Perhaps the common denominator of all Uranus films is difference, and, risking difference, they fall either significantly above or significantly below the usual criteria for evaluating films. Many films typifying the Uranus archetype are too experimental, too self-indulgent of a director's fantasies, or simply too bizarre and nonsensical to be considered memorable or even worth viewing. Some Uranus films, however, vibrate with life and vitality and are successful in their experimental nature and in pushing new creative edges. Still fewer films that typify Uranus are revolutionary and truly groundbreaking. These are the rare works of genius that irrevocably alter the course of film history and assume an iconographic status in society. Upon an initial viewing of a truly revolutionary film, we may not understand what we are seeing, we may in fact be slightly disturbed by what we are seeing, however, there is an uncanny and instantaneous recognition that the radical innovations and level of creativity have changed something forever—have "let the genie out of the lamp."

The following films, ranging from the truly bizarre to the truly groundbreaking, show different faces and functions of the Uranus archetype. Although some of the films are not typically "Uranian"—they remain within conventional boundaries of storytelling and technique—they do revolve around typically Uranian themes: rebellion, individuation, deviation, and awakening.

Uranus Films: