70’s Cult Films

       The 70’s gave birth to a sub-culture of cinema that by definition, more or less evolved into a lifestyle for many of its audience members. Midnight movies that developed cult followings drew people into theaters all night, and were able to keep them coming back with the amount of life the characters were able to give to the screen. The public ate these types of films up mostly because the edgy producers behind them were starting to put more sexual themes and violent scenes into their films. Theaters eventually started to want more and more of these films many considered ethically and morally wrong due to the simple fact that they were ridiculously lucrative. Cult films were infamous for being aesthetically and thematically innovative while blurring lines the industry made for other cookie-cutter genres. They often left the audience with loose ends and opportunities to imagine their own ending to the story, prompting more conversation and providing free word of mouth advertising for their film.

       Often times, cult films will focus on a very sensitive topic while making it look like a day at the circus. I believe this attributes to their success by drawing the most primal types of curiosity from viewers. Attempting to desensitize the audience in regards to animal cruelty, incest, and rape, along with some of the other most disturbing topics we can think of drives the viewer to naturally wonder. That is why films like El Topo do their best to show as much blood and gore on the screen as they possibly can get away with.

El Topo (1970)

       The people who enjoy watching films of this nature band together to create a communities around them, and may even sometimes require “initiation” of new members. Die hard fans get a sense of belonging from their communion and develop their own lingo when it comes to conversing opinions about the films. At the heart of thee groups, one can usually find a common value deeply rooted within all the fans, whether it be a way of life, a treasured moral code, or a nostalgic connection to a city or time period.

       The film we watched in class, Rocky Horror Picture Show, is arguably the most iconic and example of a cult movie. I say arguably most iconic, but when it comes to the level of participation and consumption by the fans, RHPS is undoubtedly the most extreme example out there. The amount of audience participation was so crazy that people would throw toast, water, hot dogs, and toilet paper at the appropriate times to interact with what was happening on screen (Many theaters actually had to ban such practices). Live performances of the show would be put on in front of the screen, and more often than not, fans would dress up as members of the cast and recite all the same parts.

       Of course, cult movies were never intended to lift off as fast as they did, and it turns out that many of them were the result of production “accidents”. Films with troubled origins and rocky receptions made them favorites of ironic viewing, and being far outside of the audiences comfort zone only made them more desirable for people looking to rebel against mainstream ideals.