User reviews

What unlikely trio to fall in love with, just as unlikely as the landscape. When a movie fits so well without a tag that links it to anything else in its historic film context, it can only be described as a happy accident. Premeditated for sure, but accident nonetheless. Terence Stamp, is an actor with a spectacular career. Varied and surprising. It defies description, but let me try. Peter Ustinov's "Billy Budd" William Wyler's "The Collector" Federico Fellini's "Spirit of the Dead" John Schlesinger's "Far From The Madding Crowd" Pier Paolo Pasolini's "Teorema" Joseph Losey's "Modesty Blaise" Oliver Stone's "Wall Street" Stephen Frear's "The Hit" Richard Donner's "Superman" "Steven Sodebergh's "The Limey" Am I making my point? He is an actor for all seasons, beautiful beyond belief to boot. In "The Adventures of Pricilla Queen of The Desert" he unveils another unexpected side to his considerable talents. A Woman. And what a woman, a Meryl Streep with a past and, thanks to director Stephan Elliot, with a future. Dressed by geniuses. More human than ever. He is flanked by two spectacular Aussies. Hugo Weaving (The Matrix) giving a performance of such tenderness that even my brother in law, a homophobic macho man of the first order,loved him. And Guy Pearce (L A Confidential) He is such a beautiful,sexy, funny girl that made me long for a her/he all to myself. Some other monstrously cloned movies were rushed into production trying to capitalize on the success of Pricilla. They all failed miserably and rightly so. Frank Capra, accepting his AFI Lifetime Achievement Award sent a profound and heartfelt advise to young filmmakers. "Don't follow trends, start new ones" Well done Mr Elliot. Well done.

1994 proved to be rather a good year for Australian movies, with both this and MURIEL'S WEDDING delighting international audiences with their cheeky over-the-top humour, panache, pathos, winning performances, and fun soundtracks. Both, of course, heavily featured the music of ABBA (Australia has long had a particular love-affair with the Scandinavian quartet - it was probably no coincidence that it was decided to shoot the group's own feature, ABBA: THE MOVIE, during the Australian leg of their 1977 world concert tour). In MURIEL'S WEDDING the band's music is perhaps treated with more reverence and respect - Muriel Heslop is, after all, a huge fan, and the film itself is of a far more serious, distinctly black nature. PRISCILLA, on the other hand, constantly revels in its own bitchiness and catty humour, and has countless memorable, and in many cases unprintable, lines of dialogue, including stabs at the supergroup - "I've said it once and I'll say it again - no more f***ing ABBA"; "What are you telling me - this is an ABBA turd?" Of course ABBA is merely one of MANY verbal targets for the film's three main protagonists, but far from this alienating us from any of them, we cannot help but be swept along by the sheer garish joy of the entire venture.

The basic plot focuses on recently bereaved transsexual Bernadette (a magnificent, hardly recognizable Terence Stamp), who teams up with two younger drag artistes, sensitive Tick/Mitzi (Hugo Weaving) and screaming queen Adam/Felicia (Guy Pearce), so that they can travel half-way across Australia on board an all but dilapidated bus named "Priscilla", in order to perform a cabaret act at a remote casino run by an ex-partner of Tick's, soon revealed to be, horror of horrors, a WOMAN! Along the way they encounter all sorts of absurd situations and individuals almost as strange and unconventional as they themselves are, whilst Bernadette, against her better judgement, falls for gruff mechanic Bob (Bill Hunter, who also features in MURIEL'S WEDDING) that they pick up en route, and in so doing he loses his "mail-order" bride Cynthia (Julia Cortez), who in one especially memorable scene does things with ping-pong balls you just don't want to imagine!

The performances are really the thing here - Terence Stamp (who won numerous accolades for his cast-against-type labours) is amazing and totally credible as the quietly dignified transsexual, and it is hard to believe that Weaving and (especially) Pearce have not worked as flamboyant, lip-synching drag queens all their professional lives! The gaudy, outrageous costumes won a well-deserved Oscar, and the photography of the barren, surreal landscape is also masterful, as is Stephan Elliott's creative direction and hilarious, ultimately poignant script. The soundtrack may not be to everyone's taste, but it has enough camp classics to satisfy anyone yearning to relive the tacky heyday of the '70s - including ABBA's "Mamma Mia", the Village People's "Go West", and Gloria Gaynor's superb "I Will Survive", given a gloriously inventive rendition to a bunch of appreciative aboriginals, with one of their number joining in most enthusiastically.

