Top 10 Films That Deserve a Cult Following

Cult cinema is an undying tradition that's been relevant to moviegoers pretty much ever since movies. With the first ever cult film debatably dating all the way back to the early 20's, Nosferatu, a lot of film history has happened in between then and now and presently there are dozens upon dozens of such films. What makes a simple movie a cult classic? If you've been reading this blog for any amount of time, you should probably already know this but for those of you just tuning in, a cult film is defined as a movie that acquires a passionate and devoted fanbase that views the film repeatedly, quotes it and participates in content creation and such. But I'm not here to talk about the cult movies that we all know and love, I'm here to talk about the ones that aren't but truly deserve a cult status. Films that should go down in history with a fandom. This is top 10 films that deserve a cult following.

10. Burn After Reading

Most every Ethan and Joel Cohen film attains a cult status at some point, most notable would be The Big Lebowski which is often cited as THE quintessential cult movie. That said, for this list, I decided to only pick one of their films so as not to cheap out (it was tough between this and A Serious Man). The dark comedy, Burn After Reading received mixed critical response from a lot of people who simply didn't get the humor of it. I personally consider it to be one of the funniest movies I've ever seen but I'll admit, it took me more than one watch to really get the movie. It follows five completely different characters that are all portrayed by A list actors, in a story of espionage and intrigue. What it really comes down to is that every character so perfectly influences the others that everyone ends up running around, scared shitless thinking that someone is out to get them when really everyone's just as witless and lost as they and they're all freaking out over nothing. It's a difficult movie to summarize, but it's quotable, stylish comedic genius and definitely shouldn't be missed.

9. The Stuff

The Stuff is an 80's as fuck horror camp-fest about a killer junkfood that's referred to only as The Stuff. It's a pasty white goop that resembles Fluff or whipped cream but apparently it tastes amazing because once a company starts mass-producing it, no one can get enough of The Stuff and it fast becomes the most popular food in America. Unbeknownst to the consumers however is that The Stuff is no mere processed good. It's actually an alien creature that was discovered by mere happenstance and brings to mind the blob. What makes The Stuff so memorable, besides it's 80's to the absolute maximum setting, is it's satyrical commentary on American consumerism. That along with it's catchy theme song, catchphrase and logo is worthy of a minor cult following.

8. 9

9 is a film that I've probably mentioned before. The 2009 film (9/9/09 to be exact) garnered mixed to positive reviews while only barely making back it's budget. Since then it has slipped under the radar and into the realm of obscurity. This is a film that deserves recognition. Some people find the fact that it's animated as off-putting but the film is very dark and serious in tone just the same. With the director of Wanted in the chair, the action is surprisingly, not very fast-paced but no less exciting. But what draws me to 9 is it's uniqueness. The fact is that I've never seen a film quite like it. While not being a highly quotable film, it's cautionary aspect is no less loud here though it's delivered in a way that isn't even close to preachy. Like Burn After Reading, it's just a difficult movie to try and describe and it really just has to be seen.

7. The Fantastic Mr.Fox

This film just has so many things going for it that make it worthy of cult status. For starters, it's directed by Wes Anderson, who pretty much makes cult movies for a living. Second, there's an all star cast with George Clooney, Bill Murray, Meryl Streep and others. Third, it's delightfully animated with stop-motion which, as CGI becomes more and more readily accessible, is truly a dying art in today's day. Next you have an attractive vintage/autumn color palette, a good soundtrack, memorable moments and lines and that's more than enough right there. While still considered a family movie, The Fantastic Mr.Fox is no less delightful to watch as an adult and it's full of enough humor to make you wonder if they were aiming it at the wrong demographic.

6. Coffin Joe

In stark contrast to the previous entry, Coffin Joe is a dark and disturbing Brazilian horror trilogy from the 60's. The three films are titled At Midnight I'll Take Your Soul, This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse and Embodiment of Evil. Not only are these films way fucked up and creepy, they're also pretty weird too. With a trip to Hell that would make Dante cringe, a really rape-y evil plot and seriously haunting monologues, there's enough here to be on par with Eraserhead as far as fuckedness goes. It's quotable, distinct and freaky and it deserves a solid cult status.

