Fifty years of filth: the complete films of John Waters (every goddamn one of them)
Fifty years of filth: the complete films of John Waters (every goddamn one of them)
London recently got its first proper taste of American artist/provocateur John Waters at his recent Sprüth Magers exhibition – and it seems we can’t get enough. Throughout September and October, the British Film Institute (BFI) on Southwark's Southbank is hosting its very own 'Pope of Trash' film fest, dedicating an entire season to a retrospective of the cult filmmaker.
‘This tribute is like receiving a plenary indulgence from the movie gods above and for once I can be show-biz thrilled without the slightest drop of irony in my thanks,’ says Waters. ‘Yikes, respectability... the final outrage.’ To mark BFI Southbank’s Waters-centric season, we take a look at his greatest hits…
‘The Complete Films of John Waters (Every Goddam One of Them...)’ runs at BFI Southbank until 6 October 2015. For a full programme, click here
Pictured: a still from Pecker (1998). Photography: Michael Ginsburg
Roman Candles (1966)
Baltimore-born Waters began making experimental short films as a teenager, often using his home as a location, and casting his friends. His clique – known as the Dreamlanders and including Divine, Mary Vivian Pearce, David Lochary and Mink Stole – would become core cast members in his earlier shorts.
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Roman Candles (1966)
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Eat Your Makeup (1968)
These underground short films – never before seen in the UK – are set to screen in a compilation programme, John Waters: The Early Shorts. Shorts such as Eat Your Makeup alluded to the visionary films that would follow in his career.
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Eat Your Makeup (1968)
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Mondo Trasho (1969)
This was Waters’ first feature, and was heavily influenced by both Andy Warhol and Russ Meyer. The guerrilla-style artwork brought his audience closer to his Dreamland acting troupe.
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Mondo Trasho (1969)
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Multiple Maniacs (1970)
Multiple Maniacs centred on Lady Divine, the owner and operator of the Cavalcade of Peversion, a free exhibit of various perversions, fetish acts and obscenities such as the ‘Puke Eater’. The sinister film takes an even darker turn, as the demented characters succumb to prostitution, murder and cannibalism (not to mention a particularly disturbing scene involving a giant lobster).
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Multiple Maniacs (1970)
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Multiple Maniacs (1970)
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Multiple Maniacs (1970)
Courtesy of Dreamland Productions
Pink Flamingos (1972)
There were no holds barred in Pink Flamingos, which remains to date one of Waters’ most notorious and controversial films. This film had it all: black market baby brokers, chicken sex, a singing anus and the infamous dog-walking scene. The film is extraordinarily divisive – Roger Ebert famously gave it zero stars, while Empire magazine listed it as the 31st-greatest independent film ever made. Pure filth.
Photography: Lawrence Irvine
Pink Flamingos (1972)
Photography: Lawrence Irvine
Female Trouble (1974)
Waters’ leading (drag) lady Divine returned two years later to play delinquent teenager Dawn Davenport, who runs away from home when her parents refuse to get her the ‘cha-cha heels’ she wanted for Christmas. Again, the film dealt with controversial subject matter – torture, mutilation – all culminating in a bloody, gory climax. The film was dedicated to Manson Family member Charles ‘Tex’ Watson, who Waters visited several times in prison (in fact, these meetings inspired the ‘crime is beauty’ theme of the film).
Photography: Bruce Moore
Female Trouble (1974)
Photography: Bruce Moore
Desperate Living (1977)
His final film of the seventies, Waters outlined Desperate Living as a ‘monstrous lesbian fairy-tale about political corruption’. Peggy Gravel and her maid Grizelda Brown go on the run, only to find themselves in Mortville, a town for social outcasts, criminals, nudists and sexual deviants, ruled under the iron fist of the terrifying Queen Carlotta. There were no happy endings in this film.
Photography: Steve Yeager
Polyester (1981)
Filmed in Waters’ native Baltimore, this 1981 American black comedy offered a satirical look at suburban life, tackling themes of abortion, adultery, divorce, foot fetishism and the Religious Right. As with the original release of the film, Polyester will be presented at the BFI in ‘Odorama’ with scratch ‘n’ sniff cards. We smell trouble.
Photography: Larry Dean
Hairspray (1988)
Waters, remaining ever surprising, delivered the PG-rated (and unashamedly camp) romantic musical comedy Hairspray. The film tells the story of ‘pleasantly plump’ teenager Tracy Turnblad (played by Ricki Lake) and her pursuit of stardom. In spite of its initial lukewarm response, it eventually became a cult classic, spawning an award-winning Broadway musical and film remake. It also marked Waters’ final collaboration with Divine, who died in his sleep, at age 42, three weeks after Hairspray was released nationwide.
