Whenever anybody asks me what my favourite movie of all time is, I don’t even have to hesitate before bursting into the chorus of Time Warp. Between the fish net tights, the fusion of rock and roll and musical, the controversy it caused; the Rocky Horror Picture show was before its time and it’s my all-time favourite. The Screenplay and music was even done by Richard O’Brien, who is a native to the town I was born in. You can imagine my excitement when I found out that Fox was updating my favourite cult classic; words could not describe the anticipation.
To state the obvious, I am not a director, nor a producer, nor an actor, nor do I play any role in the film industry. But this is I, a devoted fan, giving my initial thoughts on the short but sweet thirty-second trailer that was just released by Fox this week. So, come up to the lab, and let’s see what’s on the slab…
Rumours of a Rocky Horror remake started spreading quite some time ago–around 2002/2003–but it wasn’t until the final quarter of 2015 that we finally got word of some potential cast members and its scheduled release date in late October this year. I was immediately pleased to find out that Tim Curry would be coming back to participate in this remake, hopefully advising and guiding the new Frank N. Furter on how to play the role just right. Any Rocky Horror fan will know of the brilliance of Tim Curry, and how he changed the way the world looked at masculinity and sex in the 70’s, so finding somebody to take his place would certainly be the biggest task at hand. On top of this, Curry playing the Criminologist is a pleasant surprise, making me somewhat nostalgic, even though I wasn’t even born until two decades after the movie’s release.
<br>
My initial thoughts, and admittedly they are still present, on Laverne Cox playing Dr. Frank N. Furter were torn. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. As much as I was so pleased to see Fox showing diverse representation in this remake, I was a bit disappointed. For me personally, half the joy of Rocky Horror was seeing a straight, cissexual male playing a drag role, unapologetically dressing in drag and having sex with other “straight” males in the cinematic glory of the 70’s. Don’t get me wrong–there is no doubt that Laverne Cox has the character, personality, and ability to not only play the role, but make it her own; it just seemed like an abstract choice, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t excited to see what she is going to do with it.
Speaking of racial diversity, this is 2016. Even though this is a remake of the original, there is no reason why a movie in this day and age should be made with an all white-cast. I’m very pleased Kenny Ortega (the director) is going in the same direction as Thomas Kail, who directed Grease: Live, and including racial-diversity throughout the cast. Richard O’Brien lived to push boundaries, which is exactly the purpose of the Rocky Horror Picture show to begin with. So seeing Christina Milian and Ben Vereen on the cast list was brilliant. Also, if I may say so myself, I truly believe Christina might give the original Magenta (Patricia Quinn) a run for her money. Again, I’m excited to see how she takes on the role. On the other hand, I was discouraged when I saw the new Brad and Janet. Why, I don’t know? Not that Victoria Justice and Ryan McCartan can’t do a good job, I was just really underwhelmed, these choices seemed predictable, standard Fox casting. But obviously I can’t make my final opinion yet, so we’ll just have to wait and see.
**The original cast of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, pictured in 2016**
Overall, I’m very excited, to say the least. I’m looking forward to the iconic catch phrases, musical numbers and Dr Frank N. Furter gags. A part of me is also anxious, because like any remake, this can either go so right or so wrong. It’s easy to write the Rocky Horror Picture show off as a strange cult film, but actually, it’s very important to the LGBT community as you could argue it was the springboard to the conversation about what it means to be a man, and you can have a full face of makeup and still be a strong, respectable male. The same goes just for the misfit kids who needed something to relate to, and here it was served on a rock and roll platter. Basically, It’s important to execute this remake perfectly, but late October seems a long time to wait, hopefully the wait will be worth and we’ll get something amazing that will thrill me, chill me and fulfil me. Maybe, hopefully, who knows.
