Great Surreal Movies You Should Watch

[@turtle1154]

I always find it hyperbolic when people say that a film or television series changed their lives but Synecdoche, New York is as close as any film has came to changing my life. Unbelievable piece of art.

[@ToxicatedLum]

Film's included in the video and some from the comments :) Thinking of ending things (2020) The lighthouse (2019) Sorry to bother you (2018) Long days journey into night (2018) Mandarin La casa lobo (the wolf house) (2018) Spanish Swiss army man (2016) A pigeon sat on a branch reflecting on existence (2014) Swedish Reality (2014) French Dune (2013) The congress (2013) Beyond the black rainbow (2010) Enter the void (2009) Synecdoche new york (2008) You the living (2007) Swedish The night is short, walk on girl (2007) Japanese Inland Empire (2006) Paprika (2006) In land empire (2006) Amelie (2001) French Songs from the second floor (2000) Swedish eXistenZ (1999) Khrustalyov my carl (1998) Russian End of evagelion (1997) Japanese Perfect blue (1997) Japanese The City Of Lost Children (1995) French Naked lunch (1991) Dreams (1990) Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989) Japanese Santa sangre (1989) Brazil (1985) The never ending story (1984) Videodrome (1983) Stalker (1979) Russian Eraserhead (1977) Mirror (1975) Russian Fantastic planet (1973) French The holy mountain (1973) Hourglass Sanatorium (1973) Polish Solaris (1972) Russian THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE (1972) French The cremator (1969) Czech Persona (1966) Swedish Daisies (1966) Czech 8 1/2 (1963) Italian The exterminating angel (1962) Spanish Spellbound (1945) Meshes of the afternoon (1943)

[@MrBendybruce]

Could you add Jacob's Ladder (1990) and Stay (2005) into your list? thx edit: and what the heck, I think The Number 23 (2007) deserves to be there too

[@isaiahromero9861]

You should add Mulholland Drive, probably the best surrealist film of all time imo, good list though

[@MrBendybruce]

@@isaiahromero9861 agree 100% MD is a haunting masterpiece

[@revisehellenologo]

Just adding my recommendation le congress (2013) here also Fantastic planet is one of my favourites so it was nice to see it on the list, yay.

[@chikitronrx0]

Damn now i have days of movies to watch. xD

[@shubhamjamwal5284]

Let me say this out loud, I'm from India, I want to make movoes but there's no film school here and I've to say, your videos on horror are the best I've ever seen. I've downloaded them in case you delete them, I wanna watch them for the rest my life. Bless you man. 1 tiny suggestion, people here are those who have no access to film school so please make videos on the process of film making. From script writing to cinematography. Please do that it'll help countless kids like me who are lost on youtube 🙏🙏🙏🙏

[@juliette7535]

Very nice comment I hope you do well with your love of film.

[@vleaky3430]

Really awesome! Do you have an instagram or a way we can stay connected? I think our paths may cross.

[@aquariandawn4750]

But India has a large film industry.

[@shubhamjamwal5284]

@@aquariandawn4750 they don't let outsiders come in. It's not like how things work in the states. They won't hire you based on your short film or your potential. They hire people who they know and have been working with for years plus, I would love to make a24 like edgy films that get under your skin but all they do is family drama and dance numbers. Film schools are expensive and they're concentrated in 2 big cities. Being a guy from an underdeveloped city, it's almost impossible to move out and survive in big city without having good financial support from family. I won't stop though, even if I've to get a job in army or police or anything else, I'll gather the money to buy equipment. I'll use social media. I'll not stop. It may take years but I'll make it.

[@aquariandawn4750]

@@shubhamjamwal5284 then, according to you, you will never be a part of India film industry.

[@jickay]

Appreciate the Paranoia Agent shoutout. All of Kon's films are referenced, but for some reason his series is always overlooked, even though I think it carries his ideas about the strangeness of urban living the furthest and clearest.

[@kingofbel6499]

Lynch movies are easily the best surreal movies I ever had the pleasure of watching. Mullholand Dr., Lost Highway, and Inland Empire are my three favorites and I only wish I could rewatch them for the first time again.

[@marathonman2050]

I feel like Robert Egger's The Lighthouse took some inspiration from Ingmar Bergman's Persona, in terms exploring duality and isolation.

