Diamonds in the Rough, Hidden Gems, Underrated, Overlooked, Offbeat, Indie, Bizarre, Weird Movies
I tried to put as many search terms in the title because it was difficult to search out the movies I like. These are from a wide variety of genres and are ones I rarely see on 'best of' lists or hear much about. As an arbitrary filter, I tried to only include ones that made under a million on opening weekend. Fair warning: some of these are REALLY twisted
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- DirectorSeth PackardStarsSeth PackardLauren McKnightMatthew WebbCheerfully clueless and unexpectedly charming Ethan attempts to win the heart of high school hottie Madison Sweet, only to find himself in competition with his own brother.
- DirectorJoel PotrykusStarsJoshua BurgeJoel PotrykusTeri Ann NelsonParanoia forces small-time scam artist Marty to flee his hometown and hide out in a dangerous Detroit. With nothing but a pocket full of bogus checks, his Power Glove, and a bad temper, the horror metal slacker lashes out.
- DirectorKevin HeffernanStarsMichael Clarke DuncanJay ChandrasekharKevin HeffernanThe owner of a Miami restaurant indebted to the mob institutes a contest to see what waiter can earn the most money in one night.
- DirectorZach BraffStarsZach BraffJoey KingPierce GagnonA struggling actor, father and husband finds himself at a major crossroads, which forces him to examine his life, his family and his career.
- DirectorKevin SmithStarsMichael ParksMelissa LeoJohn GoodmanSet in Middle America, a group of teens receive an online invitation for sex, though they soon encounter fundamentalists with a much more sinister agenda.
- DirectorJeremy SaulnierStarsMacon BlairDevin RatrayAmy HargreavesA mysterious outsider's quiet life is turned upside down when he returns to his childhood home to carry out an act of vengeance. Proving himself an amateur assassin, he winds up in a brutal fight to protect his estranged family.
- DirectorJeremy SaulnierStarsAnton YelchinImogen PootsAlia ShawkatA punk rock band is forced to fight for survival after witnessing a murder at a neo-Nazi skinhead bar.
- DirectorSean EllisStarsSean BiggerstaffEmilia FoxMichelle RyanAfter a painful breakup, Ben develops insomnia. To kill time, he starts working the late night shift at the local supermarket, where his artistic imagination runs wild.
- DirectorMichael GoldbachStarsKat DenningsReece ThompsonAndie MacDowellA city girl who moves to a small town and becomes entangled in a love triangle between her high school teacher and a stoner classmate.
- DirectorColey SohnStarsAnna GunnAshley RickardsMartin SpanjersDesperate to get out from under her overprotective mother, a home-schooled teen runs off to live with her dad, and forms a bond with his much-younger boyfriend.
- DirectorJoseph Gordon-LevittStarsJoseph Gordon-LevittScarlett JohanssonJulianne MooreA New Jersey guy dedicated to his family, friends, and church, develops unrealistic expectations from watching porn and works to find happiness and intimacy with his potential true love.
- DirectorMike JudgeStarsJason BatemanKristen WiigBen AffleckJoel, the owner of an extract plant, tries to contend with myriad personal and professional problems, such as his potentially unfaithful wife and employees who want to take advantage of him.
- DirectorPaul FoxStarsPaulo CostanzoSteph SongJR BourneRyan, a good-natured slacker, is tempted into a money laundering scheme while working for a lottery magazine. A capitalistic comedy that asks the question - when is "enough" enough?
- DirectorRaymond De FelittaStarsAndy GarciaJulianna MarguliesSteven StraitPrison guard Vince tells Molly from acting class, that one inmate is his 24 y.o. love child. Vince takes him home to stay with his family - straight A son with fat girl fetish, college dropout/stripper daughter and cute wife.
- DirectorRob MinkoffStarsPatrick DempseyAshley JuddTim Blake NelsonA man caught in the middle of two simultaneous robberies at the same bank desperately tries to protect the teller with whom he's secretly in love.
- DirectorGregory WilsonStarsWilliam AthertonBlythe AuffarthBlanche BakerFollows the unspeakable torture and abuses committed on a teenage girl in the care of her aunt and the boys who witness and fail to report the crime.
