Cult film, described by some as a film type with an overly obsessive and sometimes ritualistic fan base, characterised not only by its small but dedicated following, but also by the way it deals with current or past affairs with either a blatant disregard for subtlety or political correctness. Others may describe ‘cult film’ as a film type that involves ‘over the top’ acting, disgusting scenes of blood and gore, highly unlikeable characters and ‘clichéd’ often, unbelievable scenarios.
However, it can be argued that the definition of ‘cult’ could simply mean ‘a set of controversial films standing up against the norm of mainstream Hollywood conformity.’ Films that do not have a particular interest in good taste or facts, and films that sometimes, don’t even have a message to send. One thing is for certain however, it celebrates the weird and wonderful, as well as prides itself at being politically and culturally non-confirmative.
In this essay, I have chosen to talk about the oppositional qualities of ‘Cult film’ using the two films that challenge the Hollywood ‘norm’ to the extremes. I am talking of-course, about The Rocky Horror Picture Show (Directed by Jim Sharman) who also directed the film such films as Shock Treatment (1981.) The second film i shall be analysing is, Pink Flamingos (Directed by John Waters) who is also responsible for films such as female troubles (1974) and Cry-baby (1990.)
It is easy to see why John Waters ‘Pink Flamingos’ would be considered oppositional and in bad taste. With its crude and sickening sex scenes, full frontal nudity, obsession with bodily fluids and scenes depicting bestiality, animal cruelty and Nazi affiliation, it could be said that ‘Pink flamingos’ is the front runner for ‘Bad ta...
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...The Cult Film Experience: Beyond All Reason - Google Books. [ONLINE] Available at: http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=rBflAgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT36&dq=The+Cultural+Politics+of+taste+cult+film+&ots=jSQze3pKws&sig=tFepOZR-l5qiobiENxBvPVUvVZM#v=onepage&q=The%20Cultural%20Politics%20of%20taste%20cult%20film&f=false. [Accessed 03 April 2014].
- When in Doubt, Go for Maximum Ambiguity: “The Art Cinema as a Mode of Film Practice” by David Bordwell and the Hetrogeneity of Art Cinema | Why Bother?. 2014. When in Doubt, Go for Maximum Ambiguity: “The Art Cinema as a Mode of Film Practice” by David Bordwell and the Hetrogeneity of Art Cinema | Why Bother?. [ONLINE] Available at: http://whybother.ie/2013/06/20/when-in-doubt-go-for-maximum-ambiguity-the-art-cinema-as-a-mode-of-film-practice-by-david-bordwell-and-the-hetrogeneity-of-art-cinema/. [Accessed 03 April 2014].
In the piece “Cinema/Ideology/Criticism,” Jean Luc-Comolli and Jean Narboni define the critic's job as the discernment of “which films, books and magazines allow the ideology a free, unhampered passage, transmit it with crystal clarity, serve as its chosen language” and which films “attempt to make it turn back and reflect itself, intercept it, make it visible by revealing its mechanisms, by blocking them” (753). Through their examination, seven film categories are outlined. Clue falls into the “E” category, which is defined as “films which seem at first sight to belong firmly within the ideology and to be completely under its sway, but which turn out to be so only in an ambiguous manner” (75...
Society tends to associate propaganda films with issues such as Nazi Germany and their film messages for their country; however, it is also possible for small independent companies, groups of like-minded people and individuals to use the media of film to incorporate messages for our society (The Independent, 2010). These messages are often in relation to changes that individuals should make in order to improve the standards by which they live their lives and changes to everyday habits that will benefit the individual, the individual’s family, a group of individuals or even a single person (Barnhisel and Turner, 2010).
Nichols, John. ""Counbtering Censorship: Edgar Dale and the Film appreciation movement (critical essay)."." Cinema Jouranl. Fall 2006.
Stanley, Robert H. The Movie Idiom: Film as a Popular Art Form. Illinois: Waveland Press, Inc. 2011. Print
In this paper I will offer a structural analysis of the films of Simpson and Bruckheimer. In addition to their spectacle and typically well-crafted action sequences, Simpson/Bruckheimer pictures seem to possess an unconscious understanding of the zeitgeist and other cultural trends. It is this almost innate ability to select scripts that tap into some traditional American values (patriotism, individualism, and the obsession with the “new”) that helps to make their movies blockbusters.
In accordance with Henry Jenkins argument in “Get a Life!”: Fans, Poachers, Nomads, Jenkins argues that there is another angle to which media fans can be viewed and attempt to be understood with regards to a culture that is not considered widely and often portrayed within negative terms. Jenkins reading emphasises to the readers that fans of media texts are being depicted as a culture which possesses negative characteristics, that which could be considered as taboo as well as another side to fan culture that’s does not receive as much recognition. These media fans are recognised as active readers of the text. The two films selected: Avatar and WALL-E, are films that are both within the genre of science fiction. The films having
Mulvey, Laura. “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.” Narrative Apparatus Ideology. Ed. Philip Rosen, (New York: Columbia UP, 1986), 198-209.
