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 DEVELOPMENT (crowdfunding):

“The Felicity Fungus Annual Maternity Tea Society” (est. 2019-2020): A planned 20-minute surrealist short about a group of women who meet every nine months to reminisce, give birth, and prepare a meal out of “questionable and grotesque ingredients.” The director is a young British set designer who cites “Peter Greenaway, Todd Solondz, Jan Svankmajer and Surrealist cinema” as influences. The Indiegogo campaign has 10 days to go and has raised $750 out of its $2,682 flexible goal. “The Felicity Fungus Annual Maternity Tea Society” at Indiegogo.

NEW ON HOME VIDEO:

9 Lives of a Wet Pussy (1976): A bored socialite explores sexual fantasies with an opium-smoking tarot card reader. The first feature shot by rebel filmmaker Abel Ferrara (under a pseudonym) was an experimental hardcore sex feature; Vinegar Syndrome calls it a “sexual fever-dream” and promises it’s uncut (it seems that the sex scenes were sometimes mutilated to make it into a “hard-R” feature). On Blu-ray. Buy 9 Lives of a Wet Pussy.

Beetlejuice (1988): A pair of newly-deceased ghosts hire a “human exorcist” to drive out the obnoxious family who has moved into their home. This Tim Burton hit seems a little mainstream for our tastes, but it always gets a few votes every time we have an open weird movie poll. Out in a steelbook Blu-ray this week. Buy Beetlejuice.

Blue (1993): Read Shane Wilson’s review. Experimental filmmaker Derek Jarman monologizes about his upcoming death in front of an unchanging blue screen. On Blu-ray only (naturally). Buy Blue.

Decoder (1984): A fast food employee puts revolutionary subliminal messages into corporate muzak, and deals with the consequences. Vinegar Syndrome describes this new wave/punk infused counterculture film (with a cameo by William S. Burroughs) a “criminally under-seen masterpiece of German weirdness.” On Blu-ray. Buy Decoder.

Flesh Gordon (1974): Emperor Wang uses his sex ray to amp up Earthlings’ libidos in preparation of an invasion. A ridiculously sexy softcore cult movie with stop motion penis monsters, among other farcical nonsense. See the sex-ray on Blu-ray for the first time! Buy Flesh Gordon.

The Garden (1990): Two (or more) intercut stories: a Virgin Mary-like character and her baby are hounded by paparazzi, and two gay men marry and are persecuted. More Jarman from Kino Lorber this week, on your choice of DVD or Blu-ray. Buy The Garden.

Hell Comes to Frogtown (1988): Read our review. Newly restored version of the campy post-apocalyptic joke about the last fertile man on Earth fighting mutant frog-people. “You are one weird dude!” Newly restored, in a DVD/Blu-ray combo pack from Vinegar Syndrome with a commentary track and other bonus features. Buy Hell Comes to Frogtown.

Let My Puppets Come (1976): Puppets make a porno movie to raise half a million dollars to pay off a loan shark. The first (only?) all-puppet hardcore sex film, from the director of Deep Throat; a seldom-seen, semi-legendary curiosity, if nothing else, on Blu-ray. Buy Let My Puppets Come.

The VelociPastor (2019): A priest transforms into a dinosaur. Honestly, we saw the listing for this when it came out two weeks ago, but dismissed it as just some dumb Sharknado ripoff. Good reviews (including a glowing one at the AV Club) have put it back on our radar screen. On DVD and VOD (although you still may be able to catch it at a special theatrical screening, if the buzz keeps up). Buy The VelociPastor.

CERTIFIED WEIRD (AND OTHER) REPERTORY SCREENINGS:

The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975). We won’t list all the screenings of this audience-participation classic separately. You can use this page to find a screening near you.