- DirectorMartin HynesStarsLou Taylor PucciZooey DeschanelM. WardWhen his mother dies, a teenager takes a road-trip in a stolen car to find his long-lost brother. Along the way he discovers a profound connection with the car-owner and with himself as well.
- DirectorDavid RossStarsLauren BirkellPaul BorgheseChira CasselAfter fooling around with one of her customers, a teenager turns her babysitting service into a call-girl service for married guys.
- DirectorBrian DannellyStarsJena MaloneMandy MooreMacaulay CulkinWhen a girl attending a Christian high school becomes pregnant, all of her former friends turn on her and she is ostracized and demonized.
- DirectorJohn Michael McDonaghStarsBrendan GleesonDon CheadleMark StrongAn unorthodox Irish policeman with a confrontational personality is partnered with an uptight F.B.I. agent to investigate an international drug-smuggling ring.
- DirectorTodd SolondzStarsJane AdamsJon LovitzPhilip Seymour HoffmanThe lives of several individuals intertwine as they go about their lives in their own unique ways, engaging in acts which society as a whole might find disturbing in a desperate search for human connection.
- DirectorCharles Herman-WurmfeldStarsAdam CarollaOswaldo CastilloHeather JuergensenA 40-year-old who gave up a promising amateur boxing career 21 years ago is offered a path to the Olympics.
- DirectorDerrick BorteStarsDemi MooreDavid DuchovnyAmber HeardA seemingly perfect family moves into a suburban neighborhood, but when it comes to the truth as to why they're living there, they don't exactly come clean with their neighbors.
- DirectorJohnny HickeyStarsDamien Di PaolaJohnny HickeyTim SylviaThe gritty true-life story of a notorious Boston criminal and his gang who, driven by addiction and greed, commit a series of dangerous robberies during the height of the OxyContin drug trade.
- DirectorLarry ClarkEdward LachmanStarsAdam ChubbuckJames BullardSeth GrayKen Park is about several Californian skateboarders' lives and relationships with and without their parents.
- DirectorJohn StockwellStarsJonathan Daniel BrownKenny WormaldAaron YooAn eighteen year old high school drop out and his twenty-seven year old friend start trafficking marijuana across the border of Canada in order to make money and their lives are changed forever.
- DirectorBuddy GiovinazzoStarsEvan RossStephanie LugoMaurice BlakeVarious stories of how crack cocaine has infiltrated the inner-city streets.
- DirectorJane ClarkStarsLukas HaasBlake BerrisNecar ZadeganMeth Head is a cautionary tale about extremes. Like BREAKING BAD, the film depicts the terrifying consequences of meth in America. An innocent night of partying leads Kyle to new friends and crystal meth, eventually costing him everything.
- DirectorWayne KramerStarsPaul WalkerNorman ReedusElijah WoodAn anthology of stories involving meth addicted white supremacists, a man looking for his kidnapped wife and an Elvis impersonator.
- DirectorLori PettyStarsJennifer LawrenceJavon JohnsonSophi BairleyA dramatization of Lori Petty's teenage years spent in small town Iowa.
- DirectorSteve ConradStarsSeann William ScottJohn C. ReillyChris ConradTwo assistant managers of a corporate grocery store vie for a coveted promotion.
- DirectorRoger AvaryStarsJames Van Der BeekIan SomerhalderShannyn SossamonThe incredibly spoiled and overprivileged students of Camden College are a backdrop for an unusual love triangle between a drug dealer, a virgin and a bisexual classmate.
- DirectorColin TrevorrowStarsAubrey PlazaMark DuplassJake JohnsonThree magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified advertisement seeking a companion for time travel.
- DirectorJonas ÅkerlundStarsJason SchwartzmanJohn LeguizamoPatrick FugitA drug dealer introduces one of his customers, a 'speed freak', to the man who runs the meth lab. A crazy three-day adventure ensues.
- DirectorBronwen HughesStarsThomas JaneDavid O'HaraDexter FletcherThe life and career of Andre Stander, a South African police officer turned bank robber.
- DirectorSean BakerStarsDree HemingwayBesedka JohnsonBooneeAn unlikely friendship forms between twenty-one-year-old Jane and the elderly Sadie after Jane discovers a hidden stash of money inside an object at Sadie's yard sale.
