

Fast, Cheap & Out of Control
1997-10-03 · 83 min · ★ 6.8
Errol Morris interweaves the stories of four men, each driven to create eccentric worlds from their unique obsessions, all of which involve animals: a lion tamer shares his theories on the mental processes of wild animals; a topiary gardener devotes 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.
Trailers are previews, not full movies.
No authorized playback source configured. Use the legal watch options below.
Production details
- Directors
- Errol Morris
- Production companies
- American Playhouse, Errol Morris Films, Fourth Floor Pictures
- Countries
- United States of America
- Status
- Released
- Revenue
- USD 878,960
Top Cast
Title information and images are supplied by TMDb. Explore our discovery guide for advice on comparing metadata and legal viewing options.
Where to watch
Availability provided by JustWatch via TMDb. Offers can change. Provider links are listed on TMDb; full playback requires a separately authorized source.
Rental
Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Purchase
Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
With ads
The Roku Channel
View authorized watch options on TMDbSeasons & episodes
Recommendations

Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.

After another 7 year wait, director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born children from Seven Up! and 7 Plus Seven. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.

Explore the evolution of Buzz Lightyear from toy to human in the making of Pixar’s Lightyear. Dive into the origin and cultural impact of everyone’s favorite Space Ranger, the art of designing a new “human Buzz,” and the challenges faced by the Lightyear crew along the way.

A documentary about the life and films of director John Ford.

A father-to-be tries to figure out what is happening with all this AI insanity, and explores the most powerful technology humanity has ever created... and what's at stake if we get it wrong.

In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.

The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.

The film follows adventurer Jeff Johnson as he retraces the epic 1968 journey of his heroes Yvon Chouinard and Doug Tompkins to Patagonia.

Years spent recording footage of creatures from every corner of the globe is bound to produce a bit of drama. Here's a behind-the-scenes look.

Just two years away from turning 30, participants in Michael Apted's documentary series are facing serious questions of identity and purpose, wondering whether they've found their place in the world.

Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.

A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.

Go behind the scenes with stars, puppeteers and creators as they bring Jim Henson's magical world of Thra back to life in a sweeping fantasy series.

Over 35 years after Bob Lazar's revelations, this documentary exposes secrets of a facility the government still denies. Featuring Lazar's testimony, recreations, and new evidence, it reopens a case that continues to spark global curiosity

Brilliant, long in-the-works story of the life and art of the world's greatest comedian and the cinema's first genius, Charlie Chaplin. Produced, written and directed by renowned film critic Richard Schickel.

Explore the rise and fall of one of the biggest corporate flameouts and venture capitalist bubbles in recent years – the story of WeWork, and its hippie-messianic leader Adam Neumann.

A look at the origins, history and conspiracies behind the "Majestic 12", a clandestine group of military and corporate figureheads charged with reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology.

Daniel Craig candidly reflects on his 15 year adventure as James Bond. Including never-before-seen archival footage from Casino Royale to the upcoming 25th film No Time To Die, Craig shares his personal memories in conversation with 007 producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli.

A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.

A string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
Similar titles

The vast savannah of the Serengeti. A large part of the genus Panthera lives here. Better known as the "actual big cat". They are among the largest cat species on earth. Among them is the lion, the true predator beneath the vast African sky. 'The King of Africa', male specimens of which weigh up to 270 kg, captured in breathtaking images that show the fascinating world of the big cats. Funny, tragic and spectacular recordings also document the fastest animal in the world, the cheetah, follow leopards on your trail and experience the first days of a black panther.

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.

A portrait of a traveling circus.

"Who is Weary Willie?" explores the life of the once-famous circus character Weary Willie and his story tied to controversy and confusion over identity between his creator, Emmett Kelly Sr., and his son, Emmett Kelly Jr.

