Pink Flamingos

Director: John Waters 

Screenplay: John Waters

Minutes: 93

Year: 1972

Score: 6.33

Release: Warner Archive DVD

Calling this film “a pile of garbage” may be the highest praise anyone can give to this John Waters classic. It is a pile of garbage.

From WBShop.com:

Director John Waters breaks every rule of good filmmaking and good taste with his 1972 landmark cult classic, Pink Flamingos. Starring Divine, Mink Stole and Edith Massey (an ensemble cast like you wouldn’t believe), this underground epic sets a benchmark for the bizarre that has never been equaled.

Divine, whose star is so big she can hardly fit in the role, is Babs Johnson, a trailer park bon vivant who proudly claims the title “The Filthiest Person Alive.” She’s the envy of every neighborhood degenerate and it isn’t long before another couple sets their sights on Divine’s legacy, in the proud American tradition, competition forces each contender to outdo the other. By the time the film reaches its final, unforgettable scene…well…make sure you’ve already finished your popcorn.

I wish I had watched this earlier in my life. It was nice to see a better quality version of this uncut version, well, nice isn’t a good word for this since the filth becomes filthier. The John Waters culture was not something to which I had access. If it was around when I was younger I was not aware of it, or was not cool enough to know.

Pink Flamingos should be on any future film makers list to study. When I sit down and watching amazing films I get discouraged because I would not have access to the resources to ever make of film matching that caliber. When I Pink Flamingo I know that I could l probably make something of similar quality; certainly not the same cultural significance.

Pink Flamingos is a must have for film fans, this is just a new DVD edition but I doubt the quality would be much better on Blu-ray, but it still looks fine to my eyes.

Director: 6 – Cinematography: 4 –  Edit: 5 – Parity: 7 – Main performance: 6 – Else performance: 3 – Score: 9 – Sound: 5 – Story: 8 – Script: 9 – Effects: 4 – Design: 4 – Costumes: 7 – Keeps interest: 8 – Lasting: 10