MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > Favorite low budget film?

Favorite low budget film?


Do you have a favorite low budget film?

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[deleted]

El Mariachi is the best $7000 ever spent.

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you make it sound like they made the first , wernt happy with it so made the second then decided which to release.

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[deleted]

I know everyone's going to go for Paranormal Activity (2007) as the top corker of payola but I prefer Sam Raimi's Within the Woods (1978) as the straight vein into the rush that is low budget to big name.

Peter Jackson's Bad Taste (1987) and Dead Alive/Braindead (1992) are also notable entries into the low budget to household name states.

George Lucas' American Graffiti (1973) has all the hallmarks of being zero to hero until you find out how connected everyone was in the cast and crew.

Even though they made nothing of note financially Trey Parker's Cannibal The Musical (1993) deserves a mention as does Edgar Wright's Fistful of Fingers (1995).

Also let's not forget Dark Star (1974) and Piranha II: The Spawning (1981) - oddball movies that didn't do well at the box office but sparked huge and influential careers and cult followings.

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[deleted]

Depends who you talk to MJF, I mention it because lots of people seem to think it is and if you read what I wrote carefully I say it had all the hallmarks of being low budget (Despite the cast and all of the cars used for background shots).

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Halloween.
The Blair Witch Project.

How small should the budget be to be considered a low budget movie?

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That's a good question Stratego and also how visible does it have to be to be considered popular enough for inclusion?

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[deleted]

I understand the concept here MJF but favourite is singular are also limited - particularly with small budget movies.

I've got more than a few favourites which were never shown outside of small movie clubs which had regional productions or limited releases (Try and find The Bogie Man (1992) for example).

I'd imagine the most productive output from this thread is to have examples of low budget movies worth seeing which requires availability and how big the budget should be.

If you can find The Bogie Man (1992) let me know, I'd like to see that again if given the chance.

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[deleted]

That is the movie MJF! Thanks for finding it, I'd searched YouTube before but it hadn't been put up then.

It's a very particular type of movie, but it's a great particular type of movie if it's your thing!

I too like really good movies, but as they are subjective the additional hardness for finding a copy can come a cropper when the person who recommended it to you is more subjected to the film's worth than you are.

By way of returning the favour - check out Son of Rambo (2007) MJF, you'll not be disappointed I'm sure if that!

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[deleted]

A. I just finished watching it and it has dated a little but the heart and soul of it is still as strong as it was at the time for me - Big thanks for finding it MJF!

B. I do occasionally drop accounts as I would a fashionable hat, one at a time and only wear them when they are in style. No reusing old hats. It keeps me fresh and on my toes and hopefully adds a gleam to those figuring out who I might have been in prior lives. Once you catch the beats, as you seem to have, it gets easier and hopefully occasionally entertaining.

Thanks again for finding it, I've got a copy now for future viewing too!

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[deleted]

I enjoy film noir and those who poke fun at it too, such as the author Robert Rankin in his Lazlo Woodbine stories or the writer/producer(s) Glen A. Larson and Donald Bellisario with Magnum, p.i.

Two of the character's creators are John Wagner and Alan Grant who were, and are, massively influential in the comic book scene which is where the movie was lifted from.

The actors and city share a commonality with me and so there's that added depth which comes from it too.

I'm glad you enjoyed it MJF and that you got a nice film noir pastiche thrown into an otherwise potentially dangerous story.

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I HATE paranormal activity. Worst movie I've ever seen.

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I have lots!

Rubber , 2010, 0.5m
A homicidal car tire, discovering it has destructive psionic power, sets its sights on a desert town once a mysterious woman becomes its obsession.

Wristcutters , 2006 , 1m
A film set in a strange afterlife way station that has been reserved for people who have committed suicide.

Six String Samuarai 1998 , 2m
In the post-apocalyptic world of 1960s Nevada, a rock 'n' roll samurai on his way to Lost Vegas takes a young orphan boy under his protection as Death and his metalhead Horsemen chase after them

P1 , 1998 , 0.06m
A paranoid mathematician searches for a key number that will unlock the universal patterns found in nature.

Primer , 2004 , 0.007m
Four friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices they've built, wrestle over their new invention.

clerks, 1994, 0.027m
A day in the lives of two convenience clerks named Dante and Randal as they annoy customers, discuss movies, and play hockey on the store roof.


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[deleted]

have a read of the trivia section in imdb , mostly about how they did it . 1 guy mainly

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good calls on rubber & pi. two favourites of mine.

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The purge

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Night of the Living Dead

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Bingo!

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❤️️
Plan Nine From Outer Space
I Bury the Living
The House on Haunted Hill
Bucket of Blood
Carnival of Souls
The Funhouse...
And many many more like those!
I absolutely LOVE those films!

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In terms of lower-budget commercial films that deliver a lot of bang for buck, Spun is a favorite of mine.

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Damn good choice!

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Clerks.

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