Quirky and underappreciated films

[Pico and ME]

Originally Posted by infinite monkey

Pieces of April

sidebar: Patricia Clarkson is an underrated actress, but she sure does work a lot!

I like her too. She was also in The Station Agent, which I will add to the quirky unappreciated film list. It stars Peter Dinklage who is great in everything he does. In the movie, he just wants to be left alone after suffering a loss, but draws a crowd anyway.

[Sundae]

Manon de Source
The follow up to Jean de Florette.

It's not quirky as such, and the pace is gentle (I could sum it up in three sentences).
But it is devastating.
Moulin Rouge made you cry?
Ah chick you have no idea.

Cult films I stumbled over and felt like I was falling downstairs (in a good way)
(Derek Jarman's) Edward II
The Cook, the Thief, his Wife and her Lover
The Hairdresser's Husband

ETA
The City of Lost Children (La cité des enfants perdus)

[Beest]

Originally Posted by Sundae

Manon de Source
The follow up to Jean de Florette.

It's not quirky as such, and the pace is gentle (I could sum it up in three sentences).
But it is devastating.
Moulin Rouge made you cry?
Ah chick you have no idea.

Cult films I stumbled over and felt like I was falling downstairs (in a good way)
(Derek Jarman's) Edward II
The Cook, the Thief, his Wife and her Lover
The Hairdresser's Husband (Le Mari de la coiffeuse)

ETA
The City of Lost Children (La cité des enfants perdus)

Noticing a theme here anyone ( hint in blue). French cinema definitely takes a different slant on things.

I'll throw in Delicatessen one of the same directors and City of Lost Children and equally out there.

[Bullitt]

Children of Men

[Lamplighter]

My film is indeed quirky and totally under-appreciated... because it is so bad.
It has to be one of the worst westerns ever made.

Look out for that rock behind you, and stop falling...

[HungLikeJesus]

I thought that actually looked kind of interesting.

[DanaC]

Castle Freak

It's one of the Full Moon stable of schlock horrors from the late 80s/early 90s. On the face of it it's a fairly standard if somewhat gothic tale, with an American family inheriting, by some mad line of descent, a castle in Europe. Italy I think it was. The castle is 'haunted' by a twisted remnant of humanity (the Freak) who lives down in the cellars.

The freak is the result of a hideous act of abuse. A child kept in a dungeon and raised like an animal, horribly scarred and without the power of speech. Oh, and a taste for human flesh. His mother ( I seem to recall) was the relative from whom the family have inherited the castle, and nobody else ever knew of the existence of the child. All that is known of the horrors of the castle is that it is 'haunted'.

So far so fun, and typically horror. But the film surprises with a really intriguing character study of the family. They themselves are broken people and the family has already been shattered. The father is a recovering alcoholic dealing with the guilt of having crashed their car whilst drunk, killing their youngest child and blinding the surviving daughter. Though still married, the wife will not let him near her, or allow him to share her bed. She cannot forgive him any more than he can forgive himself.

It's one of my favourite movies. Despite the cheesiness in places (goes with the territory), the acting from the leads is excellent, particularly the couple. Jeffrey Combs is a fantastic character actor and this is one of those rare films where he is playing an ordinarily flawed human rather than the quirkier Re-animator type role.

Some of the smaller roles aren't played as well ( standard Italian horror film cop for instance) but some of them are awesome. There's an old woman who works as a housekeeper at the castle and she's just brilliant. I imagine she's probably a really well known actor over there.

It's packed with little moments that still play in my head now and then.

One of the things I like about it is that it leans more to Frankenstein's Monster than it does to a ghost story. The freak is a threat but he's also a tragic figure.

[Jacquelita]

Loved Thank You For Smoking - It was pretty quirky even if it is more well known.

I thought Aaron Eckhart was great. Rob Lowe also had a small but pretty funny part.

[DanaC]

J keeps telling me to watch that film. I really must some time.

[HungLikeJesus]

I started to watch Machete Maidens Unleashed last night but haven't finished it. It's a documentary about film makers in the Philippines in the 1970s and 80s. I normally don't watch documentaries, but this one is interesting. Here's a description from IMDB:

Karate-kicking midgets! Paper-mache monsters! Busty babes with blades! Filipino genre films of the '70s and '80s had it all. Boasting cheap labour, exotic scenery and non-existent health and safety regulations, the Philippines was a dreamland for exploitation filmmakers whose renegade productions were soon engulfing drive-in screens around the globe like a tidal schlock-wave!

[footfootfoot]

Oh, then You'll love Sanchez Meets the Libido Sisters

[Jacquelita]

I also thought The Matador was pretty funny - Pierce Brosnan was surprisingly funny - I think he actually outdid Greg Kinear in this one.

[HungLikeJesus]

Originally Posted by footfootfoot

Oh, then You'll love Sanchez Meets the Libido Sisters

I did a search for Sanchez Meets the Libido Sisters and this post was the #1 hit.

[footfootfoot]

I like the cut of your jib, Hung.

[bluecuracao]

Originally Posted by infinite monkey

The L-shaped Room will always be my favorite "no one has ever heard of it" movie. Caught it on cable, one lazy afternoon years ago, quite by accident, and fell in love with the "quirky and underrated" genre.

I love Leslie Caron in anything, but L-shaped Room was her best, I thought. The subject was probably very risque at the the time.

Two other flicks I adore: Big Night and In Bruges.