Acantha Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 The Pirate Movie! (on second thought, nevermind) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob's House Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 I don't know how obscure it is, but City of God is an excellent movie. It's a foreign film with subtitles, and I'm almost certain you won't find it on Netflix (not streaming anyway), but it's absolutely worth finding. If you can get your hands on a copy of Suburbia (directed by Richard Linklater, based on the play by Eric Bogosian) I highly recommend it. I don't know if it will have quite the impact it had on me at 19, but it's an interesting movie that relies on complex character analysis rather than plot twists. It's one that gets better with subsequent viewings. For a more twisted experience you should check out Happiness by Todd Solondz. I'd watch it with someone else who appreciates cerebral if somewhat disturbing humor. Watching it alone would be a waste of a good movie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 Is Akira a genre specific director? Just wondering what his style is since you've recommended the director instead of a specific movie. I could look this info up but I'd appreciate if you'd just elaborate... Not really. I think his early stuff is mostly John Ford-influenced samurai movies (or more generally, "feudal Japanese culture" movies), so he's perceived as "samurai" genre-specific. But really, it's more a reflection of the place and time he developed (post-WWII, post-faux-bushido Japan), and serves as a setting for a variety of different character- and theme-driven films. By way of example, Jack and I already mentioned Hidden Fortress being the "inspiration" for Star Wars (thought it wouldn't be entirely inaccurate to say Lucas ripped off Kirosawa, rather than was inspired by him). The Seven Samurai was remade into The Magnificent Seven. Rashoman influenced quite a few "point of view" movies (Vantage Point is the most recent I can think of). Yojimbo became Fistful of Dollars and Last Man Standing. The Karate Kid is loosely influenced by Sanshiro Sugata. Kagemusha I'm sure has been redone somewhere I'm not recalling (Trading Places, or Dave, in part). His style, like I said, tends to be "feudal Japanese"...but his stories are so well told and timeless that they can be transplanted to almost any setting. "Feudal Japanese" tends to be less a style than a common setting, because he filmed what he knew. (And he filmed the Japanese portions of Tora, Tora, Tora.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdog1960 Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 "the master" loosely based on l ron hubbard and early scientology - strangely memorable. "of gods and men" about the lives and murder of french monks in africa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Vader Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 The Pirate Movie! (on second thought, nevermind) Not so fast my friend. "The Pirate Movie" is easy to dismiss as a silly, cheesy 80's teen romance flick, which it is. However, if you can get past all the silly love songs by Kristy McNichol & Christopher Atkins, you actually get a very good spoof of "The Pirates of Penzance". This movie does not take itself seriously. Ted Hamilton, who plays The Pirate King, has some great one-liners, and the "Modern Major General" song is quite funny. "Man, I'm older than the Beatles, but I'm younger than the Rolling Stones." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajzepp Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 "I Confess" "Witness for the Prosecution" "Bubba Ho-Tep" * "The Lives of Others" * "Life is Beautiful" * "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang" "Compliance" "The Shape of Things" "The Station Agent" "Big Fan" "Down by Law" "127 Hours" "Once" * "Love Liza" "Jack Goes Boating" I'll let you look up the descriptions, but these are some of my favorites that come to mind....I put asterisk by the ones that I felt were exceptional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chilly Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 Dark city Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acantha Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 Not so fast my friend. "The Pirate Movie" is easy to dismiss as a silly, cheesy 80's teen romance flick, which it is. However, if you can get past all the silly love songs by Kristy McNichol & Christopher Atkins, you actually get a very good spoof of "The Pirates of Penzance". This movie does not take itself seriously. Ted Hamilton, who plays The Pirate King, has some great one-liners, and the "Modern Major General" song is quite funny. "Man, I'm older than the Beatles, but I'm younger than the Rolling Stones." lol Actually, the only reason I brought that up is because I made my wife watch it the other day. I found it in a box as I was organizing some old stuff. I get a kick out of it, but wow is it over the top ridiculous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Vader Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 "the master" loosely based on l ron hubbard and early scientology - strangely memorable. "of gods and men" about the lives and murder of french monks in africa. "Strangely memorable" is the best way to describe "The Master". I didn't love the movie so much, because it was too bizarre. However, Joaquin Phoenix & Philip Seymour Hoffman bring their A-Game's to this film, and that's the best reason to watch it. Also, you will not be able to view Amy Adams the same way ever again. I'll recommend another Paul Thomas Anderson flick, "Magnolia". Like other PTA flicks, you either love it or hate it. The ensemble cast is great. I personally think Tom Cruise should have won an Oscar for his performance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truth on hold Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 (edited) I watched a movie from Germany a few years ago on a flight about a pedophile who sadly gets away with it. Excellently made, authentic, provocative and not afraid of sad ending ... 