I'm referring to the under-the-radar movies that aren't necessarily known by everyone but are the ones that have unanimous praise among the people who know about them. Probably the most famous example I'm thinking of is the Coen brothers' Miller's Crossing. Some that come to mind:
Talk Radio - possibly my favorite Oliver Stone movie besides JFK and Natural Born Killers.
Jackie Brown/Death Proof - two Tarantino films with split opinions that I both love to death; I'd actually rank the latter on par with Reservoir Dogs.
Straight Time - arguably Dustin Hoffman's best performance, unavailable on DVD until this year.
Sorcerer/Cruising/To Live and Die in L.A. - all movies by William Friedkin that get less mention than The French Connection and The Exorcist, but which I find just as important.
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia - not as famous as The Wild Bunch, but I'll argue that this was the most influential Peckinpah movie for the way it foretold the coming of John Woo and the Tarantino generation.
The Last Temptation of Christ/After Hours - two unconventional Scorsese entries that are quite possibly his best films aside from his four most famous ones (Goodfellas, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Departed).
They Live - yes, I call this a "minor masterpiece." On one hand, it's the greatest guilty pleasure movie of all time, one that cancels out guilt, but on the other, it's an ingenious little satire from John Carpenter. My favorite of his aside from The Thing.
The Long Goodbye - one of my favorite movies ever; arguably the forerunner of 70's neo-noir.
I'd also like to point out that Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is quite possibly an instant minor masterpiece from when I first saw it, and that this year, three of my favorite films (Black Snake Moan, Zodiac, and The Darjeeling Limited) can be considered this IMO.
Anyone else have some other hidden or underappreciated gems?
wendersfan
11-29-07, 12:34 PM
The Long Goodbye - one of my favorite movies ever; arguably the forerunner of 70's neo-noir.I agree; it's fantastic.
Spike Lee's <b>25th Hour</b> seems to have this status. Minor or not, it's certainly a masterpiece.
JayDerek
11-29-07, 02:57 PM
I'd also like to point out that Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is quite possibly an instant minor masterpiece from when I first saw it, and that this year, three of my favorite films (Black Snake Moan, Zodiac, and The Darjeeling Limited) can be considered this IMO.
completely agree here. One of the most criminally overlooked movies in recent years. I love this film
CKMorpheus
11-29-07, 03:40 PM
I'd also like to point out that Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is quite possibly an instant minor masterpiece from when I first saw it, and that this year, three of my favorite films (Black Snake Moan, Zodiac, and The Darjeeling Limited) can be considered this IMO.
Anyone else have some other hidden or underappreciated gems?
100% agree. One of the most underrated films I've ever had the pleasure of watching and I recommend it to everyone I know, most of whom stare at me and have no idea what movie I'm talking about.
I'd like to put my vote in for Rules of Attraction. Maybe I'm a Bret Easton Ellis fanboy but I think it was a MUCH better adaptation of his novel than American Psycho.
KillerCannibal
11-29-07, 04:35 PM
^ Then put me down for American Psycho. I absolutely LOVE that movie.
My actual personal pick would be <b>River's Edge</b>. Great Twin Peaks-esque drama starring Keanu Reeves and Crispin Glover. In fact, director Tim Hunter helmed a few episodes of Twin Peaks based on the strength of that film.
The Bus
11-29-07, 04:57 PM
I'd add to that Come and See (Idi i Smotri).
Jray
11-29-07, 05:34 PM
I would add Beautiful Girls, a movie that gets a lot of love here on DVDTalk but isn't very well-known outside of it. Fantastic roles by Michael Rapaport and a young Natalie Portman.
hardercore
11-29-07, 05:35 PM
The Iron Giant is one in my books.
Norm de Plume
11-29-07, 06:54 PM
I'd add to that Come and See (Idi i Smotri).
That's known as a masterpiece among cineastes.
Rival11
11-29-07, 06:58 PM
I'm referring to the under-the-radar movies that aren't necessarily known by everyone but are the ones that have unanimous praise among the people who know about them. Probably the most famous example I'm thinking of is the Coen brothers' Miller's Crossing. Some that come to mind:
Talk Radio - possibly my favorite Oliver Stone movie besides JFK and Natural Born Killers.
Jackie Brown/Death Proof - two Tarantino films with split opinions that I both love to death; I'd actually rank the latter on par with Reservoir Dogs.
Straight Time - arguably Dustin Hoffman's best performance, unavailable on DVD until this year.
