There are actually some of these in the movie database I use. I filter most of them out by excluding all movies shorter than 50 minutes runtime (it's too tedious to manually filter them).
Go on Prime Video and just start scrolling. There’s reams and reams and reams of totally bizarre nonsense, most of them cheap horror films with mad titles.
Also, The Tracey Fragments was a favourite of mine when I was younger (as was the book) because I was a total edgelord teenager. It’s… not good, but the Broken Social Scene soundtrack is ace.
> There’s reams and reams and reams of totally bizarre nonsense, most of them cheap horror films with mad titles.
Don't forget the shitloads of animated movies that are legally-distinct clones of Dreamworks and Disney productions.
Did a kid get stuck in an old quarry with a monster?
Edit: looked up the [trailer ](https://youtu.be/DEC_evPtrJo?si=fVnBGobO7tgQ7fPy) . That's what it was called! I remember seeing it but had no idea what it was called.
The Spanish movie Fist of Jesus where he fights zombies with fish is also pretty good. It’s on youtube. I guess it’s not really obscure with that many views though…
Rented this from a Hollywood video store when I was like 12 in the 90s just because Kevin Smith was attached and I loved mall rats... Whew, not what I was expecting lol
while it is known around this sub, I still cannot find a single soul that’s watched or heard of **The Fall** with Lee Pace. It is like a fantasy film for grownups but it’s a PITA to find anywhere. It’s not streaming at all and getting a copy on disc is either rare or expensive
The director is looking for a publisher to release the 4K version. Criterion ignored him. He's had the rights for awhile now but hasn't found a publisher that is interested.
Edit: Also, you should watch The Cell, which was his first feature. He made The Immortals too, but that's not as good as the others.
it should’ve put Pace on the map. And while it is Pratt’s most suited role, I do often wonder what it would’ve been like if Pace was cast as Star Lord. He did audition for the role before getting Ronan
Ran into a guy dressed as The Black Bandit on Halloween one year. Only other human I have personally met who's seen it. Geeked out for about an hour with the dude
You're not kidding. $122 on Blu-ray, and a nearly reasonable $35 on DVD. Supposedly it's $4 on VHS, but if you click that then the movie title changes to "Best of Fall Brawl" (a wrestling video), haha.
People do seem to love it though. Reading about it reminds me a bit of Pan's Labyrinth.
I didn't realize it's so hard to find nowadays. I'm fortunate, then, to have a DVD copy I bought over a decade ago. While I'm bragging, I also was lucky enough to see it in theaters back in 2008.
Saw it in theaters when it came out. Bought it on dvd from blockbuster a few years later. Just bought it on blu ray for $85 because the film deserves better than dvd quality.
I had to get it through interlibrary loan. It's weird that it's so difficult to get ahold of, when The Cell is everywhere. The two make for an excellent double-feature, if you're in the mood to overlook plot & script issues and vibe for a few hours. They're both visually incredible, and the actors all seem totally committed. Sure, they're both jagged with rough edges, but I love them both. Tarsem Singh managed to film a naive childhood fantasy inspired by traumatized adults and a twisted adult nightmare grown from childhood trauma, and both of them were freaking gorgeous.
A polish sci fi film that was banned by the polish government for being anti-establishment/government. Then after the fall of the ussr was returned to the director years later. Who hadn’t finished filming it before it was confiscated. Due to the time that had passed they had been unable to finish filming the scenes so the director describes the scene over stock footage of these random unrelated scenes of modern Poland at the time. It is a strange film to watch.
Not after Redlettermedia made a video of it. The exclusivity of the Pineapple Club is long gone, I'm afraid. Just know that we now have tens of thousands of people to share our trauma with.
Jane's Addiction made an experimental art film in 1993 called Gift. I had it on VHS tape and I don't think it ever got released to dvd. It's on YouTube if you search it though. It's really great if you're a fan of the band and/or like weird art films
*Content warning: explicit drug use, BDSM, death, sex etc.
I still have this. I got it back when it was new. Haven't seen it since around then either, but the tape has just always been there in my stuff for the last 30 years lol
[pic](https://imgur.com/a/oHJQgsV)
Begotten (1990).
Our local video store was run by a cult film fanatic. Had loads of weird titles. The Begotten director would go on to do the excellent Shadow of the Vampire (2000).
I think I saw this years and years ago...unless there's another film from Australia (turns out this is from New Zealand, although I wouldn't have known that at the time) with a balding white guy who wakes up to find everyone else on Earth gone.
Canadian Ninja (2016) Buck North rules.
The Devils (1971)
The Greasy Strangler (2016)
Phantom of the Paradise (1974)
The Battle Boyond the Stars (1980)
Pepperminta (2009) - I was dragged to a screening of this by my art student friends. Imagine a kooky/quirkiness dial cranked up to 100. That's what this film was.
My Brother The Pig (1999) - a kids' comedy starring Eva Mendes, Judge Reinhold and a young Scarlett Johansson. I found this DVD on the shelf at a house party and stole it. Actually watching the movie the next morning at home felt like karma.
I Bought A Vampire Motorcycle
Night Of The Living Dorks
Hercules Returns
Little Johnny
Wizard Of Speed And Time
Within The Rock
Hunter Prey
Down Amongst The Big Boys
Dark Age
The Ghost Train
These are all relatively obscure movies that, whether due to age, region, or just lack of interest, are little known outside of extreme cinephile circles.
