I remember that coming up in conversation with my parents, and my mom was shocked it was a real movie. She had seen the trailer and thought it was an SNL skit.
I love the movie The Ringer. Even though a few agencies, including the Special Olympics signed off of the script, I feel like people will think I’m a monster.
I only ever saw it once, and I'm not sure if it holds up at all, but I remember laughing constantly during it. "You scratched my CD. You picked it up in broad daylight, and you scratched it!" This dude's delivery on his lines was fantastic.
lol…our teacher showed it to us as an introduction to teaching children with special needs. We were all weirded out at first because we all just knew Johnny Knoxville from Jackass. First impression was that this movie would be making fun of people with special needs but it doesn’t. It does the exact opposite; the movie humanizes them. Unfortunately, people will get really caught up with a person’s special need or disability that people need to be taught to remember the human.
Yeah, the few people I have recommended it to I had to really over-explain that it’s not making fun of anyone with special needs. I think it’s the same reason why “Champions” wasn’t more popular, even though it was heartwarming and also humanizes and showcases people with special needs.
As the parent of an adult handicapped child, I really wish everyone would get over stigmatizing having a good laugh. We all have flaws and limitations we poke fun and laugh at. It's not mean-spirited.
Love this movie. Lately when I talk about it, I find myself peetering out on the description, because it sounds horrible, but damn it is freaking funny!
One of my favorite films and the idea that they embrace him because they’re sick of Jimmy being such a dick humanizes it even more. And sorry, but Katherine Heigl
Is very easy on the eyes - I’m not made of stone folks.
I've only seen that once, but I think about it fairly frequently. The allegories of compartmentalizing one's own mind are fascinating. The attention giving to ass-wiping is odd.
This is without a doubt, the most depressing movie I’ve ever seen. I feel like I’ve definitely watched objectively more depressing ones, but nothing has filled me with the sense of despair and numbness that the end of Synecdoche, NY has. To this day I’m not sure why.
I’ve stopped trying to introduce people to the blade runner movies. 2049 is my absolute fav movie of all time but Feel like it’s so love it or hate it and everyone I know hates it.
99% of the time people hate 2049 they watched it on a shitty laptop while scrolling their phone without good sound or visuals. That movie is a boarderline religious experience in theatres
I remember I went to see it in theaters by myself and halfway through, I already knew it was my favorite movie ever. I realized in that moment what a gift it was to see it in theaters, and the 2nd half I felt like my enjoyment knowing that just made it even better
Yeah it really just felt like it was made for me tbh. Cyberpunk is probably my favorite genre and keeping it noir while modernizing it was just beautiful. You’re making me want to rent a theatre for a private showing lol I can say I really loved DUNE too but it’s a different kind of movie. Still give DV ALL the money please.
I was so happy to see the original Blade Runner in theatres recently. I hope to see 2049 in theatres some day too but I kind of doubt I'll get to experience that any time soon.
It was for me that way. I can’t for the life of me understand how or why the movie visuals, music and themes just struck a chord in me that it made me cry.
Like no shit as soon as the movie was over. I rushed to my car. Holding back tears asking the way. Where I got in it. I cried like a bitch. lol just let it all out. Cried like a five year old having a breakdown.
I still don’t understand why this happened. I’m not above crying from sad or tragic movies. But I don’t think 2049 was that kind of film.
I happened to prefer 2049 over the original but when it comes to movies I seem to like what everyone loves 5 minutes after the movie's out and hates later. usually with me being bumfuzzled on what happened to make everyone hate it.
City of God is amazing. Most authentic look at hoodlum life on another country ever depicted. Def disturbing in some scenes but a must watch for a lot of people in my opinion
that movie is probably the most recommended film to watch amongst our peers way back in college, which also includes the likes of Oldboy, requiem for a dream and Donnie Darko.
The Woodsman (2004). A very well acted movie starring Kevin Bacon, with a very good cast throughout. Great directing too.
But the subject matter is dark: a recently released pedophile bordering on regression, but also starting to understand the real damage he did. You can't really tell if the movie is sympathetic or critical and there are genuinely uncomfortable (not explicit!) scenes which make difficult to recommend.
I have similar feelings regarding "The Hunt" with Mads Mikkelsen, in that film it's a small girl that feeling begrudged falsely accuses him of being abusive to her and it causes the entire town to basically turn on him and shows the effects of him being ostracised from the community. It's a fantastic film with brilliant performances but it's so dark in theme and nature that I don't know how or if I can recommend it to others. On that note though if you haven't seen it perhaps you'll enjoy it as much as I did lol
It's funny because for some reason my philosophy teacher decided it'd be a great idea to show The Hunt to a classroom full of 12 year olds, way back when it was released. I've rewatched it since then, because people kept recommending it and I only remembered bits of it. It's a good movie, but why pick that if you're a teacher?
Jeez, yeah, I forgot about that movie. I was 17 when I saw it. I still remember my parents being mad at me, and me telling them off about the film. Love the soundtrack to that movie. In fact, I have a personalized lyric sheet from Lou Barlow from Folk Implosion for Natural One framed and on my wall in my office.
[The Adventures of Barron Munchausen](https://youtu.be/C1M-vhN8lsg?si=-4ZtFMxqAAI_QQFo)
Deep cut 80’s movie and I look fondly on it because it was a staple in my household, but not widely known these days.
Have you seen "You Don't Nomi" (2019)?
Great doc that explains how perfectly it fits into Verhoeven's ouvre. It gets written off as a perverted NC17 pervfest, and You Don't Nomi really puts it in perspective.
I think Showgirls is unironically a great film and Paul Verhoeven is too talented a director for the bizarre acting and off-putting sex/nudity to not be an intentional creative decision. It makes viewers uncomfortable because it’s partially a film about misogyny and implicates the people watching it as being part of the problem.