• Boston, MA, 8/30 – Fight Club (1999). At the Museum of Fine Arts.
• Dallas, TX, 8/31-9/1 – Pan’s Labyrinth (2006). At the Texas Theater.
• Los Angeles, CA, 8/30 (midnight) – Spirited Away (2001). At the Nuart.
• Memphis, TN, 9/5 – Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song (1971). At the Crosstown.
• New York City, NY, 8/30-9/1 (midnights) – Eraserhead (1977). At IFC Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/30-9/1 (midnights) – Suspiria (1977). At IFC Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/30-9/2 – Vertigo (1958). At the Alamo Drafthouse.
• New York City, NY, 8/30-9/3 – Paprika (2006). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 8/30-9/5 – Perfect Blue (1997). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 8/31 – Videodrome (1983). At Lincoln Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/31, 9/2, 9/5 – Pierrot le Fou (1965). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 9/4-9/5 – Blue Velvet (1986). At IFC Center.
• New York City, NY, 9/5 – 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). At Nitehwak Cinema (Prospect Park).
• Santa Ana, CA, 8/31 – The Tingler (1959) (in Percepto!). At the Frida.
• Tuscon, AZ, 9/5 – Akira (1988). At the Loft.
• Vancouver, BC, Canada, 9/4 – Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001). At the Rio.

WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE: Next week, it’s to the moon! Giles Edwards takes on the Nazis-on-the-moon sequel Iron Sky: The Coming Race (2019); and just so you won’t feel totally lost, he’ll throw in a review of 2012’s original Iron Sky. It’s not all B-movie spoofs, however, as G. Smalley takes on the Czech New Wave‘s early  salvo Diamonds of the Night, about two concentration-camp-bound escapees fleeing the… Nazis (there’s your thematic tie in). Onward and weirdward!

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

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):

Jacob’s Ladder (2019): An Afghanistan war veteran returns home to find the brother he thought he’d lost in combat is still alive, and has been the subject of army-sponsored psychotropic drug experiments. A remake (of sorts) of the Canonically Weird 1990 psychological thriller. US Distributor Vertical Entertainment’s home page.

NEW ON HOME VIDEO:

“Akio Jissoji: The Buddhist Trilogy”: Three rare films of the late Japanese New Wave: This Transient Life (1970) involves brother/sister incest, Mandara (1971) concerns a pro-rape cult, and Poem (1972) stars a young boy caught up in a plot to sell his ancestral home. Arrow Academy promises that these little-seen films are all stylized, experimental, erotic and spiritual. Blu-ray set only. Buy “Akio Jissoji: The Buddhist Trilogy”.

Iron Sky: The Coming Race (2019): This sequel to the Nazis-on-the-moon original finds survivors of the nuclear apocalypse burrowing into the hollow earth in search of a better life. Like the Nazis, this series still has some life left in it. DVD or VOD only (for now, at least) from Lions Gate (there is an Irish Region B Blu-ray on the market). Buy Iron Sky: The Coming Race.

Last Year at Marienbad (1961): Read the Certified Weird review! After restoration, Alain Resnais and Alain Robbe-Grillet art house classic about a couple who may—or may not—have met last year at Marienbad is once again out on DVD and Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. Or is it? (Spoiler: it is). Buy Last Year at Marienbad.

CERTIFIED WEIRD (AND OTHER) REPERTORY SCREENINGS:

The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975). We won’t list all the screenings of this audience-participation classic separately. You can use this page to find a screening near you.

• Bloomington, IN, 8/23 – Howl’s Moving Castle (2004). At Indiana University Cinema.
• Boston, MA, 8/23 – 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). At the Museum of Fine Art.
• Boston, MA, 8/24 – Fight Club (1999). At the Museum of Fine Art.
• Chicago, IL, 8/25 – Society (1989), with post-screening Q&A with Brian Yuzna. At the Music Box.
• Columbus, OH, 8/23-25 – Pan’s Labyrinth (2006). At Gateway Film Center.
• Franklin, IN, 8/23 – 24 – Seven Samurai (1954), with Spirited Away (2001) and Akira (1988) (weekend pass; tickets to each also sold separately). At the Artcraft.
• Memphis, TN, 8/29 – Eraserhead (1977). At the Crosstown.
• New York City, NY, 8/23-24 (midnights) – Kung Fu Hustle (2004). At IFC Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/23-24 (midnights) – Suspiria (1977). At IFC Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/23-25 – Paprika (2006). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 8/23-26, 28 – Pierrot le Fou (1965). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 8/24 – Videodrome (1983). At Lincoln Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/24-25 – Kwaidan (1964). At the Roxy.
• New York City, NY, 8/26-28 – Holy Motors (2012). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 8/26 & 28 – True Stories (1986). At Lincoln Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/29 – Perfect Blue (1997). At the Metrograph.
• Oakland, CA, 8/24 – Pink Floyd the Wall (1982). At the New Parkway.
• Pittsburgh, PA, 8/23-25, 27-29 – Evil Dead II (1987). At the Row House.
• Portland, OR, 8/25 – Society (1989). At NW Film Center.
• San Francisco, CA, 8/24 – The Exterminating Angel [El àngel exterminador] (1962). At the Roxie.
• San Francisco, CA, 8/26 – Donnie Darko (2001), live riffed by three comedians. At the Alamo Drafthouse.
• San Francisco, CA, 8/28 – Vertigo (1958), with High Anxiety (1977) (double feature). At the Castro.
• Silver Spring, MD, 8/24 – Phantom of the Paradise (1974), with a pre-show cabaret and live shadowcast by “Bloody Mayhem Theatrical.” At the AFI Silver.
• Toronto, ONT, Canada, 8/29 – Don’t Look Now (1973). At the Royal.

WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE: Next week G. Smalley will bring you a look at the new erotic thriller Blood Paradise, and also dip into the reader-suggested review queue for a review of 1982’s The Plague Dogs, Martin Rosen‘s ultra-depressing animated canine followup to his ultra-violent bunny cartoon Watership Down (1978). Also, we’ve been putting off populating our Apocrypha, and next week we’ll remedy that as Giles Edwards officially inducts Jacques Rivette‘s whimsically surreal 1974 opus Celine and Julie Go Boating onto the supplemental list. Onward and weirdward!

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

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):

Birds Without Feathers (2018): Experimental feature mixing stories of six odd people—an Instagram celebrity, a performance artist, a Russian Jeff Goldblum fan, and so on—in a technologically alienated world. Playing only in NYC at the Roxy Cinema, presumably with some kind of home video release to follow. Birds Without Feathers official site.

Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles [Buñuel en el Laberinto de las Tortugas] (2018): Animated biopic about the young Luis Buñuel making the “surrealistic documentary” Land Without Bread (Las Huerdes). This is one we’ve had our eye on for a while; it doesn’t look weird per se, although there are the expected dream sequences, but Buñuel fans should find this a curiosity worth seeking out. Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles official site.

FILM FESTIVALS – North Bend Film Fest (North Bend, WA, 8/15-8/18):

Set in the Washington town where many of “Twin Peaks“‘s exteriors were filmed, the North Bend Film Fest is a Lynchian destination. Compressed into an intense three days, it features not only weird movies but also a tour of “Twin Peaks” locations, a live podcast recorded at the local brewpub, and a virtual reality lounge with a suite of trippy experiences. It’s highlighted by a handful of movies we just screened at this year’s Fantasia Festival: the dark fairy tale (and Apocrypha Candidate) Koko-Di, Koko-Da; Extra Ordinary, an Irish ghost comedy; the teen melodrama Knives and Skin; and the druggy vampire flick Bliss. We also noticed a couple of potentially interesting curios we hadn’t seen before, but will keep an eye out for:

• The El Duce Tapes – Rodney Ascher‘s VHS-sourced documentary about 1990s shock metal frontman Eldon “El Duce” Hoke. Screening August 17.
• Monument – Polish fantasy about a group of college interns who find themselves stripped of their identities and held in a strange hotel. Also on Aug 17.
  

North Bend is an out-of-the-way destination and probably not something you’re going to attend at the last minute, but you can start making your plans for next year’s fest now.

North Bend Film Fest home page.

NEW ON HOME VIDEO:

Galaxy of Terror (1981): Interstellar travelers land on a distant planet where an alien pyramid attacks them with horrors from their own imaginations. An early 80s Forbidden Planet/Alien ripoff from Roger Corman‘s New World Pictures, with an infamous alien rape scene, which for some reason found its way into our reader-suggested review queue. This is a steelbook Blu-ray from a new restoration with new artwork; in other respects it seems identical to Shout! Factory’s 2010 release. Buy Galaxy of Terror.

Open Your Eyes [Abre los Ojos] (1997): Read our review. This Spanish psychological thriller about a playboy who loses his mind when he loses his looks in a car accident debuts on Blu-ray this week. Buy Open Your Eyes.

CERTIFIED WEIRD (AND OTHER) REPERTORY SCREENINGS:

The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975). We won’t list all the screenings of this audience-participation classic separately. You can use this page to find a screening near you.