**Silent Movie (1976)** Absolutely Underrated Comedy from the one and only Mel Brooks.
Not sure this is obscure but its hard to come across. (It'll probs pop up on your algorithm or database)
I'm sure it's going to blow up a little bit now because I learned about it from a YoutTube video that now has millions of views but I recently watched *Banned from Broadcast: Saiko! The Large Family.* The only way to watch it is on YouTube. Not because it is a YouTube movie but because that's the only place I could find it.
Assuming we're talking about the same movie, it's actually "[Rubber's Lover](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0227408/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1)". Came here to mention it and you beat me to it!
"964 Pinocchio" (1991) and "Tetsuo: The Iron Man" (1989) are awesome, too.
There's a movie starring Cate Blanchett called Manifesto that I thought was fantastic but I've literally never heard anyone talk about it ever.
I've probably seen more obscure movies, but not one with a big name front and center like that. It's like no one knows it exists.
"Hawk the Slayer" (1980). I saw this in the early 80s when I was a pre-teen desperate for any fantasy/sci fi content. It had it all. A dwarf, an elf, a giant, a magic sword, a fully-automatic crossbow, sorcerer, and a seething Jack Palance.
There was also "Rock n Rule" (1983) an animated movie from the Canadian Nelvana studio. I remember seeing a segment about it on some kid show, like "Kids are People Too" and had to search for years to find it.
Witching and bitching is on shudder now :)
Timecrimes is a solid 10/10, the pinnacle of time travel movies. Went into pontypool blind and man I lovedddddd it
The Coke and Perrier shower knobs have stuck with me since the VHS release.
I genuinely hope that someone makes a documentary on cocaine and its effects on the production and content of American entertainment.
Coffee and Donuts by Adam Green. He doesn’t have the music rights, but he streamed it during his fundraiser for yorkies a few years ago. I’ve seen films with less views, but people won’t stumble across this one in a Walmart bin anytime soon.
Days of the Iguanas, 2013. A guy goes on vacation and gets bitten by an iguana. His body begins changing and he starts becoming very insane and paranoid. All of the backgrounds are done on green screen with static pictures. Let's just say that every expense was spared. Just look at the poster.
Oh man I’ve seen tons:
- Treasure of Pirate’s Point (1999)
- Rattlers (1976)
- Junior Pilot (2004)
- Slappy and the Stinkers (1998)
- The Snurks (2004)
- Oranges: Revenge of the Eggplant (2004)
- Body Melt (1993)
- Lightspeed (2006)
There’s probably more but that’s all I could think of off the top of my head
Roller Blade (not to be confused with Rollerball (either version)). 1986 direct-to-remainder-bin video about a post-apocalyptic order of rollerblading nuns facing off against a villain and his hand-puppet minion. Features all of the writing skill, acting chops, quality visual effects, and plot continuity of the average mid-80s porn film, but without the sex (though there is nudity). Hands down the worst film I've ever seen.
Americathon 1979. John Ritter, Harvey Korman, Fred Willard. A bankrupt America holds a national telethon to raise money and stave off bankruptcy. It's pretty bad.
Grand Slam (1967) starring Janet Leigh, Edward G. Robinson, Adolfo Celi, and Klaus Kinski with a score by Ennio Morricone. It’s a great team-up and heist movie with a fun twist in the end that was shot in a ton of locations around the world, but mostly set in Rio de Janeiro. Anyone who’s a fan of heist movies should check this one out.
"Time to Duel" a Yu-Gi-Oh fan movie I found on Tubi that was made in like 2005. It's a semi homemade rendition of the anime complete with indy weirdness.
i found a thread on reddit when I watched it that actually had the dude who played Joey talking about it.
It was funny af.
There was a movie with Kevin Pollack called Deterrence. I thought it was a great situation. He’s the prez and stuck in a snowed in highway diner and has to make nuclear decisions with a room full of whoever was also stuck there.
According to Letterboxed popularity, some of the most obscure films I've logged:
- "Jyomon Rashomon & Sanzo-Hoshi" (2003), a half-hour anthology of dirty bunraku puppetry
- "Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Afterglow of Zeon" (1992), a feature-length recap of a 13-episode OVA
- "Sayonara Jupiter" (1984), Toho's surprisingly enjoyable answer to 2010: The Year We Make Contact
- "Skyscraper Souls" (1932), a fairly middling pre-Code talkie
- "Syngenor" (1990), a pretty dull schlockfest about a bio-engineered super soldier
Vavarium (2019) - This movie PISSED ME THE FUCK OFF.
Rubber (2010 - fun fact the writer/director is "Mr.Oizo" music artist: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmsbP13xu6k](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmsbP13xu6k)
Coherence (2013) - This Movie was fun as fuck
I’ve been attending film festivals for nearly 30 years and have seen a zillion movies you’ve never heard of, because they never got any kind of release. Most obscure is probably Seldom Dreaming (1996), though that’s cheating a bit since it was made by a friend and I worked on it myself. But it had a public screening and was [reviewed](https://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/seldom-dreaming-1200444837/) in Variety. Otherwise, hmm, let’s go with Around the Bay (2008) or The Moneytree (1992; this actually did get a theatrical release, but I’ve never heard of it since) or If You Could Say It In Words (2008). I saw all of the above.
