User reviews

I watched this as someone who knows and loves the styles of movie-making and acting that Busch and company are spoofing. Even so, I occasionally found the script it a little draggy, the photography a little dark and blocking a little static, but only occasionally. When it did work, which in my opinion was most of the time, it did so delightfully. Totally unpretentious, it doesn't make itself out to be anything other than it is. I give it an 8.

"Die, Mommie, Die" is a campy parody of the "woman's picture". Mostly a sendup of Joan Crawford but includes things from other movie queens by the new movie "queen". If you have not seen many of these films, you won't get a lot of the humor, including the over-complicated plot, special lighting, clothes, facial expressions, poses, names, etc. There is nudity, sexual material, vulgar language, etc. It is a hoot for adult audiences.

GRADE = "B"

Charles Busch is a female impersonator who writes and stars in genre parodies. His last filmed effort was Psycho Beach Party. This latest effort, Die Mommie Die, is a parody of the drama queen melodramas of the 50s and 60s, in which actresses like Susan Hayward schemed and

seduced callously, and encountered crises which were not only larger than their real-life counterparts, but also arrived with far greater frequency.

The genre died out of the film world before most of you were born, but it left behind a legacy of nighttime soap operas like Dynasty, so if you can remember Joan Collins on the small screen, you'll have a good idea of the equivalent big screen target Busch is focusing on.

Busch is a talented guy, whom you may remember from his portrayal of Nat Ginsberg on Oz. I don't know if it's even correct to call him a female impersonator. He is a male who plays certain types of female roles convincingly. His characterization in this film is so convincing that you'll forget he is a male, and his writing shows a real gift for walking the line between lampoon and homage.

Busch and director Mark Rucker got the actors to deliver all their outrageous lines in a consistently theatrical and obviously insincere style to match Busch's own. I thought Jason Priestly was especially funny as a bisexual gigolo. The entire film plays out as if everyone in the cast knows he or she is in a high camp entertainment, and wants the audience to know that they know.

I laughed a lot, to tell you the truth. I suppose drag queen movies may not be what most of you are looking for. Me neither. But the fact of the matter is that Busch can probably evoke the actresses of that era better than any contemporary female I can name. Hell, When I was a kid I always wondered if Bette Davis and Joan Crawford were really middle aged men in wigs, so who better to portray them than a 48 year old man in a wig?

Busch is making fun of the melodrama queens, but he also has a gift for witty dialogue and a genuine regard for the subject matter which makes this an entertaining confection about part of filmdom's barely-remembered past.

Very humorous, always campy tale of aging star whose parade has long since skipped off down the road. (Yes, shades of SUNSET BOULEVARD, to be sure). Charles Busch brings his stage drama/comedy/what have you to the big screen, and it's a pretty enjoyable romp, at that. Throw in some great performances by Jason Priestley, in his stingy brim hat, shorts and occasional penny loafers; looking like a rich Tab Hunter, or a poor Peter Lawford, you choose, between snickers. Philip Baker Hall (a great dramatic actor, with a superb nose for comedy), is a standout. Natasha Lyonne as Edith, the daughter and Stark Sands as the sexually confused (or is HE?) son, and you've got the makings for some nostalgic, and yet irreverent fun. Frances Conroy is also a standout for her folksy, Southern, religious demeanor, as the maid, Bootsy. Without ruining it for you, essentially DIE, MOMMIE, DIE! is a tip of the hat to the late sixties movies where happy mom's were popping valium, terms like "baby" punctuated every third word in a sentence, and the thought of having a gigolo on the side didn't seem so remote. Of course, this doesn't take place in Nebraska, naturally it's Tinseltown. People there were so desperate to be hip (have times changed too much? Hmmmm.) and nobody dared to be square. You'll find others nods, winks and tips of the hat throughout, if you're a film buff, and if not, you'll still have a great time. Busch, who wrote the original stage play and this screenplay, stars in the lead, and does it with relish. This is a labor of love, and it shows. An enjoyable little indie, indeed. Recommended.

