Lesser seen films worth your time
The Rules are:
* Each film must have less than 3000 votes before being added to the list.
* Must be a genuinely good film (no "so bad it's good" films).
* No obvious cult classics (e.g. The Cars That Ate Paris, Zombie Flesh Eaters, Dark Star etc)
* Each film must have less than 3000 votes before being added to the list.
* Must be a genuinely good film (no "so bad it's good" films).
* No obvious cult classics (e.g. The Cars That Ate Paris, Zombie Flesh Eaters, Dark Star etc)
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48 titles
- DirectorBruce BeresfordStarsJohn HargreavesPat BishopGraham KennedyOn the night of the 1969 Australian election, Don holds a party in his suburban Sydney house, where his raucous, rude, embarrassing, extrovert friends discuss sex, politics, and their lives, and seduce each others wives.Australian comedy-drama. Intelligently observed with a believable script.
- DirectorChristina AndreefStarsJeanie DrynanLinal HaftRussell DykstraThree sisters and their ex-con brother return home to nurse their mother, who is dying of cancer.Obscure Australian black comedy. Big on vulgar humour and quite heartfelt.
- DirectorMelvin Van PeeblesStarsGodfrey CambridgeEstelle ParsonsHoward CaineJeff Gerber, a racist white man, wakes up one morning to discover that he has become black.Body swap comedy with a social message. It isn't tacky or going for cheap laughs.
- DirectorAllan ArkushStarsMalcolm McDowellAllen GarfieldDaniel SternMega-promoter Colin Beverly plans to sabotage the New Year's 1983 concert of small-time operator Max Wolfe. Wolfe's assistants Neil Allen and Willie Loman find romance while trying to save the drugs, violence, and rock and roll from Beverly's schemes.Fun music film. Possibly difficult to see due to music licensing?
- DirectorRaymond De FelittaStarsMichael RispoliKelly MacdonaldKathrine NarducciA dreamer finds that his wife and friends are binding him to his mediocre existence.American Drama. Nicely scripted and acted.
- DirectorJim ClarkStarsMarty FeldmanJudy CornwellGarry MillerTeddy, working at an advertising agency, has to come up with a campaign for frozen porridge.Very silly and fun Marty Feldman film. Rarely seen and underrated.
- DirectorPhilippe HarelStarsPhilippe HarelJosé GarciaPhilippe BiancoStory of a man whose misanthropy goes out of control due to a business trip together with a colleague.Black comedy, hilarious in places.
- DirectorSabuStarsShin'ichi TsutsumiKeisuke HoribeRen ÔsugiA postman is mistaken for a dangerous criminal by the police.Fast paced Action-Comedy from Sabu. Funny and exciting.
- DirectorHark TsuiStarsBrigitte LinSally YehCherie ChungThe movie is set in chaotic 1920's China, when warlords fought each other for power while Sun Yat-Sen's underground movement tried to establish a democratic republic. The movie tells the story of three young women and two young men who are thrown together. One young woman grabs a box of jewels during the looting when one warlord takes Peking. A deserting soldier joins her, but the jewels end up at the Peking Opera. Here we meet the daughter of the head of the troupe, who dreams of being an actress. But even female roles are played by men in the opera. Soon, the daughter of the currently ruling warlord and a male agent of the democratic underground are involved.Another rare Tsui Hark film. Period drama with martial arts scenes. Beautiful cinematography and original action scenes.
- DirectorHark TsuiStarsLieh LoChen-Chi LinAlbert AuThree lazybones friends manufacture a firebomb and place it in a cinema. Pearl, a sadistic young girl, has observed the scene, follows the bombers and starts to manipulate them. The four criminals plan more and more daring acts.Rare Tsui Hark (Chinese Ghost Story) film. Violent and action packed, well worth seeking out.
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsKenny HoChristy ChungElaine LuiA group of terrorists murder the captain of a cruise ship and take everyone hostage. Their plan is to steal the uranium being stored in the ship's safe. It's up to a security officer and a pickpocketing cocktail waitress to stop them.Top Hong Kong action film set on a cruise liner. A bit obvious plotwise, but an amazing finale.
