Amidst all the excitement of the 20th anniversary “Star Wars” and 25th anniversary “Godfather”, we now have the opportunity to honor one the true classics of the 1970’s. Director John Waters must be laughing his a*s off.
If you don’t know what this movie’s about, I don’t know why you’re reading something called “Film Threat”, but I’ll tell you anyway. Divine / Babs Johnson (Divine) is THE FILTHIEST PERSON ALIVE. She lives in a trailer with her mother (Edith Massey), her son, Crackers (Danny Mills), and her traveling companion, Cotton (Mary Vivian Pierce). However, Raymond and Connie Marble (David Lochary and Mink Stole) think they are THE FILTHIEST PEOPLE ALIVE. They decide to go to war with Divine to prove it. Hilarity ensues.
Is this Waters’ best picture? I don’t think so. Of his underground stuff, I think “Desperate Living” is more entertaining. But as a cinematic pipebomb placed under America’s movie seat, it can’t be beat. If you can’t find something to make you queasy, you’re not paying attention. Twenty years later and it can still piss off your parents. Now that’s a classic. Kind of weird, though, to add digitally remastered sound to a movie that cost $12 grand.
As a special bonus at the end, Waters, at his Frank Capra best, presents 13 extra minutes of footage with running commentary that he found in his attic. The footage was cut because of either the restructuring of the plot in editing or it was adding a little too much to the ambiance, if you know what I mean.