A campy spoof of 60's women's melodramas, "Die Mommie Die!" is about a washed-up singer named Angela Arden (played to great effect by drag queen Charles Busch) who murders her repugnant, controlling husband (Philip Baker Hall) by slipping him a poisonous suppository (yes, a poisonous suppository).

The plot thickens (or sickens) from there, with Natasha Lyonne and Stark Sands playing her suspicious, plotting teenage children and Jason Priestley having a great time playing Susan's "gigolo" boyfriend who has hidden motives. Also on hand is Frances Conroy from "Six Feet Under" as nosey maid Bootsie Carp.

Being a spoof of 60's B-movies, of course everyone hams it up, acting horribly and reciting the ludicrous dialogue as flatly as humanly possible. Very, very John Waters, and since John Waters hasn't made a really good movie in several years, that's fine with me.

"Die Mommie Die!" is as much fun as the title suggests for about half an hour, but unfortunately after that it's pretty much an equal quotient of hits and misses. Which means a LOT of hits, but also a LOT of misses, which gets tiring.

Worth checking out for Busch's and Priestley's entertaining performances and if you have a fondness for cheeseball B-movies, but even though there are a lot of laughs, the whole thing doesn't really hang together that well.

Why am I taking the time to review this movie? Because I loved it, practically every minute of it. Even now, I'm thinking about renting it again because this is the type of movie that you don't easily forget.

The plot of Die, Mommie, Die is straightforward: a washed-up singer is trapped in a bad marriage to a movie mogul who really doesn't love her. She decides to kill him so she can have a life and a real lover. That pretty much sums up the general plot.

The only criticism I have of this movie is that it should have tried to incorporate more songs, such as was done in the great Julie Andrews hit, "Victor Victoria". The one song in Die, Mommie, Die, "Why Not Me?" is repeated in several flashbacks. I don't know if the song is original, but it was perfect for this movie, and I wished there were more songs like this because it would have been a great soundtrack to buy.

This not a movie that would appeal only appeal to a small part of the movie-going public, but rather a great, campy movie that is full of fun. Perhaps the best compliment I can give this movie is that I wish I had seen it on the big screen. It would be well worth the $9.

Addendum: Almost four years have gone by since I reviewed this movie, but I have no indication if anyone has ever read this. So, if you stopped by, please leave your thumbs up or thumbs down.

Charles Busch, the humongous talented writer and performer of the brilliant theatrical spoofs "Vampires Lesbians of Sodom", "Shanghai Moon", "Red Scare on Sunset", "The Tale of the Allergist's Wife", among others, makes an enormous contribution with his screen treatment of the material he created for this film. Under the direction of Mark Rucker, Mr. Busch clearly demonstrates why he is a man ahead of his times.

Charles Ludlum, Everett Quinton and Charles Busch, were the ones responsible for the plays that made them icons of the Off and Off-Off-Broadway theater. These men transformed themselves into the larger than life women they wrote about, most taken from the movies they all adored. Those screen goddesses clearly received a lovely tribute from these performers. Charles Busch, perhaps, was the most visible of those early drag dramas. With his enormous success in "Vampire Lesbians of Sodom", Mr. Busch conquered a great New York audience as this play proved. The rest is history.

With "Die, Mommie, Die", Mr. Busch seems to be a reincarnation of a younger and sexier Joan Crawford, a woman that is revered by the author. This is a film that "borrows" from those women pictures where everything is larger than life. Those were films where outrageous things were done by the leading actress. There are elements of several of Ms. Crawford's movies, but one can still see influences of Barbara Stanwyck, Gloria Swanson, Bette Davis and others.

"Die, Mommie, Die" is camp of the highest order. Charles Busch plays the twin sisters Angela and Barbara Arden. These women are yin and yang in the Busch lexicon. In addition for looming large over the material, Mr. Busch's own take on the characters are never tacky, or obnoxious. As in all of Mr. Busch's plays, there is so much style that some of the studios would probably benefit from this man's talent in the fashion department. Mr. Busch has an impeccable taste as shown in all his appearances.

