And God said, “Let there be lips!”
Since 1975, the pelvic thrust has really driven us insane. I’m of course talking about The Rocky Horror Picture Show – the cult musical film that was a flop until it captivated audiences across the globe with its charm and unconventional themes. In 1975, having a movie with the main character as a man in drag, unapologetic, not the butt of a joke – it was monumental. Nobody wanted to see the now-common midnight showing of a film until Rocky Horror.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show, starring Tim Curry, was released to an uncaring audience. It was based off the stage production that went by a very similar name. Rocky Horror flopped at the box office, and was considered, by most accounts, a failure. Until a scene of Club Kids and freaks alike gathered together to watch the show at midnight, dressed in drag. They shouted at the screen, they threw props at the screen, and they sang and danced. It was a very uncommon phenomenon when it occurred. Rocky Horror became the choice film for a young LGBT movement, and still is today. Today, it’s shadow casted, where a cast goes up and performs in front of the movie playing on the screen, around the globe.
Midnight viewings of movies like Rocky Horror, The Room, and Evil Dead are very common. This would’ve been nonexistent without Rocky Horror to begin the movement. These are all films considered in their time to be awful, that people have put on a pedestal. It is an aspiration for filmmakers who want their film to gain cult status to be at the level that Rocky Horror is. It hasn’t been beat and I doubt it ever will be. Without movies like Rocky Horror, movies like The Room (starring Tommy Wiseau) would’ve simply flopped with no following to revive it.
Rocky Horror is loved worldwide by a lot of fans who still go to shadow cast performances and watch the movie online often.
When asked what entices him most to Rocky Horror, Alex Webb, sophomore, said, had some thoughts.
“I love the music, like, you can’t say that ‘Sweet Transvestite’ isn’t a banger. But overall it’s a really weird movie,” he said. “Like, you’ll watch it over and over and you’ll notice some weird thing each time. It’s probably a big part of why people are so passionate about it and end up watching it so many times.”
“[Doctor Frank n’ Furter, the main character] is an absolute icon. I really appreciate the representation of a guy so deeply in touch with his femininity and being so sex-positive, even if he is a ‘villain,'” Webb said about the movie’s affect on his identity as an openly LGBT person.
Will we be doing the Time Warp again and again for generations to come? I think so. I think the movie holds water and is loved, and is being loved by new generations. So, if you haven’t seen the movie, go find a copy of the late-night, double-feature picture show, and have a watch.
