When drag queen Anthony (Hugo Weaving) agrees to take his act on the road, he invites fellow cross-dresser Adam (Guy Pearce) and transsexual Bernadette (Terence Stamp) to come along. In their colorful bus, named Priscilla, the three performers travel across the Australian desert performing for enthusiastic crowds and homophobic locals. But when the other two performers learn the truth about why Anthony took the job, it threatens their act and their friendship.
Stars Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, Terence Stamp
Directed by Stephan Elliott
Year 1994
In celebration of PRIDE this year, I decided to view a late showing of this on the big screen. Before the show started, I had a secret wish that I was watching To Wong Foo instead. Boy, was I silly. This movie was underrated in my mind and overall. It has incredible depth and a ratio of emotion. For some reason I always thought of it as a B-movie, just really bad and strange. It is not any of those things at all. The performances alone give it a unique super power and make for a great adventure.
The balance between laughter and serious moments is a tight rope for a lot of directors. A lot of the time the much needed emotionalism ends up cheesy and forgotten. Not with this one. There are some seriously hilarious moments, but they do not override or interfere with the tender heartfelt times that we need for connection. When it comes to connection, these characters and actors could not have done it better. All roles where played with every bit of intention needed to make them work. I’m always shocked to see who is who, especially here. Interesting when you see General Zod, Agent Smith, and that bad guy from Iron Man 3 all dolled up to perform a sexy song. Honestly speaking though, Terence Stamp might have deserved an award for this.
So, let’s be real, not everyone is into drag queens or the like. I get it (you’re a manly man or something like that). Whatever the reason, drop your guard and check this one out. It might not be what you where expecting. It is older (90’s), but it comes off real and fun at the same time. It’s also Australian, which makes it a tad different.