H.R. Giger’s Passagen (1972) & Necronomicon (1975)

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Passagen – Streaming on YouTube | imdb | no trailer

Giger’s Necronomicon Streaming on YouTube | imdb | no trailer

H.R. Giger needs no introduction. He was a big deal for me as a youngster, and I still appreciate his early artwork in particular. I’ve had dubs both of these two documentaries on VHS for years. Unfortunately Pasagen had no subtitles, so I had no clue what the hell was being said until recently re-discovering it on YouTube. Both docs are great, but one interesting thing about Pasagen in particular is that Giger’s girlfriend Li Tobler is prominently featured. Sadly she went on to commit suicide between these two films. Depression is a real fucker. As you may know, her likeness was used many times by Giger before and after her death (the image I mangled above is Li II from 1974). RIP Li and Hans Ruedi.

PS – Also check out Dark Star: H.R. Giger’s World (2014), which is a more comprehensive doc.

Not available on Blu-ray.

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The Accountant (2016)

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Streaming on Hulu | imdb | trailer

My older brother just reminded me of this movie. This will be Chris’ indirect guest recommendation. I gotta give him credit for not only turning me on to classics like The Road Warrior, Apocalypse Now!, and all the early Clint Eastwood movies, but he actually took me to see Conan the Barbarian (1982) in the theater. I was nine years old. No worries, I turned out fine in the end. What is best in life? Seeing a stone cold classic film in its original run. Back to the topic at hand… The Accountant is a solid, somewhat daring, riff on an adult action movie. Affleck is good in this AND you get J.K. Simmons and Jon Bernthal. That’s really all you need to know. I will be watching the recent sequel soon, in spite of the poor reviews.

Available on 4K UHD / Blu-ray from Warner.

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Electra (1962)

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Streaming on Amazon Prime | imdb | trailer (in Greek w/ no subs – sorry)

I just stumbled upon this one recently, and I am very pleased that I did. Irene Papas (Don’t Torture a Duckling) stars as Electra, and she is INTENSE. The film is based on the famous Greek mythical tale of treachery and revenge. I was impressed that every shot is extremely well composed and all the actor’s movements are carefully choreographed. This reminds me of early Pasolini, except that the cast seems to be all skilled actors. Also the dialog is almost as epically dramatic as August Strindberg’s A Dream Play. This is a very melodramatic and carefully paced film, but I personally loved it. The music is great too. I would not be surprised if Dead Can Dance were influenced by the score. Just don’t go expecting any graphic violence or other adult material and you might appreciate the film as much as I did. I could honestly see Electra getting a full Criterion treatment one day. Make sure to watch this in the original Greek language with subtitles. I tried it on the English dub and it made the movie seem cheap.

PS – There is now an Alphabetical List of all films on this site. Thank you Joe M for the suggestion!

Not available on Blu-ray

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The Secret Agent (2025)

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Streaming on Hulu | imdb | trailer

Kleber Mendonça Filho does it again. I thoroughly enjoyed his last two films, Bacurau and Pictures of Ghosts, so I’m thinking we can keep expecting good things from this writer-director. His latest feature is essentially a crime thriller, but there’s some very funny, and very surreal moments as well. I think that combo may just be Filho’s super power. The film also manages to illustrate just how corrupt and dangerous things were in mid-1970s Brazil. Wagner Moura is great in the lead role, as you’d expect, but you also get treated to a powerful little dose of Udo Kier (RIP). The only issue I have with The Secret Agent is its length. I suppose it was necessary to tell the story, and it really never felt boring, so I’ll shut up now.

Not available on Blu-ray.