4 things Hollywood can't seem to produce. Don't remember name, if someone knows please post. Also on flight saw joint China/german flick called "I phone you". Light hearted and funny but also had a dark side. Plus the Chinese lead actress yiyan jhiang is a babe Long int'l flights are great source for foreign indie films. Edited June 1, 2013 by Joe_the_6_pack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Vader Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 Here's a few more recommendations: "Monsters". A journalist and a tourist attempt to get back to America, but have to go through the infected zone of Mexico that was wiped out by an alien invasion. Gareth Edwards, the director, is now in charge of next year's "Godzilla" movie. This movie is a great primer for it. "Day Night Day Night". The story of a young girl who is tasked with setting of a bomb in the middle of NYC. "A Dangerous Method". Michael Fassbender, Keira Knightly & Viggo Mortensen star in this David Cronenberg driected period piece involving the relationship between Carl Jung & Sigmund Freud. "The Age of Innocence". Granted this is not an obscure movie, but it is overlooked. A look at late 19th century aristocracy in New York City. You'd think this was a Merchant/Ivory production instead of a Martin Scorcese film. Daniel Day-Lewis & Michelle Pfeiffer are fantastic. "Nochnoy Dozor" (Night Watch). Fantasy film from Russia, involving the ongoing battle between the forces of day and the forces of night in modern day Russia. Directed by Timur Bekmembetov. Watch this with subtitles, because they are used as part of the magic of the movie. And if you like it, you can check out the sequel: "Dnevnoy Dozor" (Day Watch). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Vader Posted June 21, 2013 Share Posted June 21, 2013 Wanted to bump this thread for one more round of suggestions. Here's a few more. "Iron Will". Not obscure but it's a good movie about dog sledding. Starring a young Ethan Hawke, a pre-fab Kevin Spacey, Brian Cox & David Ogden Stiers. "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia". Early 80's movie with Kristy McNichol, Dennis Quaid & Mark Hamill. I'll also recycle a couple of old school thrillers I mentioned in the first obscure thread. "The Old Dark House". Directed by James Whale and starring Boris Karloff, Gloria Stuart, Charles Laughton, Melvyn Douglas, Raymond Massey & Ernest Thesiger. "The Leopard Man". One of Val Lewton's thrillers that is not as well known as his other films. Another good Lewton film is "The Seventh Victim" starring Hugh Beaumont. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Vader Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 More recommendations: "Changeling": Not obscure, but an overlooked Clint Eastwood directed movie. Angelina Jolie is great in this film. "Buried": 90 minutes of Ryan Reynolds in a box. "The Descent": A very good horror film from Britain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuntheDamnBall Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 The original Swedish "Let the Right One In." as far as vampire flicks go, this might be one of my faves. "Head On" "Tree of Life" I have found to be super polarizing, but it was unforgettable for the imagery and an approach reminiscent of "2001." "Moon" "Primer" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 Memento: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0209144/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IDBillzFan Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 I don't know if it's obscure, but I recommend "Big Night" whenever I can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob's House Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 "The Storm in Placid Lake" is a well made off beat satirical dark comedy about a normal kid dealing with the pitfalls of growing up, particularly in the context of being a scrawny kid raised by eccentric hippie parents. Sounds dull, I know, but it's actually a really good movie and is available periodically on Netflix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajzepp Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Memento: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0209144/ Fantastic flick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hazed and Amuzed Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 More recommendations: "Changeling": Not obscure, but an overlooked Clint Eastwood directed movie. Angelina Jolie is great in this film. "Buried": 90 minutes of Ryan Reynolds in a box. "The Descent": A very good horror film from Britain. I really wanted to like this, but it was way too simple. I feel like more could've been done with the plot. Ryan Reynolds in a box is fine and all but 90 minutes of it with nothing but a few phone calls got annoying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Vader Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 I really wanted to like this, but it was way too simple. I feel like more could've been done with the plot. Ryan Reynolds in a box is fine and all but 90 minutes of it with nothing but a few phone calls got annoying. I see your point. I liked the humor in the movie and the suspense was very good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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