In just a few hours, the telecast of the Oscars (or, as we refer to them, the “Weirdcademy Awards for squares”) will begin. We are happy to steal the Academy’s thunder by announcing cinema’s weirdest winners of 2024 now.
In the category of “Weirdest Short Film,” the sentimental favorite edged out a strong field of competitors, and overcame some vocal dissenters, as David Lynch earns a posthumous award for his final released work, the music video for his own composition “The Answers to the Questions.”
In the category of “Weirdest Scene,” the Weirdcademy Award goes to Megalopolis (in a nail-biter) for the scene where Jon Voight marvels at his boner (and some other crazy stuff happens afterwards).
In the category of “Weirdest Actress,” the Award goes to The Substance‘s Demi Moore for her portrayal of an actress of a certain age who accepts an obviously Faustian bargain to timeshare a career with a younger clone-ish version of herself and winds up with her face on Hollywood Boulevard. Should Moore take home the Oscar, as Michelle Yeoh did in 2023 and Emma Stone did in 2024, this will mark the third year in a row (and the fourth time ever) that the Academy and the Weirdcademy have shared the Actress award. This gives us pause.
In the category of “Weirdest Actor,” the award goes to Ryan Brickson Cole Tews for his performance as an Applejack salesman-turned-fur trapper-turned-beaver conspiracy frustrator in Hundreds of Beavers, and also for having the most names of any nominee.
And speaking of beavers, was there ever any doubt that underground sensation Hundreds of Beavers would win the Weirdcademy Award for “Weirdest Picture”?
Thanks to all voting members of the Weirdcademy, and see you again next year!
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Discussed in this episode:
Disembodied (1998): A mad scientist checks into a hotel and sets up a lab to turn people into slime before eating them. Sounds like a cheesy horror premise but there’s more to it than that: it’s a serious, if direct-to-video, artsploitation effort by director William Kersten, who’s also a stop-motion animator and classical music composer. Buy Disembodied.
Furious (1984): A kung fu master battles supernatural baddies to save the world. With a new age band, a rendition of the McKenzie Brothers “Great White North” theme, and a strange “go home” scene, this oddity appears to be a lost absurd comedy more than a so bad it’s weird discovery. Buy Furious.
Gwen and the Book of Sand (1985): A teenage girl and a 173-year-old nomad quest to save a kidnapped boy in the endless desert of the future. Lost post-apocalyptic French animation resurrected by the weirdos at Deaf Crocodile. Buy Gwen and the Book of Sand from Deaf Crocodile.
Hukkle (2002): A series of bizarre vignettes set in a remote rural Hungarian community where murder is afoot. György Pálfi‘s first feature is nearly dialogue-free (but hiccup-full) and has never been released on Blu-ray before this newly restored Dekanalog release. It includes a pair of Pálfi short films. Buy Hukkle.
The Ice Tower wins Silver Bear for for Outstanding Artistic Contribution: As stated in the title, Lucile Hadzihalilovic‘s “Snow Queen”-based fairy tale starring Marion Cotillard won a special award for “Artistic Contribution” (which means, essentially, that while not winning one of the three major prizes, the jury felt obliged to recognize it for its art direction and production design). Also, the film has been acquired for U.S. distribution by Yellow Veil. We’re getting excited for this one. Berlin Film Festival winners at Deadline.
Jacker (1993)/Jacker 2: Descent to Hell (1996): The original is a no-budget direct-to-video tale of a serial killer/carjacker; the more interesting-sounding sequel has the title character returning from a budget-conscious surreal Hell to possess others. From DTV revivalists Saturn’s Core. Buy Jacker/Jacker 2: Descent to Hell.
Street Trash (2024): Read Giles Edwards’ review. The socially-conscious but still gross South African remake of the underground classick about melting the homeless comes to Blu-ray. Buy Street Trash.
NEPOTISM CORNER:
Alex Kittle has been keeping busy with weird-movie based artwork, providing the image for Little White Lies’ commemorative essay on Wild at Heart (which you can check out here) and illustrations for Marya E. Gates’ new book on female directors, “Cinema Her Way.” Alex also hosts (or co-hosts) two upcoming events at the Brattle Theater in Boston: three days of True Tales of Wonder Women! from March 7-9, and a seminar on Agnes Varda’s Vagabond on March 18. Unfortunately, no weird movies in the slate, but don’t let that stop your estrogen binge.
WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE:
As mentioned in the podcast, we will (probably) have no guest on next week’s Pod 366, but Greg and Giles will return with a look at what’s weird for the week. In written content, Sunday sees the big announcement for 2024’s Weirdcademy Award winners (so this weekend is your last chance to vote for shorts or features). We’ll also have Giles Edwards‘ report on Slamdance 2025 shorts (and possibly something else from Giles); Shane Wilson stays late to cover another assignment that Came from the Reader-Suggested Queue as he reports on the time-traveling teenagers of Detention (2011); and Gregory J. Smalley takes a second look at Alejandro Jodorowsky‘s surreal debut, Fando y Lis (1968). Onward and weirdward!
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Discussed in this episode:
ame pippin Studio: Masaaki Yuasa has formed a new animation studio. Collaborators/partners include Asmik Ace (Tekkonkinkreet, “Paranoia Agent”), Aniplex (“Demon Slayer”), and CoMix Wave Films (Your Name.). We’re hopeful this team will produce some weird stuff. Variety has the details.
The Ice Tower [La Tour de Glace] (2025): A teenage runaway lands at a film set for an adaptation of “The Snow Queen.” From fairy tale specialist Lucile Hadzihalilovic, starring Marion Cotillard and Gaspar Noé as the in-film director, it just debuted at the Berlin Film Festival, with future distribution plans unknown at this time. The Ice Tower at Berlin Film Festival.
Slamdance: Sundance’s smaller, punkier cousin has gone mainly online in recent years, a trend that’s only likely to accelerate when Sundance relocates from Park City, UT to a larger city in 2027. (In fact, Slamdance itself has already pulled up stakes and physically moved to L.A., which may help its overall visibility in the circuit.) Slamdance is probably the largest festival for microbudget cinema, which means we can frequently find weirder offerings willing to take more chances than their pricier brethren, but with the downside that wider distribution is far from a certainty (and is, in fact, a rare proposition). Here are two films we’ll be keeping an eye on:
In the Mouth – An agoraphobic man and his mysterious roommate can’t leave the house because of a giant doppelganger head in the front yard.
Universe 25 – A postman seeks to deliver a lost letter allegedly sent by an angel from the future.
WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE:
No guest currently scheduled for next week’s Pod 366, although that could change. In any event, Greg and Giles will discuss the week’s weird news and releases. In written reviews,Giles Edwards plans to deliver the scoop on the two Slamdance features mentioned above, and possibly more from the festival; Shane Wilson covers the reader-suggested beat with an inquest into the Whoopi Goldberg/animatronic dinosaur buddy-cop flop Theodore Rex; new contributor Enar Clarke checks in with a report on the 1965 Italian rarity The Possessed; and Gregory J. Smalley takes a belated look at Flying Lotus’ weirdofest Kuso (2017). Onward and weirdward!
366 Weird Movies may earn commissions from purchases made through product links.
Quick links/Discussed in this episode:
Better Man (2024): A musical biopic of British singer-songwriter Robbie Williams, where the subject is portrayed by a CGI chimp. This arrived too late in 2024 for us to cover it, maybe we will give it a chance now that it’s out on VOD (although be warned, it’s currently at premium pricing). Buy or rent Better Man.
Felidae (1994): Read El Rob Hubbard’s review. A neo-noir enacted by a cast of animated cats. The description is ambiguous, but this item appears to be a 4K Blu-ray from Deaf Crocodile, not a 4K UHD disc. Buy Felidae.
Galaxy of Terror (1981): Read Shane Wilson’s review. An alien preys on astronauts fears, including the common fear of being raped to death by a giant space worm and kind of liking it. Now on 4K UHD. Buy Galaxy of Terror.
King Lear (1987): Jean-Luc Godard‘s version of Shakespeare’s play is, naturally, about a post-apocalyptic descendant of the Bard attempting to reconstruct his ancestor’s film, with the help of Pretty in Pink‘s Molly Ringwald. In our reader-suggested queue and now out on DVD and Blu-ray (for the first time?) from the Criterion Collection. Buy King Lear.
“Obayashi ’80s: The Onomichi Trilogy & Kadokawa Years”: A special screening from Feb 7 to 14 at NYC’s Japan society of six unknown-to-us 1980s films from Nobuhiko Obayashi (Hausu): School in the Crosshairs (1981); I Are You, You Am Me (Exchange Students) (1982); The Little Girl Who Conquered Time (1983); The Island Closest to Heaven (1984); and His Motorbike, Her Island (1986). Four of these (School, Girl, Heaven, Motorbike) will be released later this year on Blu-ray from Cult Epics. School in the Crosshairs, described as “A psychotronic fantasy forged into a young girl’s destiny to defend the planet” and “a cosmic overload of extraterrestrial fascists, preternatural powers and Obayashi’s uniquely adroit filmmaking abilities” sounds like the most promising of the batch from our weird perspective. “Obayashi ’80s: The Onomichi Trilogy & Kadokawa Years” at Japan Society.
