What makes a cult classic?
For decades now, fantastic movies have come to the screen, capturing audiences in various ways. But one category of movies has become famous for its growth over time and how audiences reacted initially. This category would be Cult Classics.
Cult classics are movies that came out and typically didn’t do well at the box office; however, over time, these films built small fanbases rather than achieving widespread popularity. Even now, these movies have stayed relevant despite their age, capturing new viewers and adding to the fanbase.
I have noticed that these movies usually have a deep meaning and a memorable story, but not always captivating. They could just be focused on people going through their life, often capturing deep emotions and topics. However these movies also range through various genres including fantasy, action etc.
Examples of cult classic movies are The Breakfast Club, Benny and Joon, and Stand by me.
One movie that inspired me to write about this is The Breakfast Club, a film about a group of high school teenagers stuck at school on a Saturday for detention. Throughout the movie, the teenagers slowly share pieces of their personal life, mentioning deep topics such as neglect, abuse, suicide, guilt, and divorce. My favorite moment from this movie was when one of the teenagers, John, had climbed into the ceiling after being locked in a closet by the principal, attempting to sneak back into the library where the other students were. He ended up falling through the ceiling into the library causing a ruckus that almost got him caught. This scene produced a famous quote well known from the film “could you describe the ruckus” said by Brian, the nerdier one out of the teenagers.
Benny and Joon is about a lady (Juniper) who struggles with autism, she lives with her brother and terrorizes her “housekeepers” while he is away at work, as her brother is threatened with her being taken to a group home, he takes in a guy (Sam) who also shows signs of neurodivergency, he ends up taking care of the house and bonds well with Joon, and they fall in love. A moment that really stood out to me in this film was towards the end, Sam and Joon had ended up living together in their own place and he was teaching her how to make grilled cheese sandwiches with a clothing iron. This moment brought some emotion into play and really captured their bond in a memorable way as they both learned from each other in their own unique way of life.
“Stand by Me” is a film based on Stephen King’s novel The Body. It surrounds this small group of middle school boys who find themselves on an adventure to find the dead body of a boy who had recently been hit by a train. They end up hiking miles through woods and mountains to find the body to collect the reward money. Throughout the film, these boys open up about their lives as they all had grown up in rough conditions, mentioning deep topics such as neglect and abuse, and it conveys their bond in a meaningful way, bringing in aspects such as nostalgia when we learn the story was narrated by one of the boys decades later. My favorite moment from this movie was when they had all stopped to rest by a campfire and had conversations about life and fun things such as a discussion about their favorite pez flavor or talking about girls. This scene conveys a sense of vulnerability and captures the realization that they are all just kids.
These movies are all fantastic, and there are so many more that hold my heart. In my opinion, cult classics stay relevant over time because their stories are so memorable; they become staples in any movie collection. Parents share them with their kids who fall in love with the stories just as much as they did, keeping and growing the audience over time.
