The “is ‘Rocky Horror’ problematic?” debate is back, but there’s one detail everyone’s missing
apparently debating whether or not The Rocky Horror Picture Show is “problematic.”Another year, another debate rages on over the 1975 musical horror-comedy’s status as a timeless cult classic.
Is it an all-singing, all-dancing celebration of sexuality and queerness? Or is it an artifact of a bygone era that perpetuates “harmful” stereotypes?You might think we’ve already exhausted every angle of the discussion, but it’s been a hot topic on the internet all week, so in the words of the denizens of The Frankenstein Place: “Let’s do the Time Warp again!”Subscribe to our newsletter for your front-row seat to all things entertainment with a sprinkle of everything else queer.For a quick refresher: Rocky Horror is the story of newly engaged couple Brad and Janet (Barry Bostwick & Susan Sarandon, both hot) who get lost in a storm and are forced to seek shelter in a mysterious castle owned by mad scientist Dr.
Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry). Chaos, sexcapades, aliens, and some killer musical numbers ensue.Directed by Jim Sharman and based on Richard O’Brien’s (who also plays Riff Raff) hit stage musical of the same name, the film didn’t create much of a stir in the U.S.
upon its theatrical release in ’75, but it found a second life in midnight screenings across the country, gradually growing a dedicated fan base who helped turn it into one of the biggest indie movie successes of all time.Working in the industry since the ’70s, Joel Thurm has plenty of surprising stories to share about gay Hollywood.Not for nothing, a large portion of that cult following has always been queer fans who feel seen by Rocky Horror‘s embrace of sexual fluidity and androgyny.
