Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream

Although "Midnight Movies" still exist today they are very scarce since the early 80's when video tape became popular and changed everything. Midnight movies are cult movies that cater to a certain kind of audience. This documentary deals with a few of the most successful Midnight Movies ever made, back when certain audiences were hungry for something different in their movie going. Movies featured are El Topo, Night of the living dead, Pink Flamingos, The Harder they come, The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Eraserhead. Back when they came out they were considered different than anything that came before and even hold up today. The documentary explains how these movies became popular in the midnight time slot even though some of them were tried at regular time showings. John Waters' Pink Flamingo's had a ten year straight run while The Rocky Horror Picture Show is the reigning champ with midnight screenings today where people dress as the characters and sing along to the catchy tunes in the film. There are people who have seen the film over 1000 times, not on DVD, but in an actual theater. Eraserhead by David Lynch was only a success after a year of midnight showings. It would be impossible for this to happen today as movies need to be an immediate hit. Interesting movie for those interested in a different kind of cinema. Good Stuff!

While I have not watched EL TOPO (and probably never will due to its extreme violence), I have seen the five other films discussed in this documentary about so-called "midnight movies". While I have reviewed nearly 5000 movies and have an appreciation for all kinds of films, the ones shown in this documentary aren't ones I particularly like and that isn't super surprising, as the films definitely are counter-culture--films that appeal to a very select group. In spite of this, I still enjoyed this documentary and found it well worth seeing because of all the fascinating background information it gave. And, because I was not a fan of the films but the documentary made me appreciate them more, you know it must be a pretty good film. Think about it--creating excitement about a topic I normally would not care about--that's the sign of a good film.

By the way, the films discussed were EL TOPO, PINK FLAMINGOS, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW, ERASERHEAD and THE HARDER THEY COME. I am a bit surprised they also didn't mention MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL, as it, too, made a killing at midnight showings and was a cheap independent film as well.

The collection of films gathered in this documentary is centered around the cult of the midnight movies, a series of films in the 70s which were not only experimental in form and shocking in content, but also presented a different type of viewing experience in the decade between the flower power 60s and the electronic explosion of the 80s. All these films became cult objects and enjoyed success which was not necessarily, or not only commercial, but also focused on a type of non-mainstream audience. The films themselves were very unequal judged on the art scale, with three of the six being important films, to be remembered in any history of the moving pictures art, and the other three closer to the trash pan. It is however interesting to see the authors of the movies looking back to the time of the making and the critics trying to put them in perspective. At the end it is not so much the documentary material that stays with the viewer but the reflection process that makes us think about the relationship between art, viewing conditions, experiment and success.

Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream (2005)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Highly entertaining documentary that traces the start and end of the midnight movie. El Topo, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Night of the Living Dead, Pink Flamingos and Eraserhead are discussed by critics, their filmmakers and those who made them famous. The documentary does a great job at showing the appeal of these films and why they've lived on for so many years after, for the most part, they couldn't even get into theaters early on. George Romeo, David Lynch, John Waters and even Roger Ebert are all interviewed as well as others.

Stuart Samuels brilliant documentary puts in its proper perspective how going to the films was changed forever with the arrival of the classic Alejandro Jodorowsky's film "El Topo" at the famous Elgin Theater in Chelsea. Mr. Samuels proves to have an insight into the counter culture that came into being in those golden days when people embraced a new expression in the movies, as championed by Mr. Jodorowsky and others of that era.

The Elgin Theater was located in what we now know as the Joyce Theater, a mecca for the modern dance, on Eight Avenue, between 19th and 20th streets. Back then, the Elgin had a great programming and all kinds of films were shown, as it operated as a semi repertory cinema with its emphasis in the outrageous, which was presented at midnight. The place had seen better days by the time it became a refuge for the new film makers that wanted to change the way they made films.

Alejandro Jodorowsky was perhaps the most influential one of that generation with his film "El Topo". It was the film that gave way to that trend to present unconventional films that wouldn't otherwise be shown a new venue for people looking for new things.

John Waters was an admirer of what he encounter at the Elgin, and it gave him the push to go ahead with his outrageous films that wouldn't have a distribution, had the Elgin not welcomed him. George Romero is also part of that generation as is David Lynch, who is much younger, but one can see the influence of those outrageous films he saw early in his youth.

The comments by Roger Ebert, J. Hoberman, Jonathan Rosenbaum and others in the documentary put things in the right perspective for us, as we learn the history of this phenomenon.

Stuart Samuels has to be congratulated for putting things in their right place in order for everyone to understand how the change began.