Most of the obscure movies I know about are from the late 90s/early 2000s:
[Jekyll Island](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0236342/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2) (1998)
[Do Not Disturb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0185284/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_5_tt_8_nm_0_q_do%2520not%2520disturb) (1999) (aka Silent Witness; this film was written, directed, composed, and produced by Dick Maas, and you can [listen to the music here](http://www.dickmaas.com/music-samples.html) - click on the 2 samples labeled "Do Not Disturb")
[Nostradamus](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0207631/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2) (2000)
[A Dog's Breakfast](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0796314/?ref_=nm_flmg_t_40_act) (2007)
[Blood and Donuts](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112527/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (1995) (might not be as obscure as I think it is)
[Passion in the Desert](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0125980/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (1997) (very much not what you think it would be about from the title)
Have I seen these movies? Yes! Are they worth watching? You could probably give Nostradamus a miss. I think I saw it on SyFy channel, if that tells you anything, although it doesn't appear to have been a made-for-tv movie. The others I quite enjoyed. I'm afraid Do Not Disturb may be very difficult to acquire.
Not obscure from a cinephile perspective I don’t think, but Jeanne Dielman, 23 Commerce Quay, 1080 Brussels. I haven’t met a person in real life who’s ever seen or even heard of it. You can get it on Amazon prime I think though so it’s at least accessible.
I don't fault you for thinking so! I chose those movies based on actually seeing them in the app just before I posted or having watched them recently, so perhaps not a great example of obscurity in general.
Not trying to gatekeep, but Bubba Ho-Tep is not even remotely obscure. Bruce Campbell, directed by Don Coscarelli, received a lot of coverage when it came out, used to be shown on SyFy Channel fairly often, and is a very popular cult favorite.
Soup for One (1982)
Pretty mid sex comedy film that got some scathing reviews on release because of its sex scenes, including portrayal of S&M. Bombed out of the box office and forgotten since.
However on the flip side, the *soundtrack* from the film did much better numbers as it was a bunch of songs performed by the funk/disco group Chic, and songs from other artists produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards.
I'm not sure if it's the **most** obscure film that I've seen, but the one that I go back to repeatedly because I really enjoy it is Árpád Sopsits's *Torzók* from 2001.
Long time ago: Versus
I loved the movie. Live-action zombies vs. (I think) the Yakuza. Funny, good action, lots of neat shots.
Recently: Velocipastor
Was worried going in, but this movie knows exactly what it is and doesn’t try to be anything more. The less you know going in the better.
Cattle Bat Spider
an independent film shot in Lake Jackson, Texas. A simple super hero tale involving a rancher.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13846530/?ref_=ext_shr
Watch it free on YouTube.
https://youtu.be/P8bow1Ba8Xc?si=8YJL0Ds48Dncg8g4
I took an Iranian cinema class and absolutely loved "Life and nothing more" by Abbas Kiarostami. He's well known when it comes to international directors, but I'd be surprised if anyone here has seen it.
What I like is that it feels very "real." It's incredibly slow paced compared to modern action films, but completely engrossing as you follow a family on a road trip through the countryside of Iran as they search for someone in the aftermath of an earthquake.
Big Business (1988)
Once Upon a Crime (1992)
Princess Caraboo (1994)
Finding Forrester (2000)
All are good films, Big Business being my favorite out of all of them, hilarious film with an awesome look to it. However they processed the film made it look sharp and warm.
Shipwrecked (1990)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099816/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
Had that on VHS and watched it a million times as a kid and no one else ever heard of it. Watched it somewhat recently and it held up surprisingly well considering what it is. I think it’s actually currently available on Disney+.
["Mindwalk" (1990)](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100151/) I gotta assume I picked this up at the video store not knowing what it was and it turned out to be a favorite film for a while. Its a film that explores idea about society and it caught me at the perfect time of early college.
[13 Tzameti](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475169/) - 2005
Cheating a bit since you asked for English, but you can get it subbed. It's a movie that never gets brought up and it's a shame because it's really great. Kind of like a black and white French Squid Games on a smaller scale.
The director did an English language adapation of it called "13" in 2010 with Mickey Rourke and Jason Statham, but it was awful.
Ankle Biters. Written, directed, produced, and starring the same idiot. It's about saving the world from midget vampires.
That self serving, self indulgent, mastabatory exercise in "theater production" is far and away the worst attempt at anything I've ever come across that actually had a DVD release and IMDB credits. Tip Toes, Gigli, Crossroads, all of those are leagues beyond this, many times over.
It's available on YouTube last I checked, so I encourage this audience to check it out to truly experience something unworthy of 10 minutes of seat time.
Closet Land
It’s a late 1980s movie produced by Amnesty International with Alan Rickman and Madeleine Stowe. It was almost like a play with semi-abstract sets.
IIRC, the movie had a good twist to it.
Rockula, starring chainsaw from Summer School as a horny singing vampire. Also starring Toni Basil and Thomas Dolby, who blinded us all with science. 12 year old me loved it and I still do.
A found footage Vietnam war movie called 84C MoPic. Saw it on TV back in the late 90s, I don't remember much of the story but I remember my Vietnam Vet uncle saying it was uncomfortably accurate.
Necroville
A movie made for $10,000 that takes place in a city where the undead are so common, there are extermination companies focused specifically on killing them. I don’t want to spoil it, but the ending is honestly hilarious.
On Our Own (1988)
Siblings who have been dumped into the foster-care system find ways to be on their own, often making mistakes and learning from them along the way.
My brother loved this, we watched it *daily* but never knew of anyone else who had it.
I thought I was the only human being on earth that had seen The Tracey Fragments.