Of course, this is a film to enjoy because of the extreme situations that only a Charles Busch can conceive. The dialog is fast and it is witty beyond words. For people not exposed to Mr. Busch's brand of humor, it might take a while to realize this is a unique voice in this type of film genre.

The supporting cast, Jason Priestley, Natasha Lyonne, Philip Baker Hall, Stark Sands, and Frances Conroy, back up the star, Mr. Busch, and they make the film a lot of fun to watch.

I had been looking forward to seeing "Die Mommie Die". Everything about it bodes well for a great time at the movies. The title is filled with campy promise, the casting fairly intriguing and the reviews pretty favorable too.

But despite all this, "Die Mommie Die" is not only remarkably flat and unfunny, it's actually boring.

While Charles Busch may be a truly talented stage performer, his on screen presence is surprisingly bland, not what one would expect from a reputable drag queen. It's rare for parody to be able to sustain itself for the entire length of a movie; but this one barely gets off the ground.

Beautiful, glamorous, fading singer Angela Arden (Charles Busch) is miserable. Her horrible husband is making life hell; her daughter Edith (Natasha Lyonne) loves daddy--too much; her son Lance (Stark Sands) is gay and into drugs; her lover Tony Parker (Jason Priestley) is sleeping with her and Edith and Lance....Angela suffers exquisitely.

A parody and a loving remake of the womens pictures made from the 40s up to the 60s. Busch (a man in drag) looks perfect and suffers constantly; the settings are beautiful; the dialogue high camp; everybody and everything looks picture pretty...even the flashes of (male) nudity and sleazier aspects are handled in a very "pretty" fashion. Also it includes some hilariously obvious back screening. This works beautifully because the whole cast plays it straight--there's no winking at the camera or overacting. Busch is just great in his role--he evokes Susan Hayward and Joan Crawford at their best. Lyonne and Sands are having a fun time as her seriously disturbed children--especially Sands. And who ever though Priestley could be such a great actor. He plays everything straight-faced beautifully. Also there are a TON of film references for film buffs.

My only complaint--and this is minor--is the color isn't as bright and strong as it should be. It seems kind of washed out.

That aside this is really a great film. A must for gay men and film buffs.

Former pop singer, now living in Los Angeles in the 1960s, is suspiciously defensive over memories of her now-deceased twin sister; she wages a series of battles with her estranged husband, hateful daughter, gay son, tippling maid and an overly-curious gigolo while bodies start piling up. Self-conscious, self-reverential camp comedy, based on the kind of play that brings down the house in hip urban dives, has its tongue too far in cheek. Playwright and star Charles Busch, a built-like-a-brick diva, gives himself the juiciest lines but doesn't seem to realize the funniest movies in the camp-genre are ones which don't realize just how over-the-top they are (camp, per se, is best served accidentally). This piece does have some very funny lines (such as Busch's Bette Davis-like "I'm clearin' out the deadwood!"), a great acid-trip sequence, but a reedy murder-mystery plot with a severe case of "Dead Ringer"-itis. **1/2 from ****

Reviewers who complain that Charles Busch is not believable as a woman - comparing him unfavorably with Divine, et al - miss the point. Busch is in a class all his own, and comparing him to ANYBODY else limits the viewer's ability to enjoy what he offers.

He's not SUPPOSED to be a believable woman. He's like a precocious kid who loves to dress up and act like glamorous movie stars from the long-gone days when EVERYBODY overacted, when ALL stars were hams, before Marlon Brando changed the nature of screen acting forever.

Unless you can enter Busch's unique world on HIS terms, you won't like his movies. He's letting us watch him act out his glamorous fantasies, the same delightful fantasies he's been acting out since he was a child.

He's not a drag queen, he's not a female impersonator, he's not a cross-dresser or a transvestite. He is a MAN - but with the sweet, innocent, wide-eyed, starstruck heart of a little boy - who has a whole lot of fun dressing up like and acting like Bette Davis or Joan Crawford or Olivia de Havilland. He invites us to join in the game.