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsSammo Kam-Bo HungSiu Chung MokHoi MangLo Tung and his friend Malted Candy, pedicab drivers working the streets of Macao, have both fallen in love. The problem is that both their objects of affection--one a baker, the other a prostitute--are working under cruel and lecherous bosses. Somehow, the pair must find a way to win the ladies' hearts and free them from their unpleasant jobs.Probably the best Sammo Hung film. Incredible action sequences, sadly no official DVD releases to date.
- DirectorCheol-hie ParkStarsShin Ha-kyunYun Ji-hyeKim Min-joonA mute hit-man vows to kill only the rude, and save up enough money for tongue surgery.Violent and funny crime film.
- DirectorMasato HaradaStarsHitomi SatôYasue SatôYukiko OkamotoThe film follows three modern Japanese schoolgirls in Tokyo as they flirt with lecherous old men and dodge the yakuza in the lucrative and sometimes dangerous practice of "enjo kosai" or "date clubs".Japanese drama about schoolgirls. Disturbing and powerful.
- DirectorAndrew Y-S ChengStarsZhinan LiMian MianYuting YangSet in Shanghai. Everyone panics.Saying its the Chinese version of Kids oversimplifies it. It's a really good film.
- DirectorNabil AyouchStarsMounïm KbabMustapha HansaliHicham MoussouneA group of children living on the street leave their gang, prompting retribution from the gang's leader. After one of the children dies, the rest try to come up with the resources to give their friend a proper burial.Underrated crime drama. Good acting and a believable storyline.
- DirectorBeto BrantStarsMarco RiccaAlexandre BorgesPaulo MiklosTwo businessmen hire a hitman to kill their third partner and are then blackmailed by the hitman as he takes over their company.Violent crime drama. Rarely seen and exciting.
- DirectorGuerdon TruebloodStarsTiffany BollingBen PiazzaSusan SennettA nonverbal autistic boy stumbles upon a teenage heiress who has been kidnapped by a trio of young psychopaths, who are intent on extorting diamonds from her stepfather.Sleazy exploitation kidnapping drama. Above most exploitation films in terms of pacing, acting and scripting.
- DirectorDennis HopperStarsLinda ManzDennis HopperSharon FarrellA young girl whose father is an ex-convict and whose mother is a junkie finds it difficult to conform and tries to find comfort in a quirky combination of Elvis and the punk scene.Incredible Dennis Hopper film.
- DirectorFred SchepisiStarsTommy LewisFreddy ReynoldsAngela Punch McGregorAfter suffering racist abuse throughout his life - which intensifies following his marriage to a white woman - a half-Aboriginal farmhand finds himself driven to murder.Powerful Australian drama. Tight direction and scripting.
- DirectorVadim JeanStarsIan HartCatherine RussellRúaidhrí ConroyA special needs education teacher is having a special relation with one of his pupils by their common hobby: running. Until fate strikes.Rarely seen British drama. Realistic and well acted.
- DirectorChris MengesStarsDaniel AuteuilNastassja KinskiKatrin CartlidgeXavier Lombard is a world-weary private eye in London, in exile from his native Paris; his best friend is Nathalie, a high-class call girl. He gets a call from an old friend from the Paris police department, now a businessman whose brother-in-law is missing. The missing man's parents hire Xavier over their daughter's objections, and quickly he finds himself in the realm of children's sexual slavery. He guesses that the lost son is dead and shifts his focus to finding and breaking this lucrative business of child trafficking. He involves a reluctant Nathalie to hunt "the Austrian," the shadowy head of the business. Violence erupts quickly, and Xavier soon has little more to lose.Disturbing crime drama. Intense and avoids being exploitative.
- DirectorDom RotheroeStarsJenna HarrisonBen WhishawHoneysuckle WeeksA teenage girl, Jessica, befriends a teenage boy called Tom, who is bullied by a local gang. She is abused by Jack, who is both her neighbour and school teacher, and Tom is sexually abused by his father. Together they bond in the woods, creating a private reality that no-one else can enter.Disturbing, horrible, brilliant.
- DirectorJoko AnwarStarsFachry AlbarMarsha TimothyArio BayuThe life of a successful sculptor is turned upside down when he begins receiving mysterious messages from someone who asks for his help.Disturbing and twisted.
