“Really shows what an underground movie was! The first to do vulgarity in an almost opera style.” – John Waters

Along with Anger’s Scorpio Rising and Warhol’s Chelsea Girls, Mike Kuchar’s SINS OF THE FLESHAPOIDS remains one of the most influential films of the ’60s American Underground. Mike and his brother George (who co-wrote Fleshapoids), were the godfathers of bargain basement cinema, pioneering a hilariously campy, lurid style between Ed Wood exploitation and Douglas Sirk melodrama that would have a massive impact on queer, experimental, and outsider cinema. With dialogue emblazoned directly on the film in comic book-style speech bubbles and costumes purchased from charity shops, Mike Kuchar created a singular vision in the confines of his own apartment.

Set a million years in the future, after “The Great War” has scourged the planet, SINS OF THE FLESHAPOIDS imagines a garishly decadent future in which mankind has forsaken science for self-indulgence in all the carnal pleasures afforded by art, food, and lust, while work is left to a race of enslaved androids… Until one rebellious male robot (Bob Cowan) tires of pampering his lazy masters, and joins the humans in sin. Filled with camp exaggeration, dialogue emblazoned directly on the film stock with speech bubbles charity-shop style, and outrageous humor, FLESHAPOIDS was one of the key influences on John Waters’ trash cinema.

As a bonus, we present two classic featurettes from the Kuchar catalog. The Secret of Wendel Samson stars Pop artist Red Grooms in a dark, surreal psychodrama of sexual desire and the entanglements of intimacy, while The Craven Sluck tells a torrid tale of adultery and flying saucers.

Arkadin does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. However, we encourage researching titles to determine if a screening may contain content that could be upsetting to you. Please feel free to contact us for guidance on specific films. Information about content can also be found on Common Sense Media, IMDB and DoesTheDogDie.com, as well as through general internet searches.