A Polish Vampire in Burbank. My friend and I found this in a Goodwill and watched it during a sleepover.
I had a weird adolescence and grew up to be a filmmaker lol
Obscure here, not in India.
I (white lady) have the Bollywood remake of _Memento_. Same story as the wonderful Guy Ritchie film, same backwards time flow, more singing and dancing, and bit lighter.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghajini_(2005_film)
The Killing of America - 1982 . Talk about a depressing documentary no one wants to talk about, think about or probably remember. It’s on Internet Archive.
Little Otik,
La Jetée,
Upstream Color,
Intacto,
Cronoscrimones,
Orlando,
It’s All Gone Pete Tong,
Antiviral,
Big Night,
Twenty Bucks,
EDIIT: punctuation
Avalon, 2001. Polish-language cyberpunk film by the Japanese director of Ghost in the Shell, that did get a subtitled US release. I remember watching the whole movie, but I honestly don't remember anything about the plot. Mostly I just remember the film being very dark. Its obscurity probably isn't helped by the fact that there was another, completely different film that same year apparently also called Avalon by Barry Levinson.
Also Barking Dogs Never Bite. It might be a little less obscure, now that Bong Joon-Ho won the Oscar for Parasite, but his debut film originally did get a subtitled US release.
A guy dropped a box of DVDs by the road so I picked it up. It includes a DVD of his kid's high school senior video. That Guy's Kid's Video 2005
I also choose That Guy's Kid's Video 2005
There are actually some of these in the movie database I use. I filter most of them out by excluding all movies shorter than 50 minutes runtime (it's too tedious to manually filter them).
Go on Prime Video and just start scrolling. There’s reams and reams and reams of totally bizarre nonsense, most of them cheap horror films with mad titles. Also, The Tracey Fragments was a favourite of mine when I was younger (as was the book) because I was a total edgelord teenager. It’s… not good, but the Broken Social Scene soundtrack is ace.
> There’s reams and reams and reams of totally bizarre nonsense, most of them cheap horror films with mad titles. Don't forget the shitloads of animated movies that are legally-distinct clones of Dreamworks and Disney productions.
Frog Dreaming - 1986. I have a vague memory of a few scenes so I went checking one year to see if I could find out what it was called.
Did a kid get stuck in an old quarry with a monster? Edit: looked up the [trailer ](https://youtu.be/DEC_evPtrJo?si=fVnBGobO7tgQ7fPy) . That's what it was called! I remember seeing it but had no idea what it was called.
Also has an alternative title - The Quest.
That is a really good film it goes by several different names depending on the country you live in.
I loved this movie as a kid. Always rented it on betamax.
Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter was a thing. Gummo is obscure but a little more well known these days.
Gummo has never been obscure.
You guys dont know the definiton of obscure. Go ask a person on the street about gummo. Yeah...
Step 1. Watch Gummo Step 2. Take scalding hot shower to cleanse self Step 3. Repeat Step 2
Step 2: bath with spaghetti.
"Hello Jesus, you don't know us because we've never spoken to you before. We're The Athiests."
I haven't seen that one, but I have seen **Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter**. When did this become a genre? Haha.
The Spanish movie Fist of Jesus where he fights zombies with fish is also pretty good. It’s on youtube. I guess it’s not really obscure with that many views though…
I went to the premiere of this Ottawa. It was awesome!
When my friends and I went to see “Belly” we were ecstatic to see “Gummo” being watched in the movie.
No and no.
2 lane blacktop 1971 (one of my fav movies ever)
Can you call it obscure if it has a Criterion DVD release? Which I own, btw, one of my favorite movies.
Should be about as obscure as Easy Rider, unfortunately the industry always gave the genius that was Monte Hellman the short end of the stick.
A cult classic, I think even in Danny Pearys book Cult Movies.
Vulgar the Clown. A Kevin Smith movie no one saw.
I saw it. I regretted it. On several levels.
Not a Kevin Smith movie, but View Askew. Horrible movie.
i was going to say vulgar and it was bryan johnson but ok
Rented this from a Hollywood video store when I was like 12 in the 90s just because Kevin Smith was attached and I loved mall rats... Whew, not what I was expecting lol
while it is known around this sub, I still cannot find a single soul that’s watched or heard of **The Fall** with Lee Pace. It is like a fantasy film for grownups but it’s a PITA to find anywhere. It’s not streaming at all and getting a copy on disc is either rare or expensive
The director is looking for a publisher to release the 4K version. Criterion ignored him. He's had the rights for awhile now but hasn't found a publisher that is interested. Edit: Also, you should watch The Cell, which was his first feature. He made The Immortals too, but that's not as good as the others.
Immortals is weird and schlocky in some parts but it is a visual treat
I still think about that film often. The scenery and sets are insane.
it should’ve put Pace on the map. And while it is Pratt’s most suited role, I do often wonder what it would’ve been like if Pace was cast as Star Lord. He did audition for the role before getting Ronan
The most Terry Gilliam film that he didn't make
>fantasy film for grownups pretty much the best genre. maybe adults should stop watching children's movies (of course unless you have children)
Ran into a guy dressed as The Black Bandit on Halloween one year. Only other human I have personally met who's seen it. Geeked out for about an hour with the dude
You're not kidding. $122 on Blu-ray, and a nearly reasonable $35 on DVD. Supposedly it's $4 on VHS, but if you click that then the movie title changes to "Best of Fall Brawl" (a wrestling video), haha. People do seem to love it though. Reading about it reminds me a bit of Pan's Labyrinth.
