic. It is one.

Giselle

Its got to be the spanish version of 'The Orphanage', it just has that timeless quality.

Agree with previous poster on '28 Days Later'.

bonerm

Freddy Got Fingered. Oh yeah!

"Daddy would you like some sausage"?

Kess73

Pontypool.

Now it does not meet most of the criteria that KH set. It was well received by most critics, and it is not a few years old. But it did not do much at the cinema box office as it got a pretty limited release, and will be relying on dvd/blu ray sales to boost it's figures.


It is an interesting take on the infected human genre, and wrongly gets called a zombie flick, when there are no undead at all in the film.

The premise behind the infection is quite clever, and works well, and if you have read the book that the film is based on (written by Tony Burgess who then adapted it for the screenplay), then they go together in painting a fuller picture.

The cast is tiny, and the budget was small, but it works very well and makes you feel as though you are locked in with the main cast. Stephen McHattie is excellent as Grant Mazzy, moving deftly between chewing the scenary and hamming it up.

It also harks back to an older era in that most of the killing and gore happens off camera, and often to characters that you never get to see at all, as you only know them from being voice on a phone or name mentioned by a cast member. The claustrophobic setting of the film is similar to that set in Hitchcock's Lifeboat (amazing film that all should find and watch btw) and that adds to the feel of an older era style of direction.

Otis Driftwood

Sleazus wrote: »

I

I like The Mist as a cult hit - it has a big name director, a director's cut and optional arthouseness (the aforementioned black-and-white director's cut). And maybe, and this is just cause I saw it this week, The Ruins, because it's fairly good at what it does despite a ridiculous premise.

I dunno if I would class the Mist as a cult hit.It was mostly well received by critics and fans alike,its just the studio didnt get behind it at all in terms of advertising,it got SFA screenings in the States and was virtually unavailable over here on the big screen.
Just on the Ruins,I watched it recently on sky and I have to say I thought it was a terrible,terrible film.

foxyboxer wrote: »

I was in London a few months ago watching a Spurs match.
There was the typical foul-mouthed posse of Londoner's screaming obscenities at the TV.

After one of them raged at the TV, someone from the group behind us (with no interest in the game) shouted "LOUD NOISES!!!!!!!!!"

If a quote from Anchorman can reduce us to fits of laughter like that then it is most certainly a cult classic.

Anchorman is hardly cult,its always had a huge following.

NekkidBibleMan wrote: »

Pitch Black and Chopper would be two that immediately spring to mind for me.

Pitch Black is a good example,crap film but pretty enjoyable for it.
Chopper is an interesting pick,it was praised on release but didnt get much of a theatrical run outside Australia.Super movie though.

basquille wrote: »

I think '28 Days Later' gave the horror genre (or more specifically, the "zombie genre") a kick in the arse... and will definitely be considered a cult classic in years to come!

Wasnt 28 Days very well received by fans and critics and it made alot of cash at the box office,not really the makings of a cult movie.

Giselle wrote: »

Its got to be the spanish version of 'The Orphanage', it just has that timeless quality.

What other version is there?
It was an original piece.

IMO its horror movies that by and large are fodder for cult following.Going back to the 60s with Herschell Gordons Lewis's Bloodfeast and 2000 Maniacs.Critically panned but over the years their stature has grown and now they are affectionatly looked upon by a large section of genre fans.

Modern horror destined for cult status (IMO) would be things like Erice Stanze's Scrapbook,Fred Vogels August Underground or Nick Palumbos Murder Set Pieces.All 3 were slammed by any mainstream critics that viewed them but all 3 have a large following in the Underground film world.

Away from the horror genre there are a few of my favourite movies that have or are becoming cult classics.

Thursday is a bona fide modern classic and is criminally underseen.Brilliant story,performances and characters give this all the elements to be a cult classic,I cant recommend it highly enough.

Perdita Durango is another widely unseen modern classic.It ran into huge censorship problems upon release and has been released in many different versions with various scenes cut out or left in.It is a super little gangster movie with a brilliantly funny performance from Javier Bardem.

