By: Edu Kenedi
Edited By: Aakrith Harikumar
Your humble critic has been down bad these last weeks. Aside from re-releases of the movies that managed to snag Oscar nominations, “Dumpuary” has lived up to its name. Studios have quietly released their usual failed projects in the hopes to attract desperate moviegoers. Sadly, Jason Statham’s latest Q-Anon adjacent action movie The Beekeeper does not warrant a review. Neither do the confusing twists, turns, and plot holes Argyle; or Marvel’s latest dumpster fire Madame Web. This left your critic in a bit of a pickle. Enter The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This interactive cult classic had long been on my radar and it seemed the universe was sending me a sign when I discovered that my local cinema screens it with a live cast once a month. In short order I assembled a motley crew of friends and off we went in search of some late night entertainment. Boy did we get what we bargained for and more.
But what exactly is The Rocky Horror Picture Show? It is difficult to put into words. The movie, directed by Jim Sharman, was first released in 1975. It is a horror-musical-comedy starring Tim Curry, Susan Sarrandon, Barry Bostick, and Richard O’Brien, as well as Meatloaf (idk – don’t ask). The plot follows newly engaged couple Janet and Brad, who, after a breakdown in a rainstorm, seek refuge in a castle belonging to a mad scientist and crossdresser, Dr. Frank N Furter. While it initially received bad reviews, the film gradually grew into a cult sensation, garnering a loyal following of fans who dress up and attend late-night screenings to shout at the screen in an interactive joint performance. Some screenings, such as the one I attended, also include a live cast of actors that play out the entire film in the cinema, lip syncing their characters lines whilst also interacting with the audience.
It is difficult to review The Rocky Horror Picture Show. A critical evaluation of the movie seems silly since it is a spoof and I am certainly no theatre expert (I am barely a passable movie critic). Ultimately this is more than just a movie, it is an entire experience. Accordingly the only way to review this transformative event is to transport you all into it.
Our intrepid group arrived at the cinema ahead of our 11:55 pm screening. The waiting area gradually filled up with other fans, including experienced viewers fully costumed in makeup and drag. Having completed all popcorn and beverage-related transactions, we were greeted by two cast members who asked us if we were virgins. Translating Rocky Horror parlance, virgins refers to anyone who has not seen the movie before. To make us easily identifiable, we were each quickly branded with the letter V on our foreheads, drawn on with red lipstick. Having joined the cult, we made our way to our seats while live cast members bantered at our expense. To immerse myself fully in the experience, I joined some of my fellow virgins for an optional on-stage acting out of crude sexual jokes to determine which of us would be allowed to participate in the opening scene of the performance. Everything here was in jest, I promise it’s not that kind of cult… Having returned to my seat (someone else won the honour of being in the performance), the cast began going over some of the rules for this interactive performance. The joke here was that each rule was called “rule number six”, to which the audience shouted “-ty nine” in response. This pretty much set the tone for the kind of humour that permeated the show. Then the actual movie started playing and the live cast began their performance, acting out what was happening on screen while lip syncing their respective characters. The interactive experience featured getting sprayed with water, dancing to the Time Warp, and an optional underwear run through the cinema (our group did not participate).
The Rocky Horror Picture Show is hilarious and silly, vulgar and funny, full of crass humour and memorable scenes. Both the live cast and the actors on screen were amazing, making it difficult to decide where to look. I found Tim Curry’s physical performance especially transfixing, as was his live-action counterpart’s dancing. At the beginning I felt a bit out of place, almost as if I had been transplanted into a world in which I wasn’t quite in on the joke. But my imposter syndrome quickly dissipated as the jokes just kept on coming and I increasingly found myself shouting at the screen with the rest of the audience. While the live performers were all stellar, my favourite cast member was not playing one of the characters but rather a hype-man shouting jokes and well-timed questions that interacted with the dialogue on screen. Although I had a great time, there were some minor gripes with the experience. The aforementioned hype-man, for example, could have done with a microphone as the combination of audience laughter and the loud movie sometimes made it difficult to hear his jokes. In a similar vein, the group sitting in the row behind us were very talkative. While some of their jokes and comments were funny, the constant chatter became a bit distracting. That being said I don’t think this is the kind of screening to take too seriously. Finally, I thought that the movie and the audience lost a bit of its energy by the third act, due, most likely, to the fact that it was around 1:15 am by then.
Nonetheless, these small complaints did little to take away from the transcendent and transformative experience that transpired in that cinema. If you like crass humour and want to take part in this tanssexual transylvanian extravaganza, the Landmark Cinema on E Street hosts this performance two nights each month. This ex-virgin will certainly be returning to The Rocky Horror Picture Show.