Script: Office Space

Here is an early draft of Office Space written by Mike Judge.

Top Ten Cult Films

This list from the Script Lab is sure to feature some titles you’ve never heard of before. Trying to mimic one of these films probably isn’t your best bet for selling your next screenplay, but watching these movies would be a great way to up your film knowledge and see the bizarre reaches that movies are capable of:

Mind-bending. That’s how I can describe the last couple of weeks I have spent researching for this article. I always love to learn about new areas of cinema, but nothing could have prepared me for this series of weird and wonderful films that should NOT be watched so closely together when you’re in the middle of doing your finals! Some I loved, some not so much, but then that’s what I discovered cult films are all about. Films that bring a particular group of people together. Films that can be so bad that people end up loving them like a dumb, yet affectionate puppy. Films that the critics didn’t care for, and in some cases, films that have grown in popularity because it’s the fans themselves that warrant more attention that can’t be ignored.

Whether it’s the one-night drag queens of The Rocky Horror Picture Show or the plastic-spoon-throwers from The Room, it’s great to see people so enthusiastic about the movie they love! And it’s also amazing to see these films being passed down to younger generations. I’d certainly never heard of some of these before! And I’m sure I’ve missed some absolute classics here that will piss a few people off, but then what do I know, eh? Treat this list as an opportunity to feast on a few of the sideshow oddities that cinema has to offer.

10. Brazil (1985)

Brazil is often referred to as Terry Gilliam’s “masterpiece,” and I must admit, there is something unique and pretty spectacular about it. I’d certainly place it above the rather messy The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus! A science fiction black comedy, Brazil is set in a dystopian world where everything is engulfed in red tape and reliance on machines. Imagine Blade Runner but made by a member of Monty Python.  Robert De Niro even makes an appearance as a renegade air con engineer. Due its dark ending and the fact that it was made three years after Blade Runner, Gilliam had a long fight with studios to get it released. He eventually held his own private screenings behind the backs of studio heads. This paid off in the end when Brazil was awarded the Los Angeles Film Critics Association award for Best Picture, and the studios finally agreed to release it. Brazil has since gained a cult status and been cited as an influence for films such as The Hudsucker Proxy, Dark City and Sucker Punch. Clearly, Brazil is a very interesting take on political satire.