Multiple Maniacs (1970)

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   Siskoid

   John Waters' Multiple Maniacs is the first in a trilogy of bad taste that includes the better-known Pink Flamingos and Female Trouble, and the only one I hadn't seen. It's a very early picture, sitting somewhere between raw and amateurish technically, but Waters' sense of humor and clever subversiveness are already apparent. For example, Divine's freak show doesn't feature physical deformities, but behavior at which the suburbanite patrons can feign shock and outrage, like men kissing and junkies begging for money. But you're still not sure this is any good. Then comes the maverick, extended scene in the church, which intercuts Divine's prayers and an insane sex scene with what is essentially Waters' Passion of the Christ, which is simply next level. The story is really that of Divine's character slipping into madness and violence in her pursuit of the American Dream, eventually turning into a monster, to the point where I would classify this as a kaiju film even if she never gets to stomp balsa wood buildings or toy tanks. I love the surprises the movie had in store for me, and laughed a lot, but it's definitely not the kind of thing you want your room mate to walk in on when they come home from work. Or maybe it is, depends on your sense of humor. Mine, when I explained the film to her, said "So, 4 stars and a heart?". She knows me so well. 4 years 3 months ago

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