Quirky, Overlooked and Worth Watching
These are movies that seem to have been somewhat forgotten, aren't constantly on cable, left out of the "Classics" canon for one reason or another, and are worth watching at least once.
Some are slices of life, great character studies, others are overlooked because they don't neatly fall into one genre, or are problematic with how they aged, but still stories worth watching.
*I realize these aren't obscure, truly rare, undiscovered movies, just ones worth watching, and you might not have heard of all of them.*
Most of them I stumbled upon and was pleasantly surprised. What are your favorite seldom-seen gems?
Some are slices of life, great character studies, others are overlooked because they don't neatly fall into one genre, or are problematic with how they aged, but still stories worth watching.
*I realize these aren't obscure, truly rare, undiscovered movies, just ones worth watching, and you might not have heard of all of them.*
Most of them I stumbled upon and was pleasantly surprised. What are your favorite seldom-seen gems?
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- DirectorStanley KramerStarsTony CurtisSidney PoitierCara WilliamsTwo chained-together escaped convicts, White and Black, must learn to get along in order to elude capture.Two escaped convicts must learn to get along in order to survive.
Drama. - DirectorRalph NelsonStarsSidney PoitierLilia SkalaLisa MannA travelling handyman becomes the answer to the prayers of nuns who wish to build a chapel in the desert.A wandering man helps nuns build a chapel in the desert.
Comedy/slice of life. - DirectorGeorge Roy HillStarsPeter SellersTippy WalkerMerrie SpaethA mischievous, adventuresome fourteen-year-old girl and her best friend begin following an eccentric concert pianist around New York City after she develops a crush on him.Odd fantasy set in NY about two girls and their crush on an elusive pianist played by Peter Sellers.
Comedy. - DirectorLeonard KastleDonald VolkmanStarsShirley StolerTony Lo BiancoMary Jane HigbyAn obese, embittered nurse doesn't mind if her toupee-wearing boyfriend romances and fleeces other women, as long as he takes her along on his con jobs.Two lonely weirdos find each other and bring out the worst in the other.
Cult/Thriller/Drama. - DirectorArthur PennStarsDustin HoffmanFaye DunawayChief Dan GeorgeJack Crabb, looking back from extreme old age, tells of his life being raised by Native Americans and fighting with General Custer.Dated but watchable story of the last survivor of Custer's Last Stand, with a great performance by Dustin Hoffman.
Comedy/Historical Drama. - DirectorRoss McElweeStarsRoss McElweeDede McElweeRoss McElwee Jr.Documentary filmmaker Ross McElwee sets out to make a movie about Union General Sherman's March to the Sea towards the end of the American Civil War, but keeps getting sidetracked by his own love life.A man's search for a theme for his documentary spirals into an introspective look at his past romances.
Documentary/comedy. - DirectorMartin RittStarsSally FieldJames GarnerBrian KerwinEmma moves to a ranch with her son after a divorce and befriends the older Murphy, but things turn complicated when her ex shows up.A young divorcee arrives in Arizona and tries to make a living in a small town.
Romantic comedy. - DirectorPercy AdlonStarsMarianne SägebrechtCCH PounderJack PalanceA lonely German woman ends up in the most desolate motel on Earth and decides to make it brighter.A European tourist is FED UP with her husband and searches for a new life. Artsy and kind of strange, but worth watching.
Drama/Slice of life/Comedy. - DirectorEmile ArdolinoStarsCybill ShepherdRobert Downey Jr.Ryan O'NealA reincarnated man unknowingly falls in love with his own daughter from his previous life. Once he realizes this, he tries to end their relationship before angels erase his memory.A comedy about reincarnation.
Romantic comedy. - DirectorRon UnderwoodStarsRobert Downey Jr.Charles GrodinAlfre WoodardAn unhappy businessman finds a new sense of purpose after he's tasked with helping a quartet of ghosts fulfill their last wishes before moving on to the afterlife.A comedy about the afterlife filmed in San Francisco, set in the 50's and 90's.
Romantic comedy. - DirectorMichael Caton-JonesStarsRobert De NiroLeonardo DiCaprioEllen BarkinThe story about the relationship between a rebellious 1950s teenager and his abusive stepfather, based on the memoirs of writer and literature Professor Tobias Wolff.Tobias Wolff's memoir about growing up with his abusive stepfather. A story about resiliency.