Sorcerer/Cruising/To Live and Die in L.A. - all movies by William Friedkin that get less mention than The French Connection and The Exorcist, but which I find just as important.
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia - not as famous as The Wild Bunch, but I'll argue that this was the most influential Peckinpah movie for the way it foretold the coming of John Woo and the Tarantino generation.
The Last Temptation of Christ/After Hours - two unconventional Scorsese entries that are quite possibly his best films aside from his four most famous ones (Goodfellas, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Departed).
They Live - yes, I call this a "minor masterpiece." On one hand, it's the greatest guilty pleasure movie of all time, one that cancels out guilt, but on the other, it's an ingenious little satire from John Carpenter. My favorite of his aside from The Thing.
The Long Goodbye - one of my favorite movies ever; arguably the forerunner of 70's neo-noir.
I'd also like to point out that Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is quite possibly an instant minor masterpiece from when I first saw it, and that this year, three of my favorite films (Black Snake Moan, Zodiac, and The Darjeeling Limited) can be considered this IMO.
Anyone else have some other hidden or underappreciated gems?
Zen - I completely agree with your comparison on Death Proof and Reservoir Dogs.
colbyw
11-29-07, 07:58 PM
Gotta love "Blood Simple" and "Miller's Crossing"...Great call on "Straight Time"...If you haven't done so already; check out Kubrick's "The Killing", if you like "The Long Goodbye" you'll love "The Killing"
Zen Peckinpah
11-29-07, 08:33 PM
Gotta love "Blood Simple" and "Miller's Crossing"...Great call on "Straight Time"...If you haven't done so already; check out Kubrick's "The Killing", if you like "The Long Goodbye" you'll love "The Killing"
The Killing is fantastic!
PopcornTreeCt
11-29-07, 09:21 PM
Memento -This film is just amazing. Nolan gets all the love from the fans, the media and I'm sure the studios for Batman Begins but Memento is still his best.
Umberto D. -Might not exactly be considered minor, but when you think of films of Vittorio De Sica the one that always comes to mind is The Bicycle Thieves, a masterpiece in it's own right, however, Umberto D. is the superior film.
Nights of Cabiria -Again, this film doesn't come up when talking about the great Federico Fellini. It is my favorite and a superb one.
Red Beard -Akira Kurosawa, that guy that made those samurai flicks. Well, Kurosawa made some great movies that didn't involve Toshiro Mifune gripping a sword. Red Beard is a very powerful film that I was highly impressed with. Same goes for the criminally underrated High & Low.
thegame370
11-29-07, 10:00 PM
Almost Famous - Fantastic film
inri222
11-29-07, 11:16 PM
Red Beard -Akira Kurosawa, that guy that made those samurai flicks. Well, Kurosawa made some great movies that didn't involve Toshiro Mifune gripping a sword. Red Beard is a very powerful film that I was highly impressed with. Same goes for the criminally underrated High & Low.
The Bad Sleep Well
And I will also add:
Eyes Wide Shut
Rumble Fish
Zen Peckinpah
11-29-07, 11:43 PM
Rumble Fish
How could I have forgotten this? It's probably what snagged Mickey Rourke the consideration for Sin City.
Rypro 525
11-30-07, 12:25 AM
I'd like to add Revenge and True Romance by Tony Scott. Both are favorites of mine that many aren't familiar with (many Tarantino fans aren't even familiar with True Romance)
dom56
11-30-07, 12:41 AM
The Duellists (1977) - Ridley Scott first directed film is a masterpiece. Amazing cinematography, great performance by Harvey Keitel and Keith Carradine despite their American accent in mostly British casts.
Zen Peckinpah
11-30-07, 12:50 AM
I'd like to add Revenge and True Romance by Tony Scott. Both are favorites of mine that many aren't familiar with (many Tarantino fans aren't even familiar with True Romance)
True Romance is great, great, and more great.
I've never seen Revenge...should I see the director's cut or the theatrical? I've heard meh things about the latter, but my interest piqued when I heard Tarantino was a fan.
Son-volt
11-30-07, 09:56 AM
Years ago in preparation for being locked indoors all weekend with a massive snowstorm heading my way I hit the local video store and picked up four movies, all of which looked interesting:
Zero Effect
The Tao of Steve
The Spanish Prisoner
Beautiful Girls
All of which I think in their own way are brilliant little gems. It was probably the best blizzard I've experienced.
printerati
11-30-07, 03:12 PM
Before Sunrise, Gattaca, and the Korean Memories of Murder are a few of mine.