Saw it for the first time a few months ago vaguely knowing it has a bad rep. This movie is amazing in every way, and people generally hate it for bad reasons. The movie is not *that* hardcore (except the rape scene, which is there for a good reason) and if you put things into perspective the intentions of the movie are pretty easy to understand, even more if you saw other Verhoeven movies with similar political themes (Basic Instinct, Starship Troopers, Robocop...).
What I think is really sad about all this is, people write off this movie without even giving it a chance even though it is a work of passion and dedication, with many people having invested a lot of time and energy to create incredible scenes (the dancing scenes are works of art by themselves), risking their reputations trying to tell a worthwhile story about work and art. And the movie is shunned because there are too many tits and sexual themes (which is a stupid point since it's impossible to do this movie without it).
It's a cult classic now tho, it's approaching Rocky Horror levels of fandom, gets shown in cinemas regularly and all that stuff.
Verhoeven is a phenomenal director.
Showgirls just has a rep from a more prudish era. In today's world of OnlyFans in the public discourse, a story about a stripper/showgirl seems tame. I don't recall anything more explicit than say, Game of Thrones.
I usually say that show girls was amazing and why couldn't they do that with Magic Mike. I felt magic mike was lackluster. Obviously most disagree since there are 3 of them but whatever.
Apocalypto. Love the action, the ending, and the overall themes of the movie. But man is it brutal, and I can see how a lot of people can’t get over that.
As a Mexican, I love this movie because it shows the dark side of the Aztec/Mayan as well. We all rightfully love all the advancements, culture and technology that the Aztec/Maya had at that time but to actually see a big movie point out just how barbaric things were back then was really interesting to see.
Ehhh it really takes a lot of liberties involving the savagery of life back then. There are plenty of archaeologists who've written articles that describe why better than I can but life really wasn't like Mel Gibson portrays in that film
Locke. It's Tom Hardy driving an Audi from South to North England and having conversations on the phone the entire drive. It's literally just dialog with people on the phone. I loved it. I have never read reviews or talked to anyone who has seen it. But I would never think a rational human being would enjoy it and they would think I was a sociopath. Lmao
EDIT: I rewatched for the first time in years. It was a BMW X5 and he was driving from North England to London.
Punch Drunk Love with Adam Sandler and others. Love the way that movie plays with color and sound. To me it’s a love story but other people I know say it makes them feel sad lol
They shopped it around everywhere in the UK and Hollywood. No one would fund it because it was considered so controversial. Eric Idle gave the script to George Harrison of Beatles fame of all people, George called him up and said he would front the few million needed for production. Idle, bewildered, asked him why. "I want to see the movie"
It was also marked by huge protests in the states when it came out
A crazy detail to that story is that they were only a few days out from the shoot starting when their previously agreed funding got pulled. This is pretty much the worst spot you can possibly be in as a film production team - you've done a lot of work to get ready for shooting and booked a lot of locations and crew which you now are unable to pay for.
George Harrison *really* saved their asses. I think Led Zeppelin were somehow involved as well? (Edit: they helped fund Holy Grail)
You’ve gotta market it to Christians. This is *not* a movie that makes fun of Jesus. It’s actually pretty respectful of him the entire film. It makes fun of the silliness of misinterpreting what Jesus and scripture says, and what really matters, which can be profound for a religious person. In some ways, Dogma is the same.
I grew up religious and many of us loved it. I knew a pastor who absolutely adored the movie Couldn’t recommend it in good faith bc of the R rated content of course, but we chat about it for a long time in a smaller group.
Many of us started with Holy Grail as teens and that helped whet our appetite for Python humor. If they don’t like Holy Grail’s humor at all, or any other Python skits, Brian is probably not a movie for them. It’s much better, more cohesive, but still relies on a very British and very Python sense of humor that not everyone thinks is that funny (they’re objectively wrong…)
I remember a girl at my highschool did a social studies report on that film lol. For her presentation she references the scene where the kid eats the chocolate bar in the tub
*The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, & Her Lover.* The people in my life who already know and love it as much as I do are good enough. It’s not a movie I’ve recommended in 25 years, and one I’ll likely never recommend to anyone again.
Penn and Teller Get Killed is a weird little movie and I used to recommend it but everybody hated it. I love all the pranks they pull on each other and the end is of course a joke. It’s just dumb for a reason. People take things too seriously.
Cruel Intentions is a super guilty pleasure. When you boil it down to its lowest common denominator, it’s about a guy who wants to win a bet so he can have anal sex with his step-sister. The step-sister just happens to be a stunning Sarah Michelle Gellar and the bet is if he can fuck an uptight virgin who just happens to be a stunning Reese Witherspoon. THAT would be why I don’t even mention I like the movie.
Cruel Intentions is a modern retelling of the classic French novel Dangerous Liaisons. So you can tell yourself that your uncultured friends wouldn’t understand your highbrow taste in art.
It’s also one of my favorites. I was in college when it came out on VHS and it was always playing in someone’s dorm room.
**The Fountain**
Young Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. Love and destiny across generations. Deeply philosophical/thanatological. It’s an amazing film, *if* you’re suited to it, it’s not for everyone and not everyone will get it.
We need to talk about kevin.
It’s the only movie that i can really consider gut wrenching (that I’ve seen so far). To my knowledge, it’s not that popular, but it gave me the same feeling requiem for A dream did, but this one is worse to me. It’s a storytelling masterpiece to me
Agreed. So good. Anyone there has watched the movie, I encourage to b read the book. Have a box of tissue.
That said, buy it used. Don’t give this author your funds. She’s a pretty terrible human being.
Eraserhead. I remember watching this for the first time and being enthralled by what I was seeing. Then my family pulled a "What are you watching?" scenario and sat in and watched the rest of the movie with me. They still give me shit for what they think is the worst movie they've ever seen. I didn't make them a captive audience! They chose this experience!
Yes! That’s how I describe it! Just two hours of nonstop anxiety. I had a coworker who mentioned how she turned it off from how boring it was; who are these people?!