Drama. - DirectorJessie NelsonStarsRay LiottaWhoopi GoldbergTina MajorinoIn 1959, a widower hires a kindly housekeeper/nanny to care for his seven-year-old daughter.A young girl grieves her mother and a family comes together, a great family film set in the 60's.
Comedy/Light Drama. - DirectorGillies MacKinnonStarsSteve MartinGabriel ByrneLaura LinneyHis life was emotionally closed off from the world, until an orphaned baby showed up at his house.An abandoned child is found by Steve Martin's reclusive character, a movie about the family we choose and the lives we make for ourselves.
Light drama/comedy. - DirectorAtom EgoyanStarsIan HolmSarah PolleyCaerthan BanksA bus crash in a small town brings a lawyer to defend the families, but he discovers everything isn't what it seems.A story about a town recovering from a tragic accident, and its effects on the survivors. Heartbreaking and beautiful.
Drama. - DirectorBill CondonStarsIan McKellenBrendan FraserLynn RedgraveThe last days of Frankenstein (1931) director James Whale are explored.Great performances from Ian McKellen and Brendan Frasier illuminate this biography of an early gay Hollywood director as he reflects on his life.
Drama. - DirectorChris EyreStarsAdam BeachEvan AdamsIrene BedardArnold rescued Thomas from a fire when he was a child. Thomas thinks of Arnold as a hero, while Arnold's son Victor resents his father's alcoholism, violence and abandonment of his family.A young man sets out with his best frenemy from the Rez to find closure with his father.
Comedy/Drama. - DirectorThomas BezuchaStarsArye GrossEric SchweigTim DeKayA thirty-something gay guy, Henry Hart, returns to his childhood Montana home to confront his unrequited passion for his high school best friend.A sweet movie about coming out in a small town.
Comedy/Romance. - DirectorRaymond De FelittaStarsMichael RispoliKelly MacdonaldKathrine NarducciA dreamer finds that his wife and friends are binding him to his mediocre existence.A man in New York in the mid-century finds meaning to his life with family.
Comedy/slice of life/Drama. - DirectorTerry ZwigoffStarsSteve BuscemiThora BirchScarlett JohanssonTwo eccentric best friends graduate high school and respond to a man's romance-seeking newspaper ad as a gag, only to find their lives becoming increasingly complicated.Funny, sometimes harsh, story about a girl's transition into adulthood. Acerbic but with moments of sweetness, and great performances by Thora Birch and Steve Buscemi.
- DirectorAlan CummingJennifer Jason LeighStarsAlan CummingJennifer Jason LeighPhoebe CatesLove is complex and relationships deteriorate.An LA anniversary party lets us get to know the guests and their entanglements.
Comedy. - DirectorJill SprecherStarsAlan ArkinJohn TurturroMatthew McConaugheyIn New York City, the lives of a lawyer, an actuary, a house-cleaner, a professor and the people around them intersect as they ponder order and happiness in the face of life's cold unpredictability.Intersecting stories of New Yorkers seeking happiness in sometimes misguided ways.
Drama. - DirectorJacob KornbluthJosh KornbluthStarsJosh KornbluthWarren KeithSarah OvermanJosh has an offer to "go perm" at his employer and the first task is to mail 17 high priority letters....something that seems a little difficult to do.A very funny movie about the joys and mostly miseries of temping in the corporate world.
Comedy. - DirectorRay LawrenceStarsAnthony LaPagliaGeoffrey RushRachael BlakeThe relationships of four couples unravel after the discovery of a young woman's body in Lantana bush in suburban Sydney.A missing person investigation kicks off this intimate story.
Drama. - DirectorTodd LouisoStarsPhilip Seymour HoffmanAnnie MorganKathy BatesA depressed widower spends his time huffing gasoline fumes, buying toy planes and acting reckless in public while avoiding reading his wife's suicide note.A man grieves his wife's suicide. Sad, but with an electrifying performance by the always terrific Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Drama. - DirectorJustin LinStarsParry ShenJason TobinSung KangA group of over-achieving East Asian American high school seniors enjoy a power trip when they dip into extracurricular criminal activities.Bored, over-achieving suburban teenagers try to spice up their lives. Oops.
Drama.