I too love Miller's Crossing, but am not a fan of The Killing due in large part to the obnoxious narration.
bhk
11-30-07, 08:12 PM
Europa, Europa.
wendersfan
11-30-07, 08:33 PM
Europa, Europa.
My wife loves that movie. :up:
lawyer goodwill
12-01-07, 02:40 AM
A Perfect World by Clint Eastwood - his excellent follow-up to Unforgiven.
Rypro 525
12-01-07, 03:30 AM
I've never seen Revenge...should I see the director's cut or the theatrical? I've heard meh things about the latter, but my interest piqued when I heard Tarantino was a fan.
the dc moves at a faster pace (its about 20 minutes shorter) and deletes alot of the back story. But that was Scott's request. Also there are more explicit shots of the sex scenes. Also the commentary is amusing since Tony Scott sounds like an old perv drooling over Madalyne Stonne throughout the commentary. I prefered the dc, since i thought the pacing was pretty slow in the original version.
animatedude
12-01-07, 08:58 AM
The Chumscrubber
DeputyDave
12-01-07, 10:21 AM
The Man Who Would Be King
Not only is it my all time favorite movie and is the best movie to star Sean Connery or Michael Caine it is the best movie directed by John Huston (including The Maltese Falcon).
slabinskia
12-01-07, 04:22 PM
Jacob's Ladder. I didn't quite understand it the first time around. I watched it again and loved it.
Heist. The knock on this movie is that it tries to be too clever but I loved it. It's a Mamet movie with great actors.
Another great Mamet movie is Glengarry Glen Ross. While it's popular on imdb, few casual movie fans have heard of it, which is a shame.
GoldenJCJ
12-01-07, 04:48 PM
Almost Famous - the theatrical version is very good. The Bootleg Cut is great!
Wonder Boys - Michael Douglas, Toby Maguire, Robert Downey Jr. at their best.
Kingdom of Heaven - The Director's Cut brought a mediocre film up to an incredible film!
brizz
12-01-07, 10:27 PM
McCabe and Mrs Miller - Altman's best film imho
Almost Famous Directors Cut - I wish it was 4 hours long!
Tunes of Glory - Alec Guiness is absolutely mesmerizing in this - one of my favorite films of all time
Dazed and Confused - simply the best use of music and 70s nostalgia ever put to film.
Whale Rider - I just love this one..
Smoke Signals - the best work of Native American cinema out there - and it's absolutely a masterpiece of storytelling.
Zen Peckinpah
12-01-07, 10:38 PM
Jacob's Ladder. I didn't quite understand it the first time around. I watched it again and loved it.
Heist. The knock on this movie is that it tries to be too clever but I loved it. It's a Mamet movie with great actors.
Another great Mamet movie is Glengarry Glen Ross. While it's popular on imdb, few casual movie fans have heard of it, which is a shame.
Glengarry Glen Ross is EXACTLY like the Radio Shack I work at. My one co-worker is Shelley "The Machine" Levine, I swear to god. I even have a nickname for him, and he's just as sale-hungry as he is. I told a co-worker of mine to watch it and we've been saying "Fuckin' amatchas!" daily. A great, great movie, the type that works both as divinely awesome and absolutely hilarious no matter what happens.
While we're talking about Mamet, what about House of Games?
"I'm from the United States of KISS MY ASS!"
troystiffler
12-01-07, 11:11 PM
Lots of good ones already listed.
I'll add "Hearts in Atlantis".
gryffinmaster
12-01-07, 11:51 PM
Whale Rider
:up::up: My first thought.
Banky
12-02-07, 01:00 AM
Let me add another vote for Memento. I would also like to mention Requiem for a Dream.
vcuram
12-02-07, 02:03 AM
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid
Paris, Texas
Anything by Christopher Guest
Kubrick's older films (The Killing and Paths of Glory) are often overlooked.
And the most overlooked, absolutely fantastic film:
Monte Hellman's Cockfighter
JPRaup
12-03-07, 04:42 PM
not sure how "minor" some of these are, but:
Brick
The Lookout
The 25th Hour
Memento
The Hottest State
Bottle Rocket
A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
La Haine (Hate)
The Man From Earth
Once
Go
The Squid and the Whale
L.I.E.
Me and You and Everyone We Know
Frailty
Green Street Hooligans
cfloyd3
12-04-07, 05:12 PM
I don't really get the term but these overlooked American films came to mind..
