RHPS Turns 30

I didn't make him for you!

Today's blog may be a little bit longer, because I'm paying homage to one of my favorite cult movies, "The Rock Horror Picture Show". The movie debuted in 1975, so Rocky Horror is celebrating its 30th birthday. If you count the stage show in London, RHPS is actually 32. The movie is basically a retelling of the Frankenstein epic with a couple of new twists (e.g., fishnet stockings and 50's rock). The story centers around a prim, young American couple, newly engaged, whose car gets a flat in front of a mysterious castle. When they ring the bell for help, they are drawn into the tawdry web of Dr. Frank 'N Furter, a cross-dressing mad scientist who's about to unveil his latest creation. The events that unfold thru the rest of the night are "no picnic", to quote the narrator.

The movie itself pays homage to many Hollywood epics not the least of which are "Sunset Boulevard" and "King Kong". When RHPS came out, it was so weird nobody knew how to classify it. It was thought of as so smutty as to be appropriate only for adults, and midnight screenings. Funny how times have changed, because now the movie can be seen on Fox Television or Comedy Central, usually around Halloween. RHPS has a reputation as the ultimate cult movie, because of continued screenings at the Riverside Theater in Austin, TX and the Waverly theater in NYC, among others. Patrons come dressed as their favorite characters and reenact parts of the movie right while it's playing. Don't know if these theaters are still showing the movie, because this blog author is too lazy to look it up! :-)


All I wanted to do was use the phone

Several things of note in this movie. Brad and Janet are the ultimate prim, American nerds. Brad thinks that Frank'n Furter's castle is a "hunting lodge for rich weirdos". Janet doesn't like a man "with too many muscles". They're driving a Ford station wagon and listening to Nixon's resignation speech when they get the flat. When they enter Dr. Frank 'N Furter's strange world, they are subjected to new realities, and a bit of debauchery. Their characters are the perfect contrast to Columbia, Magenta, Riff Raff and the other "aliens" they encounter. Some people interpret their characters as the naive version of ourselves, when we have not yet had any introspection or expanded awareness.

Tim Curry, as Dr. Frank 'N Furter is spectacular. The way he struts his androgynous self around the set, he has to be one of the most compelling, interesting characters in cinema history. When asked what he based his character on, he said, "I was thinking of my Mother". I don't think any of us had a mother like that. When "Time" magazine first reviewed the movie in 1975, the reviewer described the character as a cross between Elvis and Auntie Mame. The "Time" reviewer didn't like the movie, but it was 1975 and he was a bit of a conservative newby.

Last but certainly not least are the song lyrics and dialog. The movie is laced with hilarious puns and double-entendres. The song lyrics borrow heavily from Sci-fi movie titles and B-movie dialog, but there is something altogether intriguing about how the words are strung together:
....
"At a deadly pace, it came from Outer Space
and this is how the message ran:
Science Fiction, Double Feature
Doctor X will build a creature
See androids fighting Brad and Janet
Anne Francis stars in "Forbidden Planet"
at the late night Double Feature Picture Show"
....
When the author Richard O'Brien (who plays Riff Raff in the movie) was interviewed about RHPS in 1990, he said, "One thing people overlook about this movie is that it's absolutely a true story". He said this with a certainty and sparkle in his eye that makes you wonder if he's either on something or on TO something. Could it be .... did it really come from outer space? Are we in a Time Warp? And in some parallel universe, is there a mad scientist in fishnet stockings creating a blond man?

There are those who only see this movie as a silly send-up of sci-fi movies and Hollywood schlock. And then for those of us who delve into the liner notes and lyrics, we might see Something Other..... Something More. :-)