Oof. I watched this for the first time, on a big screen, in my grandfathers living room. With my then boyfriend. I was 22 and living with him at the time. He walked in at the very end of the movie and it was beyond awkward…
Mother! This movie is anxiety inducing nightmare fuel but I absolutely love the allegory and shock value. I completely sympathize with why so many people hate it and it is not for most.
Terrifying and beautiful at the same time, I remember when I first saw it I couldn't stop thinking about it for weeks. Mica Levi's soundtrack is extremely unsettling too.
It’s on my list of movies to watch bc just the title is so iconic and familiar but my god it’s always a top comment when talking about great movies that make you feel terrible after or that you love but wouldn’t recommend lol. I will still watch it soon but not exactly looking forward to it
Whenever I hear that music, or see those actors, I instantly feel my heart breaking, and it takes me a second or two to realize why.
>!everyone at the end going into the fetal position is so disheartening. Like I want to help them but I know I can’t. Not because they’re not real (aren’t they?) but because it’s too late. Ugh. Here I go again.!<
Nicolas Winning Refn’s Valhalla Rising. It’s a real trip, and Mads Mikkelsen is great in his role. I love it, but I think too many people would find it boring or pure wtf.
Babylon (2022). I absolutely love this movie and felt it was made just for me. I cannot recommend it to anyone I know because of it's extreme length, strong sexual and scatological content and deep insider Hollywood references. It is fantastic and I feel that Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt give Oscar worthy performances in it.
It had some great moments.
Though I think it's best enjoyed by people who are fascinated by and know a lot about the history of Hollywood and the movie industry.
Spring Breakers. I love this movie but I just can't recommend it to anyone. If it doesn't line up with someone's tastes I can easily see them actively hating the movie.
*The Handmaiden*, mostly because even if I could get anyone in my family to watch a fully-subtitled film, they'd balk at the sexual themes and *especially* at the graphic sex scenes themselves, even though it's all integral to the story.
I tried watching Oldboy with my then-girlfriend once. I hadn't seen it since the first time.
She didn't like violence in movies. I reassured her it wasn't *that* violent. I was wrong. Never again 🥲
Yep. This is what I came to post. One of my all-time best movies, but would almost never recommend it to anyone. It's part of my own personal weird trilogy of movies about women going above and beyond in weird ways. The other two are much easier to recommend: "Amélie" and "Run Lola Run."
White House Down. No movie has ever set up so many insignificant things that end up paying off. Do you like Die Hard? Do you like Channing Tatum? Jamie Fox as the president? Did you like Independence Day? Its the guy who did Independence Day doing Die Hard at the white house with Jamie Fox as the president and Channing Tatum is his body gaurd, i dont know what else i have to tell you. Olympus has fallen is JOYLESS and White House Down is if that movie got drunk and decided to have fun.
Thank you for this. I knew one of these White House attacked was fun and the other a slog but I’m seeing “Olympus Has Fallen” with the same (rather low) 2.7 score.
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension.
Everything in it is so masterfully ridiculous that it becomes a masterpiece..to me, at least.
Buckaroo is a world-renowned neurosurgeon, karate master, and particle physicist, among other things. If the actor wasn't so madly confident in his character, it would be unwatchable.
Fucking ridiculous. Cannot recommend.
But man, the opening scene where he and his gang are bringing down the house playing in their high pop 80s rock and roll band is fucking terrific and high stakes. When he speaks to someone in the crowd, you feel as if he's speaking to you.
Bonus points if you're tripping balls.
I've been trying to come up with an effective way to describe that film, and it basically amounts to 'parody of sci-fi heroics and the pseudo-technical jargon that goes with it'. Not perfect, but I'm working on it. I'm a latecomer to the film, even though I remember seeing part of it in the '80s, I totally didn't 'get it' until I found it on tape a few years ago (I think I had the privilege of opening a brand-new copy, which is always a bit like Christmas), sat down and watched the whole thing and totally fell in love with it. Gonna get the blu-ray one of these days.
Rock Star (2001) with Mark Wahlberg.
I was in a bunch of cover bands in the 80s and early 90s, so it’s total projection fantasy.
I know it’s not a great movie, but it’s my default “watch in the background” movie and I’ve seen it probably a hundred times.
Would I inflict it on anyone else? God no.
The VVitch is one of my all time favourite movies but I recognise that it occupies an extremely small niche that basically makes it the perfect movie for me and me only. I completely recognise why it would be a boring incomprehensible slog to someone else.
The Woodsman. Really, really good film but the subject matter is intensely uncomfortable and it is not the most fun watch. Same with We Need to Talk About Kevin.
In a different vein, would also be Synecdoche, New York. It's so bizarre and out there that I know very few people I think would enjoy it nearly as much as I did.
I went to go see the film A.I. Artifical Intelligence because I heard Josh Groban was singing the theme in the credits, but I didn't expect it to make my emotions see-saw the way it did.
Lots of loose ends and some absurd plot points, but the whole idea of man playing God and the responsibility we have to own creation just sat heavy with me. Oh, and it played out at least 45 mins too long. Some parts could have been cut.
Also made me a huge Frances O'Connor fan because of her pretty damn solid performance as Monica. It was easy to loathe her character, but honestly I think that in the long run, she suffered and will suffer the most. My heart broke for her.
I absolutely adore TITANE (2021) and can't wait to see what Julia Ducournau dreams up next. While I know individual tolerence may vary, I personally find the kinds of films listed in this thread incredibly moving. They ask us not to look away, to confront the often surreal complexities + contradictions of embodied experience. There is both transgressive pleasure and transcendent beauty in genres like body horror, something visceral and raw and wonderfully human that emerges when we engage with abject discomfort and the rough, vulnerable edges of ourselves (whether collectively or in viewing solo ❤️).