A true kitsch classic, then - well worth re-visiting, again and again ... and again.

When few countries were pushing the boundaries of the LGBTIQ community this beautiful movie tested the waters. It made Australia grow up in an era when economically everyone wanted to go back to a more comfortable time. It came out around the same time as Muriel's Wedding which is equally about a run down family of characters who are better when they come together. This movie is a prime example of Australian cinema.

A relatively low budget Australian film about drag queens took the world by storm, almost caused a riot at the Cannes film festival and drove a million young queens to the dressing up box in the hunt for sequins, sparkles and pink flip-flops! The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of The Desert gave us such classic lines as, "Just what this country needs, another cock in a frock on a rock!" and "Listen here you mullet, why don't you just light your tampon and blow your box apart, it's the only bang you're ever going to get, sweetheart"

It is without exception the best and arguably the most successful drag queen movie of all time, breaking box office records and capturing the top of the charts in numerous countries around the world. It was an Academy award winning extravaganza of glitter, glam and lip-syncing with the most outrageously camp costumes the world had seen outside Madame JoJo's or Funny Girls! Uproariously funny and yet deeply affecting it proved to be way more than just a camp outing of tried and tested queer humour.

The late eighties was a bit of a coming of age time for Australia's gay population, especially Sydney, it really came alive and blossomed into one of the bigger gay populations in the world. Australia has a reputation for all the big butch manly men, which considering how the modern nation of Australia started, would seem pretty accurate, only it's not, it's completely different, ever so much more vibrant and colourful. It is that vibrancy, that colour and that hopefulness that is so perfectly depicted in Priscilla.

Stephen Elliott, the director and writer, who incidentally has a small cameo in the movie as a cute door boy in Alice, says he saw drag shows in other places, like the US and England, which were essentially men in dresses lip-syncing to other peoples songs. In Australia they did the same, but took it in a completely new direction, it became a completely new strange variety of theatre, so much so that he even used to go to drag queen jelly wrestling, pushing the envelope to the maximum. It was this experience along with watching a drunken drag queen at the Sydney gay Mardi Gras, which gave birth to the movie idea, which took hardly any time at all to write.

From the very opening you know this film has deep rooted soul, first shots of Hugo as Mitzi mouthing the words to the poignant Charlene song, 'I've been to paradise, but I've never been to me' give the impression of an emotively sad song, yet this is so rapidly defused by the appearance of a lethargic priest and Felicia nursing a baby rubber chicken. You have left in no doubt after that that is no ordinary Australian movie and the jokes and gags just tumble on from there in rapid succession. However it's not all giggles, there are some key moments of high emotion - seeing the graffiti sprayed on the side of the bus in pink paint the morning after shocks the trio along with the audience and strikes a chord with those of old enough to have lived through a time of such prejudice and discrimination and how true those word seem when they ring in our ears, that no matter how tough we think we are, such things still hurt.

There are deeply moving scenes, such as the gay bashing of Felicia and the confrontation between Mitzi and his son in Alice, which really seem seep through the comedy to dance in your heart and make you fall in love with the film.  One of the key aspects of the movie is the superb casting; Terrence Stamp previously typecast as your typical British villain, took a risk on the role of Bernadette and knocked it out of the water in a downbeat, down trodden put upon yet completely resilient way. Hugo Weaving is the less visually striking member of the trio and the central character of Mitzi, who really is the lynch pin between the two worlds. The role of Felecia is taken by the simply stunning Guy Pearce who had literally just left long running soap Neighbours, in which he played goodie two shoes Mike and was an inspired choice and oh so pretty. Guy's superb performance takes the movie to new heights and is so good that the he has had trouble-convincing people he is actually straight in real life, even to this day. Bill Hunter a massive Australian character actor shines outstandingly as the gruff and butch Bob, the mechanic and unlikely love interest for one of the three.