[@AstridMartin666]

Oh yeah? I’ll have to watch it the lighthouse is a favorite thank you

[@s.a.l.1974]

Persona also had a lot to do with femininity and the Lighthouse, at least I've heard, had a lot to do with masculinity

[@jonbush8950]

Great film! Made me finally go watch The Witch, an even better one. My favorite new young writer-director working today!

[@younggodicarus]

The Lighthouse is my favorite a24 film for that reason

[@vleaky3430]

And the ending is definitely a nod to Eraserhead

[@ananthunrn5389]

This channel is one of the reasons I use KZbin now....

[@VaultofVideos]

Me too

[@otterpoet]

I'd definitely suggest _The City of Lost Children (1995)_ and _MirrorMask (2005)_ for their surreal imagery and nightmarish fantasy.

[@lockandloadlikehell]

Oooh OTTERPOET you've outdone yourself

[@mrrodriguezHLP]

Not surprised you included David Lynch, a bit surprised he's not on the list twice with Mulholland Drive.

[@augustlandmesser1520]

"Brazil" is an allegory, critique on our modern society in form of dystopian grotesque. Likewise Orwell's "1984".

[@loxeggcheese]

Having seen paprika at least 3 times, I had no idea that was the plot haha

[@renatgal2946]

Just laughing:)

[@CoolBananza]

Pet shop of Horrors (1999's anime). That rabbit girl episode still creeps me out. And Inaka Isha (anime, based on Kafka's story "A country doctor").

[@schmebulockjizz]

I think Alejandro Jodorosky is the epitome when it comes to surrealist filmmaking. Im underwhelmed you only mentioned one of his films as a honorary recommendation. His movies rank among the unconventional classics that defy the way we usually tell stories. Watch El Topo or The Holy Mountain.

[@Rambleism]

Fando & Liz 😵‍💫 holy moly.. that’s surrealism

[@s.m.2523]

Jodorvsky also made comiscs that are pretty great and darn surreal too. Tho, if I'm being honnest I can't recommend el Topo to anyone, yes it's sureal but it's also... very boring (and not in he dig the earth kind of way) in my opinion...

[@antoniog2854]

This upload is basically about all my favorite movies of all time.

[@lucasnunes2453]

by far one of the best channels on youtube, criminally underrated. awesome selection as always. would add 2018's Possum for a pinch of horror/character study with some lynchian surrealism as a cherry on top

[@shoesncheese]

In high school, my friends and I watched Naked Lunch over and over. In school, we watched Everybody Rides the Carousel an animated movie about the stages of life according to psychologist Erik Erikson. It's all watercolors and jazz. It's style reminds me of Fantastic Planet, which is another good one.

[@SteveChiverton]

One of the most enjoyable elements of 'Brazil' [which is in my all time top ten favourite films] is that you can feel that despite the incredibly dark story the entire cast were having an absolute whale of a time making it! I mean you can genuinely tell that they were really enjoying themselves in every scene! A film I would add to this list is Takeshi Miike's gloriously absurd 'Happiness of the Katakuri's! Gloriously strange!

[@theusorelha]

I think every Aronofsky movie (except The Wrestler and Noah) should be mentioned, especially Mother!, its basically a nightmare

[@rodrigovalerosancho2234]

I agree with a viewer about Jam Svankmajer. Anything he has done, from his shorts to his later full length movies, are essential in surrealism. Also there is a little gem and very funny Italian French movie with Michelle Piccoli called Themroc that you should check. Otherwise an amazing video. Thank you very much.

[@wolfil8019]

Svankmajer is essential. And Themroc is one of my very favorite movies of all time.

[@EpizodesHorizons]

One of my favourite surreal movies with a major Hollywood star is "The Swimmer" from 1968, starring a buff Burt Lancaster. Very atypical for a Hollywood film.

[@cheebagardens1759]

Holy Motors, Gozu, inland empire, belle de jour, dream demons, Donnie darko, the game, Pan’s Labyrinth, picnic at hanging rock, and Weekend are other good ones.

[@Screened]

What are your favourite Surreal movie scenes?

[@comradejosephstalinoftheus8698]

The samurai fight in Brazil or the school scene in I'm Thinking of Ending Things.

