Lips! Lips! Lips! Lips! Lips!
In the Plaza Theatre, the audience shouted at the silver screen. It almost felt wrong; I’ve been taught from an early age that movies are strictly to be enjoyed in silence. However, with the provocative nature of the film, my idea of tradition seemed to be out of the question. Dressed up as Brad Majors from the 1975 film, I sat in the packed theatre eagerly waiting, while costumes audience members screamed at the sultry red lips. The mouth sang the iconic opening song “Science Fiction Double Feature.” This was the beginning of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, a shocking, campy, and wonderful film that has entranced audiences for over 40 years. It is a cult classic that just won’t die. If you aren’t familiar with the movie or the tradition surrounding it, it can seem quite obscene at first. The film follows the fall from grace of an engaged couple, Brad Majors and Janet Weiss, as they are manipulated by a “transvestite” scientist, Dr. Frank N Furter, who had just made a man named Rocky. The film is both odd and extremely important. It brought a refreshing and unique perspective to concepts of sex, gender, homosexuality, and tradition, while still managing to be a lot of fun.
This year was the first time I ever watched The Rocky Horror Picture Show in theatres, and it was unforgettable. The Plaza Theatre has a longstanding tradition of Halloween screenings of the movie with full audience participation. This means screaming, swearing, throwing rice, toast, and toilet paper, water guns, and dancing on stage. The film begins with the iconic red lips singing about the tradition of science fiction movies and horror that provide aesthetic and narrative inspiration for the satirical musical. The Rocky Horror Picture Show mixes aspects of horror, science fiction, music, and comedy to deliver the hard-hitting deconstruction of 1970’s conservatism. The beginning of the film introduces the two main characters, a couple Bard Majors and Janet Weiss, attending a friends wedding. As rice is thrown on the big screen, rice is also thrown into the air by the audience. The number in which Brad proposes to Janet reinforces themes of Western tradition and Catholicism, with reference to the painting, American Gothic, and religious traditions of marriage and burial. The movie is effectively setting the stage for the morality of the 1970’s that these two characters represent. Brad and Janet’s car breaks down, which forces them to seek shelter and a phone in Dr. Frank N Furter’s castle. When Brad and Janet leave the car into the rainy night, the audience puts newspapers on their head and begins soaking each other with spray bottles and water guns. Brad and Janet sing about “a light over at the Frankenstein’s place,” prompting the audience to take out glow-sticks and flashlights.
The most memorable part of the whole experience was “The Time Warp.” The Time Warp is an extremely iconic song from The Rocky Horror Picture Show that introduces Brad and Janet to the untraditional nature of the mansion and the visiting Transylvanians. While the people and performance might be untraditional, the song and accompanied dance are a huge tradition that also reinforces the idea of the importance of ritualism in group identity. When the song began, the audience flooded from their seats onto the tiny stage. On the crowded wood floor, we took a jump to the left, a step to the right, put our hands on our hips, brought our knees in tight, but obviously, it was the pelvic thrust that really drove us insane. When the number ended, everyone on the stage collapsed and ran back to their seats, out of breath. This was all really shocking. For a moment, everybody forgot about their lack of dancing and singing abilities and just tried their hardest. There was no shame, just enjoyment.
The entire experience was filled with this idea of ritualism. Bringing and throwing props at certain scenes, like throwing toast in the air when Dr. Frank N Furter makes a dinner toast, throwing toilet paper when Brad Majors says “Great Scott!,” or encouraging the dressed up audience members to recreate scenes on stage. Throughout the film, the conservative traditionalism of Brad and Janet is corrupted by the sexuality and manipulation of Dr. Frank N Furter. It turns out that turning yourself to “absolute pleasure,” isn’t that bad after all. The Rocky Horror Picture Show is fast, exciting, and crazy, but also extremely insightful. It is definitely a must watch in theatres, and the Plaza Theatre in Kensington is a great place to do it because the full audience participation that really makes it special. The Plaza Theatre even sells a survival kit of sorts if you’re unsure about what to bring. However, the truly magical part of the experience is learning as you go.
