1975 was a weird year.
I hesitate to write my first review about this movie because in doing so I feel as if I am being forced to recount a particularly eventful LSD trip, but I wish to review it while the memories are fresh in my head. "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" is a true cult classic and is still viewed and celebrated to this day. For those unaware, this movie is renowned for having screenings in which actors dress up and perform the movie as it is being played on screen. The actors and, indeed, the audience, get completely caught up in the insanity of the show and screaming, singing, dancing, nudity, and elaborate costumes are all par for the course. A good friend of mine tells me that everyone should experience it at least once. When I see the live show, I'll write a review about it.
But the movie itself offers enough zaniness to keep this viewer satisfied. The movie starts up with the famous disembodied read lips singing the opening theme song. It then shifts to an innocent wedding scene, and the audience feels comforted by the normalcy of the setting and the characters, though the acting is a little over the top, but in a good, rock opera kind of way.
The movie soon jumps back and forth between the tale of Brad and Janet and exposition provided by a British man narrating the peculiar event from his dignified study. At this point, I was still on board, as the movie hadn't offered up anything more disturbing than those bizarre floating lips.
"Oh," I said to myself. "It's funny, it's using a strange man to tell parts of the story like "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" or "The Princess Bride", I'm still on board with this." Little did I know.
The tale follows Brad and Janet as they seek out an old professor and close friend Dr. Scott but instead find themselves at the strange castle of Dr. Frank N. Furter and are greeted at the door by his version of Igor. Dr. Furter quickly announces himself as a " sweet Transvestite from Transsexual Transylvania," and the movie quickly flies down the rabbit hole.
Brad and Janet are stripped down to their underwear and watch as the members of the madhouse dance and sing along with their master. Furter proves himself equally capable in seducing Janet and Brad, who he pursues in addition to the muscular, blond Rocky whom he created for his own pleasure. Dr. Furter parades around with his dancing group of admirers and the film almost seems to be nothing more than a kitschy, off-kilter musical when he brutally murders Meatloaf with a pickax. As bizarre as the film was up until this point, the movie completely flies off the rails from hereafter.
Dr. Furter proceeds to be violently jealous towards Rocky, who had sex with the now-corrupted Janet. Dr. Scott appears at the house to look for his nephew Eddy, played by Meatloaf. Dr. Furter serves a roast to the guests, but when asked about Eddy he answers, "That's a tender subject. Would you like some more?" He then reveals Eddy's mangled corpse and chases the guests around the house, turning them all to stone.
What follows in the movie is twenty minutes of a bizarre stage show put on by Dr. Furter in which all of his captives, like himself, wear high heels, fishnets, and lingerie, culminating in a bizarre pseudo-orgy in a swimming pool. The ending of the Picture Show is just as bizarre and out of place as everything else in the movie, and despite the movie approaching 40 years of age, I wouldn't want to spoil any more than I already have.
"The Rocky Horror Picture Show" is filled with fantastic musical numbers, over-the-top acting, and bat shit insanity. The actors hold nothing back, and the acting blends well with the strange set pieces and powerful rock-like song and dance numbers. All in all, the film is a satisfying romp into the completely deranged.
I will not grade movies on a number scale but rather as follows:
No One Should See It-This movie should never have been made.
Avoid It- Not worth your time as a moviegoer.
See It-Worth viewing, but not great.
Watch It-Recommended. Worth viewing closely, but not the best.
Watch It Twice-You cannot take in everything this movie has to offer all at once and it is worth twice the amount of time.
This movie earns a solid See It. While it does have great music and is still a fantastic cult classic, it is more enjoyable as a delightful jump into insanity than a very deep movie. I do plan on seeing one of the live shows, but I cannot yet recommend it. Await that review!
Until next time, give me your thoughts on this movie. I love to hear the opinions!
-kmaker
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