Definitions of cult range from the innocent to the super extreme. From undying love to just a hobby on the weekends, Cult finds its way into the hearts of viewers in the most unexpected way possible. The film industry is a tough market to breakout into films are considered artwork and others often end up in the bargain film box at any major department store. Why do people love some films more than others? Many would argue that films like The Grand Budapest Hotel are pieces of cinematic art.
Applying an honorific to big Hollywood productions with intense visuals and high budget actors is commonplace. Rarely ever do dramatic “chick flicks”, or a seedy action film garner the same type of box office revenues. What draws that line? The film experience has become extremely intimate, the way people watch and experience film is changing with every new film technique and device on the market. With all the changes inundating cinema, cult film society has felt the shift. There is now a whole new culture. Creation and appreciation now go hand and hand, driven forth by the technological world.
In my paper I will be exploring what makes a cult film, how fans connecting on and offline, and what happened to the classic cultists and cinephiles that are watching their fan bases become one. Cult film followings have existed since the early days of cinema. An analysis of film cult can be traced back to a 1932 essay written by Harry Alan Potamkin. Although cult followers did not burst on the scene until film studies became a major player in college courses. Students enrolled in film studies predicated cult film activities by the fetishistically inclined way they viewed films.
With the definition of cult film being so loose, what makes one is hard to imagine. The Oxford dictionary defines a cult classic as ? Something, typically a movie or book, that is popular or fashionable among a particular group or section of society.? (oxford). With this definition in mind, any book or film be considered a cult classic. Any true cult fan will tell you that is not true. Cult films have to transgress genres and time periods alike. Cult Classic is applied to a collection of films so broad it will leave your head spinning.
This adverse collection has one thing in common, the love their fans dedicate to them and how that love began a subcategory of film all on its own. A cult films major component is the anatomy. The anatomy stands for the film itself, which must be new and innovative. Directors and producers work outside the box of basic plot lines to bring cinematic brilliance to their fan base. The body of work must either be aesthetically or thematically attractive. An example of this is Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Hunter S. Thompson created a film you must visit several times to truly `experience.
Revered for its wild ride of acid drops and drug induced hallucinations, and scrutinized for the melancholy and harsh way american history is depicted. This is referred to as the shock factor. Cult film carries a notoriety . This can either mean morally, visually, or financially. Many cult films having horrific or troubling starts, Rocky Horror Picture Show, “failed to attract mass audiences on first release in 1975, within a year the film’s fan base was growing. Audiences warmed to the film, and delighted in wearing fishnet stockings and leather at midnight screenings. The trend has lasted 35 years. Haigh).
This is the key to many cult films success. Transgression is also important part of the anatomy. It pushes a film past the good and bad. Bringing inventive storylines in to play makes the cult process run much smoother. The film can no longer be compared to others in a good or bad way. It is now completely new and fresh. Hollywood has struggled to capture this transgression in their higher budget films. With remakes of old films and stories popping up left and right they have lost the freshness. Cult films are most often science fiction, horror, or fantasy due to the oddball nature of the films.
And all though it can be hard to compare them in a quality sense, cult films are intertextual. They invite comparisons to other films and culturally significant events. Screenplay writers and directors may insert references or inside jokes to appeal to avid fans. Some studies even allowing cameos for that added effect. Think Alfred Hitchcock, his appearance in cult classics like The birds, Vertigo, and Psycho helped popularize the cameo, being one of the first director and producers to appear in his own films. Hitchcock is also known as the master of suspense.
His films had the ability to leave viewers on the edge of their seats, praying that he would not leave things open ended. Hitchcock credits his success to his own fear, ? My good luck in life was to be a really frightened person. I’m fortunate to be a coward, to have a low threshold of fear, because a hero couldn’t make a good suspense film.? (Hitchcock). Cult films appeal to fans anyway they can.? The nature of its audience and the nature of its exhibition qualify the showing of a film as part of the cult film phenomenon.? (Austin 2). The power behind a film lies within its viewers.
Fans of cult film often react to the piece of work with either condescending adoration or utter disdain. Those who love the film do not always adore its visual elements or brilliantly written script but rather, a hidden motive that suites their desires. Although the cult experience is rather new to the film industry, even the highly recommended films like Casablanca and Night of the Living Dead could only be seen in real time. The element of real time put a limit on the immersion factor. When the VCR burst on to the scene in the 80s, it gave the viewer an element of control.
The many features of the VCR helped viewers feel as if they were in control of how the story was told, with the option to pause and rewind film fans found new ways to connectect to the films they know and love. By the time consumers moved on to dvds and a new online era began, cult film had transformed. Not only were viewers immersed in it, but also creating it. Filling their youtube pages with film mashups and their own quirky spin-offs. Some argue that the easy access of the online world turned cult film into a solitary outlet. Cult was known for their loud crowds and filling a theatre with Frankenfurters and Janet’s alike.
Now most communication is done through online community boards. Geoff Pevere argues that this makes cult film more immersive. It allows fans to dive deeper into a theory and connect with fans from across the world. (Pevere). Many fans are still nostalgic for the days of midnight showing. All hope is not lost, ? Early ticket sales for December’s “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” broke IMAX records with more than $6. 5 million for U. S. screenings? (CNBC). Several ticket distributors suffered outages, with midnight screenings selling out almost immediately. A midnight showing is about the atmosphere.
A factor most fans consider comforting. The ability to put on a costume and embody your favorite character provides the confidence that some may be lacking. A traveling festival called Lebowski Fest celebrates all things related to The Big Lebowski. The event is two nights and travels through several cities, the opening event is The Movie Party and The Bowling Party rounds out the festival. The movie screening typically includes a band for fans to get up and dance to. On night two the Bowling Party features a costume contest, trivia contests and unlimited bowling. Fans of all ages get together for a festival that’s all about them.
Participants leave their mundane lives behind to step into the shoes of The Dude himself. After attending the event for the first time in 2008 Clark Collis says,? These days when I’m stressed about work, I find myself thinking, “What would the Dude do? ” even if the inevitable answer–“Go bowling”–is not likely to lessen my chances of being fired.? (Collis). The Lebowski Fest brings together Cultists and Cinephiles alike, even if they hate to admit it. Elena Gorfinkel argues that the superficial differences between the two does not mean they are not in many ways, one in the same.
The connections between the two are hidden in the history of film. Note that the first film cult was dedicated to silent comedian Charlie Chaplin. She presents the reader with the notion that the modern day cinephile and cultist are nearly indistinguishable from each other. The ultimate outcome for these sub cultures is open ended. The obsessive nature of cinephilia comes off as a serious political commitment. Although, defined as simple obsession with movies, there is an implied a political interest. The relationship between a cinephile and a film is a debate on popular culture
