Best movie nobody's heard of...

[Pielorinho]

Probably only seen by hard core John Waters fans (like me).

Strangely, Cecil B Demented is, along with Pecker, one of the only two John Waters movies I've seen. I want to like his stuff more than I do.

Scratch that -- I saw another of his movies a long time ago. The only thing I remember from it is some guy with a fetish for stomping on women's feet.

And I just remembered another pseudo-genre piece that nobody's seen and is worth seeing: Hal Hartley's No Such Thing, about a monster living in modern-day Iceland. It's quirky and weird, and just what you'd expect if you've seen any of Hal Hartley's other movies; while it's not my favorite thing by him (someone already mentioned Henry Fool, which I like a great deal), it's still very interesting. His movies are worth watching for the endings if nothing else.

Daniel

 

[WayneLigon]

The Saint of Fort Washington. Danny Glover and Matt Dillon. A look at being homeless in New York. Matt Dillon is a schizophrenic man who loses his home when the building is torn down. Glover is a bitter man who has been ground down by years of living on the street and in shelters.

Trick. Christian Campbell, John Paul Pitoc. A comedy about a young gay insecure writer who decides that he's going to spend the night with a club dancer no matter what, and how the fates conspire to keep them from having a moment's peace.

Several Hong Kong movies, some already mentioned. One standout is Mr. Vampire. A chinese screwball comedy about hopping vampires (yes, they do indeed hop. And they hop damn fast), a wise man who know how to deal with them, and his two witless assistants.

Hearts and Armor. The only movie in English about the Caroligian heroes that I know about.

Showdown in Little Tokyo. Brandon Lee and Dolph Lundgren. Brandon Lee's fifth movie; not a bad action film with a lot of comedy in it. Dolph is the serious Japanophile cop who treats going after drug lords like he's doing a duty to his feudal lord, while Brandon is a wise-ass American kid from the Valley, trying to cope with his partners Bushido Complex.

 

[barsoomcore]

A) You're not allowed to call Drunken Master II an unknown film. At some point we have to draw the line. One of the biggest, most famous films in Hong Kong cinema starring some of the biggest international stars in the world, about the most famous historical figure in China, a sequel to the breakout film that made possibly the most famous movie star in the world != unknown.

B) If you liked Highway 61, by Canada's Bruce McDonald, check out Roadkill (his first film and BRILLIANT -- includes Joey Ramone and Nash the Slash) and Hardcore Logo -- a sad paean to punk rock that carries a real wallop.

C) I forgot to mention Karmina a very funny and VERY Quebecois vampire movie about a rebellious young vampire girl who runs away from Transylvania and ends up in 1990's Montreal, falling in love with a young organ player. A flawed movie but awfully charming and occasionally brilliantly funny.

D) While I'm on my patriotic Canadian kick, I'll mention Ginger Snaps, which even if it wasn't entirely out of nowhere is still a great little film that deserves a wider audience. The cleverest, funniest werewolf movie I think I've ever seen. Belongs with An American Werewolf in London.

 

[Villano]

Any of the El Santo movies which feature masked, Mexican wreslter El Santo (sometimes known as "Samson" in US dubs) battling any number of monsters, aliens, spies, and other bad guys. Most of these things were actually filmed in serial fashion due to some Mexican tax law which made it less expensive to film a serial than a movie. Santo VS Dr. Death is one of my absolute favorites. It was made in the 60s and has a definite I Spy or Man From U.N.C.L.E. feel. In it, Santo, who's a secret agent in this one, fighting to uncover an art theft ring. It's available subtitled, but only from places that specialize in "public domain" films (even though some of those films might not be in the public domain, if you know what I mean).

Another is Santo Contra La Hija Del Frankenstein (Santo VS Frankenstein's Daughter). This one is on dvd, subtitled, from Rise Above Entertainment. It's a great one with both a gorilla man and classic Frankenstien Monster. Definitely the one to start with if you're curious about El Santo.

Also, while not a great film, there's Clones Of Bruce Lee. Yes, it's just what you'd think. A secret agency makes 3 clones of the actor to foil a gold-smuggling movie producer and a mad scientist who's recreated the legendary Bronze Men.

Image Of Bruce Lee, a great kung-fu movie starring Bruce Li (it has nothing to do with Lee).

Oblivion, a space western.

Subspecies, a vampire flick by Full Moon (I own the comic book prequel ).

The werewolf films of Spanish actor Paul Naschy, particularly The Craving.

Man And The Monster, a 50s, Mexican version of Faust (with a hairy monster).

Zatoichi, The Fugitive, out on dvd or you can catch it on IFC.

And about a million more I can't think of at the moment.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Image Of Bruce Lee, a great kung-fu movie starring Bruce Li (it has nothing to do with Lee).

Heh.

You can find kung-fu movies starring Bruce Li, Bruce Le, Bruce Lea, Bruce Rhee, Bruce John Lee, Lee Bruce...

It's sad, really

-Hyp.

 

[Mog Elffoe]

One of the funniest movies I've seen ages was The Wrong Guy starring Dave Foley as a guy who thinks he's wanted for murder. I was surprised at how much and how hard I laughed at this one.

Another film not widely seen but was I felt was just great was Frailty, starring Bill Paxton and Matthew McConaghey. This movie turned out to be totally different than I thought it would be. Basically it turned out to be a movie about

Spoiler

D&D style paladins in the modern day, complete with the ability to detect evil and the God-given mandate to destroy it

. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it.

 

[Villano]

Heh.

You can find kung-fu movies starring Bruce Li, Bruce Le, Bruce Lea, Bruce Rhee, Bruce John Lee, Lee Bruce...

It's sad, really

-Hyp.

Actually, in Bruce Li's defense, his later movies (once he got some experience)are actually pretty good. Apparently, he never liked being stuck with the "Bruce" gimmick and even began to use his own name, Ho Chung Tao (iirc), once he became popular. Of course, produces all over the world still slapped the "Bruce Li" label on his movies (and generally renamed them to include "Bruce" or "Bruce Lee" in the title). This explains why "Ho Chung Tao" is commonly listed as a co-star in Bruce Li flick...leading to much confusion.

He dropped out of films after his wife died, I think, and went back to teaching (gymnastics).

And you can add Bruce Leah, Bruce Lei, Bruce Leih, Dragon Lee, and Bronson Lee to that list. And pretty much all of them sucked.

 

[Mister Underhill]

There's a really great little Norwegian film called "Ofelas" (aka "Pathfinder"). It's set around 1000 A.D. and involves a boy's efforts to get revenge on a tribe of Tchude barbarians who wiped out his family. I haven't seen it myself in years, but this thread made me think of it. I'm gonna have to roll on down to the video store for a refresher.

 

[Hypersmurf]

And you can add Bruce Leah, Bruce Lei, Bruce Leih, Dragon Lee, and Bronson Lee to that list. And pretty much all of them sucked.

Bronson Lee! I knew there was one that changed the first name, but "Bryce Lee" didn't quite sound right.

-Hyp.

 

[Villano]

Bronson Lee! I knew there was one that changed the first name, but "Bryce Lee" didn't quite sound right.

-Hyp.

Bryce Lee?! ROTFLMAO! He's a martial artist and an English professor! Watch him kick ass in a tweed jacket!

Man, I'd buy a ticket to that movie.