Need suggestions

[gyroph]

So one of my girls is doing a speech on cult films and fandom. Anyone have any suggestions on how to improve the speech, different examples to use, places to find more sources. I figured this would be a great group to ask advice from :) I have put her speech behind a cut (assuming I can figure out how to do it...). First thing I told her was to

Comments

[gingererer]

Maybe a section comparing cult classics like RHPS, James Bond, Star Wars, or Star Trek with more mainstream here-today-gone-tomorrow films/franchises. My thinking on this is the current craze for High School Musical and Hannah Montana (which will likely be only a memory in five or tem years), but it might be more effective if she can cite a couple that have recently passed. None are springing to mind right this moment though. I suspect that Harry Potter will fall into this category once they finally finish up all the movies.

[mastertwisted]

IMO, cult films tend to be those with a large fantasy element, so the Capone angle is correct. People make cult classics out of the unusual films, those which offer fodder for the imagination and the absurd.

I doubt seriously that any mob movie that makes it to cult classic status will have characters like Capone as inspiration. Give him a green suit, a potato cannon and a jet pack, though...

[rhoda_penmark]

"According to the UrbanDictionary.com a cult classic is "a popular piece of work, generally a movie, which has gained a large following.”"

Urbandictionary.com is a bad source. That is also a very vague and inaccurate definition. A cult classic is usually relatively unsuccessful commercially, and then develops a devoted following over time. The Harry Potter movies are not cult classics. Ditto for Star Wars. They are huge mainstream hits. Reefer Madness, on the other hand, is a good example. I would suggest that she visit Wild and Woolly Video to learn more.

"Anime is a popular Japanese comic book series which is being turned in to films."

What?

Anyway, I love the topic. I think she might be biting off a bit too much by trying to talk about cult films and fandom in one speech.