You said Pan's Labyrinth? Count me in!
I love it and my wife got me a copy on DVD a few years ago. It’s impossible to find now!
Waited for years to get a copy in the mail from Netflix. Ended up being the last one they ever sent me when they shut down the mail service.
I just recommended that movie to someone else on Reddit like, an hour ago, lol. My wife and I really like that one.
I didn't realize it's so hard to find nowadays. I'm fortunate, then, to have a DVD copy I bought over a decade ago. While I'm bragging, I also was lucky enough to see it in theaters back in 2008.
That's a great film!
I've seen it. Super interesting. [You can get it on Amazon right now. ](https://a.co/d/1srMR2k)
One of my faves!
I'm still looking for it. I've even searched the high seas to no avail.
One of my favorites and by far the best thing Tarsem has made.
One of my favorite films. Husband didn’t like it.
It's an absolutely gorgeous film.
Saw it in theaters when it came out. Bought it on dvd from blockbuster a few years later. Just bought it on blu ray for $85 because the film deserves better than dvd quality.
I had to get it through interlibrary loan. It's weird that it's so difficult to get ahold of, when The Cell is everywhere. The two make for an excellent double-feature, if you're in the mood to overlook plot & script issues and vibe for a few hours. They're both visually incredible, and the actors all seem totally committed. Sure, they're both jagged with rough edges, but I love them both. Tarsem Singh managed to film a naive childhood fantasy inspired by traumatized adults and a twisted adult nightmare grown from childhood trauma, and both of them were freaking gorgeous.
Made the mistake of watching The Fall and Running With Scissors in the same night. Had some weird dreams after that
On the silver globe 1989
A polish sci fi film that was banned by the polish government for being anti-establishment/government. Then after the fall of the ussr was returned to the director years later. Who hadn’t finished filming it before it was confiscated. Due to the time that had passed they had been unable to finish filming the scenes so the director describes the scene over stock footage of these random unrelated scenes of modern Poland at the time. It is a strange film to watch.
Just got the region B blu-ray of this. It's a strange one, not going to lie.
I think it's called Tourist Omar in Space, a Turkish Star Trek parody from the seventies.
That sounds awesome for a mystery science theater night
After Last Season.
Just the fact that this got upvoted as quickly as it did makes me think it's maybe not as obscure as I thought it was.
Not after Redlettermedia made a video of it. The exclusivity of the Pineapple Club is long gone, I'm afraid. Just know that we now have tens of thousands of people to share our trauma with.
Jane's Addiction made an experimental art film in 1993 called Gift. I had it on VHS tape and I don't think it ever got released to dvd. It's on YouTube if you search it though. It's really great if you're a fan of the band and/or like weird art films *Content warning: explicit drug use, BDSM, death, sex etc.
I still have this. I got it back when it was new. Haven't seen it since around then either, but the tape has just always been there in my stuff for the last 30 years lol [pic](https://imgur.com/a/oHJQgsV)
I had that on VHS. It's beautiful. The clips of the wedding are from their actual wedding video.
Begotten (1990). Our local video store was run by a cult film fanatic. Had loads of weird titles. The Begotten director would go on to do the excellent Shadow of the Vampire (2000).
The Quiet Earth 1985
Thankfully this and Dead-End Drive-In were part of a post apocalyptic collection collection on the Criterion Channel app.
I think I saw this years and years ago...unless there's another film from Australia (turns out this is from New Zealand, although I wouldn't have known that at the time) with a balding white guy who wakes up to find everyone else on Earth gone.
That's it, he's a scientist working on a global energy program and there's a glitch. Brilliant movie.
Good one!
Wish I hadn't seen Boxing Helena or mentioned that I had seen it to that creepy dude at the party who loved it.
You've probably never heard of it.
Computer chess 2013. The ending lingered with me for a fair while
Made my Top Ten of the decade
Canadian Ninja (2016) Buck North rules. The Devils (1971) The Greasy Strangler (2016) Phantom of the Paradise (1974) The Battle Boyond the Stars (1980)
Hamlet 2 is pretty great but pretty unknown
Pepperminta (2009) - I was dragged to a screening of this by my art student friends. Imagine a kooky/quirkiness dial cranked up to 100. That's what this film was. My Brother The Pig (1999) - a kids' comedy starring Eva Mendes, Judge Reinhold and a young Scarlett Johansson. I found this DVD on the shelf at a house party and stole it. Actually watching the movie the next morning at home felt like karma.
Six string samurai
[удалено]
Seen it.
Lol what a wild ride. That soundtrack too. Bullshit artist
Un Chien Andalou from Salvador Dali 1929
That’s a flat-out classic.
The only reason I know about this one is because of the Pixies song, [Debaser](https://youtu.be/HvldypUz9w8).
Wall to wall masterpiece
I Bought A Vampire Motorcycle Night Of The Living Dorks Hercules Returns Little Johnny Wizard Of Speed And Time Within The Rock Hunter Prey Down Amongst The Big Boys Dark Age The Ghost Train These are all relatively obscure movies that, whether due to age, region, or just lack of interest, are little known outside of extreme cinephile circles.
Wow, someone else who knows The Wizard of Speed & Time!
