In this occasional feature where we ask established directors and critics to list what they feel are their top 10 “weird” movies. There are no constraints on what the author can pick. This list comes from R. Panet, half of the production team behind Liberty or Death Productions. With partner, James Mannan she directed Hallow’s Dance, and also directed Revenant, along with assisting on numerous other productions, including Blood Moon, Quench and Going All The Way.
It takes a lot to really unnerve or disturb me these days, but these 6 films were all viewed in the 80’s when I was barely legally able to intoxicate myself, when my mind was young and unmarred by such weirdness, despite the fact that I was myself deemed weird by most anyway, and I personally blame these films for my quest to seek out all things weird, bizarre, and of the illimitable creative artistic expression, and yes, to add to my own wonderful weirdness. Before I viewed these films I did not know such a world existed. My experimental film cherry was popped.
The 6 weird movies that left a lasting impression on my young mind- in order of disturbance;
1. Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Salo-120 Days of Sodom and Alejandro Jodorowsky’s La Montana Sagrada [The Holy Mountain] tie for first.
3. Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange.
4. John Waters’ Pink Flamingos
5. Richard Kern’s Fingered
6. David Lynch’s Grandmother
and films that made a lesser impression, but warranted inclusion;
7. FW Murnau’s Faust
8. Jan Svankmajer’s Alice and The Flat
9. Mathieu Seiler’s Stephanies Geschenk [Gift]
10. The Cramps-Live at Nappa State Mental Hospital
Special Mention of Alfred Eaker’s Jesus and Her Gospel of Yes the most current weird film I have seen. It’s acid eye candy!