“Let’s not bicker and argue over who killed who.” — Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
Brains that Think
I’ve always been a bit of a cult-head. No, not in the Manson, Heaven’s Gate, FLDS kind of way—though I am fascinated with the susceptibility present and exploited in human nature by cult leaders—but more in the way of proudly screaming Time Warp in a room full of weirdos or seeing grown adults in juggalo makeup at an Insane Clown Posse show like it’s the world’s strangest family reunion. There’s just something about being part of a subculture, loving the unloved, that feels so… fulfilling.
Cult media scratches an itch for those of us who want to feel part of something exclusive, something misunderstood by the general population. But, of course, there’s an art to cult status.
To be labeled a cult classic, a movie, book, or artist usually has to flail in the public eye before being triumphantly embraced by a group of die-hards. Think box office flops that critics hated, but now have midnight screenings packed with people quoting every line. Or albums that tanked before finding new life on TikTok decades later.
The appeal is that sweet, sweet blend of rebellion and connection. Cult classics are often messy, unpolished, and chaotic, but they’re unapologetically themselves. They’re the stuff of deep internet rabbit holes and “you’ve never seen this?” peer pressure. These works defy conventions and break rules—and somehow, that imperfection makes them feel more personal. Like they’re your little secret, even though half the room has the same DVD copy.
These fringe films fill our senses with delight and make you feel special. They make you feel like an insider even if you’re an outsider in every other sense of the word. They’re weird, they’re messy, and they’re exactly what we need.
And the best part is they bring people together, who could hate that? Watching The Room at a theater with strangers yelling, “You’re tearing me apart, Lisa!” in perfect unison or blasting Kate Bush’s Hounds of Love with friends who totally get it feels like the closest thing to belonging without having to join a pyramid scheme.
There’s something cathartic about loving something the mainstream once discarded. It’s revenge for anyone who has ever been called “too much” or “too weird” (me). To love a cult classic is to love something flawed and misunderstood, and maybe to see a little of yourself in it.
At their core, cult classics are proof that there’s no one way to succeed. You don’t have to be polished, shiny, or mainstream-approved. You just have to be memorable. And if that means I’ll never be the cool kid in the room, but will always have a place among the Twin Peaks obsessives and Rocky Horror groupies, I’m good with that.
Besides, where else can you scream-sing “Sweet Transvestite” in public without being escorted out?
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Eyes that See
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky
This is a story we’ve all had an interaction with at some point. Whether that was picking the book up off the middle school library shelf because you thought the chartreuse was striking, or you happened to see the movie because you’re obsessed with Logan Lerman. However it fell into your lap, this is a story that probably changed your life. Reading Charlie’s entries was the first time I was able to see the same emotions I was feeling, written on the page, reading about sensations I hadn’t been able to put to words yet, resonating alongside him even if I wasn’t old enough to totally understand some of the situations that were happening.
Beautiful, tender, frustrating, heartbreaking—there is not an excerpt written that will not make you feel the reverence slipping off the page. Charlie is a very observant and over-thinking type of person, sensitive, full of emotions. He is naïve about so many things, but with a bluntness he shares his truth, and I think it is so beautiful. There’s no wonder so many people connect with this.
Siddhartha - Herman Hesse
Is there anyway you can understand the natural world around you if you cannot sit and listen to it? Siddhartha is on a quest for enlightenment, to find meaning in a life he has yet to feel an incredible amount of. I was tasked to read this novel way back in 10th grade honors English, and then asked again to read it during my 200-hour yoga teacher training last year, and reading it at both points in my life gave me a unique insight onto the point it’s trying to get across. How important are your worldly possessions? What’s the purpose of having to go through pain and hardship? How can learning continue and blossom within you with a closed mind?
It’s quiet, tranquil, slower, but full of profound things to say about what’s ultimately important in life. Being present, being mindful, being open. I can see how the book resonated with generations of young people, in the 1920s when it was released, in the 60s, 90s, 2020s, the reminder of mindfulness will never have an age, nor be discriminatory, listening to the voice of the universe within you will always resonate, cult or not.