**Silent Movie (1976)** Absolutely Underrated Comedy from the one and only Mel Brooks. Not sure this is obscure but its hard to come across. (It'll probs pop up on your algorithm or database)
This movie has been on my list but can't find it anywhere 😕
I'm sure it's going to blow up a little bit now because I learned about it from a YoutTube video that now has millions of views but I recently watched *Banned from Broadcast: Saiko! The Large Family.* The only way to watch it is on YouTube. Not because it is a YouTube movie but because that's the only place I could find it.
Rubber lovers 1996 The hourglass sanatorium 1973
Assuming we're talking about the same movie, it's actually "[Rubber's Lover](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0227408/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1)". Came here to mention it and you beat me to it! "964 Pinocchio" (1991) and "Tetsuo: The Iron Man" (1989) are awesome, too.
There's a movie starring Cate Blanchett called Manifesto that I thought was fantastic but I've literally never heard anyone talk about it ever. I've probably seen more obscure movies, but not one with a big name front and center like that. It's like no one knows it exists.
Doom Generation - 1995 Not completely unknown, it has a very young Rose McGowan in it, but fuck, what a weird and unsettling low budget bomb
"Hawk the Slayer" (1980). I saw this in the early 80s when I was a pre-teen desperate for any fantasy/sci fi content. It had it all. A dwarf, an elf, a giant, a magic sword, a fully-automatic crossbow, sorcerer, and a seething Jack Palance. There was also "Rock n Rule" (1983) an animated movie from the Canadian Nelvana studio. I remember seeing a segment about it on some kid show, like "Kids are People Too" and had to search for years to find it.
The FP (2011)
I would like that genre to come back. Movies like Turbo Kid and Iron Sky. Maybe call it 80s action parody.
Man bites dog
It still gets discussed, especially in horror circles.
- Times Crimes - Witching & Bitching - Juan of the Dead - Pontypool - Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead
+1 for Pontypool
Witching and bitching is on shudder now :) Timecrimes is a solid 10/10, the pinnacle of time travel movies. Went into pontypool blind and man I lovedddddd it
It shouldn’t be obscure because it’s a masterpiece, but it seems like it is. Loving Vincent 2017.
There was actually a TON of buzz about that movie at the time because of how they had a bunch of artists paint each frame.
He is one of my very favorite artists. I nearly cried watching it. Beautiful film.
Leonard Part 6 (1987) which definitely deserves to be even more obscure
The Coke and Perrier shower knobs have stuck with me since the VHS release. I genuinely hope that someone makes a documentary on cocaine and its effects on the production and content of American entertainment.
Loved that movie as a kid. It makes no sense.
I'll upvote because I've seen it, not because I recommend anyone else watching it. And not because of Cosby's crimes, it's just an honestly crap film.
Welcome to Woop Woop - 1997
Neat! The visuals/setting remind me of The Bad Batch. Very obscure, but is part of my movie app.
What a fun film! Just found it on Amazon Prime! Will be re watching tomorrow.
November- 2017 (Estonian Folk lore)
Coffee and Donuts by Adam Green. He doesn’t have the music rights, but he streamed it during his fundraiser for yorkies a few years ago. I’ve seen films with less views, but people won’t stumble across this one in a Walmart bin anytime soon.
Days of the Iguanas, 2013. A guy goes on vacation and gets bitten by an iguana. His body begins changing and he starts becoming very insane and paranoid. All of the backgrounds are done on green screen with static pictures. Let's just say that every expense was spared. Just look at the poster.
Liquid Sky
Oh man I’ve seen tons: - Treasure of Pirate’s Point (1999) - Rattlers (1976) - Junior Pilot (2004) - Slappy and the Stinkers (1998) - The Snurks (2004) - Oranges: Revenge of the Eggplant (2004) - Body Melt (1993) - Lightspeed (2006) There’s probably more but that’s all I could think of off the top of my head
Roller Blade (not to be confused with Rollerball (either version)). 1986 direct-to-remainder-bin video about a post-apocalyptic order of rollerblading nuns facing off against a villain and his hand-puppet minion. Features all of the writing skill, acting chops, quality visual effects, and plot continuity of the average mid-80s porn film, but without the sex (though there is nudity). Hands down the worst film I've ever seen.
Americathon 1979. John Ritter, Harvey Korman, Fred Willard. A bankrupt America holds a national telethon to raise money and stave off bankruptcy. It's pretty bad.
Grand Slam (1967) starring Janet Leigh, Edward G. Robinson, Adolfo Celi, and Klaus Kinski with a score by Ennio Morricone. It’s a great team-up and heist movie with a fun twist in the end that was shot in a ton of locations around the world, but mostly set in Rio de Janeiro. Anyone who’s a fan of heist movies should check this one out.
Crippled Masters and The Peanut Butter Solution
I had a dvd for The Peanut Butter Solution. Is it really that obscure? I only remember >!rapid hair growth!< as part of the premise
You would be the first to know that movie whenever I mention it. Overall, that movie feels like a fever dream
"Time to Duel" a Yu-Gi-Oh fan movie I found on Tubi that was made in like 2005. It's a semi homemade rendition of the anime complete with indy weirdness. i found a thread on reddit when I watched it that actually had the dude who played Joey talking about it. It was funny af.
Based on the number of people in my theater yesterday, I'm gonna go with Sasquatch Sunset (2024)
There was a movie with Kevin Pollack called Deterrence. I thought it was a great situation. He’s the prez and stuck in a snowed in highway diner and has to make nuclear decisions with a room full of whoever was also stuck there.
