Cameron H.

Yeah. And then the women say: "Wow. It Kicked!" "Let's toast to that." "To a boy!" It's little moments like that where I think this movie really shines.

Oh shit, son! I didn't know we were bringing out C&O skills into this motherfucker...I'll have to up my game, but so far... Another scene I loved was when Tracy convinced Edna to get out of the house and as they're walking around they stop to look in a window and Edna sees something beautiful and states, "Oh! They're so glamorous!" And when the camera turns around you see two pregnant women drinking martinis and smoking.

And speaking of Little Inez...that was another thing I liked in the Musical as opposed to the Original. I've mentioned it before, but Link's journey through the film is so much more meaningful when he's not entirely on board from the beginning. His gesture to Little Inez at the end,

I will say this whole Musical Mondays thing is going to end up costing me a fortune in soundtracks. So far, I'm two for two on buying the soundtrack after watching the movie. Tomspanks, I'm counting on you to pick something awful for next week....

I'm not sure either...it definitely begins and ends on a high note. I was going to say "Good Morning, Baltimore," but as soon as I wrote that I second guessed it. So I guess I like "You Can't Stop the Beat" more. (I guess don't watch this video if you haven't finished the movie yet) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZnt-0fEiT0 Also, to talk about different actors, I loved pretty much everyone in this movie. I thought it was amazingly well cast. I also read that James Marsden beat out Hugh Jackman for the role of Corny Collins. Way to go, Cyclops!

I'm sorry you're sick, and I hope you feel better soon I get where you're coming from, and as always, it's not too far off from where I'm at--although I suspect some of my male, white privilege might be seeping (unintentionally) through. It's easy from my position to say, "Yeah, but it's better than it was" and not consider how far we still need to go. So if I ever come off like an insensitive asshole, please know that's truly coming from a place of ignorance, but I want to be and understand better.

Taylor Anne, a couple times now you've written that you don't think the studio got what was "trying to do with Divine," and that very well may be (although, as you've said, a lot of this was preestablished), but without asking Waters himself, I would guess what he was "trying to do" is normalize the idea that a cross-dressing man should be viewed and treated without judgement. If that's the case, then the fact that people like myself can watch this movie without seeing the man behind the makeup, but just the character herself, then I think this movie does a good job. It's also why I didn't like Divine's dual role in the original as it undermines this goal. I mean, I get where you're coming from from a representation stand point, but as long as the role isn't making the joke "it's a man dressed as a woman" then I feel like it's at least a step in the right direction--even if it isn't the final step toward universal tolerance and acceptance. As to another one of your points, I was unaware of the hoopla surrounding Travolra's casting. I can only say, I hope that at least some of the people who viewed it as a joke were able to realize how not a big deal it actually was and that's kind of what the Big Deal afterall. Lol. I kind of think of it like The Birdcage. I feel like it was kind of a big deal when Robin Williams was cast in that, like, "Ha ha- he's playing a gay guy," but when you watch that movie, the joke is never "he's gay." I guess what I'm trying to say is, as distasteful as it may be, does having a cis gendered actor playing a non-heteronormative role, ultimately help society as a whole come to a more tolerant minset? Does anyone know how Waters feels about the Musical? I imagine pretty positive since he agreed to it being done in the first place and even provided a cameo, but that's just my guess. (Please forgive me for any typos or weird jumps in logic. I'm typing this on a tablet, in bed, at 2:30 in the morning. Hopefully, I'm making something close to sense, or that I'm at least coherency adjacent. Good night, everyone! Talk to you tomorrow!)

Oh God, yes! That hurt.

CAUTION: Controversial Opinion Coming Up! I don't know that I agree with you on the Travolta thing. I thought he was utterly charming as Edna. In fact, I thought this might be one of his best performances--ever. Never was I thinking, "there's Travolta in drag," I was thinking "this poor woman has had it rough." As I stated before, I loved "Timeless," not because I was laughing at Travolta, but because the relationship between her and Wilbur is so sweet and real and tragic and joyous. Don't get me wrong, I loved Divine in the original, but I didn't get the same pathos I got from the Edna in the Musical. I feel like Travolta embodied Edna, while in the original, Divine was pretty much just there to be the "mother" character. And while she was married to Wilbur, I just didn't get the same sense of "relationship" that they shared in the Musical. So while, on a real world level, the casting Divine in that role was absolutely groundbreaking, I just don't think she ever really lost herself in the role--perhaps she wasn't able to... And, as weird as this might sound, I think the fact that she played both Edna and Arvin Hodgepile in the original, just makes the casting in that movie seem more like a gimmick. She should have just played the mother and the World would just have to accept that--end of story. Ultimately, to me, Edna as a character just had a much more satisfying arc in the Musical. But that's just my opinion. I'm not trying to tear anyone down just to lift someone else up. And if I ever were, that person certainly wouldn't be John Travolta. I just have to hand it to him, that's all.

