admin
22 December 2023
When you think about cult classics, what comes to mind? Films that have somehow found an audience beyond their initial release. Before the advent of home video, being a cult film aficionado was even more difficult. You had to wait to see the actual film in an actual theater: midnight movies. Rocky Horror Picture Show (RHPS) comes to mind. And this month\'s Freak Film is the heir to Rocky Horror\'s throne.
If there was no home video market this would be the midnight movie. Combining the elements of Grease, The Wall, Velvet Goldmine, and RHPS, the film version of the off-Broadway hit Hedwig And The Angry Inch is a continuation of the cult classic tradition. It has everything people look for in a cult film: transvestites, rock music, comedy, drama, and sing-alongs.
If you have never experienced Hedwig..., it can’t really be explained, but I’ll try. At its most basic level, it is the story of a young German boy\'s destiny to be a rock star, even if that means he has to become a woman to do it.
Written by, directed by, and starring John Cameron Mitchell, Hedwig... hits every note, perfectly translating a great play into an even greater film. With an absolutely killer soundtrack written by Stephen Trask, the film\'s songs both pay homage to and outdo the musicians they reference; Patti Smith, Lou Reed, and Bowie, to name a few.
Don’t be surprised if over the next ten years Hedwig And The Angry Inch joins the gods of cult classics-- one of those films that is quoted and referenced by people whom everyone else describes as \"movie nerds\".
If there was no home video market this would be the midnight movie. Combining the elements of Grease, The Wall, Velvet Goldmine, and RHPS, the film version of the off-Broadway hit Hedwig And The Angry Inch is a continuation of the cult classic tradition. It has everything people look for in a cult film: transvestites, rock music, comedy, drama, and sing-alongs.
If you have never experienced Hedwig..., it can’t really be explained, but I’ll try. At its most basic level, it is the story of a young German boy\'s destiny to be a rock star, even if that means he has to become a woman to do it.
Written by, directed by, and starring John Cameron Mitchell, Hedwig... hits every note, perfectly translating a great play into an even greater film. With an absolutely killer soundtrack written by Stephen Trask, the film\'s songs both pay homage to and outdo the musicians they reference; Patti Smith, Lou Reed, and Bowie, to name a few.
Don’t be surprised if over the next ten years Hedwig And The Angry Inch joins the gods of cult classics-- one of those films that is quoted and referenced by people whom everyone else describes as \"movie nerds\".
artid
2655
Old Image
7_1_freak.jpg
issue
vol 7 - issue 01 (sep 2004)
section
entertainmental