Charlton Heston in the looming shadow of a part-submerged Statue Of Liberty. Malcolm MacDowell malevolently peering out from under a bowler hat. Michael J Fox standing on scorching asphalt in a sartorially questionable bright-red gilet… Some cinematic images are so iconic that they’re permanently seared into all of our memories.
But for the past four years, a Los Angeles-based art show has been gleefully turning these famous big-screen moments on their heads. Welcome to the genre-blending world of ‘Crazy 4 Cult’ and the bulging new compendium that celebrates its very best work.
Launched by Clerks director and pop-culture king Kevin Smith — who provides a suitably passionate written introduction in the new book — it’s an annual opportunity for 100 different artists to rework films, scenes or stray bits of popular culture in whatever medium they choose.
Featured ‘Crazy 4 Cult’ names include acclaimed street artist Shepard Fairey (the man behind the revolutionary Obama ‘Hope’ poster), and it all but invented the current online trend for alternative film posters.
The new book, Crazy 4 Cult: Cult Movie Art, runs as a compilation of the best work from its gallery shows. Highlights include a reimagining of the Planet Of The Apes beach as a tourist resort, an image of some of cinema’s best-loved characters sporting old-fashioned 3D glasses which commemorates the 2010 exhibition and a painting of R2-D2 slapped with a parking ticket.
There are also ingenious twisted versions of Jaws , Monty Python, Fargo and, inevitably, Back To The Future to savour. But even they can’t make Marty McFly’s Eighties threads look cool.
Latest
Related Reviews and Shortlists