- DirectorBrillante MendozaStarsCoco MartinMaria Isabel LopezJulio DiazA young man tries to make some money so he can marry his girlfriend. He takes a job for $2,000 and then realizes that this job involves killing a woman.Incredibly disturbing and brilliantly directed.
- DirectorJuanma Bajo UlloaStarsKarra ElejaldeAna ÁlvarezLioA criminal, shoots and kills a painting restorer during a bungled burglary, and shoots her daughter as well. Twenty years later, the daughter has been left mute and with a mental age of a child, spending most of her time in a mental home.Spanish horror drama.
- DirectorDaniel GreavesMatt Phlatt, along with his pet cat Geoff and his fish, Chips live in a world where everyone is "flat" character in a 3D world of paper and cardboard. A freak electrical accident releases a 30's gangster from his TV film into Matt's world and causes chaos as Matt is mistaken for the criminal after a bank robbery.Excellent animated short.
- DirectorRichard C. SarafianStarsDavid HemmingsGayle HunnicuttWilfrid Hyde-WhiteReformed drug addict Tim Brett (David Hemmings) is vacationing in Italy with his aunt. When she is murdered, he tries to investigate. Soon his whole life spins out of control.Criminally underrated British thriller. A fine performance from David Hemmings and an incredible jazzy soundtrack.
- DirectorAlbert FinneyStarsAlbert FinneyColin BlakelyBillie WhitelawA married writer has an affair with his secretary.Excellently acted, similar in Premise to Rabbit, Run.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsDerrick O'ConnorGary HoltonRichard ThomasTwo young boys enact a mock fight outside a football ground as a joke, but it goes wrong when one of them is injured. While the victim recovers in hospital, the other boy attempts to hide from the police.Stephen Frears TV movie is quite difficult to see. Some of the costumes and characters have dated badly, but this film still holds up with a tight script, thrilling performances and suspenseful pacing.
- DirectorDennis IliadisStarsKaterina TsavalouDanae SkiadiIoannis PapazisisLeaving behind a hard life with their families, two young girls end up in a brothel, fall in love and support one another against the adversities and violence of the night.I mistook this for the much earlier Paul Schrader film and I'm glad I saw it. This is a grim, but brilliant drama. The 1979 film of the same name is great as well, but neither are related apart from the name.
- DirectorPeter FondaStarsPeter FondaWarren OatesVerna BloomHarry returns home to his wife and farm after drifting with his friend Arch and has to make a difficult decision regarding his loyalties.Critically acclaimed, but ignored. The best Western most people haven't seen. Great acting and directing from Peter Fonda.
- DirectorFloyd MutruxStarsTim McIntireFran DrescherJay LenoThe story of Alan Freed, the pioneering disc jockey who was instrumental in introducing and popularizing rock 'n' roll in the 1950s.Lesser seen due to there being no official DVD\BR release. I don't like the music featured, but it's hard not to get caught up in this music drama.
- DirectorGillies MacKinnonStarsHarry EdenVinnie HunterMolly ParkerA young boy trying to deal with his mother's heroin addiction befriends a waitress who helps him cope with the tough situation.Keira Knightley in a film which isn't for kids or garbage. Gillies MacKinnon is a much underrated director.
- DirectorKim Ki-dukStarsCho Jae-hyunJang Dong-jikRyun JangTwo Korean ex-pats meet in Paris by chance encounter. One a petty thief and wannabe artist/painter (Chong-Hae), the other a tough guy (Hong San). Hong San saves Chong-Hae from a gang of thugs and the two become friends. Seizing an opportunity, Chong-Hae and Hong San perform martial arts stunts on the streets for money.from Ki-Duk, lesser seen due to it only being available on bootleg VHS for years and un-subtitled. Popular-ish with Asian film fans, but ignored by most arthouse or world cinema fans.
- DirectorYasuzô MasumuraStarsAyako WakaoShinsuke AshidaYûsuke KawazuDuring the Sino-Japanese War, a young army nurse gives sympathy to her patients and falls in love with an impotent doctor who's addicted to morphine.Red Angel an absolutely superb war drama. Boasts some stunning black and white photography.