It's fun, unless you're trying to fit it into some mold it doesn't belong in.

Die, Mommie, Die! is either camp, or satire, or a satire of camp, it's difficult to tell. And there lies the problem with the movie. It's a takeoff of the sort of Joan Crawford/Bette Davis movies from both their 1940's heyday and the hagbag pictures of the 60's. The range seems to cover the whole lifespan of their careers. It's about a washed-up singer/actress played by a man, Charles Busch, in female regalia, named Angela Arden (The character is aptly named. Busch, in drag, strongly resembles Eve Arden. If only he had her comic timing and delivery, the performance would have been a tour-de-force instead of just a good female impersonation), whose affair with a young gigolo (Jason Priestley) is interrupted by the arrival of her producer-husband (Philip Baker-Hall), from a Madrid vacation, who proceeds to take firm control of his home and marriage, driving Angela to contemplate murder.

From there, the plot twists into a series of murders, potential murders, sexual crises, and identity crises. It's funny in places, and has some truly unique comic turns (Angela trying to dispose of her husband with a poisoned suppository is gleefully tasteless, and a secret language spoken by Angela and her son that her husband and daughter can't tap into is a beauty - replete with subtitles, no less). But it tends to lose its place in its own chronology; eras are confused, and we can't make sense of things - the humor doesn't match the genre it's lampooning. The story is supposed to take place in the psychedelic 60's, but at the beginning, we can't place it. When Angela's son tells her he left school because a student demonstration shut the school down, it seems an anachronistic joke. There's nothing to indicate a 60's dressing-down by the kids - they just dress like spoiled Hollywood rich kids. Natasha Lyonne, as Angela's daughter, is clothed like the TV Patty Duke. And while Angela and her husband seem locked in 1940's wardrobe time warp (we suspect that's part of the joke; these people are washed-up in Hollywood because they can't get out of 1949), Angela's slick young gigolo is also dressed in 40's garb, a la Bing Crosby.

Busch is really the center of the movie, though. Oddly enough, he manages to be believable in character without being believable as a woman (he gives himself away when he speaks, his tones in the lower register are clearly that of a man, not a deep-chested woman). He gives Angela a flighty, tawdry charm; we sympathize with him/her when Baker-Hall lays down the law and ends all her fun. Angela is made promiscuous without being trashy; she has style, and one can understand how she must have been appealing in her halcyon days of performing. In the musical number performed by Angela, "Why Not Me?", Busch gives Angela her glory, she looks like a star, radiant and engagingly naughty, Busch suggests Bette Midler in the routine. The dubbed-in vocal doesn't quite work, though, it's too tepid; it should have been more ebullient, boisterous, rousing. Baker-Hall is great playing the synthesis of all the Sam Spiegels and Dore Scharies, he's a robust outcast, a wash-up who still has the imagined clout to throw his weight around at home. The only performance that feels wrong is Priestley's; he's too broad, his line readings too self-conscious. The others are playing camp, he's satirizing it, like an actor employed by Mad Magazine. He gave a more creditable performance as the teen heartthrob in Love and Death on Long Island, maybe that's all he'll ever be. He doesn't have the sophistication to play a gigolo, he lacks a richness and a physical imposition. He's too boy-next-door, even with bags under his eyes that are making him look like Fred Allen.

Die, Mommie, Die! does have some good laughs in it, and the performances, especially Busch's and Baker-Hall's, are really a kick. It doesn't quite capture the Crawford/Davis oeuvre too well, though. That province still belongs to the real stars.

I can't say enough wonderful things about DIE MOMMIE DIE. It's the funniest and most entertaining movie I've seen this year. Charles Busch is hysterically funny. And he's a wise and generous actor who lets the rest of the cast shine along with him. Everyone else -- particularly Natasha Lyonne, Jason Priestly, and Frances Conroy -- is great -- and obviously having a lot of fun with the story's loopy, inspired twists and turns. Director Mark Rucker has done a fantastic job with this material; it's a very impressive and knowing debut. And, of course, the production design and costumes are outstanding!

