The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert- Leah Von Ohlen
Now, all I have to say was, what even was this? This film was not only the definition of cheese, but the comedy was unfathomable. It also falls underneath the movie musical category. The movie begins with Adam Whitely, or by their drag queen name, Felicia Jollygoodfellow, performing an opening song. The other two main characters Anthony “Tick” Belrose (Mitzi Del Bra), and transgender female named who goes by the name of Bernadette Bassenger. They tour their bubbly act through the crazy Australian outback travelling on their tour bus they named “Priscilla” (therefore their adventuring tales title). It is most certainly the definition of queer. Between the drag makeup, the stereotyping, and the mannerisms the queerness is just clear and right in your face.
In the article An Examination of Gender Roles in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert by Lauren Challinor, she goes into depth and picks apart each character. What I found the most interest was how the three main characters were questioning their gender identity. When it comes to trying to figure out how you want to portray yourself, it is all about how you want to express certain aspects of your life. I believe the clearest example of this is the character of Anthony “Tick” Belrose. He is married to a woman with a young boy. He does the drag performances as a side job. Throughout the movie each person uses a gender-neutral name for him, hence being “Tick” because he is questioning his identity. Overall this film is very flamboyant and I loved the music choices being used for all their performances.
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After reading the posts of other students, it is clear of how perfect of an example this movie is of queer cinema. Many of the blogs talked of one of the main character’s, Tick. Tick is a perfect example of how identifying as queer, and trying to determine where they belong is a huge struggle. He is married with a kid and does drag and drag shows for a side job. He is constantly questioning where he belongs throughout the movie. The film itself, like I stated in my original post, is nothing but chaotic and energetic. The cheesiness aspect is also at some points somewhat unbearable. However, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is a perfect example of queer cinema.