criterionforum.org

I wouldn't mind doing that, actually! But The Diane Linkletter Story is available for free viewing online somewhere and I'm sure it will only be a matter of time before all the rest is uploaded to youtube so that everyone can enjoy them.

John Waters Bringing Polyester to Jacksonville in Glorious Odorama!

I live in the very south, that would be worth traveling to, no? To see a live John Waters commentary, shit, his commentaries are the sole reason I became a fan. Shit, I gotta go see that...shit.

I just bought his art book, Unwatchable. It's a nice big, thin, book, of Waters' recent artwork. The cover is all black, with the title, the picture Amazon shows is the first page, and he's burning a pile of dvds and screenplays. One of the dvds is Spheeris' The Kid And I! That's a dirty shame...

Matt wrote:John Waters, in a Q&A at Nerve, talks about why his early films go unseen.[/i]

Thanks for the link Matt, although my visual memory of Blossoms in the Dust is forever changed.

Stan Czarnecki wrote:I don't know if this has already been mentioned, but it's a very nice Q&A with John.

My favorite part: Favorite bottle of wine: I'm not a wine snob -- vinegar from a witch's asshole will do.

John Waters interviewed on Fresh Air, discussing his new CD, as well as Douglas Sirk.

Is there any fucking way on earth that one can see Susan Slade? If not a DVD, then a video, a bootleg, something!

Waters' early teenager-stuff is mostly interesting as a historical artifact, not an accomplished work by itself. When Waters made stuff like HAG IN A BLACK LEATHER JACKET he didn't even know what editing was and called the rough-cut that came out of the camera a finished film. Not until MONDO TRASHO did he make "real" films.

I don't know if this has already been mentioned, but it's a very nice Q&A with John.

More wonderful stuff about the genius. Here is a piece about John's astonishing book collection and here is one about his work in photography/collage.

John Waters on the Daily Show

On this site there's an interesting top ten list of John's, although I have no idea from which date. The site seems to be down right now, so I'm posting his list here:

1. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
2. Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)
3. Therese (1986)
4. Baby Doll (1956)
5. In a Year of 13 Moons (1978)
6. Brink of Life (1958)
7. Mademoiselle (1966)
8. All That Heaven Allows (1955)
9. Rope (1948)
10. The Tingler (1959)

And then I also found this.

That's a Warner title and it should be forthcoming. They've just put out A Summer Place and have said that there will be more Delmer Daves in the future.

The man is so brilliant, I just wish he made better movies these days. I think Divine was an essential collaborator--truly equivalent to Dietrich and von Sternberg. Neither is the same or as good without the other.

In fact, he really ought to be making documentaries now.

Matt wrote:In fact, he really ought to be making documentaries now.

In a way, all his movies are. And besides, he's doing so many these days, just not as a director.

Lino wrote:

Matt wrote:In fact, he really ought to be making documentaries now.

In a way, all his movies are.

Well, they used to be. Everything after Polyester just seems inauthentic and weirdly artificial, like an Rogers and Hammerstein musical without the music. I mean, I couldn't for one second buy into Cecil B. Demented or A Dirty Shame, probably because of the presence of so many recognizable actors. If he's going to continue making feature films, why can he not go out and discover the new David Lochary instead of trying to get Stephen Dorff to impersonate him? I'm sure the argument will be made that he needs Hollywood names to get funding, but at this stage, isn't his name really the only selling point? It's not like Tracey Ullmann is a big box office draw. Why not just go find some crazy Baltimoron with a big hairdo? If she can't act, all the better. Who would ever have wished that Mink Stole or Edith Massey were better actors?

He needs to take a tip from David Lynch. Drop the crew, pick up a cheap camera, and go shoot a movie.

No Boom? No Faster, Pussycat Kill Kill? Didn't he say it was the greatest film ever made? I guess the new breathtaking Beyond the Valley of the Dolls DVD changed his mind. But I personally think Dolls is a lot better than Pussycat. What's up with Therese? I'm going to have to netflix that and Mademoiselle. Is Brink of Life available on DVD anywhere?

Here's the top ten list that Water submitted to Sight & Sound in 2002:

All That Heaven Allows (Sirk)
Baby Doll (Kazan)
Boom! (Losey)
Brink of Life (Bergman)
The Chelsea Girls (Warhol)
8 1/2 (Fellini)
Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (Meyer)
La Maman et la putain (Eustache)
The Tingler (W. Castle)
The Wizard of Oz (Fleming)

I don't think this list has anything to do with the recent release of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, I would guess it's a much older list than his S&S list from 2002. Still, interesting to compare. Now Mademoiselle is obviously based on a book by one of Waters' gods, Jean Genet, but has he ever really written or said anything about Therese?

Well, if we allow ourselves to have dynamic lists and top tens, I think the same applies to him. It's like having favorite songs -- it changes as the years go by. Some stay, some go. Just like films.

Has anyone caught his new show? I'd rather he be making movies, but going by his last couple efforts, I'll take good TV over mediocore film.

Highway 61 wrote:Has anyone caught his new show?

Yeah. It's terrible. But to his credit, he's only in each episode for about one minute.

That's too bad. His Daily Show appearance lead me to believe it would be something worthwhile, and that he was very much at the center of it.

Til Death Do Us Apart is a waste of time. I'd rather be watching Unsolved Mysteries reruns.

Well, he is writing his children's movie. So we might expect his ultimate perverted tribute to The Wizard of Oz.

His next film will be called Fruitcake and is a Children's Christmas movie, he hoping it will be released Fall 2008.

Solaris wrote:His next film will be called Fruitcake and is a Children's Christmas movie, he hoping it will be released Fall 2008.

May I ask for your source?

John interviewed about Tennessee Williams.

Stan Czarnecki wrote:

Solaris wrote:His next film will be called Fruitcake and is a Children's Christmas movie, he hoping it will be released Fall 2008.

May I ask for your source?

It's all over the news.

I love John Waters as much as it's possible for someone I don't know personally. Beyond just his films, he's cutivated an image and personality that I just find so appealing. I love his books, his commentaries, and his love of trash. A few months ago I attended a drag beauty pageant that he hosted, and it was one of the most fun nights of my life. This is a great thread and I hope people keep adding info to it. I really enjoyed the look at his ipod, I'd die if his DVD collection ever made it to the internet.

Great Tennessee Williams interview, thanks for posting it!

John Waters and Divine on David Letterman.

First info, from Waters himself:

[quote]I've written a terribly wonderful children's Christmas adventure called Fruitcake. It's mostly children in it and Johnny Knoxville's the father. I don't know what it's going to be rated so please don't ask me that tortured question. Because I was wrong last time when I said “Râ€

anyone who hasn't heard it already, Waters released a curated Christmas album a few years back, some great Christmas deep-cuts from mostly Baltimore acts on that one, definitely worth seeking out.

I wonder if Waters will cut tracks from this Kay Martin Christmas album into the soundtrack of his new movie? The album in itself is priceless and so are the song titles! Very Waters! Take a look and while you're at it, download it. It's a blast.

Just found out about this while looking for something else: his one-man show, This Filthy World, is coming out on DVD at the end of this month.

About that cover artwork: I don't know whether to hate it or love it but since it's Waters, I think it's fantastically appropriate and he would kind of approve it for all its horrid magnificence.