Photography: Henry Garfunkel
Hairspray (1988)
Photography: Henry Garfunkel
Hairspray (1988)
Photography: Henry Garfunkel
Cry Baby (1990)
Starring a fresh-faced Johnny Depp, Cry Baby centred on the forbidden love of ‘Cry-Baby’ Walker, a juvenile delinquent, and Allison Vernon-Williams, a square. Like his previous film, Cry Baby enjoyed only moderate success at the time of its release – but too, became a cult classic and inspired a Broadway musical, which was nominated for four Tony Awards.
Photography: Henry Garfunkel
Cry Baby (1990)
Photography: Henry Garfunkel
Cry Baby (1990)
Photography: Henry Garfunkel
Cry Baby (1990)
Photography: Henry Garfunkel
Cry Baby (1990)
Photography: Henry Garfunkel
Serial Mom (1994)
Typical suburban housewife by day, serial killer by night, Kathleen Turner stars as the wicked Beverly Sutphin in this dark comedy.
Photography: Phillip V Caruso
Pecker (1998)
Set in Baltimore’s Hampden neighbourhood, Pecker charts a budding 18-year-old photographer who makes it big, while his newfound fame disrupts the lives of his family and friends, who are ultimately his subjects.
Photography: Michael Ginsburg
Cecil B. Demented (2000)
Melanie Griffith (pictured) features as an aloof A-list Hollywood actress, who is kidnapped by the film’s namesake character and his terrorist gang of ‘kamikaze filmmakers’; they coerce her to star in their underground film.
Photography: Abbot Genser
Cecil B. Demented (2000)
Photography: Abbot Genser
Cecil B. Demented (2000)
Photography: Abbot Genser
A Dirty Shame (2004)
With a cast including Selma Blair (pictured), Tracey Ullman, Chris Isaak and Johnny Knoxville (notorious for his own gross-out TV show), A Dirty Shame traces the people of Harford Road, who eventually all become sex addicts. Eleven years on, this film remains the latest in Waters’ oeuvre, owing mostly to its dismal reception at the box office.
Photography: James Bridges
A Dirty Shame (2004)
Photography: James Bridges
A Dirty Shame (2004)
Photography: James Bridges
In addition to his programme, Waters has also personally selected an eclectic mix of six British films to complement his season at BFI Southbank. Here, in his own words, he introduces the films that have inspired him in Teabaggin’ in the Kitchen Sink: My Favourite British Films…
The Deep Blue Sea (Terence Davies, 2011)
'Unrequited love never looked more appealing. As you walk out of the theatre you’ll wish your loved one would dump you in the lobby so you could go home and wallow in suicidal misery as beautiful as what you just saw on screen.'
Courtesy of BFI
Blue (Derek Jarman, 1993)
'An incredibly radical film that goes beyond the gimmicks of William Castle’s Emergo, beyond the boredom of Warhol’s Empire, beyond the theories of Lars von Trier’s 'Dogme 95' manifesto to a whole new minimalist level of what colour film can do when it is framed within the sound of sadness.'
Courtesy of BFI
The Mother (Roger Michell, 2003)
'How would you feel if you came home and found your 65-year-old mother on her knees doing you know what with your boyfriend? Especially when she had told you he was no good for you? Especially when he’s Daniel Craig! Especially when he’s Daniel Craig looking this hot!'
Courtesy of BFI
Trog (Freddie Francis, 1970)
'One of the most ludicrous, touching, mind-boggling star vehicles ever. Joan Crawford, desperate for a job, teams up with director Freddie Francis(!) and an actor in a pitiful monkey mask for a sci-fi howler like no other.'
Courtesy of BFI
The Naked Civil Servant (Jack Gold, 1975)
'If there was a patron saint of damaged souls, Quentin Crisp would be the first to be canonised and his autobiography, The Naked Civil Servant, could serve as scripture. This TV movie adaptation of the same is so filled with respect and dignity that the director and actors will definitely go to movie heaven.'
Courtesy of BFI
Boom! (Joseph Losey, 1968)
'Beyond bad, the other side of camp – a film so beautiful and awful there is only one word to describe it: perfect. If you don’t like this film, I hate you.'
Courtesy of BFI