The 10 Weirdest Movies Ever: Read at Your Own Risk
I support a little strangeness, both in movies and in real life. Normality is so awfully dull, after all. But sometimes a movie drives full-speed into the realm of certified insanity, popping some LSD on the way for good measure and never, ever looking back. This list is about those movies. I didn’t pay attention to their quality, just their degree of bat-shit insanity. Read at your own risk ladies and gentlemen.
Fantastic Planet
The early ’70s were a time in experimentation ran wild. Sometimes this resulted in masterful new works of art that influenced the world for decades to come. And sometimes this resulted in films about enormous blue people who torture humans for shit and giggles. It seems to make a point about how humanity thrives through cooperation, but the thing that will stick in your mind are the pants-shittingly terrifying aliens and their enormous red fish eyes, that constantly look at you with a dead stare. Watching. Knowing. Judging.
Enter The Void
Gaspar Noe decided to make this film when he went to the movies on mushrooms, and decided to recreate the experience. It’s not your most conventional source of inspiration but as far as I can judge such a thing, he succeeded. The movie is filmed entirely from the first person, and the majority of it from the perspective of the soul of a recently killed person who floats over Tokyo. Nothing has the color it’s supposed to have, and the movie features more flashing lights then a 90′s rave party. It’s a ridiculously intense experience and I felt both drained and literally sick to the stomach afterwards (although that might also have to do with the amount of coffee I drank).
Darkness/Light/Darkness or anything else by Jan Svankmajer
Svankmajer is the sort of person who uses clay animation, arguably the most tortuous of production processes, to make a short film about limbs putting themselves together in a tiny room. Or about three heads eating each other up and then spitting each other out. He has made some feature-length films as well (including the most nightmare-inducing adaptation of Alice in Wonderland of all time), but his animated shorts remain a testament of his dedication to his job and his utter contempt for logic. You can watch one of his shorts here, but you should do so with care… if you intend to sleep anytime within the next 80 hours.
Donnie Darko
Anyone who claims to understand Donnie Darko is lying. Yet this movie didn’t just make it on the list because it’s incomprehensible. It goes well beyond that, by way of an enormous talking rabbit called Frank who tells the protagonist to set fire to the house of some motivational speaker. Another small detail: he can somehow travel through time. And he looks like a cross between a furry and the Terminator. And he is RIGHT BEHIND YOU OH SHIT DON’T LOOK OH SHIIIIII-
Eraserhead
David Lynch worked on this film for five years, doing odd jobs to gather the money for production together. It’s telling about the man that he still managed to deliver a movie that is more raw emotion than anything else. There are countless ways to analyze this movie, but none of them make the thing any less baffling. I use this phrase sparsely because it usually signals incompetence on the side of the critic, but you have to see this to believe it.
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71 Comments
Yeah I believe you these are weird, you could just tell from the pics
Btw, why are some of the text black? I’m guessing it’s not on purpose?
It’s an optical illusion
(Fixed)
DEFINITELY Donnie Darko. I kidna wanna add Clockwork Orange to this too. And, like, any Pedro Almodovar movie
Clockwork Orange is fairly comprehensible IMHO
I’ve not seen all of these, but did see Donnie Darko, Paprika and Enter the Void.
I don’t think Donnie Darko is incomprehensible, but it needs repeat viewings to piece it all together.
Totally agree with you on Paprika, it was such a weird movie, but at the same amazing. It showed exactly what dreams feel like and it was visually stunning.
Enter the Void was extremely intense and felt more like an experience. Like you are an inhabitant of someone’s head. Someone watching someone else play some sort of game. It’s a unique film that’s worth watching.
Yea it takes a couple viewing to get Donnie Darko. Sure, it’s a bit weird but incomprehensible is a strong word
Dude, almost all of Lynch’s movies are eligible for this. Mulholland Drive especially.
Agree, I was a bit disappointed not to see Inland Empire in there, definitely the weirdest movie I have seen so far.
