Our weekly look at what’s weird in theaters, on hot-off-the-presses DVDs, and on more distant horizons…
Trailers of new release movies are generally available at the official site links.
IN THEATERS (LIMITED RELEASE):
Malibu Road: In 1960 a psychology professor and a starlet take LSD in a hotel room; the aftereffects haunt them up until the present day. There appear to be multiple “official sites” for this hard-to-pin-down project that premieres in L.A. this week but is likely to find more of an audience online than in theaters. Malibu Road official site.
The Vessel: On a remote island, a man survives a drowning that should have killed him and creates a monument to the schoolchildren who lost their lives in a tsunami. This enigmatic parable, the writing/directing debut of Julio Quintana, was executive produced by Terrence Malick and has been described as “dreamlike” more than once. The Vessel official site.
SCREENINGS – (Los Angeles, Cinefamily, Sep. 16-18, 21):
Belladonna of Sadness (1973): Read the Certified Weird entry! Cinefamily was instrumental in restoring, debuting and promoting this long-forgotten psychedelic witchcraft anime, so we can probably expect them to dust off their print every now and then. Not weird, but of interest to cinephiles: individual segments of Krzysztof Kieślowski’s “Dekalog” will be playing throughout the week. Belladonna of Sadness at Cinefamily.
SCREENINGS – (IFC Center, New York City, Sep. 16-17):
The Holy Mountain (1973): Read the Certified Weird entry! A midnight screening of either a Certified Weird Jodorowsky or Lynch film has been a weekly ritual at IFC this summer. We find this heartwarming. The Holy Mountain at IFC Center.
SCREENINGS – (Silver Springs, MD., AFI Silver Theater, Sep. 18):
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968): Read the Certified Weird entry! Now this would be one to see on the big screen if at all possible; unfortunately, with astronaut actors Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood in attendance for Q&A session, this one is sold out. Get in line by 4:30 if you want a chance at standby tickets. 2001: A Space Odyssey at AFI Silver Theater.
IN DEVELOPMENT (pre-production):
The Toxic Avenger (20??): A remake of the beloved but deeply so-so original 1980s trash classic. Original directors Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz will executive produce, while Sausage Party‘s Conrad Vernon will handle the directing duties. Repeat to yourself, “I’m keeping an open mind, I’m keeping an open mind, I’m keeping an open mind…” Toxic Avenger remake announcement at Variety.
NEW ON DVD:
The Fits (2016): An unexplained epidemic of falling down, passing out and vomiting affects girls on an African-American dance team. Expect a review of this soon. Buy The Fits
NEW ON BLU-RAY:
The Fits (2016): See description in DVD above. At the time of this writing the DVD version was priced $10 higher than the Blu-ray! Buy The Fits [Blu-ray]
“Frankenstein: Complete Legacy Collection”: All eight of the original Universal horrors in which Frankenstein’s monster made an appearance, including, naturally, Bride of Frankenstein (the best and weirdest). The studio has not always won Universal praise (hee hee) for its endless repackagings of its horror classics, but if its the Monster you love this set looks rather definitive, with hours upon hours of rare extra features. (If you check out the similar set for The Wolf Man
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.