- DirectorSkip WoodsStarsThomas JaneAaron EckhartPaulina PorizkovaA former L.A. drug dealer has moved to Houston to make a new life for himself as a married architect. Everything falls apart when he is suddenly visited by one of his former cohorts who comes carrying heroin.
- DirectorHenry BeanStarsRyan GoslingSummer PhoenixPeter MeadowsA young Jewish man develops a fiercely anti-Semitic philosophy. Based on the factual story of a K.K.K. member in the 1960s who was revealed to be Jewish by a New York Times reporter.
- DirectorJenniphr GoodmanStarsDonal LogueAyelet KaznelsonJohn HinesUnderachieving, overweight kindergarten teacher Dex finds a woman who forces him to reexamine his Zen-like system of seduction.
- DirectorCatherine HardwickeStarsEvan Rachel WoodHolly HunterNikki ReedA thirteen-year-old girl's relationship with her mother is put to the test as she discovers drugs, sex, and petty crime in the company of her cool but troubled best friend.
- DirectorNoel ClarkeMark DavisStarsEmma RobertsTamsin EgertonOphelia Lovibond4 girls out on a 3 days trip in to 2 cities, if they survive. While Jo is working in a supermarket, her 3 friends are all out on their adventures. A chance encounter with diamond thieves sends them on a collision course with fate itself.
- DirectorDamián SzifronStarsDarío GrandinettiMaría MarullMónica VillaSix short stories that explore the extremities of human behavior involving people in distress.
- DirectorMartin GeroStarsAaron AbramsCarly PopeKristin BoothOn a Tuesday night, five couples have separate sexual adventures.
- DirectorShane CarruthStarsShane CarruthDavid SullivanCasey GoodenFour 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.
- DirectorJay DuplassMark DuplassStarsRoss PartridgeSteve ZissisGreta GerwigFour "actors" go to a cabin in the woods for the weekend to write a movie script. They talk about a relationship movie or a paper bag over the head movie. It starts with an anonymous baghead and slowly escalates.
- DirectorLynn SheltonStarsMark DuplassEmily BluntRosemarie DeWittIris invites her friend Jack to stay at her family's island getaway after his brother's death. Jack's drunken encounter with Iris' sister Hannah at their remote cabin kicks off a revealing stretch of days.
- DirectorUli EdelStarsNatja BrunckhorstEberhard AurigaPeggy BussieckA teen girl in 1970s Berlin becomes addicted to heroin. Everything in her life slowly begins to distort and disappear as she befriends a small crew of junkies and falls in love with a drug-abusing male prostitute.
- DirectorCharlie McDowellStarsMark DuplassElisabeth MossTed DansonA troubled couple vacate to a beautiful getaway, but bizarre circumstances further complicate their situation.
- DirectorQuentin DupieuxStarsStephen SpinellaRoxane MesquidaWings HauserA homicidal car tire, discovering it has destructive psionic power, sets its sights on a desert town once a mysterious woman becomes its obsession.
- DirectorHarmony KorineStarsNick SuttonJacob SewellLara ToshLonely residents of a tornado-stricken Ohio town wander the deserted landscape trying to fulfill their boring, nihilistic lives.
- DirectorGary BurnsStarsFab FilippoDon McKellarMarya DelverA group of young employees bet a month's salary, winner takes all, on who can last the longest without going outside.
- DirectorJim StrouseStarsSam RockwellEmma RobertsRob CorddryA comedy centered on a has-been coach who is given a shot at redemption when he's asked to run his local high school's girls basketball team.
- DirectorBruce McDonaldStarsStephen McHattieLisa HouleGeorgina ReillyA radio host interprets the possible outbreak of a deadly virus which infects the small Ontario town he is stationed in.
- DirectorMatteo GarroneStarsMarcello FonteEdoardo PesceNunzia SchianoA timid dog groomer living in a poor suburb sells cocaine on the side and stays out of trouble, while trying to deal with his unstable, violent acquaintance who is a menace to the whole neighborhood.
- DirectorGustav MöllerStarsJakob CedergrenJessica DinnageOmar ShargawiA police officer assigned alarm dispatch duty enters a race against time when he answers an emergency call from a kidnapped woman.