- DirectorRobert GuédiguianStarsAriane AscarideJean-Pierre DarroussinGérard MeylanA dark tale of working-class life in Marseilles, a city in crisis. Interesting characters include a hard-bitten but compassionate fish market worker with a drug addicted daughter and a moody bartender with a shocking secret life.Hard to find French drama. Ignore the silly cover art, this is not a gangster film. It is nicely acted and directed, and features involving characters.
- DirectorVera ChytilováStarsBolek PolívkaMiroslav DonutilAnna PantuckovaA hillbilly inherits millions and goes to the city, leaving his village to live a rich man's life in post-communist Czechia.I watched this based on title alone. I can't remember if this Czech film was funny or not, but it was entertaining.
- DirectorRobert Jan WestdijkStarsRoeland FernhoutHugo MetsersVlatka SimacGoof and Hugo are flatmates in Amsterdam who have made a tidy sum from having sex with tourists, then robbing them. Their goal is to spend the money together on a world trip and their scam is going well until they meet Lara, originally from Siberia, whom Goof becomes besotted with.90s "techno" movie. Fast paced, good soundtrack and funny.
- DirectorAntoine de CaunesStarsPhilippe TorretonRichard E. GrantJay RodanHow could Napoleon, the man of war and pioneering military strategist, meekly accept being locked up on a storm-lashed rock in the middle of the Atlantic ocean? What system of defence, and thus of attack, can he dream up to loosen his jailers' grip? On Saint Helena, the far-flung island chosen by his enemies, Napoleon fights a mysterious battle, his last and most important, and one that history has kept secret all these years.A great film about Napoleon. If you like historical drama this is a must.
- DirectorBill ForsythStarsBill PatersonEleanor DavidClare GroganAlan Bird witnesses how an ice cream van is attacked and destroyed by an angry competitor. This leads him into the struggle between two Italian families, the Bernardis and the Rossis, over whose ice cream vans can sell where in Glasgow.Rarely seen film about a local DJ who is the go between in an ice cream van war. Charming, beautifully scripted and subtlely acted.
- DirectorIsaac JulienStarsValentine NonyelaMo SesayDorian HealyTwo disc jockeys have a friend's murder to solve in the fringe-group melting pot of 1977 London.British drama about pirate radio. Well worth seeing if you get the chance.
- DirectorDaryl DukeStarsRip TornAhna CapriElayne HeilveilMaury Dann (Rip Torn, in one of his most memorable performances) is a not-so-nice country-Western singer. He ruthlessly manipulates everyone around him to suit his selfish needs...he even gets his limo driver to take the blame for the death of a fan whom he stabbed.Class act from Rip Torn as the country music singer whose life is falling apart.
- DirectorRolf OlsenLee PayantStarsRaimund HarmstorfAmadeus AugustGianni MacchiaWhen terrorists rob a bank all hell is let loose.Violent German crime thriller based on a real-life story. Rarely seen despite a cult following.
- DirectorMartin ClunesStarsMartin ClunesMichael PraedMichèle WinstanleyVery much in love, Neil's wedding plans are sabotaged, beginning when he is abandoned, naked, on a Scottish island. A road trip ensues, with Neil encountering many obstacles as he makes his way to London for what he believes is to be his wedding day. Or is it?Farcical Martin Clunes comedy vehicle. Genuinely funny.
- DirectorCurtis RadclyffeStarsJohn DunsworthOliver MilburnMike CrimpPaul, a young man from London, arrives in the small Nova Scotia town of Milestone, where his long lost father was last seen years earlier. Paul is eager to find out what brought his father to this remote community.Weird drama with horror elements.
- DirectorJoseph B. VasquezStarsDoug E. DougMario JoynerJohn LeguizamoFour young friends spend one crazy Friday night on the streets of Manhattan that quickly turns into a night, they'll never forget.Believable acting and a witty script elevate this leagues above most 90s buddy comedies.
- DirectorLung-Wei WangStarsSai-Tang ChanWah CheungKeung-Kuen LaiA man returning to his old neighborhood after a prison term finds that the friends he used to hang out with are now a violent street gang that is terrorizing the community.Rare-ish Hong Kong action film with amazing stunts.