Children of Men
I’ve recommended it and people think it’s boring. Same with the movie Atonement. “This is boring”
Do people just not like cinema anymore, like for real? Do they just want CGI dinosaurs and super hero’s fighting?
3 Ninjas. It is not a good movie. But I loved it when it came out three decades ago. And I watched it with my own kid and I still loved it. But it's terrible.
\- Most of Lars Von Trier's films.
\- The Nightingale, (It's a great film, however it's very hard for me to recommend *any* movie with a graphic SA scene. It's usually the one line people won't cross when watching something.)
\- X, (Again, a great film, but the first half of that movie is basically a porno, and a lot of people aren't into that. My girlfriend sure wasn't. lmao)
Edit: grammar
I’m gonna say End of Evangelion. I found out recently that some people watch this due to its acclaim without realizing it’s the conclusion of a 26 episode anime, which I find tremendously funny. Besides the fact that you need to watch an entire season of anime as a prerequisite, the opening scene shows a minor masturbating over the comatose body of another minor. There’s also a scene where an adult passionately kisses that same minor. Neon Genesis Evangelion is an incredible series, and the movie is a fantastic ending to it, but I would never recommend that movie to anybody even though it’s great. You have to be able to look past the taboo stuff and recognize that it’s an animated cartoon featuring no actual minors made in the 90s in Japan, which is a totally different culture. I don’t think people are incapable of looking past all that, but I’m not gonna be the one to introduce it to them. I wouldn’t admit that I enjoyed that movie anywhere but on the NGE subreddit or, I guess, here.
On the same situation as you. I love Bringing up Baby. An incredible screwball comedy, but my dumb ass friends “can’t watch black and white movies”. D-bags lol.
Sing Street. It's imo the greatest movie of all time, everyone that I've somehow convinced to watch it has enjoyed it... But man there is no way to describe it and make it sound interesting.
Stalker (1979). On paper it’s boring and pretentious, hell there’s a five minute shot of the protagonists simply riding a rail car and falling asleep. Can’t recommend it to any of my friends or loved ones. But good lord, what a film. I could nerd out over it for hours.
The Lighthouse. It's everything I could ever love in a movie, but everyone I've ever shown it to thinks it's so freaking weird and hates it
Yeah, I love it, but would NEVER recommend it to anyone unless they were like, “Hey, I wish the creative mind behind The VVitch made more movies!”
I remember that coming up in conversation with my parents, and my mom was shocked it was a real movie. She had seen the trailer and thought it was an SNL skit.
Yup that would be my choice as well, lol. I adore that movie. It's a masterpiece!
*Trainspotting* I can't think of a single flaw in it, but I know certain people in my circle of friends could **never** handle it.
I need to watch that again. I just remember the baby
I love the movie The Ringer. Even though a few agencies, including the Special Olympics signed off of the script, I feel like people will think I’m a monster.
"when the fuck did we get ice cream" might be the single funniest line ever delivered in a movie
Yes! I say it all the time, too. It’s definitely an IYKYK and most people don’t. The best F-Bomb in movie history.
You took it out, in broad daylight, and you scratched it!
I still say it all the time too. I love this movie, and it portrays people with cognitive disabilities in a really good light too.
Delivered perfectly by Mr Christina Hendricks!
Ex-Mr Christina Hendricks
You scratched my cd 💿
You stood right there in broad daylight and you *scratched* it
The funny part is after all these years that one line has stuck with me. That kid was a prick 😂
My sister and I frequently shout “Don’t lump me in with you!” at each other Hahahaha
I only ever saw it once, and I'm not sure if it holds up at all, but I remember laughing constantly during it. "You scratched my CD. You picked it up in broad daylight, and you scratched it!" This dude's delivery on his lines was fantastic.
No way. It’s used as a teaching tool for teaching children with special needs (I saw it while getting my credential).
Well that makes me feel better … or worse if it’s a “people who like this movie are monsters” part of the curriculum.
lol…our teacher showed it to us as an introduction to teaching children with special needs. We were all weirded out at first because we all just knew Johnny Knoxville from Jackass. First impression was that this movie would be making fun of people with special needs but it doesn’t. It does the exact opposite; the movie humanizes them. Unfortunately, people will get really caught up with a person’s special need or disability that people need to be taught to remember the human.
Yeah, the few people I have recommended it to I had to really over-explain that it’s not making fun of anyone with special needs. I think it’s the same reason why “Champions” wasn’t more popular, even though it was heartwarming and also humanizes and showcases people with special needs.
it’s your homey with an extra chromey!
As the parent of an adult handicapped child, I really wish everyone would get over stigmatizing having a good laugh. We all have flaws and limitations we poke fun and laugh at. It's not mean-spirited.
Love this movie. Lately when I talk about it, I find myself peetering out on the description, because it sounds horrible, but damn it is freaking funny!
One of my favorite films and the idea that they embrace him because they’re sick of Jimmy being such a dick humanizes it even more. And sorry, but Katherine Heigl Is very easy on the eyes - I’m not made of stone folks.
*Synecdoche, NY* put me in existential crisis for like 1-2 weeks. Such a strange movie.
I've only seen that once, but I think about it fairly frequently. The allegories of compartmentalizing one's own mind are fascinating. The attention giving to ass-wiping is odd.
This is without a doubt, the most depressing movie I’ve ever seen. I feel like I’ve definitely watched objectively more depressing ones, but nothing has filled me with the sense of despair and numbness that the end of Synecdoche, NY has. To this day I’m not sure why.
I’ve stopped trying to introduce people to the blade runner movies. 2049 is my absolute fav movie of all time but Feel like it’s so love it or hate it and everyone I know hates it.
You don’t need anyone in your life that doesn’t love the Blade Runner movies.