In recent times, such stereotyped categorizations of films are becoming inapplicable. ‘Blockbusters’ with celebrity-studded casts may have plots in which characters explore the depths of the human psyche, or avant-garde film techniques. Titles like ‘American Beauty’ (1999), ‘Fight Club’ (1999) and ‘Kill Bill 2’ (2004) come readily into mind. Hollywood perhaps could be gradually losing its stigma as a money-hungry machine churning out predictable, unintelligent flicks for mass consumption. While whether this image of Hollywood is justified remains open to debate, earlier films in the 60’s and 70’s like ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ (1967) and ‘Taxi Driver’ (1976) already revealed signs of depth and avant-garde film techniques. These films were successful as not only did they appeal to the mass audience, but they managed to communicate alternate messages to select groups who understood subtleties within them.
Of all the 1980’s films, that can be described as “Eighties Teen Movies” (Thorburn, 1998) or “High School Movies” (Messner, 1998), those written and (with the exception of “Pretty In Pink” (1986) and “Some Kind of Wonderful”(1987)) directed by John Hughes were often seen to define the genre, even leading to the tag “John Hughes rites de passage movies” as a genre definition used in 1990s popular culture (such as in “Wayne’s World 2” (1994 dir. Stephen Surjik)). This term refers to the half dozen films made between 1984 and 1987; chronologically, “Sixteen Candles” (1984), “The Breakfast Club” (1985), “Weird Science” (1985), “Ferris Bueller's Day Off” (1986), “Pretty In Pink” (1986) and “Some Kind Of Wonderful” (1987) (the latter two being directed by Howard Deutch). For the purpose of this study, “Weird Science” and “Some Kind of Wonderful” shall be excluded; “Weird Science” since, unlike the other films, it is grounded in science fiction rather than reality and “Some Kind of Wonderful” as its characters are fractionally older and have lost the “innocence” key to the previous movies: as Bernstein states “the youthful naivete was missing and the diamond earring motif [a significant gift within the film] was no substitute” (Bernstein, 1997, p.89). Bernstein suggests that the decadent 1980s were like the 1950s, “an AIDS-free adventure playground with the promise of prosperity around every corner … our last age of innocence” (Bernstein, 1997, p.1). The films were very much a product of the time in terms of their production (“suddenly adolescent spending power dictated that Hollywood direct all its energies to fleshing out the fantasies of our friend, Mr. Dumb Horny 14 Year Old” Bernstein, 1997, p.4), their repetition (with the growth of video cassette recorders, cable and satellite with time to fill, and also the likes of MTV promoting the film’s soundtracks) and their ideologies.
Maasik, Sonia, and J. Fisher Solomon. "The Offensive Movie Cliche That Won't die." Signs of life in the U.S.A.: readings on popular culture for writers. Boston: Bedford Books of St. Martin's Press, 1994. 407-411. Print.
Reviewing cult movies, one will notice that many films will involve scenes using drugs such as marijuana or hallucinogens. Drugs performed in films with scenes of actors or actresses smoking pot tend to draw in a wide spread of audience; those who find marijuana to be the “sin” and fun to watch, and those of the smoking-hippie era themselves. Many cult drug films are solely based around marijuana or LSD because these are two drugs that cause someone to feel relaxed, or help stimulate the way the brain thinks. Many drugs that are viewed in films cause the audience to feel different from mainstream, therefore they play an important role towards the reception of the film. (Mathijs and Sexton, 164) With further discussion on the film and the way it was portrayed and viewed by the initial audience, I believe that Requiem for a Dream can be considered a cult film that prominently features drug use.
Since the creation of films, their main goal was to appeal to mass audiences. However, once, the viewer looks past the appearance of films, the viewer realizes that the all-important purpose of films is to serve as a bridge connecting countries, cultures, and languages. This is because if you compare any two films that are from a foreign country or spoken in another language, there is the possibility of a connection between the two because of the fact that they have a universally understanding or interpretation. This is true for the French New Wave films; Contempt and Breathless directed by Jean-Luc Godard, and contemporary Indian films; Earth and Water directed by Deepa Mehta. All four films portray an individual’s role in society using sound and editing.
Film scholar and gender theorist Linda Williams begins her article “Film Bodies: Genre, Gender and Excess,” with an anecdote about a dispute between herself and her son, regarding what is considered “gross,” (727) in films. It is this anecdote that invites her readers to understand the motivations and implications of films that fall under the category of “body” genre, namely, horror films, melodramas, (henceforth referred to as “weepies”) and pornography. Williams explains that, in regards to excess, the constant attempts at “determining where to draw the line,” (727) has inspired her and other theorists alike to question the inspirations, motivations, and implications of these “body genre” films. After her own research and consideration, Williams explains that she believes there is “value in thinking about the form, function, and system of seemingly gratuitous excesses in these three genres,” (728) and she will attempt to prove that these films are excessive on purpose, in order to inspire a collective physical effect on the audience that cannot be experienced when watching other genres.
Gunning, Tom 2000, “The Cinema of Attraction: Early film, its spectator, and the avant-garde.” Film and theory: An anthology, Robert Stam & Toby Miller, Blackwell, pp 229-235.
Lyden, J. (2003). Film as religion: myths, morals, and rituals. New York, USA: NYU Press.