She's back... Looking as gorgeous and outrageous as ever in a brand new frock.
1994-05-31
$2.0M
103 min
Two drag queens and a transgender woman contract to perform a drag show at a resort in Alice Springs, a town in the remote Australian desert. As they head west from Sydney aboard their lavender bus, Priscilla, the three friends come to the forefront of a comedy of errors, encountering a number of strange characters, as well as incidents of homophobia, whilst widening comfort zones and exploring new horizons.
A “gay friendly” film with some qualities, but which seems unfinished in some important aspects.
This has been one of the most beloved films among the transsexual community, even though it seems obvious to me that being a transvestite and transsexual are not identical things. A transvestite is anyone who wears clothing belonging to the opposite sex to look like that. A transsexual is anyone who believes that they should have been born with the opposite sex to the one they have, and who, not infrequently, begins to undergo medical treatments in order to achieve the physical appearance they desire. What do they have in common? Both are minorities of little expression within the “gay” movement and, despite being visible, they have demands that sometimes contradict those of the homosexual movement, leading to some internal friction.
None of this really matters, but it helps to understand why the group keeps this film on their favorites list. Filmed in Australia, it shows us the bumpy journey of a troupe of transvestites through the Australian desert to a remote town, where they are supposed to have some shows. The film has an intelligent script, where the adventures and misadventures of the trio intersect with other caricatured characters and, of course, with the intolerance and homophobia of isolated rural communities, where the “gay friendly” film takes the opportunity to make certain criticisms of these attitudes. Unfortunately, the film doesn't give us more than this, the characters are poorly developed and the feeling that remains is that of a project made to please a niche audience and not to tell a good story.
The cast has three strong names at the front who ensure consistent protagonism: Terence Stamp, Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce. The three actors are solid bets and do a very decent job with the material received, with Pearce, more extravagant and bizarre, being the one who least satisfies me. The character he offered us is a caricature and not a credible human figure. He is the one who purchases the tourist bus that will be used on the trip, and which he bizarrely names Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
On a technical level, the film does not present great quality scores, for which it deserves special praise. With a couple of exceptions: the first is the design of the costumes worn in the film by the trio of main actors, full of bizarre details that allude to the world of the show; The second is the cinematography, very well conceived and crafted, and to which the exquisite choice of desert filming locations and, also, the good filming and lighting work largely contributed.
Drag queen "Tick" (Hugo Weaving) gets the offer of a gig in Alice Springs and suggests to fellow artiste "Bernadette" (Terence Stamp) that they both go. How to get there? Well that's where their headstrong young pal "Felicia" (Guy Pearce) comes in. He has no compunction in using a bit of emotional blackmail to extort cash from his mother. Next thing, the three have an old (soon to be pink) bus and are winging their way from Sydney at the start of their 1700 mile trip north. Like any trip in a confined space, tempers flare and these three, already near the top of the histrionics chart, provide us with some entertainingly profane language that make you smile and wince at the same time. As they travel, they tentatively explore more of each other's foibles and personalities as well as a terrain which isn't always the most hospitable. En route, they encounter "Bob" (Bill Hunter) who might just offer an hint of romance for the trans "Bernadette" who is suffering from a bit of ennui with life in general. Their eventual arrival tops a journey of discovery for all of them, but especially "Tick" who's in for quite a surprise! A great soundtrack and some earthy and witty writing help out enormously here, but it's essentially the three men whose ridiculously exaggerated characterisations and temper tantrums of an existence that make this a journey you'd love to watch but are very glad you're not actually on. There were a few popular films made that challenged the global stereotype of Australian machismo and bull-headedness but by taking this into the outback, this offers everyone a chance to contrast the open-mindedness of some with the opposite in others - all whilst keeping sight of the fact that this is a comedy, and a satirical and delightfully sarcastic one at that.