- DirectorJoe SwanbergStarsOlivia WildeJake JohnsonAnna KendrickLuke and Kate are coworkers at a brewery who spend their nights drinking and flirting heavily. One weekend away together with their significant others proves who really belongs together and who doesn't.
- DirectorJohn CarneyStarsKeira KnightleyMark RuffaloAdam LevineA chance encounter between a down-and-out music business executive, and a young singer songwriter new to Manhattan, turns into a promising collaboration between the two talents.
- DirectorJay GammillStarsJess WeixlerJesse EisenbergHalley FeifferStanford Law dropout Jillian wakes up with a hangover and is pressured by her friend to take a shift at an ice-cream truck in LA, giving out free samples.
- DirectorJay DuplassMark DuplassStarsMark DuplassKatie AseltonRhett WilkinsJosh Sagers drives cross-country on a mission to deliver his father's birthday gift - a giant purple LazyBoy.
- DirectorVincent GalloStarsVincent GalloChristina RicciBen GazzaraAfter being released from prison, Billy is set to visit his parents with his wife, whom he does not actually have. This provokes Billy to act out, as he kidnaps a girl and forces her to act as his wife for the visit.
- DirectorJonathan GlazerStarsScarlett JohanssonJeremy McWilliamsLynsey Taylor MackayA mysterious young woman seduces lonely men in the evening hours in Scotland. However, events lead her to begin a process of self-discovery.
- DirectorLarry ClarkStarsJames WoodsMelanie GriffithVincent KartheiserIn the hope of a big score, two junkie couples team up to commit various drug robberies which go disastrously wrong, leading to dissent, violence, and murder.
- DirectorJoe CornishStarsJohn BoyegaJodie WhittakerAlex EsmailA teen gang in South London defend their block from an alien invasion.
- DirectorLarry ClarkStarsJonathan VelasquezFrancisco PedrasaMilton VelasquezA group of teenage boys opt to form their own identity by riding skateboards, wearing tight pants.
- DirectorLarry ClarkStarsBrad RenfroNick StahlBijou PhillipsA pack of naïve teenagers conspire to murder a mutual friend, whose aggressive demeanour has proven too much.
- DirectorGreg MottolaStarsHope DavisStanley TucciParker PoseyWhen she discovers a love letter written to her husband by an unknown paramour, the distraught Eliza turns to her tight-knit Long Island family for advice.
- DirectorDavid O. RussellStarsBen StillerPatricia ArquetteTéa LeoniA young man, his wife, and his incompetent case worker travel across country to find his birth parents.
- DirectorAlexander PayneStarsLaura DernSwoosie KurtzMary Kay PlaceAn irresponsible, drug-addicted, recently impregnated woman finds herself in the middle of an abortion debate when both parties attempt to sway her to their respective sides.
- DirectorTim BurtonStarsEwan McGregorAlbert FinneyBilly CrudupA frustrated son tries to determine the fact from fiction in his dying father's life.
- DirectorFernando MeirellesKátia LundStarsAlexandre RodriguesLeandro FirminoMatheus NachtergaeleIn the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.
- DirectorPenelope SpheerisStarsChris PedersenBill CoyneJennifer ClayWhen household tensions and a sense of worthlessness overcome Evan, he finds escape when he clings with the orphans of a throw-away society.
- DirectorDavid WainStarsPaul RuddAmy PoehlerBill HaderMolly owns a quaint little sweet shop. Joel works for a gigantic candy company threatening to shut her down. How they meet, fall in love, break up and get back together is hilariously recounted in this rom-com spoof.
- DirectorPaul FeigStarsSandra BullockMichael McDonaldMelissa McCarthyAn uptight FBI Special Agent is paired with a foul-mouthed Boston cop to take down a ruthless drug lord.
- DirectorPaul FeigStarsMelissa McCarthyRose ByrneJude LawA desk-bound CIA analyst volunteers to go undercover to infiltrate the world of a deadly arms dealer and prevent diabolical global disaster.
- DirectorDavid WnendtStarsCarla JuriChristoph LetkowskiMarlen KruseThe adventures of an eccentric girl who has strange attitudes towards hygiene and sexuality longs for the reunion of her divorced parents.
