By Brandi Shuler
Happy 50th anniversary to Rocky Horror Picture Show! With reruns showing up in theaters, this movie brought back some wacky fun for the October season. Originally a stage show in London, the show already had a cult following by the time it came out in movie theaters in 1975. Richard O’Brien wrote the original stage show, simply titled “The Rocky Horror Show,” and co-wrote the movie with Jim Sharman while in production.
There is not a single dull moment through the first half of the movie. Be prepared for a fast-paced story; it’s going to be one thing after another. In the beginning, it’s about a newly engaged couple that gets a flat tire and has to ask someone nearby to use their house’s telephone. This begins a horrible spiral of events for them. To make it entertaining, several pieces of music from the soundtrack are iconic, like “Sweet Transvestite” and “Time Warp.” This movie also mixes lots of different genres and aesthetics like gothic horror, science fiction, musicals, and drag.
This movie has historical ties to the LGBT community, as well as having created a fan base of people who loved going to multiple showings of the movie. People showed up dressed up as characters (some of them acting out scenes in the theater), and shoutouts were created for viewers to say throughout the showings. Since its release in theaters, The Rocky Horror Picture Show has been considered a safe haven for members of the LGBT community because of the interactive and wacky environment it creates.
I would give this movie a 3.5 out of 5-star rating. It wasn’t my cup of tea because of certain themes in it, and the pacing wasn’t great. Several times, I got lost in what was going on because of all the stuff going on either in the background or on the forefront of the story.
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