What are some Weird Films and Detours by Directors?

[redhawk23]

A friend and I are spitballing some ideas for a list of movies that really stand out from the rest of any given filmmaker's filmography. Certain directors are known for particular styles and genres and tones and then they might have a film that's just kind of out there, completely different or otherwise just forgotten and over looked.

Things we already discussed include David Lynch's Straight Story (The surrealilst master takes on the story of a man driving across a state on a lawnmower!) Spielberg's 1941, George A Romero's Knight Riders and others.

What are some that come to mind for you? What movies made you scratch your head when the director signed on? When have you been surprised by a serious director taking on comedy or vice versa? Who had no business making a children's film?

 

[Lighthouse]

I think probably Hairspray from John Waters is probably his weirdest precisely because it's not.

 

[Guts]

Zack Snyder directed 3 films featuring tons of blood, violence, and nudity. His fourth film is a rated PG children's film about owls.

 

[titansupes]

(A movie that hasn't and likely won't happen, but still)-- Fincher having involvement in the World War Z sequel.

 

[Milk Tray Guy]

Twixt was an odd one from Francis Ford Coppola.

 

[Black Narcissus]

George Miller Babe:Pig in The City.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

Robert Wise- Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Francis Ford Coppola- Bram Stoker's Dracula

Adam McKay- The Big Short

Sidney Lumet= The Wiz

John Carpenter- Starman

 

[Black Narcissus]

Ironically, the only Scorsese film I have not seen is the one with the bald asian kid.

 

[redhawk23]

Twixt was an odd one from Francis Ford Coppola.

Everything from "Jack" onwards is just bizarro world with him, in content and in quality.

 

[redhawk23]

Robert Wise- Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Francis Ford Coppola- Bram Stoker's Dracula

Adam McKay- The Big Short

Sidney Lumet= The Wiz

John Carpenter- Starman

Robert Wise is just one of those directors that just did very solid work in any genre he took on.

Day The Earth Stood Still to West Side Story, to Sound of Music, to the Haunting To Star trek with dozens of others, many of them classic in their own right in between.

Wise wasn't someone with a necessarily identifiable style so you almost never see him come up on lists of great iconic directors and yet he made several films that our themselves iconic and he won Best Director twice. It's kind of odd actually.
[/LIST]

 

[Spider-Fan83]

I always found Tim Burton Directing Pee-wee's Big Adventure kinda Weird

and that, Aladdin (Faerie Tale Theatre) Episode he did, for that matter

 

[DyeLorean]

Robert Zemeckis detour into horrible mo-cap films was truly strange. Glad he is back to traditional filmmaking.

 

[Mandon Knight]

I don't know if this fits the discussion, but I've never known a director as varying in quality or narrative material as Joel Schumacher.

A man who can direct quality films and yet still give us Batman & Robin and Forever. I just don't see that quality 'shift' in other directors work.

 

[Mandon Knight]

Also, whoever thought George Miller, a man who'd made the Mad Max films would be a solid choice for Happy Feet and make a 'happy go lucky' kids film, good one.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Stanley Kubrick - Spartacus

This movie is so unlike his other work. It's far more just, a major straight forward epic. Doesn't have his trademark styling for the most part.

Sam Raimi - For the Love of the Game

The master of horror and cult classics, makes a movie about a guy pitching a perfect game?

In both cases I love the movies. Just odd considering their other bodies of work.

 

[Finarfiniel]

Here's an odd upcoming one - Eli Roth, mostly known for his super gory and violent R rated horror movies such as Hostel and The Green Inferno is currently directing an adaptation of the classic children's book 'The House with a Clock in it's Walls' for Amblin Entertainment and it stars Jack Black and Cate Blanchett of all people. When I first read about it, I was like... wtf? So random.

 

[C. Lee]

Wes Craven....horror movie writer and director of such films as THE HILLS HAVE EYES, NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, and the SCREAM series......in 1999 made MUSIC OF THE HEART starring Meryl Streep about a schoolteacher's struggle to teach violin to inner-city Harlem kids.

 

[Mandon Knight]

Wes Craven....horror movie writer and director of such films as THE HILLS HAVE EYES, NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, and the SCREAM series......in 1999 made MUSIC OF THE HEART starring Meryl Streep about a schoolteacher's struggle to teach violin to inner-city Harlem kids.

yeah but the struggle was there was no kids left to play because Freddy had killed them all.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Another good one is George Miller. Makes Mad Max trilogy and Witches of Eastwick, only to then make Babe: Pig in the City, Happy Feet, and Happy Feet Two!

 

[C. Lee]

Walter Hill.....a great action/violent movie director (THE WARRIORS, 48 HOURS, LONG RIDERS, EXTREME PREJUDICE, and LAST MAN STANDING)....in 1985 he made the zany comedy BREWSTER'S MILLIONS starring Richard Pryor and John Candy.

 

[Brother Jack]

Everything from "Jack" onwards is just bizarro world with him, in content and in quality.

That's the one that springs to mind. The fact that the guy who directed Jack is the same guy that made Apocalypse Now is almost too weird to handle.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

No mention of thriller man Joel Schumacher making Batman movies that are way off his familiar style?

 

[Mandon Knight]

No mention of thriller man Joel Schumacher making Batman movies that are way off his familiar style?

Yep, few posts back....from me....

I don't know if this fits the discussion, but I've never known a director as varying in quality or narrative material as Joel Schumacher.

A man who can direct quality films and yet still give us Batman & Robin and Forever. I just don't see that quality 'shift' in other directors work.

 

[Dr.]

Stanley Kubrick - Spartacus

This movie is so unlike his other work. It's far more just, a major straight forward epic. Doesn't have his trademark styling for the most part.

Kubrick was a replacement director on Spartacus. He didn't like the experience and wasn't happy with the final product - and he more-or-less disowned the movie.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

Yep, few posts back....from me....

I thought I looked thoroughly, and I still missed it.