The best cult movies come in many shapes and sizes. Some are big-budget box-office bombs, others are obscure indies. Many are very well made, while a few are only enjoyed with a degree of irony. It's a definition that can be applied to films in any genre. Yet all of the best cult-classic movies have one thing in common: a passionate and dedicated fan base who will champion their chosen movie whenever the opportunity arises.
We're talking about the type of film fans who learn all the lines, will trek twelve hours to catch a screening, and maybe even indulge in a little bit of cosplay. Sounds fun, doesn't it? Of course, it does, but where should someone looking to embrace the weirder side of cinema begin? Well, there are plenty of films to choose from, but we think this list of the 10 best cult-classic movies ever made is the best place to start. We've got everything from kung-fu comedies to oddball musicals and even Nicolas Cage pretending to be a vampire! So what are you waiting for? It's time to be indoctrinated.
10. Big Trouble in Little China
Director: John Carpenter
Released: 1986
When deciding which John Carpenter movie to add to this list, it came down to They Live or Big Trouble in Little China, but ultimately, the better film won out. Okay, "better film" might be a bit of a stretch, but Big Trouble in Little China's energetic and anarchic tone make it a far better fit for a list of the best cult films. The entire thing is a playful tribute to the kung-fu movies of the '70s, and Carpenter's clearly having a ball subverting the cliches and tropes of a somewhat dated genre. Plus, it's got Kurt Russell playing against his established tough-guy persona in what may be his funniest role to date. What's not to love?
9. Vampire's Kiss
Director: Robert Bierman
Released: 1989
"I'm A Vampire!" Okay. We know that Vampire's Kiss may not be a good movie by the strictest definitions. Hell, it may be an outright bad movie at times, but what it does have going for it is one of the most unhinged performances in the history of cinema courtesy of Nicolas Cage, and that deserves celebrating. If you've never seen it, Cage plays Peter Loew, a man under the mistaken belief he's turning into a vampire. Originally intended as a black comedy, Vampire's Kiss ends up being a surreal, experimental film exploring how far an award-nominated actor can take overacting before he gets fired. Honestly, this delightfully absurd film can't really be described in words it needs to be seen to be believed.
8. Event Horizon
Director: Paul W. S. Anderson
Released: 1997
Paul W. S. Anderson's attempt to deliver one of the best sci-fi movies may not have set the box office alight when it hit theatres in the '90s, but it did even worse with critics who hated the film's gruesome tone and strange plot. Thankfully, time and sensibilities have changed since then, and Event Horizon has gone on to be rightly recognised as the bold and ambitious sci-fi horror it truly is. It's basically Hellraiser in space (no, we don't mean Hellraiser: Bloodline which is literally Hellraiser in space), featuring plenty of shocking gore, some genuinely staggering production design, and more hellish imagery than a Hieronymus Bosch painting. Still, what makes Event Horizon such a pleasure to watch is its sheer unashamedness. This is a film that knows it's not high art; it's pulpy fun, but that doesn't mean it has to be bad.
7. Heathers
Director: Michael Lehmann
Released: 1989
A pitch-black comedy, Heathers twists the cliched teen movie ideal of 'taming a bad boy' and makes it into something far nastier and entertaining in the process. Written by Daniel Waters – who'd later go on to write the criminally underrated Demolition Man, which similarly plays with established genre tropes – Heathers was originally lambasted by critics who missed the point entirely and labelled the film needlessly cruel. More modern critics, however, have rightly recognised the film is, in fact, an offbeat subversion of the more optimistic teen movies of the day. Indeed, Heathers has more in common with the more vicious teen movies of the '00s (Mean Girls, Jennifer's Body, etc.) than its softer contemporaries in the best comedy movies category (The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, etc).