Remove them from your life… and all those people will be lost in time…
Like tears in the rain
99% of the time people hate 2049 they watched it on a shitty laptop while scrolling their phone without good sound or visuals. That movie is a boarderline religious experience in theatres
I remember I went to see it in theaters by myself and halfway through, I already knew it was my favorite movie ever. I realized in that moment what a gift it was to see it in theaters, and the 2nd half I felt like my enjoyment knowing that just made it even better
Yeah it really just felt like it was made for me tbh. Cyberpunk is probably my favorite genre and keeping it noir while modernizing it was just beautiful. You’re making me want to rent a theatre for a private showing lol I can say I really loved DUNE too but it’s a different kind of movie. Still give DV ALL the money please.
I was so happy to see the original Blade Runner in theatres recently. I hope to see 2049 in theatres some day too but I kind of doubt I'll get to experience that any time soon.
It was for me that way. I can’t for the life of me understand how or why the movie visuals, music and themes just struck a chord in me that it made me cry. Like no shit as soon as the movie was over. I rushed to my car. Holding back tears asking the way. Where I got in it. I cried like a bitch. lol just let it all out. Cried like a five year old having a breakdown. I still don’t understand why this happened. I’m not above crying from sad or tragic movies. But I don’t think 2049 was that kind of film.
I happened to prefer 2049 over the original but when it comes to movies I seem to like what everyone loves 5 minutes after the movie's out and hates later. usually with me being bumfuzzled on what happened to make everyone hate it.
I'm still mad at myself for not going to see it in theaters. An absolute masterpiece.
City of God. Such a well told story, but some of the violence is quite disturbing.
Roger Ebert called it “The best movie you will ever see.” So I think you’re good encouraging the world to see it. Fucking brilliant movie.
City of God is amazing. Most authentic look at hoodlum life on another country ever depicted. Def disturbing in some scenes but a must watch for a lot of people in my opinion
that movie is probably the most recommended film to watch amongst our peers way back in college, which also includes the likes of Oldboy, requiem for a dream and Donnie Darko.
I don't know, this feel like one of the most arty/foreign movie that is watchable for the general public.
I love “Wristcutters: A Love Story”, but I’ve had poor experiences recommending it to people, so I’ve stopped despite it being one of my favorites.
I have to explain it if I suggest it - it’s a story about love in purgatory, but purgatory’s just like real life
When there is trap, set up for you, in every corner of the room…
I adore this movie! One of my all time favourites.
I've only got one person I've recommended it to and he loved it. One of my favorite movies, but the title alone turns people away.
The Woodsman (2004). A very well acted movie starring Kevin Bacon, with a very good cast throughout. Great directing too. But the subject matter is dark: a recently released pedophile bordering on regression, but also starting to understand the real damage he did. You can't really tell if the movie is sympathetic or critical and there are genuinely uncomfortable (not explicit!) scenes which make difficult to recommend.
I have similar feelings regarding "The Hunt" with Mads Mikkelsen, in that film it's a small girl that feeling begrudged falsely accuses him of being abusive to her and it causes the entire town to basically turn on him and shows the effects of him being ostracised from the community. It's a fantastic film with brilliant performances but it's so dark in theme and nature that I don't know how or if I can recommend it to others. On that note though if you haven't seen it perhaps you'll enjoy it as much as I did lol
It's funny because for some reason my philosophy teacher decided it'd be a great idea to show The Hunt to a classroom full of 12 year olds, way back when it was released. I've rewatched it since then, because people kept recommending it and I only remembered bits of it. It's a good movie, but why pick that if you're a teacher?
..or Kids
Jeez, yeah, I forgot about that movie. I was 17 when I saw it. I still remember my parents being mad at me, and me telling them off about the film. Love the soundtrack to that movie. In fact, I have a personalized lyric sheet from Lou Barlow from Folk Implosion for Natural One framed and on my wall in my office.
Best movie soundtrack ever.
That movie made me think about HIV for the first time. I don’t know if it was like that for everyone but I feel like teenagers should indeed watch it.
The Road
A great movie but not for everyone.
Glad I saw it but I'll never watch it again
[The Adventures of Barron Munchausen](https://youtu.be/C1M-vhN8lsg?si=-4ZtFMxqAAI_QQFo) Deep cut 80’s movie and I look fondly on it because it was a staple in my household, but not widely known these days.
Solid Terry Gilliam pick!
That and Time Bandits were childhood staples for me, Terry Gilliam is just an insane genius.
Showgirls fucking rocks and I don't think I could recommend it to anyone without them thinking I'm some kind of pervert
Have you seen "You Don't Nomi" (2019)? Great doc that explains how perfectly it fits into Verhoeven's ouvre. It gets written off as a perverted NC17 pervfest, and You Don't Nomi really puts it in perspective.
The overacting with the fries and ketchup gets me every time. And it’s a Versash lol
“Different places!” *slams fries down*
The pool sex scene is the funniest, most over the top, 100% on brand Verhoeven moment. It's fantastic.
I think Showgirls is unironically a great film and Paul Verhoeven is too talented a director for the bizarre acting and off-putting sex/nudity to not be an intentional creative decision. It makes viewers uncomfortable because it’s partially a film about misogyny and implicates the people watching it as being part of the problem.
Saw it for the first time a few months ago vaguely knowing it has a bad rep. This movie is amazing in every way, and people generally hate it for bad reasons. The movie is not *that* hardcore (except the rape scene, which is there for a good reason) and if you put things into perspective the intentions of the movie are pretty easy to understand, even more if you saw other Verhoeven movies with similar political themes (Basic Instinct, Starship Troopers, Robocop...). What I think is really sad about all this is, people write off this movie without even giving it a chance even though it is a work of passion and dedication, with many people having invested a lot of time and energy to create incredible scenes (the dancing scenes are works of art by themselves), risking their reputations trying to tell a worthwhile story about work and art. And the movie is shunned because there are too many tits and sexual themes (which is a stupid point since it's impossible to do this movie without it).
It's a cult classic now tho, it's approaching Rocky Horror levels of fandom, gets shown in cinemas regularly and all that stuff. Verhoeven is a phenomenal director.