Priscilla is a beautiful magical combination of humour, catty bitchiness, kitsch costumes, stunning disco soundtrack and subtle sentiment with provocative thoughtful scenes and a delicate brush of honesty. Some jokes are obvious so too is the stereotypical veneer of the characters upon first glance, yet look a little deep as the film rolls on, you see more and more layers being unpeeled and exposed in a gently moving and comical way. It is one of the most enjoyable gay movies of all time; each subsequent viewing cements that sentiment further into fact. Read more and find out where this film made it in the Top 50 Most Influential Gay Movies of All Time book, search on Amazon for Top 50 Most Influential Gay Movies of All Time, or visit - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007FU7HPO

All three leading ladies and their performances are outstanding. The story is very amusing, quite often hilarious but also grounded with the prejudices they encounter on their journey. If you need something to put a smile on your face, to put in perspective your own dilemmas, to distract you from the humdrum of daily life, then jump on Priscilla and let the girls keep you thoroughly entertained.

This is a great movie! Not only are the actors wonderful but the dialogue keeps you watching the movie over and over again because you missed a great line the last time! The musical numbers are worth watching alone, but combined with the story and all the sub-plots and the funniest lines I have heard in a long time (The ABBA turd convo cracks me up every time), this is a movie to buy and watch over and over when you need to be entertained as well as dazzled!!!!!!!

When I first saw this film in my adolescence I have to admit I wasn't a very big fan. I found it to be depressing and a bit droll. After revisiting it so many years later I have a slightly better opinion of it. Looking at it with different eyes I appreciate aspects of it that I didn't before. If you haven't seen this queer classic it tells the story of a single gay dad who hasn't seen his son in ages and gets contracted by his former wife to do a drag show at a resort in the middle of the desert. The man is surprisingly Hugo Weaving of the Matrix films and he brings along his two friends. An aging transvestite whose just lost her lover played by a solid Terence Stamp and a flirty, young, charasmatic drag queen played by a surprisingly engaging and sexy Guy Pearce of Memento. The film tracks their journey across the desert and all the mishaps that go along with it. In the end I definitely enjoyed it more but it left me wanting a bit more character and story development. That being said it's still a wild, fun stylish ride with a great soundtrack.

Budget: $2M Box Office: $29.7M

7/10

...and I don't say "great" lightly. This isn't merely some tired road comedy in drag, it's a fun, at times surprisingly moving story.

Part of my immense surprise comes because I'd never really understood the appeal of drag shows. While I'm not sure I'm any bigger a fan, I definitely found myself drawn into the little universe created here.

The central characters are real people who manage to play to stereotypes without succumbing to them. I was frankly amazed by Terence Stamp, an actor who has made a career playing dangerous, macho types, and made a surprisingly compelling and believable ageing transsexual. The novelty quickly wore off; it was one of those rare performances that was just totally without affect. Honestly, one of the best performances I've ever seen.

Fun, as I expected, but there's a genuine affection and depth here. A very pleasant surprise.

While I wasn't crazy about the movie, I could still really appreciate it for everything it did- and the way it handled its themes.

Seems that it are mostly the persons who can't handle the movie its themes are the ones who don't like this movie. A movie about cross-dressing homosexuals just clearly isn't everybody's cup of tea. But the homosexual aspects of the movie really wasn't to me what the movie was all about really. I saw it more as an ode to all of the free-spirited and open-minded people of this world. People who are simply doing their thing because they like it and feel comfortable that way, no matter what everybody else says or thinks about it and those who respect people for being 'different' and not living by the normal rules and standards. It's all what makes our world even more divers and also more of a joy to live on.

And that's really the foremost thing I got out of this movie. The story itself seems to be secondary, since it's a quite simple one and can be seen as a typical road trip movie, in which the main characters come across all kinds of persons, get into trouble, while traveling through Australia. And as far as road trip movies go; this isn't the best example of it that I have ever seen. You feel that with some better writing the movie could had been a bit more fun and clever and witty to watch.

One thing I also wasn't too fond about was its pacing. It's often going way to fast, which causes some things to not develop- or make an impact properly enough. You could perhaps 'blame' it on the fact that this is of course different from a normal Hollywood movie, since it's of course an Australian production, that uses a completely different approach and way of storytelling. I often have similar sort of problems with other Australian movies, so perhaps it's fair to say that I'm just not the biggest fan of Australian cinema.