Completely agree with the Inland Empire comment, though I’m working on putting together an “explanation” which I hope to post to my site soon. Trust me, it’s not easy, but I’ve seen it fully about ten times. I LOVE it.
There are more directors whose entire oeuvre I could’ve included. I went for Eraserhead for David Lynch.
Definitely some solid selections here, including a few that I have never heard of. I would also add Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas to the list — good luck with that one if you haven’t read the book.
I left that off because it’s not weird enough. Go figure.
Shinboru(symbol) is about a man who wakes up in a clean, white room full of angel-penisses and a masked mexican wrestler. It takes far too long and has too many japanese slapstick scenes, but it shure is weird.
See also Mindgame, the less you know about this film, the better it is when you see it, but you really should see it and it is batshit insane.
Everybody: meet my strangest friend.
Max, where do you rank Terry Gilliam on this scale? I see someone mentioned “Fear and Loathing….” “Brazil” and “12 Monkeys” also comes to mind
I have attempted (and failed) to get through many a film du Cronenberg. I am a wus I suppose.
I have also heard a recent review of “Enter the Void.” Sounds “interesting” to say the very least.
I’m writing a draft about THE weirdest movie ever.
Evidently, I really really really need to see The Naked Lunch.
Others that you might have put on this list: Last Year at Marienbad; anything by Guy Maddin; The American Astronaut; Daisies; Valerie and Her Week of Wonders; Buñuel’s “Phantom of Liberty” and/or “L’Age D’Or”; Hausu; and Chappaqua, amongst others.
I go nuts for these eclectic flicks. Even if I don’t enjoy some of them, it’s a badge of honor to say that you’ve seen them.
Waltz with Bashir is one of weirdest I’ve ever seen. Awesome movie, but weird.
Really? I would have never put that on here. It’s symbolic, sure, but miles away from the utter demention of what I’ve mentioned here
Weird movies do absolutely nothing for me, but I did think Paprika was an amazing experience and I look forward to revisiting it. I gave Enter the Void a try but turned it off after thirty minutes. Something about movies with a misleading, psychodelic atmosphere and random events occuring in no sensible order for over two hours just seems malevolent to me. However, something like Un Chien Andalou, and its rather brief runtime, just feels right.
Same Uni, I tried to watch Enter the Void but it didn’t do anything for me, turned it off as well.
Enter the void is one of the most brilliant films ever, Gaspar Noe planned it so carefully. It shows you every aspect of life bro, it goes deep into the subject of death , birth , childhood , reincarnation.
Wow, weird indeed. Love DONNIE DARKO! I’ve heard good things about ENTER THE VOID but I haven’t got around to watching it yet.
In high school, my philosophy teacher made us watch WAKING LIFE – that’s a trippy movie for sure!
Oh, how I love Waking Life. I’d have never put it on here because I think I understand the directors intent, but I can imagine that it’s baffling to a first-time viewer.
Breakfast of Champions, look it up.
I’ve seen a couple of these and have plans to see a few more. I really like Fantastic Planet quite a bit. It makes a LOT more sense when you realize that while the director was French, the animators and the film house were Czech. Viewing the giant blue dudes as Soviet overlords and the little humans as Czech or Eastern Bloc citizens who exist both as pet and annoyance to the powerful masters lends a little bit of clarity to that film. It’s still damn weird, but it does make more sense in that light.
I watched Fantastic Planet when it showed in theaters (USA) in the 70′s. It has stuck with me even when I couldn’t remember the name anymore. I was told at the time that the creator (original story) would have paper and pen at his bedside and would wake and record the nights previous dream (as much as could be remembered). This film was one such recorded dream.
“Eraserhead” tops that list for me easily. I remembered watching it late one night and I was traumatized over what I saw. I recorded the film from a videotape in the days of VCR and had to stop the tape because I was in shock. Man, I couldn’t sleep that night.
Yeah, I agree with Eraserhead. One of the most frightening experiences of my early film viewing career. I got through Enter the Void too, but I will never watch it again. Naked Lunch, I have heard great things about. Some of Gilliam’s stuff is pretty weird, notably Fear and Loathing and Brazil. Cool post, Max!
