Robert K. Elder

Revealing a festival of guilty pleasures, almost-masterpieces, and undeniable classics in need of revival, 35 directors champion their favorite overlooked or critically savaged gems in this guide. The list includes unsung noir films "The Chase" and "Murder by Contract," famous flops "Can't Stop the Music" and "Joe Versus the Volcano," art films "L'ange" and "WR: Mysteries of the Organism," theatrical adaptations "The Iceman Cometh" and "The Homecoming," B-movies "Killer Klowns from Outer Space" and" The Honeymoon Killers," and even Oscar-winners "Breaking Away" and" Some Came Running." The filmmakers, including Guillermo del Toro, John Waters, John Woo, Edgar Wright, and Danny Boyle, defend their choices, wanting these films to be loved, admired, and swooned over, arguing the films deserve a larger audience and their place in movie history be reconsidered. Some were well-loved but are now faded or forgotten, others ran afoul of critics or were just buried after a dismal opening run, and still others never even got proper distribution. A few of these titles qualify as bona fide "obscurata," but now most can be found on DVD or streaming from Netflix or Amazon. The filmmakers are the perfect hosts, setting the tone, managing expectations, and often being brutally honest about a film's shortcomings or the reasons why it was lost in the first place.

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