6. Withnail and I
Director: Bruce Robinson
Released: 1987
One of the few movies on this list that was actually well received by critics when it was released, Withnail and I is one of the most tragic comedies ever put to film. Supposedly based on the life of director and writer Bruce Robinson (good god, that's quite depressing) and set during a bleak English autumn, the film documents two friends, Withnail (Richard E. Grant) and Marwood (Paul McGann), as they escape the drudgery of London for the wet and windy Lake District. What follows is one of the bleakest British holidays since caravans were invented. Thankfully, Robinson manages to keep riotously funny throughout – thanks in large part to Grant's natural charm, which offsets Withnail's arrogance and snobbishness – while cinematographer Peter Hannan does the impossible and makes derelict housing and rainy-soaked fields look beautiful.
5. Harold and Maude
Director: Hal Ashby
Released: 1971
If you thought that a film about the odd relationship between a young man obsessed with death and a 79-year-old car thief couldn't possibly be one of the sweetest movies ever made, then clearly, you've never seen Harold and Maude. Directed by Hal Ashby, Harold and Maude is undoubtedly a challenging comedy, yet underneath its dark jokes about dying and its macabre main characters, this is a film with a heart of absolute gold that's as warm and welcoming as anything the House of Mouse has ever produced.
4. The Evil Dead
Director: Sam Rami
Released: 1981
While The Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness are huge cult movies, the original Evil Dead is the one that truly deserves a spot on this list. Made on a shoestring budget by Sam Raimi with his childhood friend Bruce Campbell, this grisly and gross horror became a classic amongst genre fans (despite the attempts of the morality police) who adored the way it had them simultaneously howling in terror and laughter. Nowadays, the film is widely regarded as one of the most successful cult movies ever made, and it carved out a lasting legacy in both the films it inspired and the wider franchise it helped to launch. Still, as a standalone movie, The Evil Dead remains one of the most daring pieces of filmmaking ever, thanks to its quirky camerawork and irreverent dark tone – if you're into it, you probably think it's one of the best horror movies ever.
3. The Room
Director: Tommy Wiseau
Released: 2003
The Room should need no introduction. There was a time when it was widely considered one of the worst movies ever made for its bizarre plotting, dreadful acting, and amateurish direction. Still, the film found a life of its own on the midnight movie circuit and the internet. Thus, The Room was reborn as the Sistine Chapel of cult movies, a masterpiece of bad filmmaking watched by legions of fans across the globe who enjoy nothing more than laughing at this disasterpiece (and throwing spoons at the screen if the cinema staff will allow it). Of course, it'd be remiss of us not to mention the real reason The Room became such a big hit amongst bad movie aficionados: the film's director and leading man, Tommy Wiseau, who delivered a performance so bizarre Nicolas Cage, would have watched it and thought 'wow reign it in a bit'.
2. Office Space
Director: Mike Judge
Released: 1999
A biting satire about the mind numbing mundanity of office work, Office Space may have been a box office disappointment when it hit theatres, but it clearly struck a chord with white-collar workers the world over – today, it's considered one of the best '90s movies around. As a result, the film found a second life on home video, and anyone who's ever spent any time in the tedious grey void of an office will appreciate the power fantasy of finally telling that one boss (you know who we mean) what you really think of him.
1. The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Director: Jim Sharman
Released: 1975
Chaotic, colourful, and entertaining beyond measure, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a masterclass in camp spectacle. Based on the stage show of the same name and directed by renowned theatre director Jim Sharman, this weird and wild musical sees a young couple, Brad and Janet (Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon), trying to escape the clutches of mad scientist and alien Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry).
Under-appreciated by critics upon its release, The Rocky Horror Picture Show found its audience with the midnight movie crowd and the LGBTQ+ community who adored the film's bawdy themes of sexual liberation – it still stands as one of the best gay movies. Nowadays, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a film best seen with the largest crowd possible, so you can sing along while wearing fishnet stockings.
While it's always difficult to anticipated what will become a cult classic next, check out our list of the all the upcoming movies to see what's on the near horizon.