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Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)

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Streaming on HBO Max | imdb | trailer

As you might know, I usually steer clear of Academy Award winners. I made an exception because I have recommended very few movies from the 1930s. There were dozens of adaptations of Robert Lewis Stevenson’s excellent novel over the years, but this is considered the best. The 1931 Jekyll managed to push things as far as censors of the time would allow, yet it was well made enough for lead actor Frederic March to win the Oscar. That marked the first time a horror movie ever won the award. As impressive as that is, you may be a little thrown off that his name is pronounced “Jee-kall” in this film, which is supposedly as the original author intended. I guess the way everyone pronounces it now first began with the Spencer Tracy version from 1941. Anyway, there’s a lot to enjoy here. The in-camera transformation effects were revolutionary at the time (the trick wasn’t revealed until decades later), and the gruesome overall feel of the film makes it a classic. In the end, if it still comes off as too tame, go ahead and give Walerian Borowczyk’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Miss Osbourne (1981) a shot. That one is flat-out bonkers.

Available on Blu-ray from Warner Archives.

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The Captain (2017)

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Streaming on Amazon Prime (as well as Kanopy and Plex) | imdb | trailer

My friend David recommended this one to me out of the blue. Wow. I have no idea how The Captain escaped me when it came out, but I was very glad to finally experience it. Well maybe “glad” is a poor choice of words. This is the dramatized story of real life German army deserter Willi Herold who just happens to get his hands on a captain’s uniform. He manages to fool enough people to cause a ton of mayhem in the last two weeks of WW2. Not good mayhem either. Yet somehow this dark as hell film manages to be funny at times too. If you’re not scared of some bleak fact-based viewing, give this one a try.

Available on Blu-ray from Music Box Films

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The Meaning of Life (1983)

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Streaming on Netflix | imdb | telepathic trailer

I hesitated to recommend this one as it’s a very well known film. What inspired me to go ahead was my last viewing of The Meaning of Life. Seeing it properly restored and as an adult, I was struck by the feeling that this Monty Python feature managed to achieve the level of cinematic art. Yes, it’s still got all the same goofy and naughty stuff that made me laugh as a kid, but wow… what a spectacular and beautifully executed creative work this is. Yes, Holy Grail is arguably more funny, but this just might be the most high art comedy film ever made. As a result, if you haven’t ever seen The Meaning of Life, or it’s been a long time, I highly recommend you get on it immediately.

Available on 4K UHD + Blu-ray from Universal.

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The Empire (2024)

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Streaming on Kanopy (and available on all the main rental platforms) | imdb | trailer

If this isn’t a perfect example of  Anomalous Cinema I don’t know what is. There is NO WAY I would have watched this film if it wasn’t for John Waters Top 10. The IMDb rating is pretty awful, but I honestly really enjoyed seeing it. What is The Empire about? Well, two opposing groups of aliens come to Earth to do battle. That description would never prepare you for what you will see if you are daring enough to watch. This movie is bonkers in a similar way to ‘90s films by Pedro Almodovar and Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Actors deliver absolutely ridiculous lines with straight faces for most of the movie, but I found the humor very effective. It also helps that the CG looks better than many recent Hollywood films, and actress Anamaria Vartolomei is excellent in every way. My one quibble with this movie is that it would have benefited from being 15 or so minutes shorter.

Available on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.

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Hannie Caulder (1971)

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Streaming on Amazon Prime | imdb | trailer

Who would have thought this oddball western was one of the inspirations for Kill Bill? The plot is pretty simple… Hannie and her husband are brutally attacked by the creepy Clemens Gang, so naturally it’s revenge-o-matic time. She gets a gunslinger to train her and the plot unfolds from there. I had never even heard of this movie before I saw a 35 mm screening a while back. Raquel Welch and Robert Culp are fun to watch (as are MANY other familiar faces), and the whole thing makes for an entertaining western-style vengeance film. Imagine Thriller: A Cruel Picture without the graphic sex and violence. Those elements are there, just not in your face. I believe this one is pretty obscure, so I’m glad to see it’s been restored and made available again.

Available on Blu-ray from Olive.

If you are a fan of Anomalous Cinema, please consider supporting this site by donating any amount (even $1.00 is appreciated) via Venmo @vergeoflight or Paypal at this secure link. A Paypal account is not required. Thank you.