Clearly, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a lot of fun, but it’s longevity might have more to do with its social and sexual importance and ability to foster visibility. Dr. Frank N Furter’s first appearance is magic: an elevator slowly descends to a smiling chorus of Transylvanians. Dr. Frank N Furter takes off a cape revealing female lingerie and a bicep tattoo reading “BOSS.” Dr. Frank N Furter sits at a throne and is treated like nothing short of royalty. Judith Butler is a famous American philosopher and gender-theorist. She views gender as performative, meaning the way people walk, talk, and act in the world is what socially constructs their gender. The Rocky Horror Picture Show gives insight into this idea of gender as a performative phenomenon. Dr. Frank N Furter dresses as a woman, wears makeup, and is attracted to men. In the 1970’s these were all performative traits associated with female gender. However, Dr. Frank N Furter’s job as a scientist, confidence, captivation, and even violence, were all seen as male traits in the 1970’s. While gender equality movements have disassociated traits like confidence from strictly masculinity, during the time period Dr. Frank N Furter was first encountered by movie goers, the character was seen as treading on both sides of a rigid gender line. What truly makes Dr. Frank N Furter a great example of performative gender is not only the ambiguity, but the ability to seduce both Brad and Janet. Brad and Janet, acting as a representation for cisgender and heterosexual society, were intrigued and allured by the ambiguity of Dr. Frank N Furter, showing that society can accept masculine and feminine aspects as a truth they wish to see, even when initially rejecting it. Brad showed attraction to the feminine performance of Dr. Frank N Furter, and Janet accepted the masculine performance of the exact same person. In this way, Dr. Frank N Furter’s allure and seduction is much stronger than gender, resonating deeply in crowds that felt their identity was much larger than gender as well.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show was originally a failure in theatres. However, it was attractive and enticing for a very specific crowd of LGBTQ people who resonated with the acceptance of performative gender, homosexuality, and sexuality as a whole. Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of this film is that it has evolved from a shocking, taboo movie to something that now reflects our society. We are living, right now, in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It is the cult nature of the film and the progressive thought that helped shape this cultural impact. While by today’s standards, certain words and imagery are outdated and offensive, there is no denying the sexual and cultural importance of the film. This means that we live in a culture that is exponentially more tolerant of bisexuality, homosexuality, and transgender experience, while also beginning a movement of LGBTQ representation in arts and culture. At the time of its release, the film, which is based on Richard O’Brien’s 1973 stage musical, the weekly screenings were a cultural oasis for the sexually and socially marginalized. It emphasized gender-bending, humour, and ultimately, acceptance of everything weird and different. Although today, The Rocky Horror Picture Show has shifted from an urban phenomenon to a place for suburban experimentation, there is no doubt that the ritualistic nature and emphasis on experimentation created a more flexible society where gender-bending causes less friction then it once did.
While The Rocky Horror Picture Show is definitely unique, enticing, and has a committed fanbase, it is hard to define what makes it a cult classic. While the specific criteria is up for question, scholars are in agreeance that the sci-fi horror is undoubtedly in line with whatever the criteria is. One way of viewing a cult classic is an event where many individuals regularly meet, specifically at midnight. The midnight screening traditions of The Rocky Horror Picture Show definitely fit this ritualization. Going every Friday in full DIY costume and performing traditions with various props, adds a level of excitement and magic to the experience. During its original release, the audience, specifically queer people, felt a sense of inclusion and community that they lacked in their everyday life and society. This tradition is paralleled to religion: congregating on Sunday’s, participating in communion, and singing, all share similarities to the traditions of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, which seems to be a fact the film is self-aware of considering the religious motifs and comparisons. Fans of The Rocky Horror Picture Show not only responded to their sense of community by frequenting every week, but also by creating fan clubs and newsletters. It was an inspiration to the people who lacked a sense of belonging to see an androgynous character like Dr. Frank N Furter lead a society, act completely unapologetically, and be as ambiguous with sexuality as the character physically looked. The cult tradition began with callouts and shadow casts, but after the movie was re-released for midnight showings, the crowd took it even further, using their own insults, jokes, and pop culture references. Fans began to perform and lead callouts, developing standard replies that dominate the cult atmosphere today.
While The Rocky Horror Picture Show was destined to be loved by queer audiences, certain elements brought the films relatability to heterosexual viewers. Characters like Dr. Scott represent the perspective of a majority of society that believes the whole thing is odd. As well, Dr. Frank N Furter’s masculinity, particularly his anatomy, is never hidden throughout the film. While the film as a whole was quite progressive at the time, the catering to heterosexual identity by providing a “sober” perspective and reducing the threatening nature of Dr. Frank N Furter’s ambiguity, expanded its reach into much more than just a marginalized society, which ultimately expanded its impact.
Perhaps my favourite aspect of The Rocky Horror Picture Show isn’t necessarily the impact, culture, or symbolism, but rather the crazy aesthetic. The Rocky Horror Picture Show is pure camp. Camp is a humorous style associated with queer culture that largely developed as a desire for community and culmination of uniqueness. It is over the top and is generally described as “failed seriousness.” This naive humour, obscene imagery, and pure fun is deeply ingrained in the film. Part of Dr. Frank N Furter’s success in gaining power over Brad and Janet isn’t the allure alone, but rather, Brad and Janet’s unrelenting blandness in comparison to the entertaining and mystical Transylvanians. However, as said by Dr. Frank N Furter,
It’s not easy having a good time. Even smiling makes my face ache.
There is no doubt that The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a cult classic, and I can say that for certain after experiencing it in person. The community, ritualism, social impact, and campy enjoyment add up to an extremely memorable experience. New waves of dedicated audiences continue to appear, adding their own twists to the traditions as pop culture changes. Just as the original story brought a unique perspective on gender and sexuality to the 1970’s, younger audiences and generations expand on the customs, culture, envelop-pushing, and over the top hilarity to keep The Rocky Horror Picture Show spirit alive and as important as ever.
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Rocky Horror Picture Show: An Analysis
On The Social and Sexual importance of The Rocky Horror Picture Show
The Camp and Cult of The Rocky Horror Picture Show