While this is a giddy, spot-on parody of the melodramas we all know and love, you don't have to know all the references to enjoy this movie. It's strong enough to stand on its own. I saw it at a recent film festival -- and it put me in the BEST mood. I can't wait to see it again -- and bring my friends.

First, I should admit that I've never seen the play on which "Die, Mommie, Die!" is based. If you only hear that the star is a drag queen, then you might have an idea about the movie's content. However, most of it is not particularly flamboyant. Campy, yes, but it has a serious side. Charles Busch (who wrote the play) plays a retired singer whose actions cause an awkward series of events. Despite the focus on the singer and her family, I thought that the most intriguing character was the Bible-quoting housekeeper played by Frances Conroy (of "Six Feet Under" and "American Horror Story"). Despite her religious zealotry, this woman knows a lot more than we realize!

Basically, "Die, Mommie, Die!" is a spoof of/homage to movies featuring grand dames. I wouldn't go so far as to call this a great movie or even a hilarious one, but it's worth seeing. I interpreted it as a look at fame's fickle nature and the difficulty of acknowledging the changing world (such as what the singer finds out about her son). Now that I've seen it, I'd like to see the play, as well as Busch's other plays. A fine addition to the pantheon of LGBT cinema.

Also starring Jason Priestley, Philip Baker Hall, Stark Sands, Natasha Lyonne and Nora Dunn.

As a fan of Charles Busch's work, I really looked forward to seeing this film. I have to admit I was not impressed. I've seen and directed many of Busch's stage plays, and while they are hysterical and fun when live and on-stage, they simply don't translate to film very well. Busch's portrayal of Angela is outstanding -- strong yet almost pathetic; however, I felt it was one dimensional. No true highs and lows. After about 30 minutes or so, I kept hoping he would just let loose and go 'Joan Crawford' on us. The supporting cast, with the exception of Frances Conroy (Bootsie) were simply dull and lackluster. I couldn't help but feel that the actors weren't directed very well; they didn't capture the 'over-the-top' attitude that is a necessity in this genre (camp). Certainly, it is a beautiful cast, but I still didn't buy their performances. If you want to truly enjoy Busch's work, see it live and on-stage. Trust me, you won't be sorry!

Charles Busch has a cult following in New York City, as he's known for his hilarious plays. A few years ago, he broke into the mainstream with the Broadway hit, Tale of the Allergist's Wife, and now there's even a documentary about him. An immensely talented writer, he knows the classic female legends genre backwards and forwards and can play one with the best of them.

"Die Mommie Die" was originally a Busch play, and the film, albeit low budget, is excellent - actually, all the better because it's low budget. It's a combo of "Dead Ringer," "The Big Cube," "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane," and "Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte." Busch plays Angela Arden, who performed with her twin sister Barbara. Angela broke with Barbara and made it big, while Barbara wound up in broken-down supper clubs. Barbara eventually died. Today Angela, a real tramp, is living the high life with a rich husband, a gay son, a Lolita-type daughter, and a young boyfriend (Jason Priestley).

Busch is hilarious, looking a bit like Kathy Griffin, wearing fabulous clothes and looking darn good.

This film has a gay sensibility, but if you love the old movies it's based on, you should enjoy it. Very high camp.

I saw the film in Washington, D.C., but wasn't that impressed. It's head and shoulders above "Psycho Beach Party," but the film never really soared. Charles Busch is completely into the role as Angela. While he has a number of facial and body-language expressions that were quite funny, these grow stale as the film goes on. And Angela's lines are never particularly funny (although I did laugh at the way the dialogue does mock 40s and 50s B-movie female-schemers).

Phillip Baker Hall never quite fits into the role as Sol Sussman (he channels Walter Matthau far too much). His delivery seems rushed and sloppy, and he lacks physical presence in the film.