Pinocchio 964 (1991): Read Kat Doherty’s review. If this once ultra-obscure underground Japanese film about a sex-slave cyborg is arriving on 4K UHD, then everything will on the format soon. Buy Pinocchio 964.
The Slaughter Brothers Dime Circus (2025?): A crowdfunding effort. Per the description, it’s a “dark horror story set in a dilapidated carnival which transforms into a surreal world of horror, fantasy, and retribution.” This was originally a theatrical performance, then a radio play; the feature film is to be directed by Richard “Fangs” Burgin. It’s about 70% funded at this writing, with just over two weeks left to go. The Slaughter Brothers Dime Circus Indiegogo campaign.
Universal Language (2024): Matthew Rankin returns, bringing us a Canadian-set comedy where the cast inexplicably speaks Persian, inspired as much in the style of Roy Andersson as Guy Maddin. We have been anxiously awaiting this particular release, although we’ll have to wait until it radiates into the flyover states after debuting in New York and California this week. Universal Language American distributor page.
WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE:
No guest scheduled for next week’s Pod 366; Giles and Greg should be back to run down the week’s weird news and releases. In written reviews, Shane Wilson recommends the strange anti-Nazi musical Strangers in Paradise (1984); Giles Edwards accepts a readers’ suggestion to check out his boy Nic Cage in the supernatural horror outing Longlegs (2024); and Gregory J. Smalley braves what may be one of the microbudgetest microbudget movies of all time, the seagull alternative reality flick Ed And Rooster’s Great Adventure (2025). Onward and weirdward!
This year, The Substance (and Demi Moore, The Substance) mark the only overlap between the Weirdcademy Awards and Hollywood’s lipstick-on-a-pig hootenanny, the Most Conventional Movie Awards. This follows a trend dating back all the way to last year of Hollywood recognizing one and exactly one weird film for awards season. Coralie Fargeat‘s gonzo body horror had just enough satirical traction to get the Academy to overlook the fact that at the end a bizarre mashup of its two lead characters drenches a tux-and-gown wearing audience in blood, but besides that, weird movies got about as far with the Academy as they normally do: nowhere. Francis Ford Coppola couldn’t sell enough wineries buy a single nomination for Megalopolis, which has to be the best New York-set Roman epic ever made where Jon Voight marvels at his own erection.
Instead, we get to choose between two musicals (one an overblown bore and the other mired in scandal), another (yawn) musical biopic, and a three-and-a-half hour movie about a destitute Holocaust survivor who’s also an impotent morphine addict and a rape victim with a mute sister-in-law and a wheelchair-bound wife, but other than that is a pretty carefree guy. (It’s the brutalest).
The Oscars are a joke, and everyone knows it. But you, my friend, you aren’t content with the same-old same-old. You want weird in your movies. The Weirdcademy Awards are for you, the moviegoer whose friends roll their eyes and sigh loudly when you suggest movie night should feature a gory all-puppet movie about a recovering alcoholic forced to become a serial killer because aliens have implanted a bomb in his neck.
Although the editors of 366 Weird Movies select the nominees from the pool of available movies, the Awards themselves are a naked popularity contest, and do not necessarily reflect either the artistic merit or intrinsic weirdness of the films involved. The Weirdcademy Awards are tongue-in-cheek and for fun only. Ballot-stuffing is a frequent occurrence. Please, no wagering.
The Weirdcademy Awards are given to the Weirdest Movie, Actor, Actress and Scene of the previous year, as voted by the members of the Weirdcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Weirdness.
Who makes up the Weirdcademy? Membership is open to all readers of 366 Weird Movies. If you can figure out how to vote in the poll, you are qualified to join. You can not be turned down because of your age, sex, religious or political affiliation, pronouns, or whether you still use “X.” There is no requirement that you’ve have to actually see any of the movies listed before voting. You can vote for any or all categories.
You can only vote once—so choose carefully. We’ll keep voting open until March 1, so we can announce our results before the Academy Awards and steal their thunder.
Be sure to also vote for Weirdest Short Film of the Year. To watch all five nominees and to cast your vote, please click here.
