Pink Flamingos
I've heard many of my friends warning me not to go see this film. They said that Pink Flamingos was truly awful. Well, one day I decided to see what all this talk was about, and besides, I wanted to know if I had the stomach for it. Well, I do have the stomach in the sense that I never threw up. However, it did make me sick to my stomach and I shall never eat eggs again. In fact, I will never look at a chicken the same way again. John Waters, who directed the wonderfully funny Serial Mom, wasn't known as a directed until he created this film.
And I can see why. Not only are some of the images shocking, but I knew that what these actors were doing was the real thing. That shocked me even more. And it was hard for me to imagine that Waters made his friends do this for the film. However, he got the response from people that he wanted. Not only did he jumpstart his career, he grossed people out. I have never seen anything so sick in my life. This is one of the first films where I have actually expected less than what I got. Now, I'm not saying that it is a terrible film--wait, I am saying that. It is truly an awful film in many senses. It not only has a stupid plot, but the acting is way over-the-top and the writing is very dumb.
With all that aside, Pink Flamingos is not a film about plot. It's not about acting, it's not about writing. It's about shocking people and making them sick. Pink Flamingos' plot mainly consists of Babs Johnson (Divine), who happens to have been classified the "sickest person alive", and another couple who believe that they are the sickest people alive. They are the Marbles (Mink Stole, from Serial Mom, and David Lochary). Both of these run a business in which they kidnap women, have their servant impregnate them, let them die during the birthing process, and give the babies to lesbian couples. In my opinion, Divine truly deserves the title. While the Marbles are sick, how can you top eating a canine's waste product? When I saw that scene, I nearly lost my stomach. It was truly horrendous. But not to be outdone are a sex scene with a chicken, flexing of genitilia, putting a piece of meat between Divine's legs, and another sex scene involving Divine and her (his?) son.
In no way have I ruined the experience for you. No person can really describe what goes on in this film accurately. The film's only merit is the aspect that everything in the film is really done. Many people say that it is funny, but I didn't laugh too much. There are some humorous scenes, but for the most part, I didn't find anything very laughable (with the exception of the technical aspects of the film). Because the actors do everything, it almost makes the film a documentary. And it is even filmed that way. I felt like I was watching a home movie, and in a way I was. Unfortunately, I can't recommend the film and would never recommend the film. However, the film is extremely shocking and I say: Hey, if you can handle it, go watch it.
Pink Flamingos is rated NC-17 which of course means no children under 17 allowed. The film is full of nudity, sex, language, and graphic acts of distaste. This film was made in 1972 and yet it is just as shocking today. In fact, I can't believe that it wasn't banned from all theaters in America. However, the final five minutes of Pink Flamingos shows outtakes and the original trailer which showed no scenes from the film, just the reactions of people coming out of it. If it shocks today, imagine what people thought back then.