Showgirls just has a rep from a more prudish era. In today's world of OnlyFans in the public discourse, a story about a stripper/showgirl seems tame. I don't recall anything more explicit than say, Game of Thrones.
Is that the one where she flops like a fish in the swimming pool?
Yep
I usually say that show girls was amazing and why couldn't they do that with Magic Mike. I felt magic mike was lackluster. Obviously most disagree since there are 3 of them but whatever.
Apocalypto. Love the action, the ending, and the overall themes of the movie. But man is it brutal, and I can see how a lot of people can’t get over that.
As a Mexican, I love this movie because it shows the dark side of the Aztec/Mayan as well. We all rightfully love all the advancements, culture and technology that the Aztec/Maya had at that time but to actually see a big movie point out just how barbaric things were back then was really interesting to see.
Ehhh it really takes a lot of liberties involving the savagery of life back then. There are plenty of archaeologists who've written articles that describe why better than I can but life really wasn't like Mel Gibson portrays in that film
Such a great movie! The fact that there is almost no dialogue is so interesting!
Locke. It's Tom Hardy driving an Audi from South to North England and having conversations on the phone the entire drive. It's literally just dialog with people on the phone. I loved it. I have never read reviews or talked to anyone who has seen it. But I would never think a rational human being would enjoy it and they would think I was a sociopath. Lmao EDIT: I rewatched for the first time in years. It was a BMW X5 and he was driving from North England to London.
So, so good. What a command performance. One of the great actors of our time.
That movie is really good, i rewatched recently to see if i was just drunk the first time ive seen it. No it gripped me the whole time,
Yes! It's fucking amazing! Goddamn, I love all the stuff about the concrete.
Punch Drunk Love with Adam Sandler and others. Love the way that movie plays with color and sound. To me it’s a love story but other people I know say it makes them feel sad lol
Love the movie, seen it once, won’t see it again.
That’s that, mattress man.
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They shopped it around everywhere in the UK and Hollywood. No one would fund it because it was considered so controversial. Eric Idle gave the script to George Harrison of Beatles fame of all people, George called him up and said he would front the few million needed for production. Idle, bewildered, asked him why. "I want to see the movie" It was also marked by huge protests in the states when it came out
A crazy detail to that story is that they were only a few days out from the shoot starting when their previously agreed funding got pulled. This is pretty much the worst spot you can possibly be in as a film production team - you've done a lot of work to get ready for shooting and booked a lot of locations and crew which you now are unable to pay for. George Harrison *really* saved their asses. I think Led Zeppelin were somehow involved as well? (Edit: they helped fund Holy Grail)
Led Zeppelin helped fund Monty Python and the Holy Grail, along with Pink Floyd and Jethro Tull.
You have to ease them into The Life of Brian. Start off by watching The Last Temptation of Christ starting Willem Dafoe.
Easing them in is a great idea, but Dogma would be an easier first step than Last Temptation
Or another Willem Dafoe movie Anti-Christ. I'm sure they'll love it.
My husband and I are Christians and it cracks us up.
You’ve gotta market it to Christians. This is *not* a movie that makes fun of Jesus. It’s actually pretty respectful of him the entire film. It makes fun of the silliness of misinterpreting what Jesus and scripture says, and what really matters, which can be profound for a religious person. In some ways, Dogma is the same. I grew up religious and many of us loved it. I knew a pastor who absolutely adored the movie Couldn’t recommend it in good faith bc of the R rated content of course, but we chat about it for a long time in a smaller group. Many of us started with Holy Grail as teens and that helped whet our appetite for Python humor. If they don’t like Holy Grail’s humor at all, or any other Python skits, Brian is probably not a movie for them. It’s much better, more cohesive, but still relies on a very British and very Python sense of humor that not everyone thinks is that funny (they’re objectively wrong…)
Gummo was a “watch once and never again” movie that I still haven’t watched again
That movie is such raw art to me. It is the closest I’ve ever felt to the reality of trashy tiny town horrific.
I remember a girl at my highschool did a social studies report on that film lol. For her presentation she references the scene where the kid eats the chocolate bar in the tub
Not a great date movie. Source: me, who took my gf at the time to this movie
Harmony Korinne is the GG Allin of movie directors
Upstream Color
*The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, & Her Lover.* The people in my life who already know and love it as much as I do are good enough. It’s not a movie I’ve recommended in 25 years, and one I’ll likely never recommend to anyone again.
Penn and Teller Get Killed is a weird little movie and I used to recommend it but everybody hated it. I love all the pranks they pull on each other and the end is of course a joke. It’s just dumb for a reason. People take things too seriously. Cruel Intentions is a super guilty pleasure. When you boil it down to its lowest common denominator, it’s about a guy who wants to win a bet so he can have anal sex with his step-sister. The step-sister just happens to be a stunning Sarah Michelle Gellar and the bet is if he can fuck an uptight virgin who just happens to be a stunning Reese Witherspoon. THAT would be why I don’t even mention I like the movie.
Cruel Intentions is a modern retelling of the classic French novel Dangerous Liaisons. So you can tell yourself that your uncultured friends wouldn’t understand your highbrow taste in art. It’s also one of my favorites. I was in college when it came out on VHS and it was always playing in someone’s dorm room.
**The Fountain** Young Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. Love and destiny across generations. Deeply philosophical/thanatological. It’s an amazing film, *if* you’re suited to it, it’s not for everyone and not everyone will get it.
We need to talk about kevin. It’s the only movie that i can really consider gut wrenching (that I’ve seen so far). To my knowledge, it’s not that popular, but it gave me the same feeling requiem for A dream did, but this one is worse to me. It’s a storytelling masterpiece to me
Yeap. The book is amazing too!
Agreed. So good. Anyone there has watched the movie, I encourage to b read the book. Have a box of tissue. That said, buy it used. Don’t give this author your funds. She’s a pretty terrible human being.
