By Eric S. Caruncho, Staff Writer
Sunday Inquirer Magazine

1. WADD: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JOHN C. HOLMES. Both “Boogie Nights” and “Wonderland” were based on the life of Holmes, porn’s first superstar. This documentary follows his rise to X-rated stardom, thanks to his unique physical gifts (13 and 1/2 inches), and his descent into hell as a result of cocaine addiction, culminating in his complicity in the murder of four people and eventual death from AIDS.

2. THE PUNK ROCK MOVIE. A verite document on the rise of punk in London, circa 1978. The low-fi footage taken by Don Letts, the DJ at the legendary London dive the Roxy, adds to the excitement of seeing the Sex Pistols, the Clash, Generation X, X-Ray Spex, Siouxsie and the Banshees and others in their natural habitat.

3. THE MAYOR OF THE SUNSET STRIP. Not another music documentary!? This one tells the story of the rise of rock’n'roll in the Sixties through the eyes of LA disc jockey Rodney Bingenheimer. The supreme hanger-on, Bingenheimer had his photo taken with everyone from John Lennon to Joey Ramone, but he was also often the first to break important new acts through his radio program. It ends on a note of pathos with Bingenheimer relegated to relic status, barely hanging on with a dead zone slot on his radio station.

4. DAYS OF BEING WILD. If “Blueberry Nights” left you puzzled as to what all the fuss about Wong Kar Wai was, this film — Wong’s second and his artistic breakthrough — should make a believer out of you. Set in Hong Kong (and the Philippines!) in the 1960s, “Days” features charismatic performances from the late Leslie Cheung and Maggie Cheung. Wong would later expand themes from this film in “In The Mood For Love” and “2046.”

5. LONE WOLF AND CUB, Vols. 1-6. Quentin Tarantino stole much of the spectacular swordfight scene in “Kill Bill” from this 1970s Japanese series featuring Tomisaburo Wakayama as Itto Ogami, former executioner turned sword-for-hire. The bodies pile up exponentially as Ogami roams the Japanese countryside with his infant son Daigoro, pursued by ninja assassins, expert swordsmen and bloodthirsty bandits.

6. NAKED LUNCH. Only David Cronenberg could have filmed William Burrough’s hallucinatory Beat Generation-era chronicle of heroin addiction. This double DVD edition features illuminating extras on the making of “Naked Lunch,” including interviews with Cronenberg, Burroughs and actors Peter Weller and Judy Davis.

7. PERDITA DURANGO. If you thought Javier Bardem’s hair in “No Country For Old Men” was heinous, check out his ‘do in “Perdita Durango.” Bardem plays a gunslinging outlaw-cum-Santeria shaman opposite Rosie Perez as the title character, wearing what I can only describe as an Amazon river mullet.

8. THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH. David Bowie plays the alien in his acting debut, Nicolas Roeg’s 1976 film that explores the classic theme of alienation in modern life in a science fiction context.

9. TEKKONKINKREET. If you watch only one anime film this year, make it this one. The visual design, overseen by “Animatrix” director Michael Arias, is simply awesome. The plot hinges on two street kids trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic city of the future.

10. FEMALE TROUBLE. More brain-melting trash art from John Waters, the auteur behind “Pink Flamingos” and the original “Hairspray.” Here Divine plays Dawn Davenport, who mutates from a juvenile delinquent and teenage mother to a criminally-insane killer.

For more insights, inquisitions and incredible fiesta photos, check out the Sunday Inquirer Magazine’s May 4 issue.