[@StreamWatcher-kj7cb]

I'm surprised you guys didn't cover "End of Evangelion", with it's concept of a complete merging of all human souls or the idea of becoming God, or a Godlike entity.

[@gauharjamal8791]

Holy mountain deserves atleast some mention

[@janevivian24]

Perfect blue

[@2005teetheater]

Daisies (1966) is a vibrant 60s Czech new wave surreal film that I recommend to everyone to at least check out

[@DonovanPresents]

After watching Erasurehead myself, I don't feel like "disturbing" describes it well enough. Very sad throughout, but I have my own interpretation which comes with partial to what you said about the pregnancy and whatnot.

[@brackleyjames4229]

Watched 'the discreet charms of the bourgeoisie' the other week and still not over how little I understood but still enjoyed every second of

[@goldreaper4209]

I love the attention to detail in allowing the subtitles to be visible while blurring out the footage for the title card.

[@Screened]

Much appreciated 👍

[@nic6386]

the night is short, walk on girl I thoroughly enjoyed it!! super vibrant and packed with a lot of eccentric characters

[@Watch-0w1]

I wanted to like the movie but felt like repeating too much and drag .

[@dudezillasf]

A partial list of Surreal faves: "Conspirators of Pleasure" by Jan Svankmejer (any Svankmejer film could make this list, but "Conspirators..." is just so dang funny!), "Baron Munchausen" by Karel Zeman (Gilliam's version is great, too - but, Zeman did it all, first!), "Begotten" by E. Elias Merhige (dark and disturbing nihilism...), "City of Lost Children" by Jeunot & Caro (what ever happened to Marc Caro, anyway?), and "Taxidermia" by György Pálfi (hilarious and bizarre). Plus, I'll throw in "ZARDOZ" by John Boorman (because it has Sean Connery running around in a cloth diaper while a giant floating stone head rants about penises and vomits guns - so good...).

[@Al1987ac]

I was surprised he didn't mention Svankmejer. "The Flat" or "Jabberwocky" are fantastic surrealistic films.

[@rodrigovalerosancho2234]

I totally agree. Svankmajer should be there. Lunacy, Little Otik, Faust, Alice... and all his great shorts. Still a good video.

[@gordo64ful]

So many of my favorite films in one video! I'll check out the rest as soon as possible. Love this series, keep up the good work!

[@a_lex235]

Ah now i just remembered! The Trial (1962) by Orson Welles featuring Anthony Perkins. Based on Franz Kafka's book with the same title, to me it's the ultimate dream like surrealism. Well, of course since its based on Kafka. Highly recommended!!!

[@jdub1371]

I've never seen "The Discreet Charms of the Bourgeoisie" but just from the clips I think I can see the seeds of inspiration for the Death scene in Monty Python's "Meaning of LIfe" - which for some reason makes that scene even funnier to me.

[@laurarivoir9798]

Wonderful list & synopses, love all these films! I'd like to add one of my favorites, Alain Resnais' Last Year at Marienbad (1961). It's truly a gorgeous, mesmerizing experience from start to finish, and I always find myself thinking about it long after watching. The script may have been in some part based on the short novel The Invention of Morel by Adolfo Bioy Casares (a friend of Borges), which I'd highly recommend as well.

[@tristanmayer5373]

This is an insightful and helpful video. I can't wait to watch several of these which I haven't heard of. Refreshing compared to the usual list videos that are the same predictable 10 movies.

[@language.wanderer]

The Zero Theorem and Enter The Void should both be on this list.

[@chatgptnewslive2023]

i love Paprika so much! i remember the first time watching it i was so bamboozled that i had to watch it again lol

[@gabrielarseneau8662]

Love the kind of movies your essays focuses on. Always great taste and selection

[@RasmusSchultz]

Didn't include any of my favorite surreal movies - in no particular order: - Enter The Void - Pi - The Frame - Donnie Darko - The Machinist - The Fountain Beautiful, trippy, cerebral movies - each of them a great place to start if you're new to the genre. 😀✌️

[@rockalypsen3844]

I have seen and liked all the movies you listed here. Yes, they are very beautiful, trippy, smart, experimental here and there and overall great movies, but none of them are truly loyal to surrealism, that's why they didn't make the list. I think it's misleading to say they are good refferences for someone who is interested in getting into surreal cinema. Something from Luis Bunuel, David Lynch or Alejandro Jodorowsky would be a much better suggestion, since most of their movies are surreal from head to toe.