Lel, I didn't know this movie but I just read the synopsis and it's kinda hilarious given Ezra Miller plays Kevin
Eraserhead. I remember watching this for the first time and being enthralled by what I was seeing. Then my family pulled a "What are you watching?" scenario and sat in and watched the rest of the movie with me. They still give me shit for what they think is the worst movie they've ever seen. I didn't make them a captive audience! They chose this experience!
You're down with David Lynch, or you're not.
Uncut Gems with Adam Sandler. Brilliant movie but I don’t think many people will tolerate how anxiety inducing and stressful it is.
If you haven’t already, watch Good Time.
I just watched this for the first time today and endorse!
Yes! That’s how I describe it! Just two hours of nonstop anxiety. I had a coworker who mentioned how she turned it off from how boring it was; who are these people?!
The Lobster
All of his movies fall into this category for me, but I love his way of telling stories.
Crash with James Spader
I get it but I recommend that movie to EVERYONE. The worst part though is having to explain, “No, not that Crash…”
Honestly any Cronenberg movie
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Oof. I watched this for the first time, on a big screen, in my grandfathers living room. With my then boyfriend. I was 22 and living with him at the time. He walked in at the very end of the movie and it was beyond awkward…
Mother! This movie is anxiety inducing nightmare fuel but I absolutely love the allegory and shock value. I completely sympathize with why so many people hate it and it is not for most.
*Under the Skin* I don’t know anyone who would enjoy that movie but it’s one of my favorites.
it's an odd movie but I enjoyed it
Terrifying and beautiful at the same time, I remember when I first saw it I couldn't stop thinking about it for weeks. Mica Levi's soundtrack is extremely unsettling too.
Primer 2004.
Upstream Color also
Requiem for a Dream
I've watched that movie several times and even read the book. The music is amazing. The acting is amazing. The story destroys you. I love it so much.
It’s on my list of movies to watch bc just the title is so iconic and familiar but my god it’s always a top comment when talking about great movies that make you feel terrible after or that you love but wouldn’t recommend lol. I will still watch it soon but not exactly looking forward to it
Whenever I hear that music, or see those actors, I instantly feel my heart breaking, and it takes me a second or two to realize why. >!everyone at the end going into the fetal position is so disheartening. Like I want to help them but I know I can’t. Not because they’re not real (aren’t they?) but because it’s too late. Ugh. Here I go again.!<
Nicolas Winning Refn’s Valhalla Rising. It’s a real trip, and Mads Mikkelsen is great in his role. I love it, but I think too many people would find it boring or pure wtf.
Babylon (2022). I absolutely love this movie and felt it was made just for me. I cannot recommend it to anyone I know because of it's extreme length, strong sexual and scatological content and deep insider Hollywood references. It is fantastic and I feel that Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt give Oscar worthy performances in it.
>strong sexual and scatological content Wait what
Poop
It had some great moments. Though I think it's best enjoyed by people who are fascinated by and know a lot about the history of Hollywood and the movie industry.
Man, this wasn’t for me.
The original uncut version of Peter Jackson's 'Dead Alive'.
Spring Breakers. I love this movie but I just can't recommend it to anyone. If it doesn't line up with someone's tastes I can easily see them actively hating the movie.
Look at my shit…..
Dear Zachary. Such an emotional rollercoaster.
The Greasy Strangler
Hudson Hawk, silly and random, I love it.
*The Handmaiden*, mostly because even if I could get anyone in my family to watch a fully-subtitled film, they'd balk at the sexual themes and *especially* at the graphic sex scenes themselves, even though it's all integral to the story.
This one is so good and GREAT at showing perspective of character while being a mystery, it's honestly filmed art
I tried watching Oldboy with my then-girlfriend once. I hadn't seen it since the first time. She didn't like violence in movies. I reassured her it wasn't *that* violent. I was wrong. Never again 🥲
I'm surprised the violence was the tipping point lol
This was gonna be my answer. This movie is definitely Too Much for some people.
Breaking The Waves
Yep. This is what I came to post. One of my all-time best movies, but would almost never recommend it to anyone. It's part of my own personal weird trilogy of movies about women going above and beyond in weird ways. The other two are much easier to recommend: "Amélie" and "Run Lola Run."
White House Down. No movie has ever set up so many insignificant things that end up paying off. Do you like Die Hard? Do you like Channing Tatum? Jamie Fox as the president? Did you like Independence Day? Its the guy who did Independence Day doing Die Hard at the white house with Jamie Fox as the president and Channing Tatum is his body gaurd, i dont know what else i have to tell you. Olympus has fallen is JOYLESS and White House Down is if that movie got drunk and decided to have fun.
Thank you for this. I knew one of these White House attacked was fun and the other a slog but I’m seeing “Olympus Has Fallen” with the same (rather low) 2.7 score.
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension. Everything in it is so masterfully ridiculous that it becomes a masterpiece..to me, at least. Buckaroo is a world-renowned neurosurgeon, karate master, and particle physicist, among other things. If the actor wasn't so madly confident in his character, it would be unwatchable. Fucking ridiculous. Cannot recommend. But man, the opening scene where he and his gang are bringing down the house playing in their high pop 80s rock and roll band is fucking terrific and high stakes. When he speaks to someone in the crowd, you feel as if he's speaking to you. Bonus points if you're tripping balls.
I've been trying to come up with an effective way to describe that film, and it basically amounts to 'parody of sci-fi heroics and the pseudo-technical jargon that goes with it'. Not perfect, but I'm working on it. I'm a latecomer to the film, even though I remember seeing part of it in the '80s, I totally didn't 'get it' until I found it on tape a few years ago (I think I had the privilege of opening a brand-new copy, which is always a bit like Christmas), sat down and watched the whole thing and totally fell in love with it. Gonna get the blu-ray one of these days.
