This is part three in our continuing Misfit Artists saga, which examines documentaries about unique artists working outside of the mainstream.
Electric Boogaloo is not about break dancing. It’s a documentary about Cannon Films, the bad boys of 1980s and 1990s cinema. Led by a pair of brash Israelis who wanted to disrupt the Hollywood studio system, Cannon unleashed a torrent of cheap, edgy and often outrageous films. Some of them were even good. Continue reading
This is the second installment of the Misfit Artists list, which examines documentaries about unique artists who worked outside of the mainstream.
In the Realms of the Unreal is the name of a documentary as well as a 15,000-page illustrated epic created by Henry Darger. A poor and reclusive janitor, Darger labored in secret on works that boggle the imagination and provide a fascinating window into his soul. Continue reading
This film rec will begin a series of documentaries on artists who live and work outside of the mainstream. Stay tuned for further recommendations in the unspecified future!
Anvil! The Story of Anvil plays out like a pretty decent rehash of This Is Spinal Tap. As with Rob Reiner’s opus, the film follows a minor metal band through a disastrous tour in a last-ditch attempt to rescue their careers. Familiar scenes of botched gigs, embarrassing logistics and internal strife have an awkwardly realistic sense of humor that seems to owe a great debt to the film that came before. Even one of the two main characters is named “Robb Reiner.” At some point into the film, however, it will become clear that Anvil is not a rehash, nor is it even a mockumentary. Everything in the film really happened. Continue reading
To understand Best Worst Movie, you must first understand Troll 2, a low-budget horror film that does not feature any trolls and is not a sequel to the film Troll. As you might expect, Troll 2 was not a towering achievement of cinema. In fact, at one point it held the dubious distinction of being IMDB’s lowest-rated film. Best Worst Movie is a look at how the hell that happened. Continue reading
Film Rex 