I understand Donnie Darko, but only after years of casual internet searching.
No Hausu? For shame.
Haven’t got around to it yet, although I hear good stories about it.
Tideland is a completely bizarre movie. Terry Gilliam’s intro is priceless. “When you drop them (children), they tend to bounce”
I left off Gilliam because his work is too unweird. Go figure.
I haven’t seen any of those movies…and wow those are very odd pictures! The summary also peculiar. I don’t know if I can watch those movies.
I remember one weird movie from Japan called Doll,I couldn’t finish the movie
I just saw “Uncle Boonmee who can recall his past lives”. It was weird but in a good way? Watch me try to write a review for that….
I have yet to see Eraserhead, but every screenshot I’ve ever seen has weirded me out. I’d add in Inland Empire as well from Lynch, that one you basically just have to watch and make up your own mind about because it’s just completely baffling. Enter the Void was also really weird but controlled at the same time. I think I’d also probably add in Barton Fink from the Coen Brothers and Antichrist from Lars von Trier.
Yea I haven’t had the fortitude to check out Eraserhead myself. Heard it was creepy as hell.
You guys have to check it out. It was seriously some weird stuff! I only saw it once, but I can still bring up certain images in my mind.
Good call on Naked Lunch. Movie’s screwed up. I don’t know if I consider Fantastic Planet to be all that strange, since it makes sense contextually and substantively even if the presentation is bizarre, but it’s a great movie worthy of being mentioned just for its inherent excellence.
Another good “wtf” movie: What Is It?. Wrap your brain around that one.
Perhaps, but if you can’t figure that out it’s really fucked up.
I’ve seen maybe half of these, and I couldn’t put Donnie Darko on my list. The weirdest film I’ve ever seen is the Happiness of the Katakuris. A musical comedy about murder and zombies with some claymation thrown in. Somewhere between Shaun of the Dead and The Sound of Music.
Eraserhead, though. That might take the cake.
The Happiness of the Katakuris is the weirdest weird movie I’ve ever seen, and I love it.
ZARDOZ
ZARDOZ
(Haven’t seen it, should’ve)
I don’t find Donnie Darko all that incomprehensible. After a few repeat watches it makes almost completely sense. Southland Tales, that much maligned(but in my opinion rather great)other Richard Kelly alternative-universe-with-religious-overtones-and-magic-energy-water-and-persons-with-missing-eyes-sci-fi movie is a lot weirder.
And what about the collected works of Ken Russell: Lisztomania, talk about weird: Franz Liszt who, in a cock-pipe-organ-rocket with angel wings driven by the power of love goes up against Frankenstein-Dracula-Hitler-Superman-Wagner who mows down Hassidic Jews with a electric-guitar-uzi.
Yeah, and that’s just one scène in his entire weird oeuvre.
Holy shit I have to see that
You guys forgot the Japanese movie “House”.
No one mentioned “Freaks”? Man, if you have not seen that movie…real actors, no special effects or makeup. It will really give you the creeps! I’m going to keep this list on hand and work my way through.
The only person who gave me the creeps in that was Cleopatra.
And how exactly was the limbless man (kinda waddle rolling your way with a knife in his mouth) supposed to actually damage anyone once he actually caught up to you. Maybe once you’re immobilized heh.
that movie was not creepy in the least..just sayin
Where’s “Suicide Club?”
Not on the list
Talk about weird movies and all I can think of Film Studies at Uni, my Avant Garde cinema module has ALOT to answer for! So we start with Un Chien Andalou (to break us in easy) and continue with some weird film that has a goat falling down a mountain. Not to mention the continous randaomn shapes film, literally just weird shapes and annoying sounds, interspersed with shouts of “What the…?” from the student audience. I never saw Enter The Void or Eraserhead but I saw and loved Donnie Darko and actually thought I understood it quite well (which obviously meant I missed the point completely). But if you are going to put one Lynch film on here, you may as well have out them all on, but not least Inland Empire which has got to be, to date, the most deranged film I have seen. Nice post Max, thanks.