The Metamorphosis - Franz Kafka
Would you still love me if I woke up one morning from unsettling dreams and found myself changed in my bed into a monstrous vermin??? Oh, Gregor Samsa, your family just doesn’t understand, but I do. In homes where you don’t feel wanted, accepted, loved, valued, you begin to feel yourself change as you’re alienated—perhaps having a metamorphosis into a bug, if we’re taking it literally. Life is messy and oftentimes unpredictable, a strife against time, against draining work routines, being a cog in the machine. I think a lot of people can generally relate to that sentiment, now more than ever, feeling insignificant and overburdened at work and at home with a family who depend upon you.
Kafka was such a beautiful and sensitive soul who felt more deeply than others, and he managed to share with us the emotional struggle you can have amongst family with such clarity and with fantastically absurd imagery. I can promise you, if you have not read this, you will thoroughly enjoy it. Kafka is an absurdist in the purest form.
Some other highlights you should read too:
The Secret History by Donna Tartt; Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries.
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace; Set in an addicts’ halfway house and a tennis academy, featuring the most endearingly screwed-up family to come along in fiction, this explores questions about what entertainment is and why it has come to so dominate our lives. (I haven’t read it yet, but it’s on my TBR for this year)
Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk; Drop into the disillusionment and frustration of the modern man. Through the story of an unnamed protagonist and his alter ego, Tyler Durden, the book explores themes of consumerism, identity, and the desire to break free from societal constraints.
“Let me explain something to you. Um, I am not “Mr. Lebowski.” You’re Mr. Lebowski. I’m the Dude. So that’s what you call me. You know, that or, uh, His Dudeness, or uh, Duder, or El Duderino if you’re not into the whole brevity thing.” — The Big Lebowski (1998)
Minds that Wander
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) Dir. Jim Sharman & Richard O’Brien
With a very loose plot that’s insistent on your respect of the vibes, this is the greatest cult classic of all time, and probably my favorite movie of all time. It is so ridiculous and fun and camp, and sing along-able! Often called the first and biggest cult classic of all time—though there are cult followings for older films—no one is immune to the hold this movie grips you with. The music is infectious, makes you want to move your body, enlivens the soul. If I tried to explain to you what the plot is, you’d think I was lying. This film thrives in its chaos, blending big rock n roll dance numbers and unabashed queerness into a joyous mess. It’s not perfect, but it’s not trying to be, it’s a fearless exhibition of eccentricity, and that’s what makes it timeless.
Teen Apocalypse Trilogy (1993, 1995, 1997) Dir. Gregg Araki
Okay so this is technically multiple movies, but they’re all meant to be enjoyed together. Three distinctly Californian films, Teen Apocalypse is an exploration of teenage restlessness and eroticism within a cultural wasteland. Imagine if nihilism, angst, and neon threw a house party in the ‘90s—Araki’s Totally F***ed Up, The Doom Generation, and Nowhere are the direct result. These films capture the disaffected youth vibe perfectly, with a razor-sharp edge of absurdity and doom. They’re raw, chaotic, and brimming with queer energy, which is probably why they feel so timelessly rebellious.
Twin Peaks (1990) Wri. David Lynch & Mark Frost
My Shaylaaaaa Laura Palmer </3 No but seriously this show is a game changer, it will change your life. David Lynch’s magnum opus is what happens when soap operas take acid and get lost in the woods. A strange cocktail of myriad genres—crime, thriller, sitcom, magical realism, science fiction, psychological horror, the list could go on. Equal parts murder mystery, surreal fever dream, and existential dread, it’s the blueprint for every “weird but iconic” show since. Twin Peaks is a showcase of the vulnerability, beauty, audacity, and absurdity that lies within all of us. Plus, coffee and pie have never been sexier than they have in this show. You should watch it.