Pusher is a fantastic gangster thriller from Denmark.I first saw it on film 4s extreme zone many years ago and instantly loved it.It spawned 2 excellent sequels too.The trilogy is available resonably priced online and really should be seen by more people.

Bleeder is from the same director as the Pusher Trilogy and is also a very good,gritty and sometimes violent movie.

Im sure there are loads more but thats all I can think of for now.

Giselle

nedtheshed wrote: »

What other version is there?
It was an original piece.

Is there not a Hollywood version in the pipeline? American remakes of European horrors are rarely good (but I'd go see it anyway, just in case).

Actually American remakes of most European films are generally poor, Nikita being the first worst example that springs to mind, La Cage Aux Folles another.:(

Kess73

Giselle wrote: »

Is there not a Hollywood version in the pipeline? American remakes of European horrors are rarely good (but I'd go see it anyway, just in case).

Actually American remakes of most European films are generally poor, Nikita being the first worst example that springs to mind, La Cage Aux Folles another.:(

The english remake has been in the pipeline since 2007, but it is stalling time and time again. The most recent news on it was in January when another director was announced as taking on the project. I think that is the third one to be linked with the project to date.

Don't hold your breath witing for it to ever get made methinks.

Otis Driftwood

Giselle wrote: »

Is there not a Hollywood version in the pipeline? American remakes of European horrors are never good (but I'd go see it anyway, just in case).

Actually American remakes of most European films are generally poor, Nikita being the first worst example that springs to mind, La Cage Aux Folles another.:(

Fixed your post.:pac::pac:

Sure American remakes of American movies usually suck too.There are a few exceptions of course but in those instances the originals were 30 or more years old or were crap to begin with.

Kess73

One film that I love does tick all the boxes for what this thread would call a cult film.

It bombed at the box office, making a loss of millions, critics panned it with RT still only giving it a score of 33%, and it had a pretty good cast.


It has vikings, swords, hard asses, caves, vikings, an evil cult, a great soundtrack, and did I mention that it has vikings?

Now Karl can paint a nice picture about his peckish soldier and hint at the Native American mythology involved, but we all know how that particular bit of folklore fared against Wolverine, the Hulk, and lately against the Red Hulk.

My film has vikings. Big chaps with sharp pointy swords and axes.

And they have a big dog.

And a boat.


I give you the masterpiece known as The 13th Warrior.

The Recliner

Kess73 wrote: »

One film that I love does tick all the boxes for what this thread would call a cult film.

It bombed at the box office, making a loss of millions, critics panned it with RT still only giving it a score of 33%, and it had a pretty good cast.


It has vikings, swords, hard asses, caves, vikings, an evil cult, a great soundtrack, and did I mention that it has vikings?

Now Karl can paint a nice picture about his peckish soldier and hint at the Native American mythology involved, but we all know how that particular bit of folklore fared against Wolverine, the Hulk, and lately against the Red Hulk.

My film has vikings. Big chaps with sharp pointy swords and axes.

And they have a big dog.

And a boat.


I give you the masterpiece known as The 13th Warrior.

Would have to agree with that, well worth a watch for anyone who hasn't seen it, there is a good sense of comaradiere in it

On a similar vein, Outlander is a good movie that might fit this category one day but needs time I reckon

Giselle

nedtheshed wrote: »

Fixed your post.:pac::pac:

Sure American remakes of American movies usually suck too.There are a few exceptions of course but in those instances the originals were 30 or more years old or were crap to begin with.

I can't help going to see them anyway tho, I live in hope of being pleasantly surprised.

I just thought of another one. The original Japanese 'Ring' movie was a great watch, but I fell asleep during the American version.

Oh and The Grudge... I better stop now before I annoy myself.

pickarooney

I loved Ravenous but didn't realise anyone remembered it.

Same with 'Kalifornia' - did that ever become popular?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBzdZrcoCUk

Giselle

I saw Kalifornia for the first time a couple of months ago, and its the only movie I've been able to stomach David Duchovny in.

Juliette Lewis I liked in the Cape Fear remake, but I didn't like her in anything else til I saw Kalifornia.

dblennon

Giselle wrote: »

I saw Kalifornia for the first time a couple of months ago, and its the only movie I've been able to stomach David Duchovny in.

