From the legendary John Waters comes this notorious exercise in camp and trash. It helped him to cement his reputation as a prime purveyor of purely sleazy and grimy material. The pacing isn't the greatest - some scenes really go on too long - but Waters comes up with some truly awe inspiring nuttiness. The viewer won't believe what they're seeing.
The great drag performer Divine plays a character named Divine, now assuming the identity of "Babs Johnson" and living in an isolated trailer in Maryland. Divines' trailer mates include a son, Crackers (Danny Mills), a "travelling companion", Cotton (Mary Vivian Pearce), and an egg-loving mother, Edie (Edith Massey), who's confined to a playpen much of the time. Divine takes great pride in her status as "the filthiest person alive", but the uptight Connie Marble (Mink Stole) covets that title and will do anything to get it.
Also among the sordid characters are Connies' perverted husband Raymond (David Lochary), put upon butler Channing (Channing Wilroy), who's employed to knock up the hapless ladies kept in the Marbles' basement, Cookie the spy (Cookie Mueller), and Edies' beloved egg delivery man (Paul Swift). All of these quirky freaks provide solid entertainment value - Connie sports red hair and Raymond sports blue hair - but Divine dominates them all with a knowingly hammy performance and an incredible "just go for it" attitude.
The various disgusting things that Waters has his people do really shouldn't be spoiled here, so that potential viewers can experience them fresh. The director fills the soundtrack with many catchy golden oldies and gives us a final scene that we're pretty much guaranteed to remember.
Waters did earn this viewers' respect for having the courage of his convictions. He succeeds at creating a cult comedy that is equal parts jaw dropping, offensive, and funny in the most appreciably offbeat way possible.
Seven out of 10.
The great drag performer Divine plays a character named Divine, now assuming the identity of "Babs Johnson" and living in an isolated trailer in Maryland. Divines' trailer mates include a son, Crackers (Danny Mills), a "travelling companion", Cotton (Mary Vivian Pearce), and an egg-loving mother, Edie (Edith Massey), who's confined to a playpen much of the time. Divine takes great pride in her status as "the filthiest person alive", but the uptight Connie Marble (Mink Stole) covets that title and will do anything to get it.
Also among the sordid characters are Connies' perverted husband Raymond (David Lochary), put upon butler Channing (Channing Wilroy), who's employed to knock up the hapless ladies kept in the Marbles' basement, Cookie the spy (Cookie Mueller), and Edies' beloved egg delivery man (Paul Swift). All of these quirky freaks provide solid entertainment value - Connie sports red hair and Raymond sports blue hair - but Divine dominates them all with a knowingly hammy performance and an incredible "just go for it" attitude.
The various disgusting things that Waters has his people do really shouldn't be spoiled here, so that potential viewers can experience them fresh. The director fills the soundtrack with many catchy golden oldies and gives us a final scene that we're pretty much guaranteed to remember.
Waters did earn this viewers' respect for having the courage of his convictions. He succeeds at creating a cult comedy that is equal parts jaw dropping, offensive, and funny in the most appreciably offbeat way possible.
Seven out of 10.