George Kuchar

Director · 1942 – 2011 · New York, New York

George Kuchar (August 31, 1942 – September 6, 2011) and his twin brother Mike began making films as teenagers in the 1950s, with 8mm film being their weapon of choice. After shocking their local amateur filmmaking club with their over-the-top stories of lust and angst, they became stars of the NYC underground scene in the 1960s, befriending the likes of Jonas Mekas and Jack Smith. Always working with the constraints of minuscule budgets and nonprofessional actors, the Kuchar’s inspiration comes from classic Hollywood melodrama. Their cheaply made pictures, rather than being held back by lack of funds, blossomed in the shackles of poverty; the garish colors of the cheap makeup and sets were perfectly complemented by the bold color range afforded by Kodachrome reversal stock. The wild (and sometimes the inverse of wild) acting, use of stock music, lack of synch sound, hyperbolic narration, and primitive special effects all combined to make tiny gems unlike anything seen before or since. The Kuchars are cited as major influences by such filmmakers as John Waters, Todd Solondz, and David Lynch.

Movies20

Movie7.3
Documentary
It Came from Kuchar is the definitive, feature documentary about the legendary, underground filmmaking twins, the Kuchar brothers. George and Mike Kuchar have inspired two generations of filmmakers, actors, musicians, and artists with their zany, "no budget" films and with their uniquely enchanting spirits.
It Came from Kuchar
2009 · 12 votes
Movie7.2
Documentary
The life and times of Baltimore film maker and midnight movie pioneer, John Waters.
Divine Trash
2000 · 38 votes
Movie4.8
ComedyRomance
David is an artist and a pothead. He's fallen in love with the beautiful and sexy Serena, and things are going simply splendidly until poor David's house burns down. Serena doesn't need the bad vibes, so she splits the scene and runs off to New York with rocker and junkie Tommy. Lonely David finally turns to the sweet, sweet comfort of marijuana and his strange menagerie of friends to forget about his lost home and love
Bongwater
1998 · 52 votes
Movie
George Kuchar takes his Japanese student on a trip to Los Angeles and meets with his entertainment industry friends including Buck Henry, Christopher Coppola, and Jeffrey Schwarz.
Cinemaville
2007
Movie
FantasyHorror
Notorious underground all-girl vampXcore band Bloodrape sets out on a reunion tour to destroy everyone's flesh/feelings.
Bloodrape
2011
Movie8.4
Documentary
A film collage tracing the story of the lives, loves, and deaths within the artistic community surrounding Jonas Mekas.
He Stands in a Desert Counting the Seconds of His Life
1986 · 10 votes
Movie6.7
Documentary
In this entrancing documentary on performance artist, photographer and underground filmmaker Jack Smith, photographs and rare clips of Smith's performances and films punctuate interviews with artists, critics, friends and foes to create an engaging portrait of the artist. Widely known for his banned queer erotica film Flaming Creatures, Smith was an innovator and firebrand who influenced artists such as Andy Warhol and John Waters.
Jack Smith and the Destruction of Atlantis
2007 · 10 votes
Movie6.4
ComedyCrime
A talented writer, Edgar Allen, arrives in Hollywood with big dreams but is quickly pulled into a world of madness and depravity. A detective investigating a series of murders discovers that they are similar to the murders that occur in the new script by Edgar. Who will survive and what parts will be left for them?
Screamplay
1984 · 16 votes
Movie6.4
FantasyComedy
Siblings hide their ownership of a bordello from their mother. When she is visited by a man who shares the joys of sexual enlightenment with her, her entire world is turned upside down.
Sparkle's Tavern
1985 · 7 votes
Movie4.7
ComedyDrama
Presented as loosely autobiographical, Hold Me While I’m Naked centres on the tribulations of an independent filmmaker, frustrated at every turn as he tries to make a film that pretends to artistic merit.
Hold Me While I'm Naked
1966 · 61 votes
Movie10.0
Documentary
In March and April of 1966, Markopoulos created this filmic portrait of writers and artists from his New York circle, including Parker Tyler, W. H. Auden, Jasper Johns, Susan Sontag, Storm De Hirsch, Jonas Mekas, Allen Ginsberg, and George and Mike Kuchar, most observed in their homes or studios. Filmed in vibrant color, Galaxie pulses with life. It is a masterpiece of in-camera composition and editing, and stands as a vibrant response to Andy Warhol's contemporary Screen Tests. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2001.
Galaxie
1966 · 1 votes
Movie2.0
Comedy
A utopian re-visioning of the Kronstadt Uprising of 1921, featuring film history's first cast of over 100 transgender actors, paints a portrait of formerly pro-Soviet sailors at the Kronstadt naval garrison who rebelled against the perceived failures of the new Bolshevik state.
Maggots and Men
2009 · 2 votes
Movie5.0
This three-part mini-series explores the mysterious and the mundane in a splash of digital dioramas that wipe across the screen in a cascade of electronic barfs. Zeroing in on the paranormal theories of UFO author John A. Keel, this leisurely exposition, which was funded by the Rockefeller Foundation, sweeps the viewer into a candy-colored world of scintillating mysteries made all the more intriguing by culinary digressions.
Secrets of the Shadow World
1999 · 2 votes
Movie7.0
Horror
An insane, deformed killer stalks the grounds of a resort house, bringing sudden violence to those of easy virtue and godlessness.
The Slasher
1958 · 1 votes
Movie8.0
A trip to a barren landscape of jagged peaks and deep crevasses becomes a playground for an over-dressed hiker and his beefcake buddy as they secrete and imbibe fluids from various containers.
Rocky Interlude
1990 · 1 votes
Movie5.4
DocumentaryDrama
"Abner L. Fuqua clears his throat and I get mad and stand close to trains or cut my eyebrow off. Dorothy is Abner's wife. Abner can slap hard, like blue magic." - graffiti
Taboo: The Single and the LP
1980 · 6 votes
Movie8.0
An island. A mountain. A City of Angels who scoop up the pellets dropped by other winged creatures.
A Passage to Wetness
1990 · 2 votes
Movie3.0
Comedy
An hour-long saga of Mick Terrific, rock 'n' roll star, and the cast of 50 he encounters on his search for "Mr. Wonderful." “PEED INTO THE WIND smears across the screen like one of those dirty underground comic books. It’s loaded with a lot of big scenes and unusual looking people that make this epic resemble a clogged toilet. Unfortunately, since several of the performers were not as loyal as Ainslie Pryor and John Thomas, the plot is difficult to follow but in no way hinders the sewer-like sequences. It’s quite enjoyable and possesses the releasing power of an enema.” –George Kuchar. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2016.
Peed Into the Wind
1972 · 3 votes
Movie6.0
Documentary
A tribute to the work of Alfred Hitchcock, featuring contemporary filmmakers, writers, performers, and cultural critics.
Hitchcocked!
2006 · 1 votes
Movie10.0
Documentary
A short film by George Kuchar.
The Creeping Crimson
1987 · 1 votes