I took it as a commentary on the disproportionate amount of Black people incarcerated as opposed to White people--especially during the Sixties. I'm not too sure about detention during the day, but I know in the original film she is sent to a "Special Ed" homeroom, so it might just be a carry over from that. Maybe when they were writing the Musical they didn't feel comfortable with saying that the school felt that being Black was the equivalent of having a mental handicap... Which, is a bit too forgiving of the writer. It's like they wanted to show how racist and awful the White people were, but were still trying to say, "But that weren't THAT bad." Which, in terms of the social commentary, I think is kind of a cop out...

You're right. For 90% of the movie I think she was performed perfectly well. It was just that one scene that bugged me. Everything up until that point was fine, but they basically had her salivating over that food like a goddamn Tex Avery wolf. It just came off as a bit tone deaf to me. Even though Tracy was never in danger, that scene was basically saying she loves food more than her daughter's well-being. I like pork too, but if I was legitimately worried about one of my sons' safety, I feel like I could rein that in a bit. Otherwise, I loved the character--in both versions. Accent-wise...I guess that was a choice, and a damn fine one at that. I was all in at, "How am I supposed to negotiate pleats?" ETA: Also, you're right about "Timeless." Best scene, not song.

Knowing how beloved John Waters' original movie is, I made sure to do my due diligence and watch it before I watched this. And while I really liked the original, and would never dream of disputing its place as an all time classic, I think I found the Musical, ultimately, more enjoyable. Whereas the original was able to elicit the occasional grin, the musical gave me quite a few genuine, and unexpected, laugh out loud moments. However, even though I think I liked it more, I'm not sure that makes itself a "classic." Does that make sense? I liked that in the Musical, while maybe losing some of the subtlety of the original, fleshed out some of the characters a bit more--especially Link, Maybelle, Edna, and Wilbur (although, I'm not sure if the "joke shop seduction" scene was absolutely necessary). I really liked how Link had to wrestle a bit between his beliefs and his career. In the original, he's just on board from the get-go which seems a bit...abrupt. I also liked that it gave a lot more agency to Motormouth Maybelle. In my opinion, Tracy comes off as a little bit too much of a "great white hope" character, and it was nice to see Maybelle take charge in this version. However, this isn't to say the Musical isn't without its flaws... For instance, I really didn't like the cartoon-ish way they portrayed Edna's weight as a joke--particularly the scene at the record shop. I'm supposed to believe this concerned mother is going to forget all her worries about her daughter because of some "braised" meat? Not to mention, that in the original, it's Penny's mother who goes down there which makes waaaaaaay more sense. As far as the music was concerned, I really enjoyed it. There were a couple of numbers where my mind wondered a bit, but overall I thought it quite good. If I had to pick a favorite, I think I liked "(You're) Timeless to Me" the most. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpiUk_EDZy0

Hey everyone! So this was hard. I have a ton of movies I'd like to do, but seeing as this is only our sophomore week I was struggling to find a movie that would be tonally different from Hedwig but not, like, a bummer (or slog) to get through. Eventually, though, I settled on Hairspray (2007) when I read that Dick Latessa died. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJ53mRO80c0 Never seen it, but it looks fun to me.

I am inspired, guys! I'm going to see what I can do this year. I doubt I'll get anywhere close, but we'll see. Also, I just joined Letterboxd. Thanks, Fister

Let's kiss 2016 goodbye and make 2017 the best year ever! Have a great night everyone! Be reckless, but be safe. And no matter who you kiss at midnight, I want you all to be thinking of me

Yours was great too! I have a soft spot, though, for seemingly banal comments delivered with such passion. It's why that Covenant comment about glass replacement will always be one of my favorites.

Mine too! I would have given the win to Fister.

..And on that day shall our friendship be truly tested. No. I don't care if people want to share that stuff, it can be really interesting. Just don't act like I'm wrong or dumb because the extent of my knowledge extends only as far as the filmmakers have chosen to share with me in their movie. Like they've said on the show, I'm watching this as a standalone movie. I'm not about to take a deep dive into everything Street Fighter or The Shadow or whatever.

I was actually wondering the same thing. I don't mind watching both if I need to. I just find it annoying when we're all having a discussion about a movie, and every time you write something, somebody feels the need to chime in with, "Well, actually, according to the lore found in the now out-of-print Extended Universe books published thirty years ago at the time of the movie's release..." I mean, if you want to add all that stuff, that's great, just please don't correct me because I don't share your nerdy pursuits--I have plenty of my own thank you very much. I'm basing everything I'm saying strictly on the piece of "Art" in front of me.

Ditto. Looking forward to the New Year!

R.I.P. Debbie Kind of wish I had gone with The Unsinkable Molly Brown for Musical Mondays after all... But glad I watched Singin' in the Rain with my sons a few weeks ago.

...and now her mother, Debbie Reynolds, has had a stroke. Fantastic. Just three more days, right?

Motherfucker. Four more days. Is that too much to ask? Four more fucking days with no fucking tragedies... R.I.P. Carrie Now, could I please go a day without having to write "RIP?"