Yeah, I had to pick one of Lynch, and I haven’t seen Inland Empire yet. So Eraserhead it was.
PLEASE….can u tell me the name of the film with the goat falling down the mountain?I saw it, and a number of other weird films, on a show hosted by (I think) Alam Cumming on Friday nights….I can’t find any info on this show or the films shown…there were quite a few I would love to see again…just to validate that the strange images I sometimes remember came from OUTSIDE, not INSIDE my head….
At 12AM in the morning of David Lynch’s birthday, I ritually watch Eraserhead, one of the first movies I ever saw. It’s my way of tributing such a fantastic director who has had such a magnificent influence on the way I watch movies.
I’ve seen most of these, and want to thank you for bringing the nightmares of Enter the Void back to the forefront of my brain. That movie messed.me.up.
Great list! I need to get on seeing Fantastic Planet at some point here…
Have you see Visioneers?
Fantastic Planet isn’t really all that good. I put it on there for its weirdness, but its quite forgettable aside from that.
Nope. What’s it about?
Most things by David Lynch and Jan Svankmajer. Great choices. I really love Svankmajer’s Little Otik about a tree stump that comes alive – very strange but equally wonderful.
Nothing come even close to this film called BEGOTTEN.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0101420/
A film called Dream One is right up there which manages to be totally incomprehensible as a whole but string together all sorts of semi normal scenes. It really emulates the title ‘Dream’ where things jump about and makes sense to the dreamer at the time but no sense when looked at as a whole.
Sorry, but I got to this list late….but a very good list!
Two of my favorite strange movies:
Shanks (1974)- completely silent film starring Marcel Marceau & Helena Kallienotes as a scientist’s assistant who reanimates dead bodies…and directed by William Castle (The Tingler)!
Greaser’s Palace (1972)- basically El Topo on two tabs of acid instead of one. Stars Alan Arbus (Dr. Sidney Friedman on MASH) as a Messiah to a very stange western town- directed by Robert Downey Putney Swope, father of RD Jr.)- also check out his film “Pound”- (1969)- all of the actors portray dougs in a NYC opund who are about to put asleep- that is when the power comes back on. Weird!!
I’m happy to say I’ve seen four of these! Donnie Darko was definitely strange, but I’m one of its cult followers. I absolutely loved it. Paprika was fantastic. Another one of his movies, Perfect Blue, is equally strange, but less fascinating. I watched Dead Leaves on Hulu, and I can honestly say I have NO idea what happened. And obviously, Eraserhead deserves a spot on the list.
NO Guy Maddin???? In all his work, NOT ONE SANE MOMENT…also, although I grew up on “Freaks” and “Eraserhead”, “GUMMO” is the most unsettling and disturbing movie I have ever seen…
I take it none of you have ever seen “Begotten” or “cutting moments”…or even “gummo” for that matter…those are weird, creepy, scary…just fukkin sick movies.
I agree these are weird, I have seen more tan half of them myself, but you are missing a glaringly obvious one. Being John Malkovich!
And I forgot the movie Brazil, or Gummo
Not sure if it was commented on (didn’t read all the comments, sorry e1) but I would say Gozu would be my on shortlist as well. I like Japanese cinema, but as entertaining as the films are I find them somewhat lacking in clarity from time to time. Without spoiling anything, a brief synopsis might read as such:
“A Yakuza associate is ordered to murder his brother and take his body to a dump for disposal. Along the way he encounters a lactating innkeeper, a cow-headed demon, and a woman who gives birth to a fully grown man.”
The two worst and wierdest movies I have ever seen are, “The Violin” and “Perfume”! Check ‘em out for yourself!
Awesome list!
I’ve seen all of Svankmajer’s work, Alice being my favorite all time film. I’ve seen Eraseread, some of El Topo and Un Chien Andalou.
I would also suggest adding Brazil and Gummo (or Trash Humpers).
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