But still another thing that I can highly respect and appreciate this movie for is its acting, or rather said the courage and professionalism that the actor's show in this movie. The three main leads, who are all in drag throughout basically the entire movie, are being played by Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce and Terence Stamp. All three very manly and tough looking men in real life, who also have families of their own and clearly aren't homosexual. Yet they have absolutely no problem with it to show themselves from a more vulnerable side and also aren't afraid to walk, talk and act like as if they are actual females. I really respect it when an actor does this and plays a character that is totally the opposite of who he or she is. You could of course question it though if Guy Pearce and Hugo Weaving would had still agreed on their roles if they had been the well known and much acclaimed actors that they are today. Not that they now would complain about this movie though, since it was the one that put them in the international spotlights and they have appeared in many big Hollywood projects ever since. The haven't forgot about their home country though, since every now and then they still appear in an Australian production. It was also refreshing by the way to hear them speak in their natural accents but it's arguably still Terence Stamp who steals the show, as the elder, once very successful drag queen, with still the very deep and distinctive Terence Stamp voice.

So ultimately not a perfect movie, that I could still really enjoy and appreciate for the way it was handling and celebrating its themes.

7/10

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This movie made laugh and does so every time I see it again. Perhaps it won't go down in history as a timeless classic is does deserve it so much. The original premise is a weird one, about transsexuals traveling through the desert of Australia. The sense of humor is very wicked and thank God for small favors not restrained to Hollywood standards. And I've never watched a game of table tennis without a smallish grin on my face which has little to do with the game in it self.

The actors are great an absolute anti choice in the matters of typecasting . The scenery of the movie is great, the bus in the desert are two extra players that give this movie an extra beaut. The extra castmembers are great and unforgettable. Ever since when I watch an episode of Flying Doctors or things in his sort I wonder about the nutty folks out there. the costumes are great and gobsmacking, they perform very well in the musical numbers.

I showed this to my mum, after the initial shock she was very amused and agreed with me that it was a very funny movie.

I will watch this movie a lot in the future, why?? It keeps me laughing every time.

Although this movie got a lot of good criticism when it was first released, I never watched it until now. I always thought that this wasn't a movie for me. I'm a straight guy and I was convinced that I didn't want to see weird men dressing up in women's clothes, play-backing seventies hits from ABBA or other groups. That's why I never rented it, but when it was shown on television, I decided to give it a try anyway. I could always switch it off if it was too terrible. But I didn't, I kept watching it until the end.

The story that is told in "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" brings us to two drag-queens and a transsexual who will go to a resort in Alice Springs, a town in the middle of the Australian desert, to perform a drag show. As they travel from Sydney to Alice Springs, they encounter all kinds of people, but are almost always the subject of misunderstanding and hate, because the locals don't always understand or like the way these three men act. When the engine of Priscilla, that's how they called their bus, breaks down in the middle of the desert, they paint it lavender, waiting for help to come. Then they meet Bob who takes them for what they are and who fixes the problem with their bus. He travels on with them, protecting them for more problems...

If you are looking for a not so average comedy, then you definitely should give this movie a try. A road movie about two drag queens and a transvestite isn't exactly something that you'll find every day, let alone a good one. And I admit that I started feeling completely different about this movie once I was seeing it. OK, it may not always be perfect and sometimes it is completely over-the-top, but it also offers some excellent laughs. And seeing Guy Pearce, Hugo Weaving and Terence Stamp in this kind of roles is already great fun on itself. Normally you wouldn't expect them in such a role, but they did a very fine job.

All in all I guess you have to be incredibly homophobic to hate this movie. I'm not saying that it's my favorite comedy of all times, but the story, the acting, the humor,... made it all worth watching. I give this movie a 7/10.

Two drag queens (Guy Pearce as bitchy Felicia, and Hugo Weaving as Mitzi) and a transsexual (Terence Stamp, marvellous as the widowed Bernadette) make a trip to Alice Springs in a pink bus called Priscilla.

