Cult Musicals
Cult musicals, not your classics with Judy Garland but the whacked out bizarre fever dream musicals (and music-centric films).
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- DirectorRichard ElfmanStarsGene CunninghamMarie-Pascale ElfmanVirginia RoseThe bizarre and musical tale of a girl who travels to another dimension through the gateway found in her family's basement.Another one of my favorites. Danny Elfman and his brother made this, music by Oingo Boingo. Bizarre and wonderful. Susan Tyrell is magical.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsPaul WilliamsWilliam FinleyJessica HarperA disfigured composer sells his soul for the woman he loves so that she will perform his music. However, an evil record tycoon betrays him and steals his music to open his rock palace, The Paradise.Music (and acting!) by Paul Williams and Jessica Harper. PG and that is okay. Incredible song writing and performances. One of my favorite movies.
- DirectorJames FargoStarsPia ZadoraCraig ShefferTom NolanAliens land in the town of "Speelburgh" searching for the source of rock & roll. They find trouble with Dee Dee, Frankie and the pack.Super cheesy. Originally meant as a parody of B sci-fi movies but they decided to turn it into a musical. It's hilariously bad but somehow the music is catchy. In a way it is rockabilly greasers vs. new-wave aliens.
I'm partially ashamed at how much I love this. - DirectorJim SharmanStarsJessica HarperCliff De YoungRichard O'BrienJanet and Brad become contestants on a game show and wind up as captives.A sequel to rocky horror. Jessica Harper is delightful with her sultry voice.
- DirectorJim SharmanStarsTim CurrySusan SarandonBarry BostwickA newly-engaged couple have a breakdown in an isolated area and must seek shelter at the bizarre residence of Dr. Frank-n-Furter.A classic, duh, but would be remiss not to include.
- DirectorJohn Cameron MitchellStarsJohn Cameron MitchellMiriam ShorStephen TraskA gender-queer punk-rock singer from East Berlin tours the U.S. with her band as she tells her life story and follows the former lover/band-mate who stole her songs.Hedwig has one of the strongest stories of these kind of musicals. The music is also fantastic.
- DirectorMichael PowellEmeric PressburgerStarsMoira ShearerRobert RounsevilleLudmilla TchérinaA melancholy poet reflects on three women he loved and lost in the past: a mechanical performing doll, a Venetian courtesan, and the consumptive daughter of a celebrated composer.The oldest movie I have on the list. It's classic with ballet and opera but it is gorgeous and so bizarre.
- DirectorAlan ParkerStarsBob GeldofChristine HargreavesJames LaurensonA confined but troubled rock star descends into madness in the midst of his physical and social isolation from everyone.
- DirectorJohn LandisStarsJohn BelushiDan AykroydCab CallowayJake Blues rejoins with his brother Elwood after being released from prison, but the duo has just days to reunite their old R&B band and save the Catholic home where the two were raised, outrunning the police as they tear through Chicago.
- DirectorRamón SalazarStarsMónica CerveraPablo PuyolMiguel O'DoghertyA narcoleptic transgender woman who yearns to have sex reassignment surgery dreams up elaborate musical numbers in which she's the star.
- DirectorAllan ArkushStarsMalcolm McDowellAllen GarfieldDaniel SternMega-promoter Colin Beverly plans to sabotage the New Year's 1983 concert of small-time operator Max Wolfe. Wolfe's assistants Neil Allen and Willie Loman find romance while trying to save the drugs, violence, and rock and roll from Beverly's schemes.Music-centric and oh so good.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsRoger DaltreyAnn-MargretOliver ReedA psychosomatically blind, deaf, and mute boy becomes a master pinball player and, subsequently, the figurehead of a cult.
- DirectorLloyd KaufmanStarsJason YachaninKate GrahamAllyson SereboffZombified chickens attempt to kill the fast-food workers that cook them in a restaurant built on an ancient burial ground.Troma, does musical. Worth it for troma, musical part is nothing to rave over.
- DirectorTodd HaynesStarsEwan McGregorJonathan Rhys MeyersChristian BaleIn 1984, British journalist Arthur Stuart investigates the career of 1970s glam superstar Brian Slade, who was heavily influenced in his early years by hard-living and rebellious American singer Curt Wild.I like glam.
- DirectorTrey ParkerStarsTrey ParkerDian BacharStephen BlackpoolThe sole survivor of an ill-fated mining expedition tells how his taste for gold was replaced by that of human flesh.
- DirectorDarren Lynn BousmanStarsPaul SorvinoAnthony HeadAlexa PenaVegaA worldwide epidemic encourages a biotech company to launch an organ-financing program similar in nature to a standard car loan. The repossession clause is a killer, however.Great visuals, costumes and story. Personally, the music does not do it for me.
- DirectorRoy RowlandStarsPeter Lind HayesMary HealyHans ConriedA young boy dreams that he is in an imaginary world where, assisted by his family's plumber, he must save other piano-playing kids like himself from the dungeons of his dictatorial piano teacher who also mind-controls his mother.Jello Biafra's favorite movie.
- DirectorJim HensonStarsDavid BowieJennifer ConnellyToby FroudSixteen-year-old Sarah must solve a labyrinth to rescue her baby brother when he is taken by the Goblin King.
- DirectorJulien TempleStarsGeena DavisJeff GoldblumJim CarreyA Southern California girl befriends three furry aliens after their spaceship lands in her swimming pool.Odd interruptions of song, not a true musical but a fun movie nonetheless.
- DirectorJohn WatersStarsJohnny DeppRicki LakeAmy LocaneIn 1950s Baltimore, a bad boy with a heart of gold wins the love of a good girl, whose boyfriend sets out for revenge.
- DirectorGerald PottertonJohn BrunoJohn HalasStarsRichard RomanusJohn CandyJoe FlahertyA glowing green orb that embodies ultimate evil terrorizes a young girl with an anthology of bizarre and fantastic stories.
- StarsNeil Patrick HarrisNathan FillionFelicia DayAn aspiring supervillain must balance his career and his pursuit of a beautiful do-gooder.
- DirectorHenry SelickStarsDanny ElfmanChris SarandonCatherine O'HaraJack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town, but his attempts to bring Christmas to his home causes confusion.
- DirectorJohn FasanoStarsJohn MartinKen SwoffordSal VivianoDemons hypnotize the general public by posing as a rock and roll band.
- DirectorSidney LumetStarsDiana RossMichael JacksonNipsey RussellAn adaptation of "The Wizard of Oz" that tries to capture the essence of the African-American experience.The Wiz is not quite cult, but it legitimately a fever dream.