EW's GRADE
B+

Details Rated: R; Genres: Comedy, Gay and Lesbian; With: Bill Hunter, Guy Pearce, Terence Stamp and Hugo Weaving; Distributor: Gramercy Pictures

THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT Terence Stamp, Hugo Weaving (1994, PolyGram, R, priced for rental) Some videos were never meant to be watched alone, and this brash Australian comedy about the adventures of two drag queens (Weaving and Guy Pearce) and a transsexual (Stamp) in the outback is one of them. Seen without the camaraderie of other viewers, two things become more apparent: The gay humor can be pedestrian, and the drag is often dreadful. Furthermore, its PC theme-that gays and drag queens are just like everybody else-is not exactly accurate and comes off as self-patronizing. But Stamp is wonderfully subtle as Bernadette-a triumph of less being so much more. B+ -Lawrence O'Toole

Originally posted Mar 31, 1995 Published in issue #268 Mar 31, 1995 Order article reprints
You Might Also Like

Add your comment

The rules: Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment. If you see inappropriate language, e-mail us. An asterisk * indicates a required field.

500 characters remaining
Advertisement

Today's Most Popular

  1. The Music Mix Madonna breaks silence on M.I.A.'s middle finger: 'It's such a teenager, irrelevant thing to do'
  2. Photo Gallery: Grammys 2012 Grammys 2012: Who will/should win
  3. Inside TV 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars': Darth Maul is an angry, angry Sith in new pre-'Phantom Menace' teaser -- EXCLUSIVE VIDEO
  4. Inside TV 'NCIS,' 'Once Upon a Time,' 'Fringe,' 'Vampire Diaries': Find out what's next in the Spoiler Room
  5. PopWatch This Week's Cover: 'The Vampire Diaries'stars talk about the red-hot Damon-Elena-Stefan triangle