• Bloomington, IN, 8/22 – Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) (subtitled). At Indiana University Cinema.
• Boston, MA, 8/17 – Solaris [Solyaris] (1972). At the Museum of Fine Arts.
• Columbus, OH, 8/16 – Night of the Hunter (1955). At Gateway Film Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/16-17 – Holy Motors (2012). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, 8/16-17 (midnights) – Kung Fu Hustle (2004). At IFC Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/21-22 – The Cremator [Spalovac Mrtvol] (1969). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 8/22 – Kwaidan (1964). At the Roxy.
• New York City, NY, 8/22 – Paprika (2006). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 8/22 – Pierrot le Fou (1965). At the Metrograph.
• Oakland, CA, 8/18 – Vertigo (1958). At the New Parkway.
• San Francisco, CA, 8/20 – Evil Dead II (1987). At the Alamo Drafthouse.
• Santa Ana, CA, 8/16-8/18 – Blue Velvet (1986). At the Frida.
• Toronto, CA, 8/18 – Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), with “Scott Pilgrim” creator Bryan Lee O’Malley in attendance. At the Royal.
• Vancouver, BC, Canada, 8/21 – The Wicker Man (1973). At the Rio.
• Yonkers, NY, 8/19 – Metropolis (1927), with a live score by David DiDonato. At the Alamo Drafthouse.

WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE: Next week we’ll have at least two new reviews for you: Giles Edwards opines on the absurdist cult TV show “The Mighty Boosh,” while you can see if “Old” Greg Smalley got his mind blown by Switzerland’s puberty horror fantasy Blue My Mind. In the meantime, if you haven’t entered our latest contest yet, why not take your shot at winning a copy of “All the Colors of Giallo?” We’ll pick a winner next Thursday. Onward and weirdward!

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

Time for another giveaway contest! No particular reason: just because we like you.

Since the prize is a copy of All the Colors of Giallo, the entry procedure will be simple: just tell us your favorite giallo in the comments. (We’ll be loose with the definition of the genre, but all entries mentioning Top Gun will be disregarded).

We’ll leave the contest open for a week. Of course, you may join the discussion even if you don’t meet the eligibility requirements below or don’t wish to receive the prize; please mention you’re not in it for the swag when you announce your pick.

Contest eligibility rules: You must make a nomination by commenting on this post with your favorite giallo film and informing us of your desire to be in the contest. To receive the prize, you must supply us with a mailing address in the United States. (Don’t publish your address in your comment! We’ll contact the winner through email). 366 contributors are not eligible for the prize. You are not eligible for this prize if you have won a contest here in the last six months. We’ll stop accepting entries Wednesday, August 21, at midnight EST. The winner will be chosen randomly from all eligible comments. If the winner does not respond to our request for a mailing address within 48 hours we’ll email a runner-up, and so forth, until the prize is given away.

As for the prize:  It’s a fresh, unopened, shrink-wrapped copy of Severin Films’ All the Colors of Giallo. This 3-disc (one blu-ray, one DVD, and one CD) set contains the title documentary, over four hours of giallo trailers with commentary, a disc devoted to the German “krimi” films, and a CD of select cuts of soundtrack faves from the likes of Ennio Morricone. It’s the must-have set for giallo fans.  You can read the description of the features in our review.

That’s it, now get to it!

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):

Every Time I Die (2019): The soul of a troubled paramedic migrates into the bodies of his friends after he dies. At least one critic liked this low-budget psychological thriller with “a surreal feel” quite a lot. Also available on ITunes. Every Time I Die official site.

Rapid Eye Movement (2019): A radio DJ tries to break the world record for consecutive days awake, both to raise money for charity and because a serial killer promises to put him to sleep permanently if he fails. Not sure where it will play, but it’s simultaneously released on-demand. Rapid Eye Movement official Facebook page.

SPECIAL EVENTS (8/13 and 8/19):

Millennium Actress (2001): Read the Certified Weird entry! Fathom Events parade of classic anime re-releases continues with Satoshi Kon‘s hallucinatory biopic of a fictional Japanese actress’ three-decade career, told in a blend of flashbacks and fantasies in which her interviewers join. Newly restored and with a new English language dub, and with reflections by producers Taro Maki and Masao Maruyama to be broadcast after the film concludes. Check the Fathom Events site for a screening near you.

