50 years on indeed.....and yes some things have changed immensely and back then one couldn't even fathom the curse and blessing that the AIDS epidemic would be for the gay and LGBTQI scene.
Yet things haven't all changed, some stuff stubbornly and depressingly stayed the same. And even though society is perverse, a lot of the inward critical reflection of this movie still rings true.
On the very big plus side, the film looks gorgeous, the styling somewhere between 70's realism and a full fledged John Waters phantasmagoria - the non-acting actors perfectly cast. Can they act ? Well maybe not in the traditional sense, but like any Waters/Warhol movie the actors themselves rise above the acting by virtue of being true. And isn't that what a million hours of Lee Strasberg actors Studio or Shakespearean training are supposed to give you ?
Tha actors playing the part are 200% believable if maybe their acting is a strange style unto itself (not uncommon in queer cinema).
The costuming, sets, staging is phenomenal. The sort of thing modern gay artists strive for at immense costs here done on ....less than a shoestring ?
I love both the " cliche'd" exagerration, the sterotypes, the comedy, the melodrama and the total earnestness. Which makes this film very unique.
The earnestness - especially in the long drawn out final scene - is A- totally earned and B -at once cutting deep and very sweet.
Mr. Rosa, hats off to you, i bow deep.
Yet things haven't all changed, some stuff stubbornly and depressingly stayed the same. And even though society is perverse, a lot of the inward critical reflection of this movie still rings true.
On the very big plus side, the film looks gorgeous, the styling somewhere between 70's realism and a full fledged John Waters phantasmagoria - the non-acting actors perfectly cast. Can they act ? Well maybe not in the traditional sense, but like any Waters/Warhol movie the actors themselves rise above the acting by virtue of being true. And isn't that what a million hours of Lee Strasberg actors Studio or Shakespearean training are supposed to give you ?
Tha actors playing the part are 200% believable if maybe their acting is a strange style unto itself (not uncommon in queer cinema).
The costuming, sets, staging is phenomenal. The sort of thing modern gay artists strive for at immense costs here done on ....less than a shoestring ?
I love both the " cliche'd" exagerration, the sterotypes, the comedy, the melodrama and the total earnestness. Which makes this film very unique.
The earnestness - especially in the long drawn out final scene - is A- totally earned and B -at once cutting deep and very sweet.
Mr. Rosa, hats off to you, i bow deep.