Natasha Lyonne never makes me believe she's acting at all in the film. "Edith" is a role made for Ricki Lake circa 1984 rather than for an edgy, realistic actress like Lyonne. I never quite felt that Edith was really angry or suspicious or jealous; I always felt like I was watching Lyonne act.

Stark Sands (what a body!) does a fairly decent job as boy-slut Lance, even though he's given inconsistent material to work with (one scene he's banging the faculty at his college, the next he's running away from Jason Priestley's bisexual P.I., the next he's forcing Priestley into sex -- what gives?). Sands, however, seems to be playing a queeny version of himself rather than really getting into the role of the "coded" teenage homosexual (a la Sal Mineo in "Rebel Without A Cause" or Russ Tamblyn in "Peyton Place").

Frances Conroy is clearly having a ball as boozy Bootsie, the maid. But in most of her scenes, she doesn't appear too deep into the role. Her best effort is when she drunkenly fantasizes about ruining her mistress' gowns. Now that is just good, solid acting. It's very good.

This is a good first effort for director Mark Rucker, who did a great job in defining the look of the film. But, as this film was shot in a mere 18 days (and with most scenes getting only one long take), there is very little editing in the film -- and it shows. Editing can help create the emotional impact of scenes, and Rucker and editor Philip Harrison were really unable to do that. (Cinematographer Kelly Evans did a professional job, but her work is not inspired. Nor is it even derivative of 50s B-movies, which could have made the film truly funny.)

But super-kudos to costume designers Michael Bottari, Ronald Case and Thomas Marquez for their outstanding efforts!

...but it wasn't. It's like the director thought he was making a comedic Far From Heaven. I'll give it this though: the plot twist was a surprise to me. However, I think it was a surprise because we were given maybe two clues about it and the movie moved so unbearably slow that I lost interest in anything but the one-liners half an hour into the film. It was under two hours but I seriously thought it felt like it was nearly three hours, I was shocked at how short it actually was.

It's time indie actors, writers, and producers learn that cock jokes are only funny to immature gay men and tween girls. Gay sex is not any funnier than straight sex. A man in a dress who can't act isn't any better than a woman who can't act. And what was with Charles' Dame Edna impersonation popping up occassionally?

In short, if you're a fan of Queer Eye or Queer as Folk, this is probably right up your alley. If you read Bitch magaine or don't fit the stereotype of gay men, don't bother. I expect this film to do very well with gay people in semi-rural areas when its released on video.

I remember seeing, Stark Sands, on HBO's "Six feet under." I thought he was very attractive. Now that I saw, "Die mommie, die," I think Stark Sands is not only attractive, but an enormous talent! Co-starring with jason Priestly, Natosha Lyonne, and the entire superb cast, Stark Sands has a feirceness in his pretty green eyes that brought his character to life in an astonishing roar. I have rented this great send-up of classic movies at least 4 times. And now I am going to purchase it. This is one of the finest "indie" films I have seen since, "Sordid lives." And it also has made me a huge, Stark Sands fan. I look forward to seeing more of his acting in the future.

Just saw the opening night at the Sundance Film Festival. Those who have seen Charles Busch's previous adaptation of his own play Psycho Beach Party will find themselves in familiar territory, but Die Mommie Die benefits from Busch's larger and more central role that better showcases his talents. The supporting cast is also great, and it's smaller size allows each character to be more sharply drawn. If you were even a little distracted and amused by Psycho Beach Party while channel surfing late at night you will REALLY enjoy Die Mommie Die, a real work of filmmaking rather than feeling like filmed theater.

As far as the premiere, the audience loved it. Unfortunately Charles Busch wasn't there, but it was great to see Jason Priestly, Natasha Lyonne, Frances Conroy, and Stark Sands come up for the Q & A afterwards. Frances Conroy is SO nice and even let me take my picture with her (big Six Feet Under fan) while Jason Priestly looked great and completely recovered from his accident. Natasha and Stark seemed to have become friends in real life when I saw them in the parking lot afterwards. Sundance is great that way, everyone's so laid back and informal at the small screenings.

See this movie if you get the chance!