5. Terrorvision

Now here's one I've definitely talked about before. Since I've already done a review of this, I'll keep this brief. Terrorvision is a wholly bizarre experience that, like The Stuff, has 80's written all over it. It's funny, campy, weird and a complete stand-out parody all at the same time. There's no way you could forget it after seeing it.

4. Creepshow

This is another one of those movies that I've referenced often. Creepshow is an anthology compilation film and is by far the best of its kind. Generally with these types of movies you get something half-assed like The ABCs of Death or V/H/S. With Creepshow, it couldn't be any better. Stephen King writes the screenplay, George Romero directs and Tom Savini does special effects for all five short films. The film is styled after the comic books from which it's based and it overall has such a campy feel that it's impossible not to enjoy it. Not to mention, Stephen King has a main role in one of the shorts and he acts like a complete slapstick lunatic which is just such an odd thing to see. Just as surprising, this film features Leslie Nielson, of Airplane and The Naked Gun fame, in what was probably his only serious role. I use the word "serious" loosely here because nothing in the movie is serious but it's a scary villainous character that's not jumping around punching terrorists so it's still just a bizarre scene to watch. Creepshow is quotable, stylish, campy and creative and it should have a fanbase.

3. The Wolf of Wall Street

At this point, it's a pretty regular thing for Scorsese films to go down in cinema history. Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Raging Bull would be only to name a few. With his most recent work, The Wolf of Wall Street which documents the rise and fall of a white collar gangster, I think he really went all out. Matter of fact, everyone went all out in this movie and it's probably the most energetic and zany role that Leonardo DiCaprio has ever had. This film is just off the wall mad and there's always all kinds of shit going on. It's three hours that'll feel like one and a half. More memorable than the quotes of the film are the moments like Jonah Hill eating a live goldfish, or fuck, the candlewax scene. But apart from those, more than anything, this movie is a strong commentary on the gratuitousness of Wall Street and the investors that work there. The entire lifestyle is shown in excruciating detail and it's just too insane to forget.

2. Valhalla Rising

This is another that I've talked about before and I reference often. Valhalla Rising is a visual dream of a film and is incredibly stylish to boot. While sporting a simple but highly intriguing plot, Valhalla Rising is less about the story and more about a strong atmosphere and mood and in this it exceeds way beyond the standard. Considering that there isn't much dialogue at all, it's not a very quotable movie but it's artistic quality, characters and meanings are enough to carry it into a following.

1. Pumpkinhead

This is one I've been meaning to get around to for ages. Pumpkinhead is an 80's horror flick that was actually directed by Stan Winston, he being the Academny Award winning legend behind all of your favorite movie monsters including The Terminator, Alien, Jurassic Park, Predator, Monster Squad and a fuckton of other things. On Pumpkinhead he spared no creativity or expense and the monster looks fucking amazing. I would describe it as kind of like a Xenomorph from Alien combined with a scrotum, which is not at all eloquent but hey, it's accurate. The title is misleading because the monster doesn't have a pumpkin for a head at all and in fact this film has very little to do with pumpkins in general. It's about this guy who's played by Lance Hendrikson, who you may recognize as Bishop from Aliens, who gets an old witch to summon the Pumpkinhead monster so that he can get revenge on the people who are responsible for his son's recent death. Considering Pumpkinhead is like a demon monster type-deal, shit gets out of hand.
At this point in time, there are four installments in the franchise but two of them are made-for-TV and none of the sequels had anything to do with Stan Winston. The first Pumpkinhead is definitely worth seeing and is actually a fairly decent film by horror movie standards, but the others are entertaining as well, namely the second one, Pumkinhead 2: Blood Wings which features some very creative kills including death by chickens. There really needs to be more of these movies, Pumpkinhead should be sitting atop a horror icon throne next to guys like Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees. What it comes down to is that it's just an entertaining flick that's so recognizable and memorable if you've seen it. I just wish more people would see it because I want to be able to reference it.