I’ve been keeping a list of my favorite cult classic films over the years, if you’d like to check it out, look no further.
Films I am anticipating! and cannot wait for:
My Dead Friend Zoe (February 28th, 2025) dir. Kyle Hausmann-Stokes; Merit is a U.S. veteran who keeps seeing the presence of Zoe, her best friend who died in combat. When her estranged grandfather is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, she decides to become his caretaker while also trying to heal herself.
Opus (March 14th, 2025) dir. Mark Anthony Green; A young writer is invited to the remote compound of a legendary pop star who mysteriously disappeared 30 years ago. Surrounded by the star’s cult of sycophants and intoxicated journalists, she finds herself in the middle of his twisted plan.
Ears that Listen
*for this category, instead of the sharing of albums, I want to share artists who have reached cult status that I adore just as an excuse to gab*
Kate Bush
Long before Stranger Things propelled Running Up That Hill back into the cultural zeitgeist, Kate Bush was the original quirky genius, and my best friend since teenage-hood. Her music is ethereal and entirely unique, like she’s whispering secrets directly into your ear from another dimension. Whether it’s Hounds of Love or The Kick Inside, every album feels like an invitation into her elusive, reclusive world. Considering she all but fell off the face of the Earth, only giving us some sort of correspondence every couple years to remind us she’s alive, she is the perfect representation of a cult-status figurehead. She doesn’t just make music, she makes portals that we can jump through into psychedelic stories, and if you’ve never experienced her before, you’re missing out.
Favorite Album: Hounds of Love
Listen to my Kate Bush playlist here
Ryuichi Sakamoto
Sakamoto’s music feels like standing in a room filled with sunlight while the world collapses outside. It’s fragile, yet powerful, quiet, yet devastatingly beautiful. He’s an artist who has never been confined by a particular genre, moving seamlessly between classical, electronic, avant-garde, and pop without losing his distinct voice. His film scores are legendary—Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, The Last Emperor—perfectly crafting emotional landscapes that are as much characters as the actors on screen. Yet his solo work feels even more intimate, like he’s showing you the blueprint for the universe through melody. He elevates everything that he touches. To love Sakamoto is to love subtlety.
Favorite Album: 1996
Listen to my Sakamoto playlist here
Radiohead
Radiohead are considered to have one of the most annoying cult fan bases of all time, and being they’re a directly influential band to my development, I guess I’m annoying. To me, they’re much more than just a band; they’re a mood, an existential crisis wrapped in sound. Thom Yorke’s haunting falsetto is the soundtrack to every late-night spiral, while Jonny Greenwood’s guitar work feels like it’s speaking directly into my soul. They didn’t just redefine alternative rock; they obliterated it and built something entirely new. What makes Radiohead so effective is their ability to capture universal feelings of dread, longing, and hope while sounding deeply personal. They don’t hold your hand, they want you to get lost and find your own meaning. You have to listen.
Favorite Album: OK Computer or In Rainbows (this like trying to choose a favorite child)
A few more artists with cult followings that I’m not so familiar with, but I know are well loved:
The Grateful Dead / Phish (these are in the same category in my mind)
Insane Clown Posse
Nick Drake
PJ Harvey
I listen to an album every day, if you want to send me recommendations, please do! Here’s what I listened to during this polar vortex-ed fortnight:
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Whether you’re a longtime reader or just now dipping your toes into my madness, I hope this little love letter to the unconventional has sparked something, maybe a new obsession, or just a reminder that it’s okay to be a little strange.
As always, thank you for reading, and if you have a favorite cult classic I didn’t mention, don’t hesitate to tell me. I’m always looking for new rabbit holes to fall into. See you next time, and remember: stay weird.
To answer the Subtext: what’s your flavor of cult classic kool-aid?
The answer is: are you super into the Velvet Underground? Cassavetes films? The role-playing adventure game EarthBound (1994)? Let me know so we can buy in together.
If you want to see more from me, here are all the profiles I could think of to link!
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