POLYESTER

US, 1981, 79 minutes, Colour.
Divine, Tab Hunter, Mink Stole, Edith Massey.
Directed by John Waters.

Polyester is a film made by John Waters, noted for his small budget parodies which intend to offend as many people as possible. He considers him self an arbiter of bad taste. Outrageous films starring Divine were Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble. With Polyester, he has a bigger budget and is aiming at a wider audience. The film presents bad taste and parody in a frequently humorous way for a wide audience - which disappointed the devotees of his earlier films.

Once again his star is the oversized Divine. She is matched by '50s star Tab Hunter. The film is a parody on soap operas - without the subtlety of such popular series doing similar things as Soap. The film catches a lot of the presuppositions in audiences about melodrama, sentimentality and soap opera and parodies them, often cruelly. The film was made in Odorama, it has a corny oddball professor lecturing the audience at the opening about Francine's acute sense of smell. Audiences are given a card with ten spots which they scratch at indicated times for a sweet or sour smell. The film can be enjoyed as bad taste without this gimmick of Odorama.

1. An entertaining film? How enjoyable? The work of John Waters, small budget, humour, satire? Bad taste and vulgarity? The gimmick of Odorama and its impact? The high school corny presentation by the professor at the beginning?

2. The satire popular in the '70s of television series like Soap, of films like John Belushi's Neighbours? American images, parody, laughter, madness? Subtlety? Blatant parody? How much insight?

3. The quality of production: sets, colour photography, the capturing of aspects of suburbia, exaggerations, humorous lighting, editing? The use of the phone? Sounds? Musical score?

4. The quality of the comment and its effect? The contrivances, playing up to audience expectations, enjoyable parody of conventions American style?

5. Waters' use of Divine as the focus of the film? As an actress, as a screen presence, parody of femininity, her size, her preening herself as a soap opera heroine? Blatant parody? The use of Tab Hunter with his '50s romantic image? Edith Massey and the underground American actors and actresses?

6. The portrait of the American family: Francine and her children, her qualities as mother, her size, clashes, make-up etc.? The house, the meals, the bed? Her husband and his pornography theatre and her being deceived? Her children ignoring her? Cuddles as her maid, winning the money, her best friend? Her mother and her criticisms - and eventually her betrayal? Her feelings, the phone calls? Her going downhill: the satire on the descent into alcoholism, dreams, Alcoholics Anonymous, her repentant children, the confrontation? Tod rescuing her and her falling in love? Happiness together? Her being deceived? The use of soap opera elements to highlight her character? The ending?

7. The situations and their familiarity, sentiment, melodrama? Everything happening to the one family? The cumulative effect of all the crises?

8. The husband, home, the theatre, his appearing on TV, sexual relationships, eloping with Sandra, his being caught, the divorce, the breakdown of his car, Sandra and Ernie being killed?

9. The satire on mass murderers? The son and his use of shoes? The 'Baltimore Foot Stomper'? Punk appearance, television information and warnings? The melodramatic presentation of his victims and his stomping them? The irony of his being an artist? His arrest, prison, release, further artwork, the change and seeing him repentant and at home? The Clockwork Orange elements of his reform?

10. Sandra as the sexy secretary? Relationship with Ernie? Going off with him? Death?

11. The irony of Cuddles and her wealth? Heinz as her chauffeur? The picnics etc.? Detective work? The dance and romance? Helping Francine? Marrying Heinz?

12. Tod, Tab Hunter's image, the dance, the car? The reality of his deception ? the plot, the drugs? The violence of his death?

13. Francine's mother and her satire on the oppressive mother? Hospital, pressure? The revelation about the plot? Her death?

14. The presentation of squalor as a basis for humour? Niceness and laughter at it?

15. The effect of the experience of different kinds of film making, satire? Entertainment, insight?