Cue a soundtrack of mostly Abba songs (plus an off-the-cuff 'I Will Survive', and C E Peniston's 'Finally' - a great set-piece) and three towering performances. From the initial hilarious premise we follow the trio through the Australian desert and meet the various inhabitants of places they pass through. It remains fast-paced and touching within the comedy. Wonderful.

Seeing a cult film in a cultish setting with a fan audience (in this case, a cinema tent at a festival) is a fine way to see the cracks in Priscilla melt away and the charm take over totally. It's deeply problematic but also vibrantly shot and with some real show stopper moments. Certainly large chunks of it belong in the past, but despite how well-trodden the cult has become in the decades since it still has the capacity to shock and subvert. It's welded now into a memorable viewing experience anyway, and whatever else time does to it, it'll always have that for me.

This is one of those inoffensive and mildly entertaining little movies that strive to make you to like them more. But like so many others, it's material isn't strong enough to successfully fill a couple of hours.

The pitch is promising: three drag queens drive a bus through the Outback from Sydney to Alice Springs. They run into lots of trouble - with homophobic locals, with the engine, with their pasts.

The real trouble is with the dialogue. The leads are fine (though Pearce's continual campness becomes tiresome), but the one-liners and epithets feel forced where they should be casually thrown away. Characters shouldn't laugh at their own gags.

Writer/director Elliott also feels the need to pile on the pleasingly incongruous shots of flamboyant drag costumes against stark desert backgrounds like so much cheap make-up. For a movie about self-confidence and just being yourself, it all seems very insecure with itself.

...and that's a GOOD thing. Basically, before I truly became aware of "Priscilla", I had only thought of its three central actors as just regular, boring guys who were fine enough at acting, but really weren't anything special. Wrong. I had heard about this mysterious movie once or twice, but had no idea who was in it, nor what it was about (beyond the rather vague concept of drag queens/transvestites), and when I decided to read more about it, and find out who was in the cast - SURPRISE! Guy Pearce (of whom I had had a bad first impression when I discovered him in that travesty "The Time Machine"), Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith himself!!!), and Terence Stamp (whom I don't think I ever saw in any films, but whom I still knew a fair bit about)! How genius is that? I had to see this to believe it, and when I did, I was not let down! Beautiful scenes, costumes, dialogue and music made this probably one of the most interesting and memorable movie experiences of my life! I wasn't the least bit uptight about it (as some people were turned off by the flamboyant behaviour and distasteful jokes, which I found refreshingly great!), and delighted in the campy antics of this fantastic trio! It's a beautiful, feel-good comedy that I recommend to anyone with a catty sense of humour (and a VERY open mind).

A truly fabulous film.

It brought a huge smile to my face; it is fun and funny and quite moving. Misfits maybe, but just people with a real sense of self, which is more than most in the world.

It is a road trip full of, yes, adventures.

Obviously loved the music,costumes and stage performances.

Three of my favourite actors, doing a fantastic job on this film.

Bernadette is the solid one; Terence Stamp portrays her as sad, a little brow beaten, but dignified.

Felicia (Guy Pearce) is young and brash and more than full of life.

Mitzi (Hugo Weaving) is kind hearted, hopeful and has a past which we discover along the way.

Together, they are a force to be reckoned with.

This is a film that every straight person should see. The screenwriter created three drags queens from the cloth of everyday life — an older person (who happens to be transgendered), an average guy next door and a pretty muscle boy. You can say that this film is about "the great reach of little lives" (a comment originally applied by Donald Spoto to Tennesee Williams' "The Glass Menagerie.") We also see, in Anthony Bellerose's story, that sexuality is not a cut-and-dried affair. Underneath it all, we see that these people aren't much different from those we meet ion our daily lives. A screening of "Priscilla" would do more good than a hundred lectures to high school kids on the acceptance of diversity.

Oh how I adore this film ! I found it to be enchanting & inspiring. This film is sooo special to me, I took my boyfriend Jun to see it & I must say that we hardly kissed at all as this wonderful piece of cinema was far too absorbing to take your eyes off the screen, not even for one of Juns sexy smooches.

The costumes were the highlight, I was in awe of their delicious boldness & I continue, even to this day, to be inspired by this movies wardrobe ( or should I say 'closet' - tee hee ).