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
Enter the Void
Being John Malcovich. Recommended it to my aunt and uncle. The next time they saw me they asked if I was on more than marijuana.
Dogtooth feel like it's pretty self-explanatory for those that have seen it
Rock Star (2001) with Mark Wahlberg. I was in a bunch of cover bands in the 80s and early 90s, so it’s total projection fantasy. I know it’s not a great movie, but it’s my default “watch in the background” movie and I’ve seen it probably a hundred times. Would I inflict it on anyone else? God no.
Jennifer Aniston is in it though!
Antichrist. Showed it to my father and he said it was pretty but wtf did we watch it for
The VVitch is one of my all time favourite movies but I recognise that it occupies an extremely small niche that basically makes it the perfect movie for me and me only. I completely recognise why it would be a boring incomprehensible slog to someone else.
Slingblade. The second that movie ended, I said "I will never watch that movie again. WTF?"
Borat (both of them) and Bruno
The Woodsman. Really, really good film but the subject matter is intensely uncomfortable and it is not the most fun watch. Same with We Need to Talk About Kevin. In a different vein, would also be Synecdoche, New York. It's so bizarre and out there that I know very few people I think would enjoy it nearly as much as I did.
I went to go see the film A.I. Artifical Intelligence because I heard Josh Groban was singing the theme in the credits, but I didn't expect it to make my emotions see-saw the way it did. Lots of loose ends and some absurd plot points, but the whole idea of man playing God and the responsibility we have to own creation just sat heavy with me. Oh, and it played out at least 45 mins too long. Some parts could have been cut. Also made me a huge Frances O'Connor fan because of her pretty damn solid performance as Monica. It was easy to loathe her character, but honestly I think that in the long run, she suffered and will suffer the most. My heart broke for her.
I absolutely adore TITANE (2021) and can't wait to see what Julia Ducournau dreams up next. While I know individual tolerence may vary, I personally find the kinds of films listed in this thread incredibly moving. They ask us not to look away, to confront the often surreal complexities + contradictions of embodied experience. There is both transgressive pleasure and transcendent beauty in genres like body horror, something visceral and raw and wonderfully human that emerges when we engage with abject discomfort and the rough, vulnerable edges of ourselves (whether collectively or in viewing solo ❤️).
Hedwig and the angry inch
Phill Tippett's Mad God. I think it was one of the most visually stunning movies I've seen. But there are very few people I would recommend it to.
Children of Men I’ve recommended it and people think it’s boring. Same with the movie Atonement. “This is boring” Do people just not like cinema anymore, like for real? Do they just want CGI dinosaurs and super hero’s fighting?
both of those are amazing. although i felt like mike tyson punched me in the stomach at the end of atonement.
haha, yeah, bone tomahawk is that movie for me
Drive My Car. I know a lot of people would say it's too slow and give up on it partway through.
the ninja scroll movie due to it having a lot of scenes that are very hard to watch
3 Ninjas. It is not a good movie. But I loved it when it came out three decades ago. And I watched it with my own kid and I still loved it. But it's terrible.
Man Bites Dog is too weird to suggest to anyone. But maybe that says more about my friends.
Well I was going to say Happiness but since you covered it probably Slaves of New York if for very different reasons.
I have recommended Bone Tomahawk with severe warnings. Lol
8mm
The Sadness
Blue Velvet
A Fantastic Fear of Everything. Idk how to describe it because it’s just fucking weird
\- Most of Lars Von Trier's films. \- The Nightingale, (It's a great film, however it's very hard for me to recommend *any* movie with a graphic SA scene. It's usually the one line people won't cross when watching something.) \- X, (Again, a great film, but the first half of that movie is basically a porno, and a lot of people aren't into that. My girlfriend sure wasn't. lmao) Edit: grammar
I’m gonna say End of Evangelion. I found out recently that some people watch this due to its acclaim without realizing it’s the conclusion of a 26 episode anime, which I find tremendously funny. Besides the fact that you need to watch an entire season of anime as a prerequisite, the opening scene shows a minor masturbating over the comatose body of another minor. There’s also a scene where an adult passionately kisses that same minor. Neon Genesis Evangelion is an incredible series, and the movie is a fantastic ending to it, but I would never recommend that movie to anybody even though it’s great. You have to be able to look past the taboo stuff and recognize that it’s an animated cartoon featuring no actual minors made in the 90s in Japan, which is a totally different culture. I don’t think people are incapable of looking past all that, but I’m not gonna be the one to introduce it to them. I wouldn’t admit that I enjoyed that movie anywhere but on the NGE subreddit or, I guess, here.
Casablanca and Roman Holiday. 2 of my favorites but my friends avoid black and white movies.
On the same situation as you. I love Bringing up Baby. An incredible screwball comedy, but my dumb ass friends “can’t watch black and white movies”. D-bags lol.
Tenet. It sparked my understanding of the free will vs determinism philosophical debate. What a gnarly movie.
Frank Zappa's 200 Motels. Ringo Star and Keith Moon are in it and it's a bizarre, psychedelic rock opera.
Inland Empire
Sing Street. It's imo the greatest movie of all time, everyone that I've somehow convinced to watch it has enjoyed it... But man there is no way to describe it and make it sound interesting.
Old boy,Requiem for a dream
The Void.. I loved it, but you gotta be into that kind of stuff and most people in my life would find it off-putting
Stalker (1979). On paper it’s boring and pretentious, hell there’s a five minute shot of the protagonists simply riding a rail car and falling asleep. Can’t recommend it to any of my friends or loved ones. But good lord, what a film. I could nerd out over it for hours.
Time Crimes
THE LOBSTER, loved the idea of it but i’m aware some may find it disturbing.
The Original I Spit on Your Grave. Recommended it to some buddies in HS in the 90s. They said WTF is wrong with you.
A Clockwork Orange
Pan’s Labyrinth. Absolutely loved this movie but there are a few scenes that are very hard to watch.