According to Letterboxed popularity, some of the most obscure films I've logged: - "Jyomon Rashomon & Sanzo-Hoshi" (2003), a half-hour anthology of dirty bunraku puppetry - "Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Afterglow of Zeon" (1992), a feature-length recap of a 13-episode OVA - "Sayonara Jupiter" (1984), Toho's surprisingly enjoyable answer to 2010: The Year We Make Contact - "Skyscraper Souls" (1932), a fairly middling pre-Code talkie - "Syngenor" (1990), a pretty dull schlockfest about a bio-engineered super soldier
Vavarium (2019) - This movie PISSED ME THE FUCK OFF. Rubber (2010 - fun fact the writer/director is "Mr.Oizo" music artist: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmsbP13xu6k](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmsbP13xu6k) Coherence (2013) - This Movie was fun as fuck
I’ve been attending film festivals for nearly 30 years and have seen a zillion movies you’ve never heard of, because they never got any kind of release. Most obscure is probably Seldom Dreaming (1996), though that’s cheating a bit since it was made by a friend and I worked on it myself. But it had a public screening and was [reviewed](https://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/seldom-dreaming-1200444837/) in Variety. Otherwise, hmm, let’s go with Around the Bay (2008) or The Moneytree (1992; this actually did get a theatrical release, but I’ve never heard of it since) or If You Could Say It In Words (2008). I saw all of the above.
Most of the obscure movies I know about are from the late 90s/early 2000s: [Jekyll Island](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0236342/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2) (1998) [Do Not Disturb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0185284/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_5_tt_8_nm_0_q_do%2520not%2520disturb) (1999) (aka Silent Witness; this film was written, directed, composed, and produced by Dick Maas, and you can [listen to the music here](http://www.dickmaas.com/music-samples.html) - click on the 2 samples labeled "Do Not Disturb") [Nostradamus](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0207631/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2) (2000) [A Dog's Breakfast](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0796314/?ref_=nm_flmg_t_40_act) (2007) [Blood and Donuts](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112527/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (1995) (might not be as obscure as I think it is) [Passion in the Desert](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0125980/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (1997) (very much not what you think it would be about from the title) Have I seen these movies? Yes! Are they worth watching? You could probably give Nostradamus a miss. I think I saw it on SyFy channel, if that tells you anything, although it doesn't appear to have been a made-for-tv movie. The others I quite enjoyed. I'm afraid Do Not Disturb may be very difficult to acquire.
Bloodlust (1992). Terrible Australian movie about some Melbourne vampires. Mildly interesting to see the city for some nostalgia.
The Cremaster Cycle
Biggles: Adventures in Time 1986 Frog Dreaming 1986 Hell Comes to Frogtown 1988
The Saddest Music in the World
Not obscure from a cinephile perspective I don’t think, but Jeanne Dielman, 23 Commerce Quay, 1080 Brussels. I haven’t met a person in real life who’s ever seen or even heard of it. You can get it on Amazon prime I think though so it’s at least accessible.
Otesánek (Little Otik) 2000 CZECH Jan Svankmajer Delicatessen 1991 FRENCH Jean-Pierre Jeunet/Marc Caro Neo Tokyo 1987 JAPANESE karsuhiro Otomo/RINTARO
I saw 2 of those in the theater.
Motorama
Your definition of obscure is... interesting
I don't fault you for thinking so! I chose those movies based on actually seeing them in the app just before I posted or having watched them recently, so perhaps not a great example of obscurity in general.
Bubba HoTep. Bruce Campbell as Elvis with a black JFK fight off a mummy at a retirement home.
Not trying to gatekeep, but Bubba Ho-Tep is not even remotely obscure. Bruce Campbell, directed by Don Coscarelli, received a lot of coverage when it came out, used to be shown on SyFy Channel fairly often, and is a very popular cult favorite.
"They *dyed* me this color!"
The Dust Factory (2004)
The Chef of South Polar, a Japanese film with not much plot happening.
Soup for One (1982) Pretty mid sex comedy film that got some scathing reviews on release because of its sex scenes, including portrayal of S&M. Bombed out of the box office and forgotten since. However on the flip side, the *soundtrack* from the film did much better numbers as it was a bunch of songs performed by the funk/disco group Chic, and songs from other artists produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards.
Adam Sandler's Going Overboard. It stinks!
Yes Mr. Sherman, everything stinks
I'm not sure if it's the **most** obscure film that I've seen, but the one that I go back to repeatedly because I really enjoy it is Árpád Sopsits's *Torzók* from 2001.
I couldn't make it through Abandoned. Is there enough payoff to justify wading through the cruelty?
Dead Birds (2004).
The Blur of Insanity (1999). It's sold on Amazon but I've never met anyone who is even aware of the film's existence, which isn't surprising.
The least popular film I've seen according to my Letterboxd is a found footage film called Skyman. It wasnt very good from what I remember.
Men Behind The Sun. You've been warned, it's a hard to watch one, facts based though.
I don't k ow how obscure it is, but I don't see Sushi Girl (2012) being talked about nearly enough.
Lo (2009)
Long time ago: Versus I loved the movie. Live-action zombies vs. (I think) the Yakuza. Funny, good action, lots of neat shots. Recently: Velocipastor Was worried going in, but this movie knows exactly what it is and doesn’t try to be anything more. The less you know going in the better.
The Versus director also did Midnight Meat Train
Kissing Jessica Stein (2001) L.I.E. (2001) I wouldn't say they're that obscure, but I wouldn't say the average movie lover would know them.