On the man candy side, I couldn't get enough of Guy Pearce & his cheeky pout - what a saucy monkey. The other actors were equally good, but they lacked the hot cheekbones & bulging muscles of the gifted Guy Pearce.

I would recommend this film to any man, gay or otherwise, as it is truly remarkable. Though, like me, you would probably better relate to the subject matter if you were a proud & fierce cross dressing queen.

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is a fantastic movie with a very well developed plot and an outstanding cast. It is a really funny film, as we follow a group of drag queens lip syncing to famous pop songs while journeying across Australia. However, it is also has a very meaningful, heartfelt message, as it embraces the idea of doing what makes you happy, whether people like it or not, cause it is your life and you choose how you live it.

The only issue I really had is that I felt we did not get to learn enough about the three main characters before they begin their journey. Very little is actually said about their past or personal life, which would have helped us connect with them more before their adventure begins.

The three leads are stellar, it was a huge risk on all of their careers, as straight actors, to be taking on these roles, and they could not have performed them with more liveliness. Terence Stamp keeps a serious demeanour throughout, Hugo Weaving's characterisation is fantastic, while Guy Pearce's wild and energetic personality is the highlight of the film for me.

There is nothing quite like it, big fun with big heart. Sweet, funny and meaningful, I would recommend The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert to anyone looking for a good comedy.

A trio of drag queens journey across Australia to perform their unique act.

Best Performance: Guy Pearce

Most people use the word "unique" in an off-handed and lazy manner, applying the word to anything that is a little bit unusual but not downright original. Well, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is truly unique in every sense of the word.

What is more unique, I ask, than two drag performers and a transgender woman journeying through the Australian Outback in a camper van during the mid 90s? I've never seen anything similar. Not even remotely.

Priscilla is a journey into the lives of drag performers at a time when being such was a risky pursuit. It is a dangerous job that could mean serious injury if one is not careful. There was a lot of stigma attached to being a drag queen, let alone a transgendered woman in that era. One had to be careful about where and when they held shows and who they allowed in their viscinity.

This movie's greatest gift is that it shines a light on drag and transgenderism, bringing a humanity to these stigmatized identities at a time when it was sorely needed. There are tons of heartfelt moments here, such as when they are inducted into the tribe of natives and put on a show that lasts through the night. It is such a display of warmth and acceptance that was truly beautiful and moving. Another powerful moment is when they enter a bar and are immediately told to leave, only to change everyone's mind and create a more fun and lively atmosphere than probably existed ever before.

It's not just a film about increasing LGBTQ+ visibility though. It's downright fun and we are witness to all of the crazy antics that go on in such a troupe. Bernadette is a master at disarming ill-intentioned people who wish to bring harm to her and her allies. She is like the matriach of the troupe.

Each character feels fully fleshed out and deeply human. We come to feel deep care for each of their journeys to where they are now through flashbacks to pivotal moments in their lives.

The use of colourful costumes amongst the sparse, desolation of the Australian Outback was a very good choice. The juxtaposition of these elements creates vivid and impactful visuals. Indeed, those barren lands seem like an ideal place to live out one's deepest drag fantasies.

The Australian banter was difficult for me to completely integrate into my own cultural understanding (Canadian) but it doesn't really matter because the underlying message came through quite clearly: that the LGBTQ movement is not just a bunch of clowns to jeer at from the sidelines, but people that are fully human and deserve just as much love and acceptance as anyone else.

It's truly a gem of a movie and surely a required viewing for the LGBTQ community. It can teach us a lot about not only performers, but about ourselves and it can powerfully alter our perceptions in a more inclusive direction.

This is a visually interesting and attractively well-designed movie. The clothes in particular are really inventive and fun and the Australian desert makes for some intriguing and disparate vistas and backgrounds, particularly for the dance routine at the Aborigine camp. Some of the set pieces, however, cannot be considered realistic and it is clear that they are merely moving the plot progress or creating a situation in order to provide an excuse for plot development. It should have been more organic and natural.

Finally, I gave it an above average review because the performances were so strong; it was totally believable that Guy Pierce and Hugo Weaving were both not only gay men and serious drag queens, but talented drag queens at that, no easy task indeed.