[@RasmusSchultz]

@@rockalypsen3844 right, "cerebral" is perhaps a more appropriate label for most of those. With the possible exception of "The Frame" - I don't know what I'd call that if you don't think that one is surreal 😄

[@alealejo78]

"Los amantes del Círculo Polar" , "The pillow book"and "Prospero's books" are three of my favorite surreal movies.

[@FGP_Pro]

I LOVE Prospero's Books.

[@martincook1412]

Jan Svankmeyer may be worth a mention. Although he may be better known for his shorts, he did make feature length titles such as Faust and Little Otik.

[@hypnotizedband]

valerie and her week of wonders is a surreal masterpiece

[@wolfil8019]

Indeed! And if you haven't read the book it is based on (by Czech surrealist Vitezslav Nezval) it is well worth the time. If English is your first language, there is a translation available from Twisted Spoon Press.

[@violinsinthevoid4579]

The Belladonna of Sadness. This film needs more love. It is a psychedelic fever dream which pulls no punches.

[@jhonnyinfamous1176]

Definatly.. With you on that one! One of the pearls of my collection. 😊👌

[@SpitMutant]

A really good surreal film that I've never seen talked about is The Aerial (La Antena). It's an Argentinan film that I found on Netflix but I beleive it isn't on there anymore since I can't find it in the search bar. It's all in black and white and none of the characters have voices except for two people, The Voice and her son. The whole story is that of dreams and what I beleive to be a commentary against totalitarianism (I mean there's a part where the villain has a flat out swastika shaped contraption). The way they show the characters without voices talking is so strange yet interesting, seeing their words physically float around and exit their mouths. It was surprising how unique it was and sad that it's seemingly so difficult to find now. There's a trailer for it on KZbin but other than that I'm unsure on where to find the actual movie now. The whole thing is amazing from the music to the visuals to the story itself and I really recommend it for anyone interested in surreal media.

[@Brizioss]

My favorites among these, a couple I didn't know and will check out. Maybe you could include Stalker or Solaris or atleast cite Tarkovskij

[@jeffbrownstain]

Eraserhead was the inspiration for Floop's Floogies from Spy Kids. I'm sure of it. (Yes I did have to spend nearly 15 minutes looking up the name of those abominations)

[@pennylope8138]

Nice video. I'm definitely going to hunt some of these down. My recommended films: The City of Lost Children, The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb and He Was A Quiet Man

[@jhonnyinfamous1176]

Seen it mentioned further down, but Jan Svankmajer's Alice, Hausu/House, Woman chasing the butterfly of death/The killer butterfly and maybe Werner H.'s Nosfertu(1979) deserves honorable mentions?

[@dog_____ravine]

Synechdoche, New York. One of the most brilliant movies I've seen come out of Hollywood.

[@schmebulockjizz]

Akira Kurosawa's Kaguemusha also contains surreal elements where the protagonist sees himself tortured by his doppleganger in dream secuences.

[@kyokuslaps2411]

The neverending story is what I think of when someone says surreal movies

[@dannydorko7075]

No, that's fantasy...

[@kyokuslaps2411]

@@dannydorko7075 I mean the visuals, I guess a better pick would be something like a scanner darkly or fear and loathing in Las Vegas, man I love fear and loathing

[@sapphic.flower]

Paprika! yes, honestly surrealism in animation is next level because there's absolutely no bounds!

[@reverietapes]

The Living Trilogy was one of the first foreign films I've seen and made me fall in love with surrealism.

[@fadthetic]

I've watched Paprika three days ago, trippy movie. I love it

[@KetilDuna]

A fine list, and a pleasant video - despite the unsettling theme. Thank you for sharing and inspiring.

[@Ayevee609]

I wish I watched the first video when it came out a week ago so I could shout out House (1977). I saw a small clip of it in the first surrealist video but no mention of it and it is one of my favorite films of all time.

[@EggBastion]

Housuu! With the piano? I still haven't seen it yet

[@Ayevee609]

@@EggBastion yup thats the one! Great film

[@CatJabZ]

Lovely well thought list. Thank you for this channel!

