Doesnt mean a big budget film cant be a cult hit. AND, just because Brad Pitt and Edward Norton are in it, doesnt make it a big well known movie.  Those are 2 actors known for choosing gritty, dirty, low profile sort of roles, not just big roles.  Ever seen Snatch?  I know a lot of people never even heard of that movie, but it stars a lot of fairly well known names including Brad Pitt.

 Another thing, just because a lot of people have heard of it, doesnt mean its not a cult film.  Doesnt mean everyone seen it.  Like Rocky Horror Picture Show, everyone has probably heard of that.  They probably have no friggin idea what it is, but they have probably heard that name.  Yet that fanbase is prime "cult" film status, jesus, ever been to one of those showings, its a madhouse.  I went to one with some friends, this theatre held a showing once a month, and literally at one point in the film, everyone stripped down and ran around the theater in their underwear for the "Underwear Run".  Talked about devoted fanbase, haha.  

I don't personally know what exactly constitutes a cult film. And you have a good point, just because big actors are in it, doesn't make it well know. Yet, Fight Club is well known

Enough about Fight Club. The movie made $100 million dollars in the box office in 1999 dollars.

That ain't cult.

Well, this was the topic that finally forced me out of lurking and to register. First post here, yay!

First of all, I think a cult movie is one that does not have a mainstream following or appeal, but neither is it completely forgotten by everybody. Like prlation86 said about The Rocky Horror Picture Show screening and cult following it has, there are people who see a cult film as something brillilant, for whatever reason may be.

As for my cult favorites, some of them have already been mentioned, others surprisingly not. But maybe there aren't any Hong Kong Kung Fu movie friends here :) Anyway, off the top of my head:

36th Chamber of Shaolin, the cultest of them all of kung fu

Drunken Master, another classic, this one with Jackie Chan

Bride of the Monster, now, who can match a movie with lines such as this?

"Prof. Strowski: Now I am here, sent to bring you home.
Dr. Eric Vornoff: Home? I have no home. Hunted, despised, Living like an animal! The jungle is my home. But I will show the world that I can be its master! I will perfect my own race of people. A race of atomic supermen which will conquer the world! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

While you're at it, you can add other Ed Wood films to the list as well.

5th Element is one of my all time favorite movies, but I'm not sure I'd consider it a cult movie.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail is a definite must, none can pass their crazy ingeniousness.

Quatermass and the Pit & Quatermass IV, the only ones I've seen but both are brilliant!

Coen Brothers have made many of my most favorite movies, so I'll just toss in one title here, Barton Fink.

I don't know if you can consider Kurosawa films cult, but in case you can, Seven Samurais and Yojimbo are among my favorites, as is Derzu Uzala. Some may consider them rather artsy, so your mileage may vary.

And one last mention: Little Shop of Horrors.

And this concludes my first post, that's all folks!

 actualy it is

Cult Following:

"A cult following is a group of fans devoted to a specific area of pop culture. Cult followings most often develop around television shows, films, and books. Some comic books, video games, musicians and writers also gain cult followings. Non-media items may also have what could be considered cult followings, for example the soft drink Tab."

Cult Film:

"The term cult film is used to describe a film that has had little to no success commercially and critically upon its initial release but has later spawned a small, but devoted and usually obsessive fanbase, however there are various exceptions. One exception is Napoleon Dynamite (2004), which was a success at the box office. This has led to a misconception in Cultclassic films that the definition is a film that 'you either love or hate'. The term was first coined in the early 1980s in the book Cult Movies, by Danny Peary and is continued to be used to describe the films to this day. Usually, cult films have limited but very special, noted appeal. Cult films are often known to be eccentric, and do not follow traditional standards of mainstream cinema and usually explore topics not considered in any way mainstream—yet there are examples that are relatively normal. They are often considered controversial because they step outside standard narrative and technical conventions known.^[2] "

Now considering Napoleon Dynamyte is considered "cult" and has a following include thousands and milion of World of Warcraft payers dancing like the main character Fight Club is a cult movie.

Thank you wikipedia.

Eh on second thought.  Not worth it.

That's all fine and dandy but Fight Club had two of the biggest actors of the 90s in it (including the biggest star in Hollywood at the time) and did well at the box office.

I don't see how that fits that Wiki description at all. Napoleon Dynamite is a different story because it slowly built up momentum, more similarly to a film like Donnie Darko. A bunch of unknown/relatively unknown actors, unknown writers, unknown directors, low budget, etc.

Shit, Fight Club was directed by David Fincher, the guy who already had movies like Se7en, Alien3, and The Game under his belt. 

Primer.

Super Troopers, i absolutely love it and i dont think it got the credit it deserved.