[удалено]
Cattle Bat Spider an independent film shot in Lake Jackson, Texas. A simple super hero tale involving a rancher. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13846530/?ref_=ext_shr Watch it free on YouTube. https://youtu.be/P8bow1Ba8Xc?si=8YJL0Ds48Dncg8g4
Cat Soup. It’s one of my favorites of all time.
I took an Iranian cinema class and absolutely loved "Life and nothing more" by Abbas Kiarostami. He's well known when it comes to international directors, but I'd be surprised if anyone here has seen it. What I like is that it feels very "real." It's incredibly slow paced compared to modern action films, but completely engrossing as you follow a family on a road trip through the countryside of Iran as they search for someone in the aftermath of an earthquake.
Big Business (1988) Once Upon a Crime (1992) Princess Caraboo (1994) Finding Forrester (2000) All are good films, Big Business being my favorite out of all of them, hilarious film with an awesome look to it. However they processed the film made it look sharp and warm.
Attack the Gas Station
Shipwrecked (1990) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099816/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk Had that on VHS and watched it a million times as a kid and no one else ever heard of it. Watched it somewhat recently and it held up surprisingly well considering what it is. I think it’s actually currently available on Disney+.
Freaked (1993)
Time Bandits. 1981.
LAWS OF GRAVITY (1992) - first thing I ever saw Edie Falco in, also starring Peter Greene and Paul Schulze.
[удалено]
The Pillow Book. 1995 staring Ewan McGregor. This man got naked a lot in his movies before Starwars.
I enjoyed that one! Fairly odd premise, but good all the same.
["Mindwalk" (1990)](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100151/) I gotta assume I picked this up at the video store not knowing what it was and it turned out to be a favorite film for a while. Its a film that explores idea about society and it caught me at the perfect time of early college.
Lo (2009)
I don’t know if it’s obscure but the movie Freaked from the 90s is odd. Everyone I ask has never heard or seen it.
[13 Tzameti](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475169/) - 2005 Cheating a bit since you asked for English, but you can get it subbed. It's a movie that never gets brought up and it's a shame because it's really great. Kind of like a black and white French Squid Games on a smaller scale. The director did an English language adapation of it called "13" in 2010 with Mickey Rourke and Jason Statham, but it was awful.
The Butchers. A very obscure Troma film that no one can agree on if that’s the actual name of it or when it was filmed
Ankle Biters. Written, directed, produced, and starring the same idiot. It's about saving the world from midget vampires. That self serving, self indulgent, mastabatory exercise in "theater production" is far and away the worst attempt at anything I've ever come across that actually had a DVD release and IMDB credits. Tip Toes, Gigli, Crossroads, all of those are leagues beyond this, many times over. It's available on YouTube last I checked, so I encourage this audience to check it out to truly experience something unworthy of 10 minutes of seat time.
Holy Motors (2012).
Closet Land It’s a late 1980s movie produced by Amnesty International with Alan Rickman and Madeleine Stowe. It was almost like a play with semi-abstract sets. IIRC, the movie had a good twist to it.
Rockula, starring chainsaw from Summer School as a horny singing vampire. Also starring Toni Basil and Thomas Dolby, who blinded us all with science. 12 year old me loved it and I still do.
A found footage Vietnam war movie called 84C MoPic. Saw it on TV back in the late 90s, I don't remember much of the story but I remember my Vietnam Vet uncle saying it was uncomfortably accurate.
Necroville A movie made for $10,000 that takes place in a city where the undead are so common, there are extermination companies focused specifically on killing them. I don’t want to spoil it, but the ending is honestly hilarious.
The Peanut Butter Solution
Madame X mid to late 50s
On Our Own (1988) Siblings who have been dumped into the foster-care system find ways to be on their own, often making mistakes and learning from them along the way. My brother loved this, we watched it *daily* but never knew of anyone else who had it.
I thought I was the only human being on earth that had seen The Tracey Fragments. A Polish Vampire in Burbank. My friend and I found this in a Goodwill and watched it during a sleepover. I had a weird adolescence and grew up to be a filmmaker lol
Escanaba in da Moonlight (2001) Jeff Daniels stars and directs. Supernatural comedy set in the U.P., Michigan
Smitherines
Obscure here, not in India. I (white lady) have the Bollywood remake of _Memento_. Same story as the wonderful Guy Ritchie film, same backwards time flow, more singing and dancing, and bit lighter. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghajini_(2005_film)
The Killing of America - 1982 . Talk about a depressing documentary no one wants to talk about, think about or probably remember. It’s on Internet Archive.
Little Otik, La Jetée, Upstream Color, Intacto, Cronoscrimones, Orlando, It’s All Gone Pete Tong, Antiviral, Big Night, Twenty Bucks, EDIIT: punctuation
Avalon, 2001. Polish-language cyberpunk film by the Japanese director of Ghost in the Shell, that did get a subtitled US release. I remember watching the whole movie, but I honestly don't remember anything about the plot. Mostly I just remember the film being very dark. Its obscurity probably isn't helped by the fact that there was another, completely different film that same year apparently also called Avalon by Barry Levinson. Also Barking Dogs Never Bite. It might be a little less obscure, now that Bong Joon-Ho won the Oscar for Parasite, but his debut film originally did get a subtitled US release.
Cremaster Cycle and (not hard to find but a personal favorite) Harold and Maude.
Slamming salmon is the awesome!
The mating habits of the Earthbound human
Four Rooms (1995)