Best F(r)iends is either one of the worst crime films ever made, or one of the most genius, self-aware comedies of the past few years. In fact, it is very possible that it is both. At this point, it isn’t necessary to venture too deeply into the folklore surrounding The Room – I have written…

I recently revisited Serial Mom for the umpteenth time, and it remains one of the most brilliant films of the 1990s. I have often mentioned how I am an ardent admirer of John Waters – despite his earlier works being grotesque, vulgar and beyond transgressive, he has always had a renegade appeal that strikes me…

England in the 18th century – an era filled to the brim with stately manors and state-like manners, enormous, overflowing dresses and an abundance of appearance-altering cosmetics, allowing people to constantly reinvent themselves every morning, especially those in the upper-class who found their homes in the drawing halls and ballrooms of the wealthiest and most…

You need to have good taste to appreciate bad taste, which is an adage oft-repeated by the great stalwart for transgressive cinema, John Waters. One of the forefathers of the movement that took audiences on repulsive journeys into some very darkly comical places was Roger Corman, who remains one of the greatest filmmakers of his…

This year, I have finally take the leap directly into Peter Greenaway’s career, and exploring his films have been a truly rewarding experience. There is nary a friend, relative or co-worker that has not been on the receiving end of my adoration-fueled lamentations of Drowning by Numbers, a film that changed my perspective on literature…

Bad Boy Bubby by Rolf de Heer has everything – cat murder, spoken-word punk rock, chocolate eclairs and pervasive bagpipe bands. I have seen my fair share of strange, offbeat films in my time, but not even I could consider myself prepared for Bad Boy Bubby, which I can only attest to being one of…

History was a lot more violent and vicious than our high school classes would have led us to believe. The brutal and twisted nature of the past has rarely been better explored than in Nelson Pereira Dos Santos’ sordid and perverted dark comedy, How Tasty Was My Little Frenchman (Portuguese: Como Era Gostoso o Meu…

“Paranoia’s the garlic in life’s kitchen, right: you can never have too much” This humorous but ominous sentiment appears in Thomas Pynchon’s novel, Bleeding Edge. Considering how defiant Pynchon’s work is to the screen (to date, only having a single official adaptation, the brilliant Inherent Vice in 2014, although some may argue that Alex Ross…

I love cinematic iconoclasts, and there have been few filmmakers that I admirer more in this regard than John Waters, whose unhinged audacity has made him a controversial figure, as well as someone I am deeply in admiration of. From the sheer unhinged insanity of Pink Flamingos to the enduring brilliance of Hairspray, Waters has…