Tim Curry Sings in Lingerie and Heels in The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Author's Rating:

Pros: Unique, entertaining movie with good cast.

Cons: Campy and cheesy at times. Not for everyone.

The Bottom Line: 
The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a unique, very entertaining movie that isn't for everyone.

Author's Review
I had heard of The Rocky Horror Picture Show without really knowing what it was about before I first saw the movie. If I remember right, I found the movie after it had started, so I wasn't really sure what was going on but I kept watching. Since then, I've seen it several more times and recently picked up the DVD during a sale.

Brad Major and Janet Weiss had just gotten engaged and decided they wanted to go see Dr. Everett Von Scott, a former teacher. They got stranded because of a flat tire and walked back to a large, spooky looking house they had seen. The butler Riffraff let them in and they discovered there was some sort of party going on. They were shocked by the appearance of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, the owner of the home, when he arrived wearing women’s lingerie, fishnet stockings, high heels, and make up. Dr. Frank-N-Furter was welcoming to the guests, even letting them watch when he revealed his creation, a man he called Rocky Horror. That was just the beginning of the strange things that Brad and Janet would witness and experience.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show was first done as a stage production. I haven’t seen that version, so I don’t know for sure what was changed for the movie. I have read a little bit of information about a few things that were changed, like the character of Magenta. The original play was written by Richard O’Brien, who also appeared in the movie. The movie because hugely popular once theaters started showing it at midnight showings which led to the huge cult following it still has today. The movie is still shown at theaters today.

The plot for The Rocky Horror Picture Show really wasn’t complicated or complex in any way. It was basically just about a couple getting stranded during a rainstorm and wondering into a very bizarre situation while trying to call for help. During the movie, there were times when a character identified in the credits as the Criminologist was shown talking about the things that Brad and Janet experienced. He had a few files that were like police reports on what had happened. It was a little jarring the first few times when the movie jumped back to him, but after that I got use to it. He seemed to be talking about what had happened after the events had taken place. The majority of the movie took place during the one night when Brad and Janet stumbled into the strange situations at Dr. Frank-N-Furter’s house.

There is no denying that The Rocky Horror Picture Show is different and downright bizarre at times. It is probably one of the most unique movies that I’ve ever seen. The very things that make it so unique will make it entirely too strange and different for some viewers. I like strange and different movies and I really enjoyed this one. It isn’t a movie for everyone and some people may even be offended by some of what happened. There are one or two things that some may consider disturbing as well. I think that people need to have an open mind to really be able to enjoy the movie.

It seemed very clear that the movie had been at least somewhat inspired by some of the older horror movies. Dr. Frank-N-Furter was very much like Dr. Frankenstein, even acting like a mad scientist creating life. Even their names were similar. The big difference was that Dr. Frank-N-Furter was wearing lingerie, fishnet stockings, and high heels. It does have the same campiness that was used in many of the ones considered to be B movies. Nothing was taken seriously in the movie, which I think worked well for the plot and what was going on. The movie really embraced the fact that it was silly and campy. I enjoyed the campiness and silliness and felt it made the movie more entertaining. I laughed several times throughout the movie, usually because of the odd things going on.

I think that The Rocky Horror Picture Show is the only musical horror movie that I’ve ever seen. It was interesting to see elements of a musical blended so well with elements from horror movies. The characters frequently launched into songs throughout the movie. All of the songs did help to move the plot forward and fit in with what was going on. The most popular song from the movie is probably The Time Warp. The song was very catchy and the movie had the characters doing the dance while they sang. The songs were entertaining even though they weren’t truly great songs. Dr. Frank-N-Furter, Brad, and Janet each sang several songs. From what I discovered, all of the cast except for Peter Hinwood actually sang. Everyone did a good job with their singing.

There were many sexual overtones throughout The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Brad and Janet ended up wearing only their underwear for most of the movie. Dr. Frank-N-Furter was wearing women’s lingerie and more make up than any of the female characters. Things that were said made it clear that Dr. Frank-N-Furter was very open about his sexuality and enjoyed partners of both sexes. It was also made clear that a few of the characters were very happy to swap partners. There were scenes that had some sexual situations and it was made clear that certain characters had sex without actually showing anything too graphic. The sexual aspects of the movie may be upsetting to some viewers. The movie was rated R, so it isn’t something that young children should see.

Brad and Janet were a young, innocent couple who ended up spending the night at a very strange house because of a flat tire. Neither one of them really knew how to react to all the strange things they witnessed and did that night. Susan Sarandon and Barry Bostwick were good in the parts. They made Brad and Janet believable characters. Dr. Everett Von Scott was a scientist and former teacher of Brad and Janet who also got pulled into what was going on.

Richard O’Brien, the man who wrote the stage show and movie, played Riffraff, the creepy hunchback butler. He seemed to always be lurking around. Magenta, Riffraff’s sister, was a maid. She was around in several scenes without doing that much in several of them so Patricia Quinn didn’t have as much to do. Columbia had been involved in Dr. Frank-N-Furter and Eddie but she still stayed around. She was sort of like a groupie to Dr. Frank-N-Furter. Little Nell was fine in the part. Eddie was a biker that had been involved with Dr. Frank-N-Furter and Columbia. Meat Loaf handled the part fine. Rocky Horror was the muscled man that Dr. Frank-N-Furter created. Since Rocky wasn’t that bright, it seemed like he was created just to be a sex object for Dr. Frank-N-Furter. Peter Hinwood only had a couple of lines.

Even though Brad and Janet were important, Dr. Frank-N-Furter was the most important character. The movie was really focused in on him and the crazy things he was doing. He was a very unique and rather complicated character that made the movie. I absolutely loved Tim Curry in the part and can’t imagine anyone else playing the part. Curry actually originated the role on the stage before appearing in the movie. He was perfect and really made Dr. Frank-N-Furter come to life. This is probably one of Curry’s most well known performances and he will probably always be associated with the part. I’ve enjoyed Curry in several other movies, including Clue, Muppet Treasure Island and Oscar.

Main Cast

Jonathan Adams - Dr. Everett Von Scott
Barry Bostwick - Brad Majors
Nell Campbell (Little Nell) - Columbia
Tim Curry - Dr. Frank-N-Furter
Charles Gray - The Criminologist
Peter Hinwood - Rocky Horror
Meat Loaf - Eddie
Richard O’Brien - Riffraff
Patricia Quinn - Magenta
Susan Sarandon - Janet Weiss

Jim Sharman - Director

DVD Information

There are a few different DVD versions of The Rock Horror Picture Show. I think the copy I recently picked up is one of the earlier releases without some of the extras that were added in a later release. My copy has the widescreen version of the movie as well as some bonus features. There is the option to view the original cut of the movie or the new edition with the Superheroes musical sequence edited back in. There is a commentary by Richard O’Brien and Patricia Quinn. Something called The Theatrical Experience shows the movie as it would be seen in a theater with an introduction from the president of the movie’s fan club. The audience reactions and performers are shown at different times throughout the movie. There is a subtitle track that tells what sort of reaction the audience should have. There are also DVD-ROM games and trivia.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a unique, somewhat bizarre but very entertaining movie. It isn’t for everyone since certain things may offend some viewers. I do think it is a fun movie to watch around Halloween. Fans of Tim Curry should check the movie out.

This review is part of CaptainD's Good Movies Write Off.