In 2015 a lion in Zimbabwe named Cecil was killed by Walter Palmer, an American dentist, provoking a global outcry. The story of Cecil’s death turns the gaze back on to us and our behaviour. The simplicity of the outrage is a stark contrast to the complexity of the reality.

Cirque du Soleil presents The Mystery of Mystère, a captivating documentary that explores how arts and science merge together using Mystère, the critically acclaimed Las Vegas show at Treasure Island, as the outlet for this message.

One man, one camera, one goal...to capture the essence of adventure. An experimental, often abstract new type of filmmaking process creating color rich visuals combined with a lush soundtrack that grounds the project. A unique cinematic experience.

This documentary follows the harsh and competitive life of Addo, a male lion born into a successful pride.

Madrid, Spain, 1949. The Circo Americano arrives in the city. While the big top is pitched in a vacant lot, the troupe parades through the grand avenues: the band, a witty impersonator, the Balodys, acrobats, jugglers, acrobatic skaters, clowns and… Buffallo Bill.

At a South African sanctuary, Luke Cornell provides a second chance for wildlife, confronting the harsh realities of poaching while revealing the deep emotional bond between the animals and those dedicated to their care.

A young girl has already seen everything there is to see and her world has lost all meaning. Her anger shatters her world and she finds herself in the universe of QUIDAM, where she is joined by a playful companion, as well as another mysterious character who attempts to seduce her with the marvelous, the unsettling and the terrifying.

Alegría is a mood, a state of mind. The themes of the show, whose name means "jubilation" in Spanish, are many. Power and the handing down of power over time, the evolution from ancient monarchies to modern democracies, old age, youth - it is against this backdrop that the characters of Alegría play out their lives. Kings' fools, minstrels, beggars, old aristocrats and children make up its universe, along with the clowns, who alone are able to resist the passing of time and the social transformations that accompany it.

From the Italian 'saltare in banco' – which literally means 'to jump on a bench' – Saltimbanco explores the urban experience in all its myriad forms. Between whirlwind and lull, prowess and poetry, it takes spectators on an allegorical and acrobatic journey into the heart and soul of the modern city.

Icarus is the main character of Varekai, who falls to the ground, breaking his legs as he does. He is suddenly in a strange, new world full of creatures he has never seen before. Parachuted into the shadows of a magical forest, a kaleidoscopic world populated by fantastical creatures, this young man sets off on an adventure both absurd and extraordinary.

A Documentary on the Creation of OVO, by Cirque du Soleil

A documentary following the adventures of three high school robotics teams battling for first place at a national robotics competition in Miami, Florida. Lone wolf Will builds robots so powerful they're unstoppable...if only they don't destroy themselves first. The Mechanical Misfits are an all-girls team stumbling through their first foray into combat robotics, and Elizabeth and Danielle are a formidable pair looking to reign supreme during their senior year.

This is the exciting story of two lion cubs born with a rare whim of nature. In Krüger park, South Africa's major natural reserve, about once in a generation a pride of lions includes a rarity: white cubs. This time two are born to the sister of a lioness with two elder, regular 'golden' cubs, whose natural camouflage is a major hunting and hiding advantage. The tiny pride is precarious anyway, having lost its sole male, with three lion brothers roaming around, eager to render a lioness mating-ready again by killing her offspring. Meanwhile prey and even the cubs are in danger from hyenas and leopards, as everyone lurks for a 'free meal', and some prey defending themselves and their young prove fearsome, notably buffaloes

Jesus 'Chuy' Aceves and a dozen living members of his extended family suffer from the very rare condition of congenital hypertrichosis, meaning they were born with excessive hair on their faces and bodies. Due to their appearance, they suffer from discrimination in all areas of their lives: the children are made fun of at school and abandoned by their 'non-hairy' parents, and the adults cannot find work unless they choose to exhibit themselves as freaks in circuses. This moving and visually arresting documentary is a portrait of Chuy and his family members. It examines their day-to-day lives and their struggle to find love, acceptance and employment.

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.