Desperately craving a double feature? Stand By For Mind Control has your back.
Once a week we post a pair of films that, when watched in sequence, will transform you into the cinema equivalent of Stephen Hawking. In case you’ve missed these posts, or are just kind of lazy, we’ve collected our first 20 recommendations for you here in one handy list (presented in chronological order, not in order of awesomeness).
Click through to read the full post and then start your eyeball exercises, ’cause it’s movie time.
Gallipoli /
Paths of Glory
If you never knew how wonderful the First World War could be or what Mel Gibson was like before he turned into a major tool, this program has your marching orders. Get your ass out of the trenches and get in there, kid. Or don’t. You’ll get shot either way.- The Rocky Horror Picture Show /
The American Astronaut
No one expects the unexpected, even when you get a double dose of it. Watch two of cinema’s weirdest genre amalgamations and sing along to some sci-fi, horror, western, romance. If you choose to do so while under the influence of a battery of drugs, that is your choice. - Enter the Dragon /
The Kentucky Fried Movie
What happens when you take Bruce Lee and throw him in with a shower full of Catholic high school girls? I dunno. He’s dead. But this double feature might help you glimpse into the great beyond to find out, that is if you can get out of that gorilla suit. 
Glengarry Glen Ross /
Margin Call
If making it rich is the American dream, then these two films will probably keep you up into the wee hours, twitching and mumbling about percentages. Watch two mostly male ensemble casts tear each other apart over the almighty dollar and see if you can win yourself a set of steak knives.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off /
Election
If it’s been long enough since you left high school, you may look back on those glory days with fondness. This double bill eggs you on and then eggs your face. Being young ain’t always a picnic. Pass the pancreas.- I Am Cuba /
This Is England
There’s no place like home, whether that’s a revolutionary tropical island or a reactionary racist one. Find out what it might have been like to live in another time and place with these odes, poetic and pugnacious, to national identity. - Island of Lost Souls /
The Island of Dr. Moreau
How differently can you tell the same story? Both based on H.G. Wells’ The Island of Doctor Moreau, these two films, made more than 60 years apart, plumb the depths of our animal nature—and I’m not just taking about Marlon Brando dressed like a circus tent. 
Videodrome /
Tapeheads
Long ago, in days of yore, “be kind rewind” meant something. Movies came on VHS tapes that were prone to distortion. This film duo focuses on the effects of the video era when things got extra warped, particularly if you watched the wrong tape…
Kiss Me Deadly /
Repo Man
Where do you think Tarantino got the idea for his glowing Pulp Fiction suitcase? His brain? Hell no. Almost nothing comes out of Tarantino’s brain that wasn’t spooned in there by earlier artists. Check out these two features to get your radiating dose of delirium.
The Mosquito Coast /
Gimme Shelter
Good intentions are fine and dandy, but they ain’t no guarantee of glory. Watch Harrison Ford melt away and Mick Jagger realize the devil might not deserve so much sympathy in this cocktail of crushed hopes.
King Kong /
The 7th Voyage of Sinbad
Screw CGI. At one time stop-motion animation was the gosh-durned bee’s knees. And you know what? It’s still pretty awesome. The original King Kong knocks later pretenders clear out of the air with its sheer brilliance. Sinbad can’t be beat if you want to see a cyclops fight a dragon. And if you don’t want to see that we question your sanity.
Repulsion /
Deep Blue Sea
This double feature asks the primordial question; what’s scarier, a woman locked in an apartment or super intelligent mako sharks with a hunger for human flesh? To find the answer, ask the lower half of Samuel L. Jackson. Watch at your own risk.
The Devil’s Advocate /
Wild Things
Huh wut sez yu? No like flim make hed werk? Want smear face with happy fun good trash? Yu watch this. Iz good.
Shampoo /
Bulworth
Warren Beatty deserves your attention (if not your vote). This double feature disrobes Lady Liberty so you can gawk at her tatty underthings. Politics, like sex, is only dirty if done right. I mean wrong. Wait. I’m confused.- The Last Man on Earth /
Night of the Living Dead
Feeling lonely? Harden the fuck up. At least the living dead are not at your doorstep. And when they do come knocking, rest assured it’s not just because you’ve got a tasty body; they’re really into you for your brains. BRAAAIIINNNNS! - Down By Law /
Breaking Away
Oh to be in Italy! Live the dream alongside this pair of odd Roman-related romances, both built to free you from the bonds of boredom. You’ll laugh, cry, break out, and bike a few laps—if you can keep up with the Cutters. - Age of Consent /
The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, & Her Lover
Long before Helen Mirren was The Queen, she acted your pants off (and hers) in these two films. Celebrate a true rarity—the actress who continues to receive her due as her beauty and talents mature. - Dogtooth /
They Live
Are you feeling comfortable? Well, we can fix that. Please allow us to rip the world’s filmy skin of illusion right off like a pair of tear-away trousers. Is everything not quite as you believed? Is the next airplane yours? Are aliens controlling your thoughts? Probably. - Something Wild /
Miami Blues
When you think film noir, you probably picture Bogart, inky black shadows, and dangerous beauties. Not always. Welcome to the 80s my friend. Here the genre digs down to its rotten roots. Don’t worry; everything will still end poorly, and that’s always fun to watch. - Them! /
Aliens
Getting laid is a totally different thing if you come from an egg. And while you may love your momma, you and your brood of giant carnivorous insectoids are going down in flames. Literally.
