Cult movies largely got their reputation by inaccessibility. They were noticed in second-run theaters and on VHS when people who had heard about them finally got around to seeing them. The films had the same effects on their respective audiences, but the audiences had additional chances to be exposed, which is how the "cult" grew. That's why we start talking about cult movies earnestly with the advent of VHS, because that's how you replicate the select viewer experience on a national and even global scale. These movies always touched the right people the right way, but they frequently didn't because of issues with exposure. In the case of THE BIG LEBOWSKI, it was just after FARGO, and everybody was expecting something like it. The trailers were nebulous and inexplicable: you had no idea what it was about. Then people saw this comedy and were taken aback so it took the home viewer audience to be exposed to an atypical theatrical situation. I was a cult of LEBOWSKI from the beginning, but I remember having trouble convincing my friends at school on Monday that they *HAD* to see this movie.
Cult movies largely got their reputation by inaccessibility. They were noticed in second-run theaters and on VHS when people who had heard about them finally got around to seeing them. The films had the same effects on their respective audiences, but the audiences had additional chances to be exposed, which is how the "cult" grew. That's why we start talking about cult movies earnestly with the advent of VHS, because that's how you replicate the select viewer experience on a national and even global scale.
These movies always touched the right people the right way, but they frequently didn't because of issues with exposure. In the case of THE BIG LEBOWSKI, it was just after FARGO, and everybody was expecting something like it. The trailers were nebulous and inexplicable: you had no idea what it was about. Then people saw this comedy and were taken aback so it took the home viewer audience to be exposed to an atypical theatrical situation. I was a cult of LEBOWSKI from the beginning, but I remember having trouble convincing my friends at school on Monday that they *HAD* to see this movie.
Could you do a video on "Quality Cult film"? Please
Excellent as always Rory.