IN DEVELOPMENT (announced):

“The Man Who Fell to Earth” (TV Series): CBS All Access has green-lit a new series based on Walter Tevis’ 1963 novel (which Nicolas Roeg made into a very weird 1976 movie starring David Bowie that you may have heard of). Casting hasn’t yet begun, but veteran producer Alex Kurtzman (“Star Trek: Discovery”) is set to direct. There’s plenty of room for skepticism that this will be as offbeat as the original; in fact, there’s reason to suspect that they’ll be going for a more mainstream aesthetic: “Nicolas Roeg was a legend, and the last thing I would want to do is mimic his work in any way,” said Kurtzman. More details (with industry insider type stuff) at Deadline.

NEW ON HOME VIDEO:

Don’t Look Now (1973): Read the Canonically Weird review! It seems like the Venice-based grief horror classic just got a Criterion release, but now Studiocanal puts out the ultimate “Collector’s Edition” of the film with a new 4K restoration, Ultra HD and standard Blu-ray discs, a separate disc of extra features (some new), the soundtrack CD, collectible postcards, posters and booklets. All regions. Buy Don’t Look Now (Collector’s Edition).

Fragment of an Empire (1929): A Russian soldier loses his memory in a WWI battle and returns to his home in St. Petersburg. This rare, newly restored/rediscovered Soviet avant-garde silent sounds like it could be the model for Guy Maddin‘s Canonically Weird Archangel. In a DVD/Blu-ray combo pack from Flicker Alley. Buy Fragment of an Empire.

The Reflecting Skin (1990): Read the Canonically Weird review! This strange little rural movie about a kid who thinks his neighbor is a vampire (among other oddities like a death car and a petrified baby angel) arrives on Blu-ray in North America for the first time, courtesy of Film Movement. Also on DVD and VOD (for the first time, we believe). Buy The Reflecting Skin.

CERTIFIED WEIRD (AND OTHER) REPERTORY SCREENINGS:

The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975). We won’t list all the screenings of this audience-participation classic separately. You can use this page to find a screening near you.

• Boston, MA, 8/9 – Solaris [Solyaris] (1972). At the Museum of Fine Arts.
• Boston, MA, 8/10 – Barbarella (1968), with Dune (1984) and Flash Gordon (1980) (triple feature). At the Brattle.
• Boston, MA, 8/12 – Blue Velvet (1986). At the Brattle.
• Boston, MA, 8/15 – 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) (free screening). At the Museum of Fine Arts.
• Columbus, OH, 8/14 – Night of the Hunter (1955). At Gateway Film Center.
• Los Angeles, CA, 8/9 (midnight) – Eraserhead (1977). At the Aero.
• Louisville, KY, 8/9-8/10 – Last Year at Marienbad [L’Année Dernière à Marienbad] (1961). At the Speed Museum.
• New York City, NY, 8/9 – Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) (free screening). At Governor’s Island.
• New York City, NY, 8/9-8/10 (midnights) – Kung Fu Hustle (2004). At IFC Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/9-8/15 – The Cremator [Spalovac Mrtvol] (1969). At the Metrograph.
• New York City, NY, 8/13 – Dogville (2003). At Lincoln Center.
• New York City, NY, 8/15 – Holy Motors (2012). At the Metrograph.
• San Francisco, CA, 8/12-8/13 – Brazil (1985). At the Alamo Drafthouse.
• Silver Spring, MD, 8/10 (midnight), 8/12 – Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song (1971). At AFI Silver.
• Tuscon, AZ, 8/9 – 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), with Q&A with actor Gary Lockwood. At JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa.
• Vancouver, BC, Canada, 8/9 – Fight Club (1999). At the Rio.

WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE: Now that Giles Edwards has finished his Fantasia Festival 2019 coverage, we can return to “normal” around here… which, of course, means weird. So next week you can expect a review of Harmony Korine‘s latest, the Matthew McConaughey stoner comedy The Beach Bum. We’ll also take a look at Severin Films’ monumental documentary/trailer collection/soundtrack compilation All the Colors of Giallo. And, to top it off, another Blu-ray giveaway contest, to thank our readers for keeping us in business. Onward and weirdward!

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