An odd selection of John Waters’ favourite DVDs
Ever since John Waters found fame in the underground midnight movie circuit, he has amassed legions of dedicated followers who worship every vulgar move. From depicting genuine dog-shit eating in Pink Flamingos (and plenty of other stomach-turning moments) to a ‘rosary-job’ in Multiple Maniacs, nothing is off limits in Waters’ films.
The director has always revelled in all things gross, purposefully intending to shock and disturb viewers in an attempt to challenge and disrupt the mainstream. Often centring drag queen Divine in his films, Waters allows his work to become shamelessly camp, over-the-top and joyously fun.
Thus, it is unsurprising that his taste in movies is incredibly niche and varied, championing genres such as exploitation and other forms of B-movies alongside experimental art films. Talking to NPR, he recommended a few DVDs, starting with an underground classic, Sins of the Fleshapoids. The sci-fi/comedy hybrid was made in 1965 by Mike Kuchar, and you won’t be shocked to discover that it is outrageously camp.
Discussing Kucher and his filmmaking brother, Waters said, “They started making 8mm crackpot melodramas in their mother’s Bronx apartment with kind of stolen thrift-shop costumes and soundtracks lifted from Hollywood movies, and they’re really great.”
Elsewhere, Waters recommended Wanda by Barbara Loden, a more serious pick. A groundbreaking feminist film about the plight of an isolated and abused woman, Waters called it “incredibly acted,” adding, “It’s one of the best arty feel-bad movies ever.” Starring Loden as the main character, the actor/director captured the essence of loneliness and hopelessness scarily well, and tragically, it would be her first and only directorial picture.
If you’re looking for something a bit more exciting, The Honeymoon Killers could be for you. The gritty crime drama, based on a real story, is a favourite of Waters’. In the film, Shirley Stoler plays a woman who embarks on a murder spree of “lonely hearts” alongside Tony Lo Bianco’s con-man character. Waters explained, “With the Internet dating today, this certainly could happen again.”
A fan of blaxploitation, Waters highlighted his love of Mario Van Peeble’s Baadasssss!. The son of Melvin Van Peebles, the film is a fictional documentation of the creation of his father’s movie, Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song. Waters called it a “celebration of the genre that is long gone”. Blaxploitation was popular in the 1970s, with the elder Van Peebles creating one of the genre’s most successful movies with Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song. Yet, according to the tagline of the film, it frustratingly faced censorship from “an all-white jury”.
On the topic of exploitation flicks, Waters believes them to “have almost vanished”.
He continued, “They always have violence, they always have action, and they always have some bare breasts and a little bit of nudity.” Thus, he picked James Wong’s Final Destination 3, which received lukewarm critical reception, but for Waters, that meant nothing. Gory, predictable, yet shockingly fun, Waters believes in the extremity of exploitation cinema.
John Waters’ favourite DVDs:
- Sins of the Fleshapoids (Mike Kuchar, 1965)
- Wanda (Barbara Loden, 1971)
- The Honeymoon Killers (Leonard Kastle, 1969)
- Baadasssss! (Mario Van Peebles, 2003)
- Final Destination 3 (James Wong, 2006)
- Crash (David Cronenberg, 1996)
- Head-On (Faith Akin, 2004)
- In A Glass Cage (Augustin Villaronga, 1986)
