THIRTY TWO SHORT FILMS ABOUT GLENN GOULD (1993)

This intriguing biopic takes the unique form of a 32 part anthology of short films.  But this obviously isn't just any old collection of stories.  Director Francois Girard didn't want to deliver one distinct impression of Glenn Gould, so instead the viewer digests thirty two different versions of Glenn Gould, the famed Canadian concert pianist who gave up touring to focus entirely on recording, whose numerous eccentricities could have served as fodder for thirty two different full length films.  Canadian national treasure Colm Feore plays Glenn Gould, and although this unconventional film's 98 minutes are arranged somewhat chronologically, the segments are incredibly diverse; some are barely longer than a minute, some are as long as seven minutes, some are documentary interviews with friends and contemporaries, some are recreations of interviews or events, and some are as abstract as animated color spheres set to his music or a rapid fire montage of all the prescription drugs Gould took.

BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHT (2008)

This film was originally released about a week before The Dark Knight but if you have bat-fever now in anticipation of next summer's The Dark Knight Rises then this intriguing interquel might be just the bat-cure you're looking for.  Six mildly inter-connected tales that bridge the gap between the two Nolan Batman features are on display here, and despite featuring familiar talent in both the vocal and writing departments, this is unlike any Batman you've seen before, thanks to the distinctly Japanese animation style courtesy of six different Japanese animation houses; its Batmanime.

KWAIDAN (1964)

This movie won the Special Jury Prize at the 1965 Cannes Film Festival, so at least some anthology films (sometimes called portmanteau films) used to enjoy more popularity than they do now.  No frame story this time, just four ghost stories; the title means 'ghost story' but it is untranslated in America.  I don't know why they translate some foreign movie titles but other times they don't.  Why isn't Yojimbo just called Bodyguard?  Oh forget it.  This movie is very colorful and theatrical, drawing on rich traditions of the stage, with gigantic sets depicting all sorts of natural and unnatural occurrences in vivid, expressionist bursts of artifice and design.  The stories are all slow-burns, even the abbreviated final story, that rely more on mounting tension and creeping suspense than blood and guts or things jumping out at you suddenly.

TALES FROM THE DARKSIDE (1990)

This film has an interesting pedigree.  Its based on a TV anthology series created during the resurgence of that genre in the 1980's; there was the new Twilight Zone, Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories, the new Outer Limits, Monsters and more.  Eventually even kids got in on the action with Are You Afraid of the Dark? and people who thought these stories couldn't be told properly without copious gore, liberal cursing, and tons and tons of tits had HBO's Tales from the Crypt.  But enough TV talk, what does this movie have?  The frame story is a modern day take on the Hansel and Gretel legend, the first segment is based on a Arthur Conan Doyle short story (sorry, no Sherlock), the second segment is based on a long unpublished Steven King short story with a script by George Romero so it couldn't possibly be the worst (spoiler it is) and the last story is, I don't know, a documentary about when some guy met a gargoyle.  If that's not enough to pique your interest, just wait til you find out all the people in this.

THE TEN (2006)

Non-horror anthology films also tend to be under-appreciated.  People really must not like learning new names every few minutes.  This movie is basically The State: The Motion Picture, even more so than Wet Hot American Summer because this movie's format most closely resembles the sketch comedy style of television.  You get one story for each commandment, although the link isn't always super clear, along with interstitial tales in front of giant prop copies of the commandments.  Including a short animated sequence and a lavish show-stopping musical number with all the characters and more, there is a lot happening in only 96 minutes so you definitely won't get bored.

TALES FROM THE HOOD (1995)

I love anthology movies.  They are almost always horror movies, they are almost always unsuccessful, and they are almost always awesome.  I don't know why audiences by and large avoid them; maybe nobody wants to learn a bunch of new names every twenty minutes or so.  I think that's the best part; no story can wear out it's welcome.  Most anthologies have three or more stories, and frequently a frame story, and they never seem to run more than two hours (some of them not even close) so they can really condense concepts and speed up the storytelling.  This might not be the best anthology movie I've seen, but its definitely the best so called 'urban horror' movie I've seen.