Alright I've been toying with the idea of getting into anime for a long time but the genre is vast and I'm not easily hooked. Pitch me a show or film that's really, REALLY different. Not necessarily out there for the sake of it but artistically or thematically in a class of its own.
I know it's like the most cliche answer, but honestly Evangelion is not only a really thematically rich, well crafted piece of fiction that's not afraid to get "out there" stylistically/thematically, but also a good series for someone new to the medium of anime. And the original series is only 26 episodes and a movie, so it's not some crazy 100+ episode long series like some shows.