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.

NEW ON HOME VIDEO:

The Book of Birdie (2017): Read Giles Edwards’ review. A novitiate hallucinates in a convent. Previously on VOD only, hard copies now available on DVD or Blu-ray. Buy The Book of Birdie.

The Doors (1991): Read Scott Sentinella’s review. Oliver Stone‘s worshipful, over-the-top hallucinatory biopic of Dionysian rock star Jim Morrison is a guilty pleasure. This is a 4K upgrade (standard-def Blu-ray also included) with two cuts of the film (which are reportedly not very different at all) and some new and old extra features. Buy The Doors.

The Erlprince (2016): Amidst flights of fancy, a teenage Polish prodigy works on a theory of parallel universes, and on a doomsday clock for this one. Screen Anarchy suggests it resembles “a Polish Donnie Darko.” DVD, Blu-ray or VOD. Buy The Erlprince.

The Milky Way [La Voie Lactee] (1969): Read the Certified Weird review! One of Luis Buñuel‘s most difficult late-period movies is a series of surreal episodes based on esoteric Christian heresies. Kino Lorber acquires the rights formerly held by the Criterion Collection—the Criterion disc has been long out-of-print– and adds a commentary by film critic Nick Pinkerton. On Blu-ray or DVD. Buy The Milky Way.

LIVE TOUR:

“Crispin Hellion Glover’s Big Slide Show Parts 1 & 2”: Oddball nonpareil Crispin Glover hosts an evening of films and monologues in late July and August. The program may change slightly from appearance to appearance, but includes a double feature of his rarely screened surrealist films What Is It? (2005) and It Is Fine. Everything Is Fine (2007); a sneak preview of his upcoming project (in post-production and still untitled, but apparently not the third entry in the “It” trilogy); Q&As and book signings; and Crispin reading from his books, accompanied by a slideshow. A strange performance deserves an equally strange series of venues: starting at the Kranjska Gora International Film Festival in Slovenia on July 29-30; moving to Brooklyn on August 14-15; then off to Paducah, KY, where Crispin’s father Bruce will also appear, on August 21-22; and winding up in Huntington, NY, August 27-28. More details here.

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.

• Baltimore, MD, 7/31 – Eraserhead (1977). At the Senator.
• Boston, MA, 7/26-7/28 – Time Bandits (1981). At the Brattle.
• Boston, MA, 7/28 – Last Year at Marienbad [L’Année Dernière à Marienbad] (1961). At the Museum of Fine Arts.
• Chicago, IL, 7/26-7/27 (midnights) – Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001). At the Music Box.
• Cleveland, OH, 7/27-7/28 – Last Year at Marienbad [L’Année Dernière à Marienbad] (1961). At the Cleveland Institute of Art.
• Columbus, OH, 7/26-7/27 (midnights), 7/27-7/29 – Dead Alive (1992). At Gateway Film Center.
• Columbus, OH, 7/26-8/1 – Heavenly Creatures (1994). At Gateway Film Center.
• Columbus, OH, 7/30-8/1 – The Wicker Man (1973). At Gateway Film Center.
• Columbus, OH, 8/1 (midnight) – Donnie Darko (2001). At Gateway Film Center.
• Los Angeles, CA, 7/27 – Freaks (1932), with House on Haunted Hill (1958), Thing from Another World (1951), Them! (1954), The Haunting (1963), and Cat People (1942) (one-price marathon). At the Egyptian.
• New York City, NY, 7/26-7/27 (midnights) – Brazil (1985). At IFC Center.
• New York City, NY, 7/26-7/27 (midnights) – Mulholland Drive (2001). At IFC Center.
• Pittsburgh, PA, 7/27 – Pink Floyd the Wall (1982). At the Row House.
• Santa Ana, CA, 7/26 – Black Swan (2010). At the Frida.
• Santa Ana, CA, 7/29-7/31 – Perfect Blue (1997). At the Frida.
• Toronto, Ont., Canada – El Topo (1970). At the Royal.
• Tuscon, AZ, 7/27 – Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971) (free admission). At the Loft.
• Vancouver, BC, Canada – Brazil (1985). At the Rio.

WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE: Next week we’ll again have lots and lots of content as Giles Edwards finishes up his three-week Fantasia Festival 2019 marathon. He’ll whet your appetites for a pair of very weird low-budget European films with Jesus Shows You the Way to the Highway and Alien Crystal Palace, brief you on a couple of more (relatively) mainstream horror titles in Daniel Isn’t Real and 1BR, and review even more films to be named later. We don’t expect to have any more surprise pop-up reviews from outside Fantasia, but then again, we didn’t expect to last week, either (guess that’s what makes them surprising). In any case, 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.