Medium Cool (Haskell Wexler)
Mikey & Nicky (Elaine May)
Friday Night (Claire Denis) - french
The Funeral (Abel Ferrara)
Matewan (John Sayles)
animatedude
12-04-07, 05:37 PM
Angel-A
watch it! PLEASE!
Boondock Saint
12-04-07, 06:59 PM
Agree with a lot of these...I'll add:
A Simple Plan
animatedude
12-09-07, 12:01 PM
Pretty Persuasion
animatedude
12-10-07, 02:24 PM
Imaginary Heroes.
Randy Miller III
12-10-07, 02:31 PM
Red Beard -Akira Kurosawa, that guy that made those samurai flicks. Well, Kurosawa made some great movies that didn't involve Toshiro Mifune gripping a sword. Red Beard is a very powerful film that I was highly impressed with. Same goes for the criminally underrated High & Low.
I'll certainly agree with your two Kurosawa picks...and I'd also add <i>Ikiru</i> to that list. Red Beard is probably my favorite overall, and <i>High and Low</i> completely floored me. I wasn't expecting as much out of it, but it was really solid the whole way through.
RichC2
12-10-07, 02:40 PM
The Station Agent
animatedude
12-11-07, 01:03 PM
Lawn Dogs.
Dr Mabuse
05-21-08, 07:42 AM
'Spartan'...
'The Limey'...
'Frailty'...
'One False Move'...
'Ronin Gai'...
'Touchez Pas Au Grisbi'...
'Man On The Train'...
'Harsh Times'...
'Musa The Warrior'... (uncut Korean release)
'Izo'...
there's a few off the top of my head...
GatorDeb
05-21-08, 08:28 AM
The Orphanage.
Charlie Goose
05-21-08, 02:14 PM
Totally agree with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.
Running on Empty - Excellent movie, with great performances all around. The scene with Christine Lahti and Steven Hill is one of the most heartbreaking and emotional scenes ever put to film.
Too early for The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters? Maybe the fact that I was smack in the middle of that era colors my judgment.
MartinBlank
05-21-08, 02:44 PM
Bottle Rocket
True Romance
Brick
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
mattressman
05-21-08, 04:39 PM
Brain Damage
This movie is so damn great and nobody I meet ever knows about it. :(
redcon1
05-21-08, 05:07 PM
Three from the 80's that I really enjoyed:
"Near Dark"
"The Hidden"
"Tucker: The Man and His Dream"
Ky-Fi
05-21-08, 05:27 PM
Europa, Europa.
Great movie, and I also appreciated that director's 1993 version of A Secret Garden---excellent, well-acted, moody children's tale.
And in that same vein, my choice would probably be John Sayles The Secret of Roan Inish, from 1994. Sort of a "magical realism" Irish fable, and I thought that movie was just about a perfect synthesis of story, casting, performances, pacing, cinematography and musical score all serving the same vibe.
Zen Peckinpah
05-21-08, 06:51 PM
Brain Damage
This movie is so damn great and nobody I meet ever knows about it. :(
Arguably the most ingenious drug addiction metaphor ever made, where the people alienated by an addict get their heads munched out by a blue brain that talks like Tony Randall. :D
mattressman
05-21-08, 07:27 PM
Arguably the most ingenious drug addiction metaphor ever made, where the people alienated by an addict get their heads munched out by a blue brain that talks like Tony Randall. :D
Genius!
visitor Q
05-21-08, 07:40 PM
Gattaca, and the Korean Memories of Murder.
:up:
I'd throw in ..
Bound - Wachowski Bros' first feature film, heavily overshadowed by the Matrix trilogy. Excellently plotted suspense thriller lead by fine performances all around.
Duel - The TV production that put Spielberg on the map? If ever there was a group of films that should be analyzed for its mastery of creating tension using a minimalistic approach, this film should be included.
The Game - Fincher's brilliant, almost surrealistic all life encompassing game. It's been quite some time since I've seen this so I don't recall all of it, but I recall being blown away by it.
The Machinist - Have a guilty conscience? See this film and you'll know what to do. Another masterfully played role by Bale. And if it weren't for the fact that Bale transformation happened offscreen, he could have knocked Deniro off top spot for his onscreen transformation in Raging Bull.
Monster's Ball - It's such a thoughtful, almost transcendental film though its narrative exterior is quite simple. Interesting character study and excellent performances - even Combs. I really enjoyed the final "hopeful" moments.
Buy: