10 of the most bizarre films and their posters, as chosen by Eternal Family

You may have found yourself watching an Instagram Reel of a movie from the bargain bin of another world, wondering what the hell you’re looking at, before seeing the words Eternal Family turn up at the end. Those words are the name of the most unique and off-beat movie streaming app in the world – available mostly in the US and North America, but nevertheless a treasure trove of films for anyone looking to multiply their watchlist. Eternal Family is reminiscent of the murky websites and YouTube rabbit holes we’d find ourselves roaming in our youth, or perhaps the more extreme films that air on telly after midnight, opening up your world to foreign, art house and experimental flicks that your grandma doesn’t want you to see. More often than that, Eternal Family is partial to the parodical, the deeply silly, the micro-budget, gonzo and Z-list, from blatant rip-offs and raunchy comedies to films like Tammy and the T-Rex, a film famously butchered in the studio edit, only to be resurrected in its final, blood-soaked form decades later. And what’s more is the app is only about six or seven moolahs a month, an instant buy for cinema fans and for those looking to shift off other movie apps that, let’s face it, we all know are no good.

But who is behind Eternal Family? Well, that’s the ominous and anonymous ‘Family’, who spoke to It’s Nice That as the collective voice of a gang of movie archivists who are doing their part to make sure everything from Czech surrealism to lost monster movies are available to the masses. We asked them to pick 10 of their favourite posters and films from the app and here are their bespoke choices.

The Boxer’s Omen

The Boxer’s Omen is one of the most visually and conceptually unhinged horror films produced by the Shaw Brothers (if not by anyone) and its poster is just the tip of the iceberg. The lurid colour scheme, stylised skeleton heads and beautifully handmade crocodile are all wonderful, but it’s really about that giant blue monk’s head, the strangely artificial lightning bolts and the unique font choice. The film itself is a dizzying mix of martial arts, Buddhist mysticism, black magic and extremely goopy body horror, all photographed in fiercely saturated colour. It’s packed with practical effects, including an incredible sequence in which the lead character is covered in animated symbols. The poster gets you some of the way towards what you can expect without revealing just how coo-coo crazy the movie becomes.

Viy

This poster is absolutely bonkers. A woman with bats for pupils stares out while ghouls, ghosts and enormous hands gather around her. The artist is apparently unknown, which feels impossible for an image this distinctive. Its crowded supernatural imagery perfectly advertises Viy, a 1967 adaptation of Nikolai Gogol’s story in which a frightened seminary student must spend three nights praying over the body of a witch. The film is a grab bag of theatrical sets, practical monsters and simple but effective effects. There is none of that video-store-era false advertising here – the movie delivers what the poster promises.

Drowning by Numbers

This poster with an incredible sense of composition summarises Peter Greenaway’s entire approach to cinema. Peter began as a painter and constructed his films with that painterly flair; often recreating arrangements of classical paintings within his frames. This poster feels a little like one of David Hockney’s swimming pool paintings, which we also love, but there’s something darker. Drowning by Numbers, like the poster, is a film filled with water and death, but also cryptic riddles and games (numbers hiding in each scene ascending from one to 100). It’s a fascinating watch from a fascinating director and artist.

Funeral Parade of Roses

If there is anything we love on an Eternal Family poster, it’s a big ol’ face. And this has one of the best. The extreme close-up, harsh contrast and rough photographic texture make the image feel like an inexpensive punk fanzine, which is both appropriate and a little ironic for a film this visually sophisticated. Toshio Matsumoto’s Funeral Parade of Roses is a sort of kaleidoscopic journey through Tokyo’s late-1960s queer counterculture. The film combines melodrama, documentary, performance art, comedy and avant-garde experimentation and somehow, this single frozen face does a really great job at conveying all that movement and energy and rough experimentation.

Kokey

Kokey is a very special late-1990s Filipino variation on the familiar story of an alien who lands on Earth and needs the help of some children. It arrived nearly two decades after E.T. inspired an international wave of similar films, but the results here are spectacular in a very different way. The poster wisely puts Kokey’s face front and centre because, let’s face it, he’s why we’re here. Kokey is our strange, sweet and extremely cool boy who wears a backwards hat sometimes.

Love on Delivery

The Shaw Brothers studio really knew how to make a poster. This one plays with romantic-comedy imagery already firmly established by 1994, and immediately disrupts it by placing eggs over Stephen Chow’s eyes in a reference to Ultraman. Its simple composition and candy-coloured arrangement telegraphs the vibe of the film pretty well: you’re going to get some romance, there’s going to be silliness and they’re gonna send up some much beloved IP. Love on Delivery follows a timid delivery boy who turns to a fraudulent kung-fu master in an attempt to become worthy of the woman he loves. It is first and foremost a comedy, filled with the anarchic energy Stephen would later bring to Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle.

Papi Gudia

We like rainbows, and this poster has an enormous one running directly through its centre. Its colour and magical energy reveal almost nothing about the actual premise, which involves an evil necromancer transfering his soul into a young boy’s plastic doll. Essentially an unauthorised Indian reimagining of Child’s Play, Papi Gudia adds musical numbers, melodrama, surreal special effects and Karisma Kapoor as a pop star. The poster may conceal the homicidal-doll business, but it perfectly captures the infectious joy and hyper-coloured excess surrounding it. This is a horror film with a musical high point that is very heavily ‘inspired by’ 1990s dance group 2 Unlimited. It’s a total recommendation.

Quest

This poster reminds us of a box for a late-80s Sierra adventure game or maybe the walkthrough guide you’d consult after becoming stuck in one. Maybe it’s simply the word ‘Quest’ sending our brains in that direction (King’s Quest, Space Quest, Police Quest… ), but the tiny otherworldly image, oversized title, pale blue field and nested borders all contribute to the feeling. Its sparse, almost institutional design makes it completely distinct within our library. The film itself was co-directed by legendary graphic designer Saul Bass and his wife and collaborator, Elaine Bass. Adapted from Ray Bradbury’s Frost and Fire, Quest follows a boy born into a tribe whose members live for only eight days. The film communicates largely through form, colour and monumental environments, treating every frame as a graphic composition.

The Hourglass Sanatorium

This poster doesn’t need much help from us. It’s a no brainer pick. Designed by Polish surrealist Franciszek Starowieyski, it replaces any sort of conventional movie advertising with... a giant bloodshot eye balanced on a skeletal jaw! The image captures the grotesque character of the film without depicting any particular scene. We especially love the uneven border and handwritten credits, which give this grand, macabre image a folk-art quality or an occult diagram.

Tyll the Giant

Animation is one of the cornerstones of Eternal Family, and Tyll the Giant is one of its pillars. The poster is simple, allowing the extraordinary character designs of Estonian artist Jüri Arrak to dominate: wavy heads, flattened bodies and figures that appear carved, painted and animated all at once. The film adapts the Estonian legend of Suur Tõll, a giant who protects the island of Saaremaa. Its blunt, elemental shapes give the animation an ancient feeling, while its trippy, unnerving style and bursts of violence place it firmly in the modern world of filmmaking.