Juliette Lewis I liked in the Cape Fear remake, but I didn't like her in anything else til I saw Kalifornia.

Not to start an argument But have you seen californication with DD absolutely incredible TV.

+ I only came across this movie as i Was living with a KIWI but "once were warriors" should be a cult movie by now

Giselle

I've never seen Californication, but to be fair I have heard its good.

Could it be the case that he's just gotten better at his job as he's gotten older? It often seems to be the case with actors.

Women actors aren't given the same opportunities as they age unfortunately.

pickarooney

Giselle wrote: »

I've never seen Californication, but to be fair I have heard its good.

Could it be the case that he's just gotten better at his job as he's gotten older? It often seems to be the case with actors.

Women actors aren't given the same opportunities as they age unfortunately.

For what it's worth, Kathleen Turner is much better in Californation than anything else I've seen her in.

jobucks

Can only be Anchorman really

bnt

I'm still waiting for The 6th Day to become the cult classic it ought to be. Cloning is no longer science fiction... RePet is already in business today.

What about Demolition Man? 34% approval on Metacritic, but another film that gets better and funnier every time I see it - because of the way the world has changed since it was made. The "surveillance society" is no longer science fiction, either. :eek:

gandalf

Agree on the 13th Warrior and Outlander both are excellent. I love the soundtrack in the 13th Warrior as well.

I'd have to add Crank to that list as well, its braindead action all the way but it just has that little bit extra that other recent B-movie action films haven't got.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEXsOqdzYhE

Karl Hungus

Seriously guys, Anchorman? That's an extremely popular mainstream film, it was extremely well received, widely thought of as a great film, and it did very well at the box office, it fits absolutely none of the criteria of the thread by any stretch of the imagination.

bnt wrote: »

What about Demolition Man? 34% approval on Metacritic, but another film that gets better and funnier every time I see it - because of the way the world has changed since it was made. The "surveillance society" is no longer science fiction, either. :eek:

This right here is what I'm talking about. Demolition Man gets my thumbs up all the time, I adore it, watched it many times on DVD, it's simply one of the best sci-fi/action films you could hope to watch. Wesley Snipes was on absolute top form as Simon Phoenix, it was full of brilliant dialogue, and the whole future world was brilliantly realized. It also had possibly the best MacGuffin ever seen on film; the three sea shells.

Hank_Jones

Boondock Saints

Starship Troopers

seanybiker

bubba ho-tep
surely its a cult classic already?

Love that film. The commentary on it is priceless. Crap I might put it on in a few minutes actually.

Sea Sharp

What about Napoleon Dynamite?

][cEMAN**

Rounders - my favourite cult classic

OI

I really liked V for Vendetta, that got fairly panned when it hit the screens but l love the central themes of big government and anarchy

Kess73

bnt wrote: »

What about Demolition Man? 34% approval on Metacritic, but another film that gets better and funnier every time I see it - because of the way the world has changed since it was made. The "surveillance society" is no longer science fiction, either. :eek:

I love Demolition Man, but it did good business at the box office in America, and huge business on dvd, plus had a toy line and various games lanched on the strength of the film. Pretty sure that it's revenue from it's US cinema run alone made three or four times what it cost to make.

I think over here it feels like it was a smaller film than what it was.

Basq

' wrote:

[cEMAN**;64449794']Rounders - my favourite cult classic

Agreed!

Empire Records is another one!

Kess73

OI wrote: »

I really liked V for Vendetta, that got fairly panned when it hit the screens but l love the central themes of big government and anarchy

Was about to agree with you, but did a quick google search on the reception it got from critics, and the reviews for it at the time was mostly positive, and this held up on both sides of the atlantic.

It's box office takings were good on both sides of the atlantic, quickly overtaking it's budget and making a good profit, and when it came out on dvd, it's dvd sales alone quickly made more than the film cost to make.


I have a soft spot for this film despite it not being a patch on the graphic novel, and I got to go to it's UK premiere and after show thanks to a friend, and have a nice press pack at home with a copy of the script that Portman, Rea, Weaving, and Fry all signed for me.

Skerries

I think David Lynch is the King of the Cult film with most of his movies not doing well on initial release but then going on to become cult classics such as Dune, Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart and Mulholland Drive
other films i consider cult would be Blade Runner, Brazil, [REC]and Donnie Darko

pinksoir

The Recliner wrote: »

Would have to agree with that, well worth a watch for anyone who hasn't seen it, there is a good sense of comaradiere in it

On a similar vein, Outlander is a good movie that might fit this category one day but needs time I reckon

+1 on Outlander too. First film that sprang to mind. It has everything... time travel, monsters, vikings. I hope it gains more attention in time. Great title too.

Necronomicon

I'm trying to figure out if Oldboy counts (or indeed the rest of the Vengeance Trilogy). I remember it being a pretty low-key release over here (I saw it in the Kino arthouse cinema, wasn't in mainstream cinemas that I know of) and it just exploded with popularity in the months and years after.

Skerries

pinksoir wrote: »

+1 on Outlander too. First film that sprang to mind. It has everything... time travel, monsters, vikings. I hope it gains more attention in time. Great title too.

it would be but i can't stand Jim (Mr.Happy) Caviezal

left_behind

Bad Boy Bubby
Definate cult classic

JCVD
The mussles from brussels shows his soft side.

Black Dynamite
Blacksploitation parody hilarious stuff

zimovain

Directors cut of 'Kingdom Of Heaven' Stunning, underseen flick. I know it was big budget etc but it deserves a lot of credit.

Kess73

zimovain wrote: »

Directors cut of 'Kingdom Of Heaven' Stunning, underseen flick. I know it was big budget etc but it deserves a lot of credit.

Yeah it really was a case of taking an average film and turning it into a really good one.

cashback

Judging by the reaction of some of my friends, Transporter 2 could be a cult classic in the making, seems to tick most of the boxes, though I've never seen it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICYcth1xasQ

JIZZLORD

left_behind wrote: »

Black Dynamite
Blacksploitation parody hilarious stuff

Love that film
He's baaaad!
Can you dig it?

missingtime

The Ninth Gate for me.

Early Keanu Reeves.

Sad Professor

Danny Boyle's Sunshine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMns4c-0sq0

Basq

Sad Professor wrote: »

Danny Boyle's Sunshine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMns4c-0sq0

Hell yes..!

Dont be at yourself

Sunshine, what an awesome film.

Soccertainer

Angel-A, luc besson's clever french film

The Recliner

I think Contact is an underrated movie and will be appreciated in time

liah

[REC], definitely. And Dead Snow.

As for non-horror cult classics, would American Beauty qualify as a cult flick? The people I know who've seen it adore it, but I know other people won't even watch it because it's "pedophilic." :rolleyes: No idea how well received it was at first.

Battle Royale HAS to be one. Brilliant film but I know maybe 5 people who've actually seen it.

Chasing Amy, and maybe a few of the older Kevin Smith flicks. Don't know too many people who've even heard of Chasing Amy, but it's an incredibly well-written film.

Cheech and Chong? Released well before my time so I've no idea how the films did in the box office.

I wish Everything is Illuminated had any kind of following. I don't know a single soul who's seen it, but I thought it had a lot of heart and had a great sense of humour and would recommend it to anyone.

Ink'll be one. Barely got a release at all, very low-budget, but still very well done.

Bad Lieutenant, maybe. It's surprisingly funny, despite involving Nick Cage, and I can't remember really hearing anything about it at all.

Punch Drunk Love? How'd that do when it came out? The single film that shows that if he puts his mind to it, Adam Sandler can actually.. act. Lovely little film, don't know too many people who've heard of it.

Thank You For Smoking? One of my favourite films. Again, no clue how it did on release.

I know none of the above are your typical Evil Dead-esque cult films, but when you take the "cult" idea out of the horror genre it's really hard to properly define. Personally, I'm picking films that I'd consider to be quality, but most people would turn their noses up at. Or films that never got a chance to be seen, either because they're foreign (Battle Royale) or they just got fück all cinematic release (Ink).