Movies Similar to Dave Allen in Search of the Great English Eccentric

Brexitannia(2017)

A sociological portrait of the United Kingdom after the historic Brexit vote of 2016. A funny, sometimes terrifying and non-judgemental look at the new populist politics sweeping western democracies.

7.8

Vernon, Florida(1981)

Early Errol Morris documentary intersplices random chatter he captured on film of the genuinely eccentric residents of Vernon, Florida. A few examples? The preacher giving a sermon on the definition of the word "Therefore," and the obsessive turkey hunter who speaks reverentially of the "gobblers" he likes to track down and kill.

6.7

Elton John: A Singular Man(2016)

An in-depth portrait of British composer, pianist and singer Elton John, pop star and myth of modern culture.

6.2

A Year Of British Murder(2019)

Between January 1st and 31 December 2017, 768 people died as a result of murder or manslaughter in Britain - approximately 14 people a week. This powerful and original film tells the stories of some of those cases, exploring the human cost of murder - the ordinary people whose lives are changed forever and the communities left to wrestle with the consequences. Filmed over 12 months, it follows families and friends from the immediate aftermath of the crime, through the court process, and as they try to rebuild their lives. These stories are shown alongside statistical analysis of homicide figures for Britain since the Millennium, which reveal that so far this century, the pattern of homicides has remained strikingly similar in terms of the profiles of victims and the circumstances of the killing. This urgent, unflinching and intimate film goes beyond individual incidents to ask what the patterns of murder in our time say about the state of Britain.

0.0

Grey Gardens(1976)

Edie Bouvier Beale and her mother, Edith, two aging, eccentric relatives of Jackie Kennedy Onassis, are the sole inhabitants of a Long Island estate. The women reveal themselves to be misfits with outsized, engaging personalities. Much of the conversation is centered on their pasts, as mother and daughter now rarely leave home.

7.3

Duck Rock(1985)

A visual compilation of songs from Malcolm McLaren's 1983 album "Duck Rock", including the songs "Buffalo Gals" and "Double Dutch", mixed with interview and documentary footage.

0.0

Fast, Cheap & Out of Control(1997)

Errol Morris’s Fast, Cheap & Out of Control interweaves the stories of four men, each driven to create eccentric worlds from their unique obsessions, all of which involve animals. There’s a lion tamer who shares his theories on the mental processes of wild animals; a topiary gardener who has devoted a lifetime to shaping bears and giraffes out of hedges and trees; a man fascinated with hairless mole rats; and an MIT scientist who has designed complex, autonomous robots that can crawl like bugs.

6.7

Someone's Daughter, Someone's Son(2024)

Now a successful filmmaker, Lorna Tucker was once a teenage runaway sleeping rough on the streets of London. For this frank, forceful and inspiring documentary, she returns to her former haunts and speaks to current and former homeless people about why, twenty-five years later, record numbers of people are still reduced to living on Britain's streets.

0.0

Inquiry: The Great British Housing Disaster(1984)

David Jones investigates how 1960s council housing came to be built so poorly that thousands later needed to be demolished.

6.6

The Pink Floyd and Syd Barrett Story(2003)

The full bizarre, tragic but celebratory story of Syd Barrett, the co-founder of Pink Floyd.

7.8

The Battle of the Somme(1916)

A documentary and propaganda film which shows the British Army's preparations for, and the early stages of, the battle of the Somme.

6.5

100 Years of British Trains(2007)

A fascinating compilation tracing the development of British trains throughout the 20th century. This program provides a record of the greatest days of steam; the magnificent express engines developed by the 'Big Four' - the GWR, SR, LNER, and LMS; many famous named trains like the Golden Arrow and the Brighton Belle, the War and Nationalism; and the amazing variety of elder locos from the 1950's.

0.0

Exit Through the Gift Shop(2010)

Banksy is a graffiti artist with a global reputation whose work can be seen on walls from post-hurricane New Orleans to the separation barrier on the Palestinian West Bank. Fiercely guarding his anonymity to avoid prosecution, Banksy has so far resisted all attempts to be captured on film. Exit Through the Gift Shop tells the incredible true story of how an eccentric French shop keeper turned documentary maker attempted to locate and befriend Banksy, only to have the artist turn the camera back on its owner.

7.5

Motel(1989)

Documentary looking at the culture of three motels and their owners who remain untouched by homogenization and corporatism, located in Santa Fe, New Mexico; Florence, Arizona; and the semi-ghost town of Death Valley Junction, California. Everyone has an unusual story to tell.

6.5

Queen and the Crown(2022)

The Queen And The Crown a tribute: A feature length tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the UK’s longest reigning monarch, from her birth in London on April 21st 1926 to the nationwide outpouring of gratitude and thanks to Her Majesty in June 2022 marking the Platinum Jubilee, and then the sorrow just weeks later and her historic and epic funeral. Following the course of her life as the shock of the abdication in 1936 catapulted her father unexpectedly onto the throne, suddenly making the young princess heir to the crown, we see the way she pledged to give herself entirely to serving the nation.

7.3

The World According to Allee Willis(2024)

Take one look at award-winning songwriter / artist Allee Willis and you see someone unafraid to be themselves. Dressed in a cacophony of prints and colors, her signature asymmetrical haircut and famed parties at her real-life Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, Allee didn’t waste any opportunity to tell you what she was about. But privately, Allee struggled with not fitting established gender and sexual norms. She buried herself in her work, until true love manifested her ultimate masterpiece - self-acceptance.

0.0

Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession(2004)

A documentary on the Z Channel, one of the first pay cable stations in the US, and its programming chief, Jerry Harvey. Debuting in 1974, the LA-based channel's eclectic slate of movies became a prime example of the untapped power of cable television.

7.0

A Life on the Farm(2023)

A strange story from Somerset, England about a filmmaking farmer and the inspiring legacy of his long-lost home movies.

7.0

James Baldwin Abroad(2023)

Showcasing three short films by American writer James Baldwin, wherein he muses about race, sexuality and civil rights, among other topics, in Istanbul, Paris and Great Britain.

10.0

Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story(2019)

The hilarious and bizarre story of Frank Sidebottom, the cult British comedian in a papier mâché head, and the secretive life of Chris Sievey, the artist trapped inside.

6.8