[@schmebulockjizz]

What about Angels Egg movie by Mamoru Oshi, another one to join the list unnerving surreal masterpieces.

[@litenkunqi6500]

Love Paprika! Still not dare to watch Eraserhead or Videodrome. Santa Sangre looks interesting tho. Will check that out

[@ryan.1990]

"My movies are made to criticise the Bourgeoisie!" Bro, you're an art house film director, you *are* the Bourgeoisie.

[@graphite2786]

Oh you! The bourgeoisie aren't the rich, educated, elite class you think it is. Rappers have appropriated the word to mean the champagne set, bling and cocaine. High end couture, limo's and red carpet. Art house and Warhol. But when the film was made, the bourgeoisie meant something different. The bourgeoisie are the middle class. Small business owners, middle management, accountants. Disney and Olive garden types. Maybe you're thinking of the Bourgeois? Slightly more wealthy. I suppose you could be Marxist Marxism only has 2 classes, the bourgeoisie ( white collar) and the proletariat ( blue collar).

[@MantasticHams]

Multiple of my top 10 are on here! Synechdoche is up #1, Paprika, Mulholland Drive and Videodrome are on there as well but the order of the 9 non-#1's change rather frequently haha. Surely if I was to compose a top 20 more than half these films would be in there.

[@eudaenomic]

One of my favorites is Je t'aime, je t'aime and another is Jesse goes to Jerusalem (not certain of the title but released about the same time).

[@ElbowLongdickem]

Paprika is one of my favourite movies of all time. I fell in love with it since my first exposure to it when I was a kid, but I didn't get to watch the whole thing since it's not kids, but i understood that it's about entering people's dreams and that's all I needed know. Ii forgot about it for about 8 years Then I watched it when I was 18 for the first time.

[@jakublegon4455]

'Under the Skin' from 2013 with S. Johansson should be here too. This movie is one hell of a surreal and disturbing ride with sick plot.

[@RSEFX]

One of the problems with surreal films (and surrealism over all) is that it shares some of the same issues that undermine certain fantasy films, namely those dealing with magic, sorcery etc. in which there are few stable elements, anything seemingly can happen out of nowhere for little or no reason, and the environments can be so distorted and bizarre as to be simply difficult to relate to in any meaningful way. In that sense, they can be easy to make----just go crazy with inventing things---and undisciplined. Sort of fun for a while---especially when you are young and all this seems new and exciting---but very monotonous as the same patterns of seeming randomness become recognizable and repetitious. Some additional surreal or surreal-ish films I might add to a list of same: 200 MOTELS, CATCH 22, NAKED LUNCH, MON ONCLE, CITY ZERO, THE TWONKY, SPIRITED AWAY, BARON MUNCHAUSEN (Zeman's film), THE BED-SITTING ROOM and THE MEANING OF LIFE.

[@L1terally_Me]

All hail the new flesh

[@mr.phillips]

Great list! So many films to watch.

[@mikeymichael9991]

The 5000 fingers of dr.T is weird and wonderful ...

[@JoshuaGoudreau]

An absolutely wonderful film that uses the surreal to stunning effect is Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives from 2010. It's a thai film by Apichatpong Weerasethakul that blends dream and reality in a way that is beautiful, unsettling, and welcoming all at once. It's difficult to explain but the basic idea is an old man is dying and his family has gathered to be with him though even that explanation doesn't really do justice to the base premise of magical realism and dream blending seamlessly into the reality of a dying man.

[@Bolts_Films]

how'd y'all miss the most surreal David Lynch film Inland Empire? it seems to me to be mulhollund drive plus lost highway on steroids.

[@auntieheksold-timemedicine3045]

I want to watch ALL of these... and I'm going to! thank you so much for sharing this list!

[@curiousgemini]

I think "Zardoz" should included here.

[@sapphic.flower]

Your description of Synecdoche, New York makes me think of Perfect Blue by Satoshi Kon and Black Swan. Also that Bojack Horseman episode where he’s on pain meds and thinks someone is after him lol

[@sapphic.flower]

I’d love to see you do the opposite and share movies grounded in reality! Movies like Lady Bird, Roma, No Longer Here, Welcome to The Doll House, and Rocks are some of my fav :D

[@neverhatejollibee]

I would love to add Holy Motors in this list !!

