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Our weekly look at what’s weird in theaters, on hot-off-the-presses DVDs and Blu-rays (and hot off the server VODs), and on more distant horizons…

Trailers of new release movies are generally available at the official site links.

IN THEATERS (LIMITED RELEASE):

Ten Minutes to Midnight (2020): An aging punk radio host is bitten by a bat, and may be turning into a vampire. Apparently it gets wild and gory, as it’s earned some comparisons to Evil Dead II and Dead Alive.  Ten Minutes to Midnight official Facebook page.

ONLINE RE-RELEASE:

Faust (1994): Read Alex Kittle’s List Candidate review. Of course,  it’s fantastic news that Jan Svankmajer‘s second surrealist feature mixing  stop-motion and live action is restored and available again, but what’s really exciting is the possibility that this re-release may signal revived interest in the rest of the Svankmejer’s catalog, which has been shamefully neglected in recent years. See a list of online rental partners at distributor KimStim’s Faust page.

STREAMING (HBO):

“The Third Day” (2020): Told in two halves, “Summer” and “Winter,” describing two separate characters visits to an barely-accessible British island where villagers practice their own peculiar form of paganism. This HBO miniseries is Wicker Man-inspired, obviously, but we assume it finds it’s own spin on the subject. “The Third Day” HBO page.

FILM FESTIVALS – Fantastic Fest (Austin, TX and online, 9/24-10/1):

The bad news: due to the pandemic, this year’s edition of Fantastic Fest has a dramatically slimmed down slate. The very good news: the offerings they do have will (with a few exceptions) be screened online for free for U.S. residents. The Old Man Movie (on 9/26) is one free offering. Also of note:

• Daughters of Darkness (1971) – Harry Kümel‘s classic, strange lesbian vampire movie in a new restoration—with Kümel on hand for a Q&A afterwards. Sep. 27.
  
• Possessor (2020) – Eight years after his weird debut Antiviral, Brandon Cronenberg is back with another feature film about future assassins who possess the bodies of innocents to carry out their kills. Sorry, in-theater only on Sep. 23 (though it will be in theaters and on VOD screens worldwide soon enough).
  
• Triple Fisher: The Lethal Lolitas of Long Island (2012) – For anyone  who fondly remembers the Amy Fisher scandal of the 1990s, here is Dan Kapelovitz’s experimental trash film that edits all three (!) made-for-TV movies exploiting the underage sex and violence scandal into one mind-numbing Fisher farrago. Sep. 28.

Visit the Fantastic Fest home page for complete schedule and instructions on how to access the screenings.

IN DEVELOPMENT:

Reflections of Evil 2: The Same Day (202?): A sequel to Damon Packard‘s uncategorizable experimental DIY magnum opus about an obese watch salesman, his dead sister, and Steven Spielberg? According to  IMDB, it’s been announced, complete with a tagline: “Bobby is back and he’s fatter than ever.” One problem: we couldn’t find any updates since the project was announced back in 2016 (and Packard’s completed two features, the thriller Fatal Pulse and the horror anthology Tales Beyond Madness, since). Still, we can hope. Reflections of Evil 2: The Same Day listing on IMDB.

NEW ON HOME VIDEO:

“The Alejandro Jodorowsky Collection”: Here’s a Blu-ray box set release that may be of minor interest to some here. It includes Fando y Lis (1968),  El Topo (1970), The Holy Mountain (1973), and Jodorowsky’s latest film, Psychomagic, A Healing Art (2019) (which is not yet available separately). New interviews with Jodo and others and the short “La Cravate” (1957) are included among the numerous extras. Buy “The Alejandro Jodorowsky Collection”.

Jesus Shows You the Way to the Highway (2019): Read Giles Edwards’ Apocrypha Candidate review. Miguel Llansó‘s wild tale of an unlikely CIA agent infiltrating “Psychobook” via virtual reality is out on Blu-ray in a limited edition from Arrow Video, packaged with an exceptional bonus feature: Llansó’s rarely seen but equally surreal debut Crumbs (2015). Buy Jesus Shows You the Way to the Highway.

Tommaso (2019): Willem Dafoe stars as a stand-in for director Abel Ferrara: an expatriate, ex-alcoholic director struggling with issues both artistic and personal. Mainly an introspective drama, but with surreal touches. Buy Tommaso.

CANONICALLY WEIRD (AND OTHER) REPERTORY SCREENINGS:

Independent theaters are cautiously starting to reopen across North America at diminished capacity, and we’re seeing a trickle of new screenings. As predicted, this section is slowly growing as fall arrives. You’ll have to use your own judgment as to whether it’s safe to go to movie theaters at this time.

• Austin, TX
  • Alamo Drafthouse – A Clockwork Orange (1971), 9/18-19, 24
• Columbus, OH
  • Gateway Film Center – Akira (1988), 9/24
• Coxsackie, NY (see comments)
• Denver, CO
  • Alamo Drafthouse – A Clockwork Orange (1971), 9/18
• Kansas City, MO
  • Screenland (Armour) – Stalker (1979), 9/19, 22
• Memphis, TN
  • Malco Summer Drive-In – Videodrome (1983), with Scanners (1981) and The Dead Zone (1983) (triple feature), 9/19
• Omaha, NB
  • Alamo Drafthouse – A Clockwork Orange (1971), 9/19-20
• Phoenix, AZ
  • Alamo Drafthouse – A Clockwork Orange (1971), 9/18-22
• Vancouver, BC
  • The Rio
    • Fantasia (1940), 9/18
    • Donnie Darko (2001), 9/20
• Winchester, VA
  • Alamo Drafthouse
    • Batman Returns (1992), 9/18-24
    • A Clockwork Orange (1971), 9/22
    • Akira (1988), 9/24

NEPOTISM CORNER:

Interviewing the Unorthodox: Greg Smalley of 366 Weird Movies: We’re flattered that Gregory J. Smalley was the inaugural unorthodox interview for this column at the new online mag Babou 691, which bills itself as “dedicated to the bizarre and the surreal in literature, film, and art… celebrating the weird in its many forms.” That’s a mission statement we heartily endorse.

WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE: Due to lack of response, there will be no Amazon Prime watch party next week. We’ll try again for a September 26th party, but we may stick to the better-attended Netflix Parties once or twice a month from here on out.

We’ll continue presenting online reviews (while working in the background on the 2020 Yearbook and our “Big Book” project). So next week you can read Giles Edwards take on Coma (2019), (the Russian Inception) and Gregory J. Smalley on Sukiyaki Western Django (2007) (the Japanese Django Unchained, or something like that). Onward and weirdward!

What are you looking forward to? If you have any weird movie leads that we have overlooked, feel free to leave them in the COMMENTS section.

We’re doing things a little differently with our Weird Watch Parties this month. We’re going to schedule two Amazon Prime watch parties in a row. Assuming there’s enough interest, our next  parties will be scheduled for Saturday, September 19 and September 26 at 10:15 PM.

As always, we’ll be looking for five movie screening nominations from people who plan to attend (for both or either session). After we get the minimum five nominations and likely attendees, we’ll put up a poll. We’ll then schedule the poll’s second place vote-getter to be screened on September 19 and the first place contestant on September 26. Management will break any ties.

Amazon Prime’s catalog of movies is larger (and less exclusive) than Netflix’s. Ed Dykhuizen’s availability spreadsheet is a good resource to check for Canonically Weird movies (look for ones marked “free w/ Prime” in the “Amazon” column). Or, do your own research and come up with a title from Amazon. Eligible movies will have a “watch party” button on their Amazon page. You must be a Prime subscriber; you don’t have to download an extension or additional software.

We will not provide tech support; you’re on your own. Help each other.

When the party is set to begin we’ll announce it in three places:

• On this site (if you’ve signed up for regular email alerts via the sidebar you’ll also get a notice that way)
• On our Facebook page
• On Twitter

Now, RSVP and make your nominations in the comments below.

As the title states, Netflix Watch Party #18—I’m Thinking of Ending Things—starts in fifteen minutes.

Please install the Netflix Party extension if you haven’t already. You must have a U.S. Nextflix account (we think) and a Chrome-based browser to participate.

There will be no pausing or rewinding except for technical reasons.

We are offering no technical support, so help each other out if needed.

Here is the link to join: https://www.netflix.com/watch/80211559?npSessionId=24a43880efd0f43c&npServerId=s36

Be sure to click on the red Netflix Party icon to sync up and join the chat room.

366 Weird Movies may earn commissions from purchases made through product links.

Our weekly look at what’s weird in theaters, on hot-off-the-presses DVDs and Blu-rays (and hot off the server VODs), and on more distant horizons…

Trailers of new release movies are generally available at the official site links.

ONLINE EVENTS (Saturday, Sep. 12, 8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM PT):

I’m Thinking of Ending Things Online Q&A: Online Q&A with writer/director Charlie Kaufman, sponsored by American Cinematheque. Via Zoom, free but registration is required. Register for I’m Thinking of Ending Things Online Q&A.

NEW ON HOME VIDEO:

“The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection”: Another Hitchcock anthology from Universal, with classics Rear Window, the canonically weird Vertigo, Psycho, and The Birds. Eight discs (four Blu-rays, four Ultra-HDs), but the big draw is the original theatrical version of Psycho, previously unavailable on home video. (The uncut Psycho is also being released separately on a single Blu-ray, should that be all you require.)  Buy “The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection”.

The Comic (1985): Set in a future dystopia, the story involves an orange-haired comedian who kills a rival to get a gig. Another oddity uncovered by Arrow Video, who promote it with the claim “From the annals of bizarre cinema comes perhaps the most bizarre one of them all!” IMDB rating: 3.2. Blu-ray only. Buy The Comic.

Ghost in the Shell (1995): Read our review. A 4K restoration/re-release of the seminal cyberpunk anime, on Blu-ray + Ultra HD. Buy Ghost in the Shell.

CANONICALLY WEIRD (AND OTHER) REPERTORY SCREENINGS:

Independent theaters are cautiously starting to reopen across North America at diminished capacity, and we’re seeing a trickle of new screenings. We expect this section to grow slowly throughout the fall. You’ll have to use your own judgment as to whether it’s safe to go to movie theaters at this time.

• Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN
  • The Trylon – Vertigo (1958), 9/16-17
• Vancouver, BC
  • The Rio – Donnie Darko (2001), 9/12, 17

FREE MOVIES ON TUBI.TV:

Adpaptation. (2002): Read the Canonically Weird entry. If I’m Thinking of Ending Things has put you in the mood for more mind-bending, Charlie Kaufman style, then this quintessential Kaufman meta-movie about Charlie Kaufman (Nicolas Cage) suffering writer’s block will fit the ticket. “Leaving Soon” from Tubi. Watch Adpaptation. free on Tubi.

WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE: Reminder: on Saturday night we’ll be screening I’m Thinking of Ending Things as our Netflix Weird Watch party. We’re expecting/hoping for a decent turnout for this one, so look for the link to join around 10 PM here, on Facebook, or on Twitter. We’ll provide our own views on the film in the following week—maybe your observations from the chat will make it into our analysis. There will likely be another review or article next week to accompany that one, but we won’t swear to it. (We do have a couple of print projects to work on that we’ve been neglecting.) At any rate, onward and weirdward!

What are you looking forward to? If you have any weird movie leads that we have overlooked, feel free to leave them in the COMMENTS section.