- DirectorBaran bo OdarStarsTom SchillingElyas M'BarekWotan Wilke MöhringBenjamin, a young German computer whiz, is invited to join a subversive hacker group that wants to be noticed on the world's stage.
- DirectorOren UzielStarsBenjamin WalkerRainn WilsonStephanie SigmanAn inventive crime thriller told backwards reversing day by day through a week following a local sheriff's quest to unlock the mystery of three small-town criminals and a bank heist gone wrong.
- DirectorRic Roman WaughStarsNikolaj Coster-WaldauOmari HardwickLake BellA newly released prisoner is forced by the leaders of his gang to orchestrate a major crime with a brutal rival gang on the streets of Southern California.
- DirectorSam LevinsonStarsOdessa YoungAbraSuki WaterhouseAfter a malicious data hack exposes the secrets of the perpetually American town of Salem, chaos descends and four girls must fight to survive, while coping with the hack themselves.
- DirectorMax BarbakowStarsAndy SambergCristin MiliotiJ.K. SimmonsStuck in a time loop, two wedding guests develop a budding romance while living the same day over and over again.
- DirectorIlya NaishullerStarsBob OdenkirkAleksey SerebryakovConnie NielsenA docile family man slowly reveals his true character after his house gets burgled by two petty thieves, which, coincidentally, leads him into a bloody war with a Russian crime boss.
- DirectorPaul KatisStarsDavid ElliotMark StanleyScott KyleKajaki Dam 2006. A company of young British soldiers encounter an unexpected, terrifying enemy. A dried-out river bed, and under every step the possibility of an anti-personnel mine. A mine that could cost you your leg - or your life.
- DirectorJohn SaylesStarsChris CooperElizabeth PeñaStephen MendilloWhen the skeleton of his murdered predecessor is found, Sheriff Sam Deeds unearths many other long-buried secrets in his Texas border town.
- DirectorMichael HanekeStarsNaomi WattsTim RothMichael PittTwo psychopathic young men take a family hostage in their cabin.
- DirectorKathryn BigelowStarsRalph FiennesAngela BassettJuliette LewisA former cop turned street-hustler accidentally uncovers a conspiracy in Los Angeles in 1999.
- DirectorMorten TyldumStarsAksel HennieSynnøve Macody LundNikolaj Coster-WaldauAn accomplished headhunter risks everything to obtain a valuable painting owned by a former mercenary.
- DirectorLars von TrierStarsNicole KidmanPaul BettanyLauren BacallA woman on the run from the mob is reluctantly accepted in a small Colorado community in exchange for labor, but when a search visits the town she finds out that their support has a price.
- DirectorJay RoachStarsWill FerrellZach GalifianakisJason SudeikisAn incumbent Representative embroiled in personal scandal faces a no-holds-barred challenge from a naive newcomer funded by two unscrupulous billionaire lobbyist brothers.
- DirectorLin OedingStarsJason MomoaGarret DillahuntJill WagnerA logger defends his family from a group of dangerous drug runners.
- DirectorSidney LumetStarsPhilip Seymour HoffmanEthan HawkeAlbert FinneyWhen two brothers organize the robbery of their parents' jewelry store the job goes horribly wrong, triggering a series of events that sends them, their father and one brother's wife barreling towards a shattering climax.
- DirectorLuc BessonStarsSasha LussHelen MirrenLuke EvansBeneath Anna Poliatova's striking beauty lies a secret that will unleash her indelible strength and skill to become one of the world's most feared government assassins.
- DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsHugh JackmanJake GyllenhaalViola DavisWhen Keller Dover's daughter and her friend go missing, he takes matters into his own hands as the police pursue multiple leads and the pressure mounts.
- DirectorGavin O'ConnorStarsBen AffleckAnna KendrickJ.K. SimmonsAs a math savant uncooks the books for a new client, the Treasury Department closes in on his activities, and the body count starts to rise.
- DirectorMatthew BrightStarsReese WitherspoonKiefer SutherlandBokeem WoodbineA twisted take on "Little Red Riding Hood", with a teenage juvenile delinquent on the run from a social worker travelling to her grandmother's house and being hounded by a charming, but sadistic, serial killer and pedophile.