[@mosquerajoseph7305]

The Trial, Orson Welles

[@colarola7223]

The Tracy Fragments should be on this list.

[@JerOfTheDead]

The first film I think of would be Spirited Away.

[@parastooabr1524]

That's in the fantasy genre not surreal

[@JerOfTheDead]

@@parastooabr1524 I’d argue that’s not that big of a distinction. I also see you’re point however.

[@isabelaoliveira9270]

I really curious to watch "Long days journey into night", i saw a lot of people recommended that movie back in 2018.

[@margaretchi5149]

Christiane Cegavske's Blood Tea and Red String

[@penguwing]

*swiss army man* also falls into the surreal category imo

[@juxalie1]

Stalker. One of the best. Russian surrealism

[@itshel2677]

I feel like I have to mention "Valerie and her week of wonders" from 1977 I think. The best description I can give is that it's a coming of age story which feels like a washed out memory of a dream. It got me into surrealist cinema so it has to be at least halfway decent

[@kermitefrog64]

The Adventures of Baron Munchhausen is a head trip.

[@mclovin7326]

Fantastic planet is amazing

[@somentertainment]

Emir Kusturika's Underground! MAsterpiece and lots of surreal and imaginative scenes.

[@schmebulockjizz]

Alice in the wonderland the 1951 animated classic i think should also be recognized as a portrayal of subconcious in cinema

[@joshimawashi]

ALL Jodorowsky's films as a collective should be in here...

[@Gawillamon]

Birdman and Enter The Void are some of the best, weirdest, and craziest movies I've ever seen

[@Qba86]

Regarding movies by Wojciech Has, "The Manuscript found in Zaragoza" would also qualify as surreal, and it's certainly one of the best (in not *the* best) Polish movie ever made.

[@UpUpDnDnLtRtLtRtBAStart]

Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind. Could only watch it once after a breakup. It was toooo surREAL

[@peterandrews4418]

Informative. I'd like to check these films out

[@lloydonlead]

Tarkovsky 's Stalker, The Mirror.

[@madmandu]

Brazil is one of the saddest movies I've ever seen.

[@waltergodsoe5526]

"Holy Mountain" and "El Topo" now those are what I call surreal and cutting

[@thescatologistcopromancer3936]

It was only until last month that I found out "synecdoche" isn't pronounced sin-ik-doke. Had only read it before hahaha

[@jeanharper9683]

Have you noticed actors fumbling many common pronunciations lately? I split my sides when an older actor playing a cop had to say "petit larceny" which has been anglicized to "petty larceny", at least for over 100 years. Of course, he said "pe - tit" with a hard "t" on the end. His error was inexcusable; yours was completely forgiveable!

[@thescatologistcopromancer3936]

@@jeanharper9683 yeah haha if you have a director and crew right next to you PLUS editors, they should catch it

[@jeanharper9683]

@@thescatologistcopromancer3936 I know! It's like they're all born in little creative arts petri dishes somewhere, but have NO sense of how they should apply common knowledge, or even things they learned from OTHER tv and movie examples. Total disconnect! It makes me cranky.

[@ajaxfilms]

Great video!

[@jonbush8950]

I really enjoyed Slipstream, Anthony Hopkins' directorial debut. And it doesn't get much more surreal than Inland Empire (ok, Erasurehead, which I still cannot watch). Of course Howl's Castle and Spirited Away. Fantastic Planet! And The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. A Clockwork Orange. Adaptation. Holy Mountain. Tarsem's The Fall. My list is less obscure but maybe there are surrealist fans who still have never seen these masterpieces.

[@somentertainment]

In the animated apartment you shold consider Over the garden wall... and Anomalisa.

[@HarryPujols]

Surrealism and magical realism are different terms, the second coined from the novel 100 Years of Solitude. There are only a few magical realist movies out there, and to me the perfect example of one is 1991s romantic comedy L.A. Story with Steve Martin.

[@NateTriplett]

Jeunet & Caro's The City Of Lost Children & Amelie

[@s.m.2523]

I'm glad PAprika figures ont he thumbnail. It's an obvious choice but a good one.

[@xChikyx]

Paprika is *so* good